“Here’s to the Heroes” Provides Free Admission to Company’s Worlds of Discovery Parks for Military Members and Direct Dependents December 14, 2007Clayton, MO – A tribute program that so far has provided free admission to Worlds of Discovery parks to nearly 4 million members of U.S. and coalition armed forces and their families has been extended through 2008. Anheuser-Busch launched “Here’s to the Heroes” in February 2005 to acknowledge the service of military men and women and the sacrifices made by their families.
“It is gratifying to all of us at Anheuser-Busch that so many members of our armed forces have taken advantage of this program and honored us with a visit,” said Jim Atchison, President of Busch Entertainment Corporation (BEC), the family entertainment division of Anheuser-Busch. “This is a difficult time for our men and women in uniform – and their families -- and we are honored to give them something back.”
Here’s to the Heroes provides a single day’s free admission to any one SeaWorld or Busch Gardens park, Sesame Place, Adventure Island or Water Country USA for the service member and as many as three of his or her direct dependents.
Any active duty, active reserve, ready reserve service member or National Guardsman is entitled to free admission under the program. He or she need only register, either online at www.herosalute.com or in the entrance plaza of a participating park, and show a Department of Defense photo ID. Also included in the offer are members of foreign military forces serving in the coalitions in Iraq or Afghanistan or attached to American units in the U.S. for training.
“This is one small way we can acknowledge and thank the soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen and Coast Guardsmen whose service helps to preserve the freedom and safety of every American,” Atchison said. “It’s important to all of us at Anheuser-Busch that we show our gratitude to the men and women of our armed forces and their families for the sacrifices they make on our behalf.”
Here’s to the Heroes is the fourth tribute to military personnel offered by Anheuser-Busch since Yellow Ribbon Summer welcomed service members home from the Gulf War in 1991.
Three Anheuser-Busch parks – SeaWorld Orlando, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay and SeaWorld San Diego – operate year round. The company’s remaining parks are seasonal, with varying opening dates this spring. Each park’s operating schedule is available online.
Inactive, standby and retired reserve members, military retirees, U.S. Merchant Marine and civilian Department of Defense workers are ineligible for the program. The program does not include Discovery Cove or SeaWorld’s new waterpark, Aquatica.
Orlando-based Busch Entertainment Corporation (BEC) is the family entertainment division of Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. BEC operates nine Worlds of Discovery parks across the U.S.: SeaWorld Florida in Orlando, SeaWorld California in San Diego, SeaWorld Texas in San Antonio; Busch Gardens Africa in Tampa, Fla., Busch Gardens Europe in Williamsburg, Va.; Discovery Cove in Orlando; Sesame Place in Langhorne, Pa. near Philadelphia; and waterparks Adventure Island in Tampa and Water Country USA in Williamsburg. Aquatica, SeaWorld’s waterpark, is under construction in Orlando and scheduled to open in spring 2008.
Worlds of Discovery parks play host to more than 21 million guests each year and employ more than 21,000 people nationwide. On the Web at WorldsofDiscovery.com.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Releases First Bottles of Harvest Ale
Press Release: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Releases First Bottles of Harvest Ale
For the second time this year, Sierra Nevada is bottling one of its limited draft-only beers. The company, which recently released its 27th Anniversary Ale for the first time in bottles, has decided to do the same with one of its most coveted brews, Harvest Ale, a fresh hop ale scheduled for release in late September.
“People have been asking us to bottle Harvest for years and we just didn’t have the capacity to do it,” said brewery owner and founder Ken Grossman. “Each fall we gear up for production of our winter seasonal beer, and up until now that hasn’t left room for us to do any of our specialty beers. But this year we decided we would find a way to bottle Harvest Ale, because so many people have asked for it.”
Eleven years ago, Sierra Nevada was the first American brewer to experiment with “fresh hops” when brewing their first batch of Harvest Ale, using nothing but hops that had been harvested in Yakima, Washington the same day. Freshly harvested hops are richer in the hop oils that impart hop aroma and spiciness into beer. The popularity of Harvest Ale—combined with the growing enthusiasm for highly-hopped ales among craft beer aficionados—has created dozens of new entries into the fresh-hop ale category.
