Archive for the ‘Beer’ Category
August 14th, 2008
By Scott N. Howe
I know that many drinkboston readers are not above downing a watery, low-rent beer from time to time, and I’ve seen, first-hand, how many of our area’s top bartenders consistently go for the gusto of a Schlitz, Bud or PBR when their work is done (a.k.a. Miller Time).
Which brings us to the recent high-profile hijacking of America’s own Anheuser-Busch by those Belgian bullies at InBev. Does it matter to you that the all-American brand is now just a piece in the portfolio of some multinational conglomerate? Pabst Blue Ribbon sure thinks it does. Recently, the folks at PBR sent out an e-mail questionnaire asking drinkers if it mattered where their beer was brewed and by whom, all the while subtly suggesting that PBR was the one and only defense against the hordes of sudsy foreign-owned invaders. Kinda silly, if you ask me.
Look, we all know that in the booze world, perception can trump taste, and perception is certainly the driving force behind the lawnmower beer revival. The taste differences between PBR, High Life, Schlitz, ‘Gansett, et al. are small. (Try a blind taste test. I did.) What’s large, however, is brand loyalty, or, in the case of these retro beers, anti-brand loyalty. For example, PBR became an underground hit with hipsters not because of taste but because of stealth marketing, nostalgia, and low, low prices. Oh, the perception that Pabst is some kind of kindly, mom-and-pop operation, unlike Mega-Bud, didn’t hurt either.
That said, do you really know your retro beer of choice? And, do you have any idea what value-priced swills are cleverly vying for your kitschy beer dollar?
Let us know how you feel about all this — that is if you’re brave enough to admit that you drink these beers in the first place.
Tags: cheap American beer
Posted in Beer, Booze in the news | 20 Comments »
June 23rd, 2008
In my latest Ms. Mug column for Ale Street News, I make the case for Boston as a great beer town. Writers from Philadelphia and New York City have already weighed in on their respective metropoli. I was more than happy to add the Hub to the fray, as anybody who read Three cheers for beer in the Hub knows. And coming up: a review of Boston’s first American Beer Fest, which took place over the weekend at the World Trade Center.
Tags: best beer cities
Posted in Beer | 2 Comments »
May 2nd, 2008
That’s how many beers will be on tap this weekend at the Cambridge Brewing Co.‘s 19th anniversary fest. Red God IPA — a hop bomb that the brewpub created years ago as a rebuke to the Miller Brewing Co’s insipid and briefly popular fake microbrew, Red Dog — will be featured. So will selections from head brewer Will Meyers’ new cask cellar, a rich breeding ground for complex, aged, Belgian-inspired sour ales.
Which is to say that the CBC has come a long way since 1989, when it opened with three draught beers that seemed exotically flavorful at the time: Regatta Golden, Cambridge Amber and Charles River Porter. Recently, the CBC expanded its brewery, installing some new tanks and upgrading things a bit. That’s to get ready for next year’s 20 beers on tap, I imagine.
Come five o’clock tomorrow, I’ll be there, doing my part to empty those casks and toasting to the longest-running brewpub in greater Boston.
Tags: brewpub, cambridge brewing co.
Posted in Beer | 3 Comments »
April 11th, 2008
Established: 2002
Specialty: Beer
Prices: Moderate
Atmosphere: Beer-loving ladies and gents congregate here en masse for top-notch Belgian and other artisanal beers, a friendly vibe and a choice of two bars adorned with authentic Belgian taps and brewery decor.
See Best Boston bars for address and contact info.
If the ho-hum lager Stella Artois is what you equate with “Belgian beer,” then get yourself over to the Publick House in Brookline (1648 Beacon St.) ASAP. As you confront the beauty of a complex Trappist ale or bottle-conditioned saison (the Champagne of the beer world), you’ll realize what you’ve been missing.
The Publick House has so successfully schooled Boston-area residents in Belgium’s myriad beer styles that David Ciccolo, who owns the pub with his wife, Ailish Gilligan, was knighted in that country. Seriously. Shortly after opening the Monk’s Cell, a tap room adjacent to the Publick House, in 2007, Ciccolo traveled to Brussels to be inducted into the Chevalerie du Fourquet des Brasseurs, or Knighthood of the Brewer’s Mash Staff. Formidable! I’m guessing the fact that he used to be an actual brewer, at the defunct Tremont Brewing Co. in Charlestown, didn’t hurt.
The Publick House’s beer menu leans heavily toward Belgians (roughly 100 of them), but it has a very respectable selection from the best American craft breweries (Allagash, Sixpoint, etc.), plus the occasional tasty treat from elsewhere in Europe. Belgian breweriana decorates the walls, and the proper glassware is used. I loved my Atomium Grand Cru in its wide-mouthed goblet emblazoned with the beer’s namesake: Brussels’ kitschy monument to molecular science built for the 1958 World’s Fair. Naturally, there are mussels and frites on the menu, along with several dishes in the gastro-pub vein. And one of my favorite bartenders, Matt Tremblay (pictured above) — whom I’ve known since he worked at the Cambridge Brewing Co. back in my brewing days — is the top tap man there. His attitude echoes that of the Publick House as a whole: respectful of good beer without being snobby about it.
Beers range from $4 to $8 (and more for the rare stuff); dishes from roughly $8 to $20. Astute barflies will remember that the Publick House originally opened under the gaelic name Anam Cara. Naturally, confused patrons would walk in expecting an Irish pub. Ciccolo says that was an “admitted mistake,” and changed the name. The most frequent complaint about the Publick House is that it gets too crowded. “I don’t understand why more people aren’t doing what we’re doing,” Ciccolo says. Not surprisingly, he has plans to expand his empire, which now includes not only the Publick House and the Monk’s Cell, but Publick House Provisions (1706 Beacon St.), a specialty grocery store that features the beers on the Publick House menu, cheeses, Belgian chocolates, etc. Personally, I’m lobbying for a Belgian tap room in the Cambridge-Somerville area.
Posted in Beer, Boston bars | 7 Comments »
February 28th, 2008
Just in case you didn’t read to the end of the last post, I thought I’d point to the latest installment of my Ale Street News column, Ms. Mug. In The Pink Elephant in the Room, I call beer writers (and by extension all drinks writers) out for avoiding ever mentioning the fact that they drink for the buzz as much as the taste.
“…We’ve been policed, and have policed ourselves, into a sometimes comically polite way of talking about beer.”
And I admit I’m among the guilty. Not that everyone wants to hear the details of what a contented, appealing genius I become over the course of an evening at the bar (I’ll leave that kind of writing to commenters on Yelp.com). But to give the impression that all that gin and whiskey I knock back spends quality time with my taste buds would be dishonest. Kind of like when someone says he subscribes to Playboy for the articles.
Tags: beer writers, drunkenness
Posted in Beer | 3 Comments »
