Great American Beer Fest - Wisconsin Winners

Here are the Wisconsin medal winners from the 2008 Great American Beer Fest, held last week in Denver. I'd say that Henry Weinhard cleaned up!

Gold Metal Winners

Capital Brewery Co. Capital Autumnal Fire - German-Style Strong Bock
Central Waters Brewing Co. Bourbon Barrel Barleywine - Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer
MillerCoors Coors Light - America-Style Light Lager
MillerCoors Henry Weinhard's Hefeweizen - American-Style Hefeweizen

Silver Metal Winners

Dells Brewing Co. Dells Chief Amber Ale - Scottish-Style Ale
Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. Leinenkugel's Creamy Dark - American-Style Dark Lager
Lakefront Brewery New Grist - Gluten-Free Beer
MillerCoors Hamm's - American-Style Cream Ale or Lager
Titletown Brewing Co. Railyard Ale - German-Style Altbier

Bronze Metal Winners

Great Dane Pub & Brewing Co. Old Scratch Barley Wine '99 - Old Ale or Strong Ale
MillerCoors Keystone Light - American-Style Light Lager
MillerCoors Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve - American-Style Lager or Premium Lager
MillerCoors OE 800 - International-Style Pilsener
MillerCoors Henry Weinhard's Classic Dark - American-Style Dark Lager
MillerCoors Henry Weinhard's Blue Boar Pale Ale - American-Style Cream Ale or Lager

New Schlitz beer now available on tap

From JSOnline, the new "classic formula" Schlitz beer is now available in draft. Maybe I'll get a keg.

Pabst Brewing Co., which owns the Schlitz brand, has begun distributing the brand's "Classic 60s formula" in kegs to taverns in Milwaukee and other areas in an effort to meet demand for the beer. The demand for Schlitz in bottles has outpaced production, which is done under contract at a MillerCoors LLC brewery in Eden, N.C.

Compared with the Schlitz sold in cans, the reformulated Schlitz in bottles has a more full-bodied taste. Schlitz has not been served as draft since 1999.

Sleep well, sweet prince

From JSOnline, regarding Heather's favorite holiday-themed spiced malt beverage:

Leinenkugel drops Apple Spice, adds Nut

Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. is dropping its Apple Spice seasonal brand and replacing it with Leinenkugel's Fireside Nut Brown Lager, it was announced today.

The new holiday seasonal beer will be sold during November and December. The Chippewa Falls-based brewer says it will be "the perfect complement for holiday foods such as glazed hams, roasts, gravies, pies and pastries."

Apple Spice, which had been Leinenkugel's winter seasonal beer, is being dropped. Apple Spice had good sales, but its growth is currently limited by production costs and ingredient availability, a company spokeswoman said.

New beer technology

I don't know how I could have missed all of this new beer technology from Coors. Maybe it's because I avoid that swill.

Still, I think everyone can appreciate Coor's new way to drink beer faster than ever before. Maybe after the Miller/Coors merger we can enjoy some of these fine new technologies on cans of MillerCoors High Life Banquet Light.

From Brandweek.com:

Coors has introduced a “Vented Wide Mouth Can” for six and twelve packs of Coors Light and Coors Banquet. The new vented mouth directs airflow into the can to enhance the swigging experience for can drinkers.

The packaging is an evolution of last year’s introduction of the “Smooth Draft Vent Can,” which featured a wide opening that enabled the liquid to pour smoothly like a draught tap.

Last year, the No. 3 brewer also debuted its “Cold Activated Bottle” which features a thermochromatic label that turns the Rocky Mountain label blue when the beer reaches the optimum temperature.

This year they will also introduce a 24-ounce “Cold Activated Can” as well as distribute pint glasses with the Rocky Mountain logo that turns blue when beer is cold enough.