Brewing fresh hop ales for eleven years has really helped Sierra Nevada understand that fresh hop ales are more art than science. “As the brewing develops, you usually find that you have more or less of one variety than the other,” said head brewer Steve Dresler. “This allows you to reformulate the brews as you go along to use all the hops shipped, and consequently the different fermenters each have unique flavors and aromas that can be experienced prior to blending.”
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. was founded in 1980 and is one of America’s first microbreweries. It is regarded as the standard of quality for American craft brewers and has won numerous awards for its beers and ales. Its flagship product, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, has been the number one selling craft beer brand in America for the past five years according to IRI scan data. The brewery, located in Chico, California, is still 100% owned by Ken Grossman.
In addition to Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada makes a Wheat, Porter and Stout year-round, a host of draft-only specialty beers, and offers five seasonal beers. Harvest Ale will be available in limited supply nationwide in 24-oz. bottles and draft. The cost is slightly above Sierra Nevada’s year-round products.
For the second time this year, Sierra Nevada is bottling one of its limited draft-only beers. The company, which recently released its 27th Anniversary Ale for the first time in bottles, has decided to do the same with one of its most coveted brews, Harvest Ale, a fresh hop ale scheduled for release in late September.
“People have been asking us to bottle Harvest for years and we just didn’t have the capacity to do it,” said brewery owner and founder Ken Grossman. “Each fall we gear up for production of our winter seasonal beer, and up until now that hasn’t left room for us to do any of our specialty beers. But this year we decided we would find a way to bottle Harvest Ale, because so many people have asked for it.”
Eleven years ago, Sierra Nevada was the first American brewer to experiment with “fresh hops” when brewing their first batch of Harvest Ale, using nothing but hops that had been harvested in Yakima, Washington the same day. Freshly harvested hops are richer in the hop oils that impart hop aroma and spiciness into beer. The popularity of Harvest Ale—combined with the growing enthusiasm for highly-hopped ales among craft beer aficionados—has created dozens of new entries into the fresh-hop ale category.
Brewing fresh hop ales for eleven years has really helped Sierra Nevada understand that fresh hop ales are more art than science. “As the brewing develops, you usually find that you have more or less of one variety than the other,” said head brewer Steve Dresler. “This allows you to reformulate the brews as you go along to use all the hops shipped, and consequently the different fermenters each have unique flavors and aromas that can be experienced prior to blending.”
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. was founded in 1980 and is one of America’s first microbreweries. It is regarded as the standard of quality for American craft brewers and has won numerous awards for its beers and ales. Its flagship product, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, has been the number one selling craft beer brand in America for the past five years according to IRI scan data. The brewery, located in Chico, California, is still 100% owned by Ken Grossman.
In addition to Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada makes a Wheat, Porter and Stout year-round, a host of draft-only specialty beers, and offers five seasonal beers. Harvest Ale will be available in limited supply nationwide in 24-oz. bottles and draft. The cost is slightly above Sierra Nevada’s year-round products.
Reinheitsgebot - The German Beer Purity Law
The Bavarian "Reinheitsgebot" (Purity Law) was issued on 23rd April 1516 at a convention in Ingolstadt by the two common regents of Bavaria, the dukes William IV and Ludwig X, and sets that only barley, hop and water are allowed for beer's production. Yeast is not mentioned at all because in 1516 nobody owned the knowledge about its substantial part for fermentation and that therefore it is the fourth necessary raw material for beer. The Purity Law is the last chapter of a protracted development of resolutions, which lasted over 200 years, in order to regulate the production of the beer, so that neither unhealthy adjunctions nor for bread's production relevant grain were added. Furthermore it determined all prices related to beer and secured thereby a basic foodstuff for the Bavarian people. In the course of the centuries this brewing regulation has been taken over gradually by all German countries and, since 1906, by the whole First German Empire and its successors until the modern Germany. Still today the German Beer Law is based on the Bavarian Purity Law, which still is an indication of outstanding quality.
