I recall that when I took the time to write about some of the beer magazines I was perusing a couple of years ago, I had little to say in any direction positive/negative about ALL ABOUT BEER , the longest-running and most venerable of the monthly publications currently extant. I do remember laughing at a vicious comment a reader left comparing the magazine to Cat Fancy, which summed up a prevailing sentiment that the magazine was perhaps too whitebread and rah-rah and stale to the point of being boring, opinions that I was certainly sympathetic to.  read more »

Matt Brynildson Is Selected To Brew For The 2008 JD Wetherspoon International Beer Festival

Paso Robles, CA, September 19, 2008 - Firestone Walker Brewing Company's Brewmaster, Matthew Brynildson, was recently invited to brew at Marston's Brewery in the United Kingdom.

Brewers selected from Japan, Australia and Denmark will join Brynildson to bring their talents and recipes to the U.K. for the JD Wetherspoon International Beer Festival. "To think that we can bring our U.S. styles to the U.K., the home of pale ale, is a great honor in itself, but to be able to brew the Firestone Walker beer in the home of the original "Burton Union" is just an awesome privilege," said Brynildson. The trip has some additional significance as well.  read more »

mp3: The Black Keys - All You Ever Wanted
mp3: The Black Keys - Psychotic Girl
mp3: The Black Keys - She Said, She Said (live)
mp3: The Black Keys - I'm Your Man (live)

A few times recently I've heard something coming out of the radio that has seeped through my concentration, awoken my consciousness and made me question, in a good way, who is that? And almost to my surprise it's been Akron, Ohio's The Black Keys, who have just released an album produced by the versatile Danger Mouse.  read more »

There are great pressures on The Life Of Man. We had heard about the idea of getting rid of the beer fridge but at least here in Canada there were ads settting out that the beer fridge was costing almost 120 beer a year to run. There was a Net Beer Gain (or "NBG"). But this news coming from the Northern Territories of Australia has us dismayed and has led to the formation of the Anti-Anti Beer Fridge League to support efforts to introduce the green principles into The Life of Man:  read more »

Have you ever been in the shower and had the soap youre using make this weird gelatinous sheet between your arm and the side of your torso? It never lasts for more than three seconds, but for a minute you kind of feel like you have webbed arms. Never happened to you?  read more »

"Innovation plays a very important role for growth within the premium beer market"

Feeling green after drinking alcohol has taken on a new meaning in Australia with a brewer launching a beer that it says helps fight global warming. via Raw Story

AUSTRALIA'S largest brewer has launched a super premium lager with a price tag you'd expect to find on a bottle of wine, saying it wants to take the nation's love of a cold beer to a new level.

Christmas Beer: The Cheeriest, Tastiest and Most Unusual Holiday Brews by Don Russell takes on the subject on Christmas beers and winter warmers with gusto.

Russell, the Philadelphia Daily News beer columnist known to many as "Joe Sixpack," ranks his "50 Best Christmas Beers," with Troegs Brewing Mad Elf, Dupont's Avec les Bons Voeux, Samichlaus Bier, De Dolle Brouwers Stille Nacht and Anchor's Our Special Ale holding down the top five positions. There are dozens of other holiday and winter brews in the book, which can help decipher some of the ingredients brewers use to spice holiday beers.  read more »

Firestone Walker Brewings award-winning brewmaster, Matt Brynildson, was recently invited to brew at Marstons Brewery in the United Kingdom. Brewers selected from Japan, Australia and Denmark will join Brynildson to bring their talents and recipes to the U.K. for the JD Wetherspoon International Beer Festival. To think that we can bring our U.S. styles to the [...]

Having kids sends many couples into downward spiral of sadness. Albena Danailova has been made the first female concertmaster (or leader of the first violin section) of the Vienna State Opera. More Austrian news! Crazy-Dad Fritzl says he was aware he was abusing/raping daughter but wanted "lots of children." The UK is trying to promote more women to join the aerospace sector. Uh, duh : incontinence and other pelvic organ disorders can limit a woman's libido. A 10-year-old gives birth and a Latino immigrant is arrested on rape charges. Australia outlaws nipple and genital piercings for children under 16-years-old. Women are more easily persuaded face-to-face while men prefer e-mail. The Brits are trying really hard to persuade people!  read more »