Miller Lite Brewers Collection

Starting next February, Miller is planning to test-marketing 3 new low-calorie beers, part of their new Miller Lite Brewers Collection. The three new beers are Blonde Ale, Amber, and Wheat, each with fewer calories and carbs than a typical beer for that style.

There aren't many successfully light beers in the increasingly popular craft-beer market. These beers should give college girls and fat guys who don't like beer another choice instead of just Miller Lite.

Miller Lite Brewers Collection Wheat will feature a subtle citrus character. Miller Lite Brewers Collection Amber is made with roasted malts and has a mild hop character. Miller Lite Brewers Collection Blonde Ale will offer a "crispness and slight maltiness balanced by a recognizable hop aroma."

For some reason, they won't be testing the new beers in Milwaukee. Minneapolis, Charlotte, San Diego, and Baltimore are the test cities.

Budweiser says Miller is mean

From JSOnline:
Miller Brewing Co. is ratcheting up its attack on rival Anheuser-Busch Cos. with a new TV spot that features some of Anheuser-Busch's most famous mascots: Clydesdale horses and a Dalmatian dog. The ad, which began running this week, shows a Dalmatian on a beer wagon pulled by Clydesdales. The dog, however, jumps into the open window of Miller beer truck - presumably enticed by Miller Lite having more taste and fewer carbs than Bud Light. Anheuser-Busch responded today with full-page ads in the Journal Sentinel, USA Today and other newspapers. The newspaper ads characterize the TV spot as "negative" and say Anheuser-Busch is responding by donating money to animal rescue groups.

Ha ha ha ha. How is that a negative ad, and who cares? Most dogs I know are exclusively Bud Light drinkers. On a related note, many of those same dogs enjoy eating their own poop.

There, I said it. Drinking Bud Light is just as bad as eating your own poop.

Great American Beer Fest Winners

The Great American Beer Festival is a three-day annual event hosted by the Brewers Association held at the end of September or the beginning of October in Denver. The GABF brings visitors from around the world to sample more than 1,600 different American beers. Over 100 beer judges from the US and abroad participate in the evaluations of one or more beer styles, ultimately judging 2,300 beers entered by more than 450 domestic breweries. Gold, silver and bronze medals in 69 beer-style categories are awarded, though not every medal is awarded in each category.

The 2007 GABF was this weekend. Here are the winning beers from Wisconsin:

Fruit Beer or Vegetable Beer - 94 Entries
Gold: Leinenkugel’s Berry Weiss, Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co., Chippewa Falls, WI
Silver: The Great Pumpkin, Elysian Brewing Co., Seattle, WA
Bronze: Raspberry Tart, New Glarus Brewing Co., New Glarus, WI

Herb and Spice Beer - 58 Entries
Gold: Summertime 69, Gunnison Brewery, Gunnison, CO
Silver: Sigda’s Green Chili, CooperSmith’s Pub & Brewing Co., Fort Collins,CO
Bronze: Frederick Miller Classic Chocolate Lager, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI

Gluten Free Beer - 8 Entries
Gold: RedBridge, Anheuser-Busch, Inc., St. Louis, MO
Silver: New Grist, Lakefront Brewery, Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: Shakparo Ale, Sprecher Brewing Co., Glendale, WI

I didn't realize that Sprecher made a gluten free beer. That is a definite Lakefront copycat rip-off. I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but is Milwaukee a big enough town for TWO gluten free microbrews?

American Style Lager - 33 Entries
Gold: Hamm’s, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
Silver: Miller Genuine Draft, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: McHenry Lager, Clipper City Brewing Co., Baltimore, MA

American Style Specialty Lager - 16 Entries
Gold: Icehouse, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
Silver: Mickey’s Ice, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: Mickey’s Malt Liquor, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI

Whoo-hoo! A Miller sweep. Too bad I don't like any of those beers.

