Archive for the ‘Beer and Health’ Category

Reunion Beer Kicks Off 2010 Fundraising Campaign With Release of Belgian-Style Scotch Ale

REUNION: A Beer for Hope, now in its fourth year, today announced the release of its 2010 special brew, a Belgian? Style Scotch Ale. Bison Brewing in California returns for its fourth consecutive year as a brewing and fundraising partner, and Terrapin Beer Company in Georgia returns for its second year. The beer will be released this month in both 22 ounce bottles and draft in 14 states (California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Minnesota, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Alabama New Jersey and Pennsylvania). A number of kick?off events are scheduled in late June and will be posted at the REUNION site (www.reunionbeer.com) and the REUNION Facebook group page (www.causes.com/causes/90009/).

REUNION Beer is the inspiration and collaboration of Alan Shapiro, president of SBS Imports, Pete Slosberg, creator of Pete’s Wicked Ale™, and Virginia MacLean, long time friend and colleague, as a way to raise awareness of and donations for The Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research. All met during the early days of Pete’s Brewing Company. Virginia passed away from complications from Multiple Myeloma in June 2007, four months after the initial release of Reunion.

“Virginia emphasized the importance of continuing our support of IMBCR,” noted REUNION Co. Founder Alan Shapiro. “She believed wholeheartedly in the work of The Institute and understood the value of bringing hope to others. Every dollar raised helps us honor Virginia’s memory.”

To date REUNION has raised in excess of $130,000 for The Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research (www.imbcr.org) via profits from beer sales, retailer fundraising events, and private donations. “Every dollar we raise goes directly to IMBCR to fund research,” added Co?Founder Pete Slosberg. “We hope beer lovers everywhere will consider making a small donation via the REUNION site, Facebook cause page or directly at IMBCR’s site.”

2010 REUNION Beer
This year’s beer was developed in concert by brewmasters Spike Buckowski of Terrapin, Dan Del Grande of Bison, and REUNION co?founder Pete Slosberg. It is a Belgian-Style Scotch Ale – a nod to Virginia’s heritage. It is brewed to an original gravity of 1078 using 5 different malts and hopped with East Kent Goldings to 35 IBU’s. It is fermented with a high gravity Trappist yeast and is 7.0% alcohol by volume. Each brewery has created a unique interpretation of the REUNION label.

The beer is deep amber in color with an off white full head. It has a complex malt palate with subtle spice notes enhanced by the finesse of the Trappist yeast. The beer finishes with balancing and pleasing hop notes.

About IMBCR
The Institute for Myeloma and Bone Cancer Research is dedicated to independent research seeking to develop effective therapies to improve the quality of life and longevity of patients with myeloma and bone cancer. Myeloma and bone cancer are two of the fastest growing diseases in the world, afflicting more than one million people in the U.S. alone.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 26, 2010

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
RICK LYKE, APR
PINTS FOR PROSTATES INC.
704-916-6152
704-340-2840

Pints for Prostates Launches “Donate for Dad”

Program Enables Donors to Buy Dad a Virtual Beer for Father’s Day

Charlotte, N.C. – Pints for Prostates, a campaign reaching men through the universal language of beer, is launching “Donate for Dad” a fundraising campaign aimed at supporting the mission of the Us TOO International Prostate Education and Support Network by offering donors the chance to buy Dad a virtual beer for Father’s Day.

“The Pints for Prostates campaign hosts events around the country, but many people are unable to attend and still want to help in the fight against prostate cancer,” said Rick Lyke, a 49-year-old Charlotte, N.C., marketing executive and drinks journalist who founded Pints for Prostates after successful prostate cancer surgery in April 2008. “Donate for Dad is a simple and easy way for people to honor their Dads in a way that will make a big difference to men who are battling prostate cancer.”

With Donate for Dad, supporters buy a virtual pint ($5), six pack ($10), case ($25) or keg ($100) for Dad and 100 percent of the net proceeds go directly to Us TOO International, which is celebrating 20 years of helping men fighting prostate cancer. As part of the program an eCard is sent to the donor’s Father telling them about the donation.

People can visit www.pintsforprostates.org and click on the link to Donate for Dad.

Prostate cancer kills nearly 28,000 men in America each year. Few people realize there are roughly as many new prostate cancer cases diagnosed annually in this country as there are new breast cancer cases. For the men battling prostate cancer and their families, the Us TOO International Prostate Cancer Education and Support Network is a place they can turn to for reliable information about the disease and treatment options.

“Whether you say Cheers, Prost, Salud, Slainte, L’chaim or something else when you are toasting, this year you can honor Dad by helping a great cause,” Lyke said.

Since being launched in late 2008, Pints for Prostates has reached nearly 100 million people through a combination of donated advertising, news articles, appearances at beer festivals, and coverage on websites and blogs. In 2009, program was featured at the Livestrong Global Cancer Summit in Dublin, Ireland, and profiled on CNN’s Vital Signs program hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta. During the 2010 NHRA season the Yonke Motorsports Pro Stock is racing with the Pints for Prostates logo on the hood of its car. In April, a team of athletes from Columbus, Ohio, ran with prostate cancer survivor Patrick Grubbe in the Boston Marathon wearing uniforms with the Pints for Prostates logo.