Translation from German of the "Reinheitsgebot".
How beer is to be brewed and poured out across the land:
[…]We decree, establish and ordain at the behest of the Lords of Bavaria that henceforth in all the land, in the countryside as well as our towns and marketplaces, there is no other policy than this: From Michaelmas until the Feast of St George, one mug(1) or 'head'(2) of beer will not be sold for more than one Munich penny; and from the Feast of St George until Michaelmas, a mug will not be sold for more than two pennies of the same reckoning, and a head for no more than three heller(3), under pain of penalty. But when one brews any beer (other than Marzenbier), it will under no circumstances be poured or sold for more than one penny per mug. Further we decree that henceforth in all our towns, marketplaces and the whole of the countryside, no beer shall contain or be brewed with more ingredients than grain, hops, and water. He who knowingly violates these laws will be summarily fined a keg of beer, each time it happens[…].
(1)Mug = (Bavarian) 1.069 Liters
(2)Head = round container for fluids, containing slightly less than one Bavarian 'mug'
(3)Heller = Munich half-penny
Translation from German of the "Reinheitsgebot".
How beer is to be brewed and poured out across the land:
[…]We decree, establish and ordain at the behest of the Lords of Bavaria that henceforth in all the land, in the countryside as well as our towns and marketplaces, there is no other policy than this: From Michaelmas until the Feast of St George, one mug(1) or 'head'(2) of beer will not be sold for more than one Munich penny; and from the Feast of St George until Michaelmas, a mug will not be sold for more than two pennies of the same reckoning, and a head for no more than three heller(3), under pain of penalty. But when one brews any beer (other than Marzenbier), it will under no circumstances be poured or sold for more than one penny per mug. Further we decree that henceforth in all our towns, marketplaces and the whole of the countryside, no beer shall contain or be brewed with more ingredients than grain, hops, and water. He who knowingly violates these laws will be summarily fined a keg of beer, each time it happens[…].
(1)Mug = (Bavarian) 1.069 Liters
(2)Head = round container for fluids, containing slightly less than one Bavarian 'mug'
(3)Heller = Munich half-penny
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Sam Adams Says NO to New MA Brewery
Sam Adams has declined on a recent offer to the town of Freetown to build a new brewery. Instead, the brewer bought Diageo North America in the Lehigh Valley of PA.
The Boston Beer Co. has sent a certified letter to area officials
confirming its decision not to build a brewery in Freetown. The company sent the
letter to Fall River Acting Mayor William F. Whitty, Freetown Board of Selectmen
Chairman Lawrence N. Ashley, the Freetown Board of Water Commissioners, Fall
River Sewer Commission and Watuppa Water Board.The letter officially ended
Boston Beer's relationship with Freetown, eight months after the brewer accepted
tax incentives from the town and announced plans to invest about $200 million to
build the brewery, and a few weeks after the company verbally informed
neighboring communities of a change in course.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Brown Ale
First batch and it turned out OK. I chose a brown ale, first because I'm a big fan, but second it's an easy beer to brew. So here it is.
Grains:
10 oz. Victory Malt
4 oz. Chocolate Malt
2 oz. 120l Crystal Malt
Extract:
5.5 lbs Light malt extract
Hops:
1 oz. Northern Brewer (Bittering, 60 min.)
.5 oz. Fuggle (Aroma, 10 min.)
.5 oz. Fuggle (Aroma, 1 min.)
Yeast:
Safale S-04 dry yeast
Grains steeped at 160 F for 30 minutes. Yeast was pitched at 75 F. Fermented between 62-74 F (temp changed in house) for 11 days. Primed with 5 oz priming sugar and conditioned for 9 days.
The first beer had no carbonation at all and barely any head. I think it was because the temp dropped in the basement so i brought it upstairs where it was warmer and let it sit for another 3 days. The next bottle was better. Much better head, but still not much carbonation. After some thinking, i realized it was because I added the priming sugar after all the beer was in the bottling bucket and probably didn't mix well enough with all the beer so some will be more carbonated than others. No bottle grenades though, so we'll see.