European Style Dark/Münchner Dunkel - 18 Entries
Gold: Dunkelstilsken, CB & Pott’s Restaurant & Brewery (Highlands Ranch),
Silver: Capital Munich Dark, Capital Brewery Co., Inc., Middleton, WI
Bronze: Munich Dunkel, Redrock Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT

American-Style Dark Lager - 12 Entries
Gold: Roadrunner Red Lager, Thunder Canyon Brewery, Tucson, AZ
Silver: Henry Weinhard’s Classic Dark, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: Elevator Dark Horse, Elevator Brewing Co., Columbus, OH

Baltic-Style Porter - 13 Entries
Gold: Killer Kowalski, Flossmoor Station Brewing Co., Flossmoor, IL
Silver: Foothills Baltic Porter, Foothills Brewing, Winston-Salem, NC
Bronze: Amnesia, The Grumpy Troll Restaurant & Brewery, Mount Horeb, WI


The entire list of categories and winners is here: http://www.beertown.org/events/gabf/pdf/gabf07_winners.pdf


Update: The eight medals Miller won at the Brewers Association's annual Great American Beer Festival were more than any other beer brewer that took part in the competition.

Since 1996, Miller has won 113 awards between both the Great American Beer Festival and the bi-annual World Beer Cup, more than any other large brewer, according to the company.

Beer vs Baby Food

The New York Times has an interesting article about the proposed merger of SABMiller and Molson Coors in today's paper.

It seems that analysts feel that antitrust regulators will likely approve the merger. But a similar deal seeking to combine the No. 2 and No. 3 players in a consolidated industry — sometimes called a 3-to-2 deal, because it reduces the industry leaders from three to two — was blocked on antitrust grounds a few year ago.

That was Heinz’s attempt to buy the maker of Beech-Nut baby food, a $185 million transaction Heinz ended up abandoning.

Together, Heinz and Beech-Nut would have controlled nearly 33 percent of the retail baby-food market; Gerber, the industry leader, controlled 65 percent. Compare that with the numbers in Tuesday’s proposed deal, in which a combined MillerCoors would have a 29 percent share of the U.S. beer market, and Anheuser-Busch would have 49 percent.

Will the beer merger be approved?

Miller + Coors

Molson Coors Brewing Co. and SABMiller PLC plan to combine their U.S. operations in a joint venture. The new company will be named MillerCoors.

I'm not too happy about this, because Coors sucks. But I suppose BudweiserMiller would have been worse.

A spokesman says Miller Brewing will still have a strong presence in Milwaukee even though the company is combining its operations with Denver-based competitor Molson Coors. He says it's not clear where headquarters will be located.

Pete Coors, vice chairman of Molson Coors, will serve as chairman of the new company and Molson Coors Chief Executive Leo Kiely will be the new CEO of the joint venture. Tom Long, CEO of Miller, will be appointed president and chief commercial officer.

Here are the current beers made by Coors:

US:
Coors
Coors Light
Killian's Irish Red
Blue Moon
Keystone
Keystone Light
Keystone Ice
Zima XXX
Coors Winterfest
Wildwood Westlake lager
Allbright

UK:
Arc
Breaker
Caffrey’s
Carling
Grolsch
Hancock’s
Lamot
M & B
Stones Bitter
Toby
Worthington

Miller's Chinese Snow Beer

This is probably the most popular beer you never drank.

Snow - the Chinese beer brand partly owned by SABMiller is set to become the number-two beer brand in the world this year.

The beer is actually called Xue Hua, with literally means 'snow flower.'

Snow is the main national brand of CR Snow Breweries, (which SABMiller owns 49% of with China Resources Group Ltd.), which became the number-four brand in the world in 2006.

If it maintains its current rate of growth, it should easily overtake InBev's Skol to become the second largest brand in the world by volume behind Budweiser. It would also overtake Corona - owned by Grupo Modelo - which itself is 50%-owned by Anheuser-Busch.

Thanks to SABMiller's share of the Chinese joint venture, there is also a chance SABMiller could surpass InBev as the world's largest brewer.