About Pints for Prostates

Pints for Prostates, is a 501(c)3 campaign that uses the universal language of beer to encourage men to take charge of their health, was founded by prostate cancer survivor Rick Lyke in 2008. The grassroots effort raises awareness among men of the importance of regular health screenings and PSA testing by making appearances at beer festivals, social networking and pro bono advertising. Pints for Prostates supports the Us TOO International Prostate Cancer Education and Support Network, a 501(c)3 charity that works to support, educate and advocate for men with prostate cancer and their families. More information is available at www.pintsforprostates.org. Pints for Prostates also has a presence on Facebook and Twitter (@pints4prostates).

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In the constant struggle to make room for beer, we are having a big-ass SALE on all beer books! There are some great ones here covering brewing, beer guides, cookbooks and history. Take your pick!

• He Said Beer, She Said Wine
• Extreme Brewing
• The Brewmaster’s Table
• The Good Beer Book
• Beer Drinkers Guide to Munich
• Stephen Beaumont’s Brewpub Cookbook
• Good Bottled Beer Guide
• A Beer History
• Prost: The Story of German Beer
• Cooking With Beer Season By Season
• Bartender’s Beer Cookbook
• Travels With Barley
• Man Walks Into A Pub
• Ambitious Brew
• I Love You More Than Beer (novelty)

Leah McGrath, the Ingles dietitian, joins us during this week’s Gluten-free Fair in Asheville for a special RSVP-only tasting on Thursday. We’ll be sampling gluten-free beer selections along with gluten-free munchies. Gluten-free snacks will be donated by Ingles and light hors d’ouvres will be provided by True Color Catering. The cost for this tasting is $8.00/per person. Or, you may pay $10.00/per person and will donate $2.00 to our charity, FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Please RSVP on the Facebook Event. Any remaining spaces will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis. Thirty spots are available.

BARD’S Dragon’s Gold
LAKEFRONT New Grist
GREEN’S Amber
GREEN’S Dubbel
GREEN’S Tripel

Yesterday, it was announced the macro giant, Molson-Coors, is producing a bottle-only “clear beer” targeting women beer drinkers. As most of the stories are coming out of the UK, it’s unclear at this point whether this product will only be in the European market or if it will rear its ugly head on US shelves. It’s part of Molson-Coors’ Bittersweet Partnership, a business unit that monitors its “female-oriented beer activity.” (Whatever the hell that means.) Several sources cite that beer (in the UK) is seen as a “man’s drink” and that women are so totally obsessed with calories and having their beer spiked, that this is the type of product they are looking for. Good grief, are you for real, Molson-Coors? Do you have a clue? Have we learned nothing from the crap that was Zima? Have you heard of the Brewers Association? Can I come over there and run a target group for you? I lived in London. I like it there. Just pay my travel expenses.

First off, let me say this: This is utterly offensive. It’s stereotyping, it’s sexist, it’s wrong. I actually had a dream about this last night (in the strange scenario that I was having a heated conversation over said beer with Prince at Luella’s BBQ, but my weird dreams are a whole different story, and never mind that I’m heartbroken that didn’t actually happen). Here’s a quote from MetroUK:

‘Women have more taste receptors and are more receptive to bitter flavours, so there is an opportunity to launch a more challenging beer for women,’ said survey spokeswoman Kristy McCready. … ‘The research indicated it was a myth that women want light fruity beers, which made us sit up and rethink our approach.’

So, women want more than light fruity beers, so you’re going to make a low-calorie clear beer? Huh? With that quote, spokeswoman Kristy should be fired. Like, now. Today. Yesterday even.

The beer will only be served in bottles, not draught, because of the drug-tampering issue. I don’t see how this is helping any beer education as beer should be consumed out of a glass, regardless of the packaging. All this falls under a push in the UK with a new group called Dea Latis—which according to Marketing Magazine, is the Celtic goddess of beer and water—that will aim to “bring beer to women.” Dea Latis is even backed by CAMRA (the Campaign for Real Ale). I see the irony in this being called “beer-water” (Dea Latis); I have a hard time believing that this product falls in the category of “real ale.” Truth be told, I despise Dea Latis already for perpetuating the myth that women don’t like beer.

What I’d like to see is someone, like Pete Brown, tackle this nonsense in the UK just as he has over the neo-prohibitionists. I’d love to see CAMRA rip Molson-Coors a new one. Women drink beer. Women like beer. We don’t need some pansy-ass special marketing ploy to make us drink it. And we don’t need a crappy macro brewer to make another misguided crappy product targeted to women because you have crappy ideas, a crappy marketing department and a crappy approach to women beer drinkers everywhere.

The best part? The beer is yet unnamed. So, have at it, women beer drinkers. What would you name this misguided product?

**This post is the opinion of a female craft beer drinker.**