The beer had good head when poured aggressively which was very think and slightly tan in color. The smell had a nutty aroma with mild hints of spiciness. It had a very nice color. Very deep brown and very clear. Once sipped, it was very smooth, but the lack of carbonation was very evident and took away from overall taste of the beer. Carbonation aside, the taste was good. The taste of the fuggles was slightly evident and the nuttiness came out in the taste as well. Overall, it was a decent beer. If there was more carbonation I think the beer would have better. good to know for next time.
Cheers
Grains:
10 oz. Victory Malt
4 oz. Chocolate Malt
2 oz. 120l Crystal Malt
Extract:
5.5 lbs Light malt extract
Hops:
1 oz. Northern Brewer (Bittering, 60 min.)
.5 oz. Fuggle (Aroma, 10 min.)
.5 oz. Fuggle (Aroma, 1 min.)
Yeast:
Safale S-04 dry yeast
Grains steeped at 160 F for 30 minutes. Yeast was pitched at 75 F. Fermented between 62-74 F (temp changed in house) for 11 days. Primed with 5 oz priming sugar and conditioned for 9 days.
The first beer had no carbonation at all and barely any head. I think it was because the temp dropped in the basement so i brought it upstairs where it was warmer and let it sit for another 3 days. The next bottle was better. Much better head, but still not much carbonation. After some thinking, i realized it was because I added the priming sugar after all the beer was in the bottling bucket and probably didn't mix well enough with all the beer so some will be more carbonated than others. No bottle grenades though, so we'll see.
The beer had good head when poured aggressively which was very think and slightly tan in color. The smell had a nutty aroma with mild hints of spiciness. It had a very nice color. Very deep brown and very clear. Once sipped, it was very smooth, but the lack of carbonation was very evident and took away from overall taste of the beer. Carbonation aside, the taste was good. The taste of the fuggles was slightly evident and the nuttiness came out in the taste as well. Overall, it was a decent beer. If there was more carbonation I think the beer would have better. good to know for next time.
Cheers
Friday, November 30, 2007
Beginning of a quest....
I love beer.....who doesn't, right? But my love differs from most people. My love is centered around wanting beer to guide my life and support me. You might think I'm crazy.....and at times I might agree with you (as would my wife).....but today I'm not. You see, as MLK once said, "I have a dream". Well, so do I!! My dream is clearly not as important as his was, but my dream is important to me.
Many years ago, I worked in a restaurant as a cook. It was one of the most fast paced/stressful job's I've ever had. It was the only job I've ever had where things get thrown at you, and that's totally acceptable. But I loved it! This is where my dream started. I dream of starting and owning my own restaurant. It was a big dream at the time and after I told the owner of the restaurant of my dream he said, "You're nuts....don't do it". So I continued on.
My senior year in College, I had to write a thesis. I was a Business major, so I decided to write a business plan to start a Tex-Mex restaurant. My advisor liked it and thought it was feasible....so he gave me an A. So this seemed like a perfect place to take a shot at my goal.......but I didn't. I did the "normal" thing and got a job at a large corporation and became another rat in the rat race. (more about this at another time) My dream was on hold.
Fast forward 6 years.......I am now 30 lbs. heavier and no where closer to reaching my goal. But I start to have another growing interest (here's where the beer comes in). BEER!!!!! My brother sent me a link to this great new website (at the time). www.beeradvocate.com OH MY!!! What a site!!! I read it daily....checked out beer reviews from the Alstrom brothers and opened a whole new world. I never knew how many beers there were. I was transforming from a college drunkard to a true beer lover. From light beers, kegs and funnels to dunkelweizen's, imperial porters, and Belgian triples.
So here is where "The Dream" takes a twist. After going to countless brew pubs it hit me. I SHOULD OPEN A BREW PUB!!! It's a restaurant that brews and sells GREAT beer...DUH!!!!!!!!!!! So I start researching. I emailed with a bunch of brew pub owners and came to the realization that it is WICKED EXPENSIVE!! Basically to start a brew pub.........I would need about $1.2 to $2 million. Oh yeah....really easy for a 29 yr old peon like me to raise that kind of moolah!! CRAP!!!! So I do what any good American with a dream does when he realizes he can't reach it.......I gave up!!