Snow is China's leading beer brand and accounts for nearly 50% of the joint ventures' total sale volumes.

China accounts for about 18% of SABMiller's total sales by volume but it contributes little to group profit. Beer has traditionally been sold at a low price in China, with retailers and wholesalers absorbing much of the profit margin, leaving very little for breweries.

Gettelman $1000

From JS Online today.

The Museum of Beer & Brewing in Milwaukee has organized a tapping tonight of the the first Gettelman $1000 Beer brewed since 1971 - a single keg produced according to a recipe squirreled away for years in family files.

The beer was called Gettelman $1000 because they offered $1000 to anyone who could prove Gettelman $1000 Beer contained any substitute for pure malt and hops. No one claimed the money for the 80 years the beer was produced.

The tapping takes place at 7pm tonight at the Miller Inn at 3931 W State Street in Milwaukee. It's open to the public and costs $15. Nancy Gettelman will speak about her book and Fred Gettelman, a great-grandson of the family's brewing patriarch, will show company memorabilia.

The A. Gettelman Brewing Company was sold to Miller in 1961 and Miller still makes a Gettelman brand, Milwaukee's Best.

Consumer Reports rates light beers (and hot dogs)

Last weekend I was reading a recent Consumer Reports magazine that reviewed hot dogs and light beers. I enjoy a good hot dog from time to time, and I was interested to see their rankings.

Hebrew National won the blind taste test for best-tasting hot dog. I've never had a Hebrew National hot dog before, although I never shy away from kosher foods. If I had a choice between a kosher dill pickle and one that's not kosher (meaning that it probably fell on the floor since it wasn't prepared under rabbinical supervision), I'd take the kosher!

I've now come to understand that a kosher dill pickle is usually not kosher in the sense that it was prepared under rabbinical supervision, which would ensure that no utensil in contact with the pickles had been in contact with food that was not kosher. Rather, it is a pickle made in the traditional manner of Jewish New York City pickle makers with generous addition of garlic to the brine. But that's not my point here.

I respect Consumer Reports and I think that the hot dog test is good one. But then I read the light beer article. The light beer results are oh so wrong!

The big "winners" of the test were as follows:

1. Michelob Ultra Amber
2. Michelob Light
3. Michelob Ultra
4. Coors Light

I've tasted a Michelob Ultra before and it's a perfect choice for people who don't like beer. It basically tastes like water with some sugar and artificial beer flavoring. It's definitely in the bottom 10 beers I've ever had (and I've had pizza beer brewed with garlic cloves and oregano). Beer Advocate even gives it a 96% disapproval rating. It's quite bad.

I've also tasted Coors Light and basically rank it below every beer starting with the letters BUD (and that's a bad thing).

Sam Adams Light was 5th on the list and I agree that it should be up there somewhere. That's the one shining star of their rankings. Miller Lite finished 11th and despite the fact that Miller's own blind tests showed Miller Lite has more taste, Bud Light finished 8th. There were also bunch of other bad beers that finished in the top 10 like Keystone Light, Busch Light, and Natural Light. But those are cheap, light beers and everyone knows what they are getting to when they buy them. Michelob pretends they are a premium drink.

Supposedly the Consumer Reports taste testers focused on "whether a beer tasted fresh and had a balanced mix of floral, fruity, malted grain, hops and other appropriate flavors." I guess I agree that Michelob Ultra tastes fresh - just like water!

I guess I don't like light beer in general, but if I had to drink one it certainly wouldn't be anything made by Michelob (thus by Anheuser-Busch).

Do yourself a favor - skip all the Consumer Reports light beers and have a local craft beer instead. If you're worried about the calories, have one less beer.

Miller Brewery Tour

Here's are some pictures from the behind-the-scenes Miller Brewery tour we went on last week.


Movie:





The rest of the set is here.

