From Forbes.com Once a magnet for those looking for a free beer, brewery tours have gotten much more sophisticated in recent years. Along with that gratis beer, breweries the world over are offering everything from in-depth tours to lessons in beer-making. Some have even built restaurants or brewpubs where visitors can lunch on a Kobe burger and wash it down with a German-style ale. Add it all up, and you have more than just a free beer; you have a perfect Saturday afternoon.  read more »

Is American beer any good? TheStar.com - living - Is American beer any good? The idea of weak American suds is being laid to rest by the boom in indie ales, stouts and pilsners Buffalo's Premier Gourmet has become a magnet for Canadian beer lovers by stocking around 1,000 beers, half of them brewed in the U.S. Where does the best beer come from?  read more »

May 13, 2008 Chewing the Fat: The Brooklyn Brewery's Garrett Oliver The SAVOR Beer and Food Festival takes place this weekend and for the past week, D.C. has been crawling with several top figures in the beer crafting industry. To kick off this week's beer festivities , DCist got a chance to sit down and talk with Garrett Oliver, Brooklyn Brewery brewmaster, food and beer pairing expert, author, and though maybe not as glamorous as the St. Pauli girl the face of top-notch, traditional beer brewing. We caught up with him before an Italian beer tasting at the National Geographic.  read more »

This weekend—Friday and Saturday the 8th and 9th to be exact—is the KLCC Microbrew Festival over in Eugene (Oregon). From 5 to 11pm each day, it's at the Lane Events Center Exhibit Hall (796 W 13th) and costs $10 admission. Tasters are $1.

(There's also a homebrew competition; it's a $10 entry fee but you get subsequently get free entry to the 'fest.)

This is a big deal for Eugene. KLCC is the Public Radio station over there, and they put on a good fest; just check out this list of beers to see what I mean:  read more »

(Downingtown, PA) Victory Brewing Company, an independent craft brewery located in Downingtown, PA, has brewed three small batch specialty beers at the commission of the German Hop Growers Association. The styles crafted include a Select Pils, Tettnanger Pils, and Sapphire Belgian Strong Ale. Each of these three beers were brewed to showcase the high quality hops produced in Germany to potential American brewing clients. These filtered beers were produced as a collaborative effort between Eric Toft, American-born, German-trained Brewmaster of Private Landbrauerei Schonram, and Victory Brewing Co. The German Hop Growers Association sends Victory the hops, Eric formulates the recipe and Victory brews the beer.  read more »

At the request of the American Embassy, American craft beer from some of Americas small brewers was served on July 4th at the grand opening of the American Embassy in Berlin. The event included craft beer from 13 different breweries, 47 brands. Participating Breweries were Alaskan Brewing Co., Brewery Ommegang, Deschutes Brewery, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Flying Dog Brewery, Great Divide Brewing Co., Kona Brewing Co., Left Hand Brewing Co., Pyramid Brewing Co., Rogue Ales Brewery, Stone Brewing Co., TommyKnocker Brewing Co., and Widmer Brewing Co. It was a beer garden the likes of which Germany had never seen.  read more »

Anheuser-Busch InBev "a stronger, more competitive global company."Anheuser-Busch and InBev early this morning formally announced they are bringing the companies together to form Anheuser-Busch InBev, a juggernaut in the global beer industry.Carlos Brito, the CEO of InBev who will take the reins of the combined organization, in a release had this to say:We are very pleased to announce this historic transaction today, bringing together two great companies that share a rich history of brewing traditions. We are extremely excited about the opportunities that this combination will create for consumers worldwide, as well as our shareholders, employees, business partners and wholesalers. Together, Anheuser-Busch and InBev will be able to accomplish much more than each can on its own.  read more »

Wow...has it really been six weeks since I've posted anything about the brewery here?  read more »

Snapdatas Snapshots Germany Beer 2008 provides 2007 year-end market size data, with 2008 estimates, 4 years of historical data and five-year forecasts. The Snapshots report gives an instant overview of the German beer market and covers pils, export, wheat, alcohol-free and other beers. Market volume is based on consumption. The data is supplied in both graphical and tabular format for ease of interpretation and analysis. The Snapshots Germany Beer 2008 forms part of Snapdatas Alcoholic Drinks industry coverage.  read more »

The good folks athttp://www.liftbridgebrewery.com/home.aspx have posted this information about Microbrew Mania : The Water Street Inn is hosting its first Microbrew Mania event in the ballroom. Come and taste seven different tap beers including microbrewed, craft and imported brews. With admission you can sample to your hearts content and listen to live Irish music. Band will be Paul and Lorraine. Charlies Irish Pub will have its full line up of Irish whiskeys, tap beers and other spirits available for separate purchase in the foyer outside of the ballroom. We will be on hand with a specialty cask. Local beer distributors will be there to talk about their offerings. The Water Street Inns full line up of Appetizers will be available for purchase as well that evening.  read more »