Sparks

Not only is Sparks Plus 7% the unhealthiest beer that Miller Brewing produces, it's now under investigation for deceptive marketing practices.

From JSOnline:

Miller targeted over Sparks drink
By Tom Daykin

A small but growing beverage made by Miller Brewing Co. is among a group of alcohol "energy drinks" that have engaged in deceptive marketing practices, according to a letter released by the attorneys general from 29 states.

Sparks, a citrus-flavored malt drink with caffeine, has used an advertising scheme that centers on a claim that the beverage provides energy, said the letter, which was sent to the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, a federal agency. The letter asks the agency to expand its efforts to prevent misleading health-related statements from being made in connection with Sparks and similar beverages.

In response, Miller said it works closely with the Tax and Trade Bureau to ensure that its products meet federal regulatory requirements.

"We responsibly market our products to legal drinking age consumers consistent with our own high standards, industry marketing codes and applicable laws and regulations," the statement says.

Sparks, which Miller bought in 2006, has sales of around 300,000 barrels - around 0.08% of Miller's annual sales volume. But Sparks is among a group of smaller drinks with high growth potential that have drawn a greater marketing focus from Miller.

Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen is not among those involved.

MGD Light-er

Miller tests a reformulated MGD Light

Miller Brewing Co. said today it is testing a reformulated Miller Genuine Draft Light that will have just 64 calories per serving-the lowest number of calories of any beer sold in the United States.

Miller will begin test marketing the beer this month in the Madison area. Its target audience will include members of spas and health clubs, where Miller plans to do product sampling.

MGD Light has 64 calories and 2.4 grams of carbohydrates per 12-ounce serving. Bud Light, the country's best-selling beer, has 110 calories and 6.6 carbohydrates.

Ice Cream vs. Beer

Heather and I were discussing which was worse for you: ice cream or beer. Heather loves ice cream and I’m a big fan of beer.


While Heather was enjoying a chocolate-dipped vanilla cone from Dairy Queen today, I claimed that beer is MUCH better for you than ice cream. Since it’s made from things like hops and barley, it’s basically as wholesome as bread.


The internet tells us that beer contains vitamin B6 which prevents the build up in the body of a chemical called homocysteine - thought to be linked to an increase in the risk of heart disease. It also protects against heart attacks, stroke, hypertension, diabetes and dementia.


Beer is so good for you, I’m calling for the FDA to add beer to the food pyramid, and somewhere near the top.



















I checked the Dairy Queen website and the Miller Brewing website, and both have a section for looking up nutritional information. Here's the breakdown:


Beer is better for you than ice cream! Some of the stuff at DQ is actually really bad for you. The dipped cone that Heather ate today even contained some of the dreaded trans fat.


The worst dessert for you to eat at DQ appears to be the Large Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Blizzard (Heather loves these too, but probably not the large sized one). One of those has 1320 calories, 52 grams of fat (6 grams of trans fat), and 193 carbs. You could have 15 beers before you'd reach the carb level of one of those Blizzards!



An intern at my work used to eat a 7½" Pepperoni Melt from Cousin's Subs every day for lunch. He was a growing boy so sometimes he would even eat 2 of them. After all, who wouldn't enjoy a hot sub made with ham, pepperoni, and melted Provolone cheese prepared with mayo, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and seasoned with oregano. We looked them up at cousinssubs.com and found that they are quite bad for you too: 730 calories, 45 grams of fat, and 50 carbs. He stopped eating so many of them after learning that. But the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Blizzard puts the Pepperoni Melt to shame!


The worst beer for you (that Miller makes) appears to be Sparks Plus 7%. I never heard of Sparks Plus 7% but I generally stay away from Malt beverage/Energy drink combos. Sparks Plus 7% has 288 calories, 37 carbs, and 7% alcohol by volume.


The worst real beer that Miller makes is Leinenkugel's Apple Spice with 208 calories and 26.8 carbs.