Which leads me to today! Luckily I only gave up for a short period of time and I have once again picked up and started running with it again. Of course....it has varied a little, but the end goal is still there. I am officially now.....a home brewer. I brew beer! Hey....that's step one in a brew pub right....you need to brew beer?!?!?! So I'm starting with that. I have to say, so far I'm impressed with myself. I've brewed 3 beers, all of which are pretty damn good. Not yet good enough to sell at a pub yet.....but just you wait.....they will be soon!
So if you've read this far, which I'm sure most have not, you're probably wondering what the hell this is all about. Well, it's about beer! Plain and simple. I'm going to talk about beer....how it's made, my recipes and reviews, and the occasional advertisement for a good beer or brew pub. Hopefully, I'll reach a point where I can sell my beer and you can buy it. I know....I'm excited about that part too!!!
I'm heading to London next week for work, so I intended to do as little amount of work as possible, and tour the pubs of London the rest of the time....which are some of the best in the world! I hope you enjoy and continue on with me on my "Dream" journey!
Bottoms up!
Many years ago, I worked in a restaurant as a cook. It was one of the most fast paced/stressful job's I've ever had. It was the only job I've ever had where things get thrown at you, and that's totally acceptable. But I loved it! This is where my dream started. I dream of starting and owning my own restaurant. It was a big dream at the time and after I told the owner of the restaurant of my dream he said, "You're nuts....don't do it". So I continued on.
My senior year in College, I had to write a thesis. I was a Business major, so I decided to write a business plan to start a Tex-Mex restaurant. My advisor liked it and thought it was feasible....so he gave me an A. So this seemed like a perfect place to take a shot at my goal.......but I didn't. I did the "normal" thing and got a job at a large corporation and became another rat in the rat race. (more about this at another time) My dream was on hold.
Fast forward 6 years.......I am now 30 lbs. heavier and no where closer to reaching my goal. But I start to have another growing interest (here's where the beer comes in). BEER!!!!! My brother sent me a link to this great new website (at the time). www.beeradvocate.com OH MY!!! What a site!!! I read it daily....checked out beer reviews from the Alstrom brothers and opened a whole new world. I never knew how many beers there were. I was transforming from a college drunkard to a true beer lover. From light beers, kegs and funnels to dunkelweizen's, imperial porters, and Belgian triples.
So here is where "The Dream" takes a twist. After going to countless brew pubs it hit me. I SHOULD OPEN A BREW PUB!!! It's a restaurant that brews and sells GREAT beer...DUH!!!!!!!!!!! So I start researching. I emailed with a bunch of brew pub owners and came to the realization that it is WICKED EXPENSIVE!! Basically to start a brew pub.........I would need about $1.2 to $2 million. Oh yeah....really easy for a 29 yr old peon like me to raise that kind of moolah!! CRAP!!!! So I do what any good American with a dream does when he realizes he can't reach it.......I gave up!!
Which leads me to today! Luckily I only gave up for a short period of time and I have once again picked up and started running with it again. Of course....it has varied a little, but the end goal is still there. I am officially now.....a home brewer. I brew beer! Hey....that's step one in a brew pub right....you need to brew beer?!?!?! So I'm starting with that. I have to say, so far I'm impressed with myself. I've brewed 3 beers, all of which are pretty damn good. Not yet good enough to sell at a pub yet.....but just you wait.....they will be soon!
So if you've read this far, which I'm sure most have not, you're probably wondering what the hell this is all about. Well, it's about beer! Plain and simple. I'm going to talk about beer....how it's made, my recipes and reviews, and the occasional advertisement for a good beer or brew pub. Hopefully, I'll reach a point where I can sell my beer and you can buy it. I know....I'm excited about that part too!!!
I'm heading to London next week for work, so I intended to do as little amount of work as possible, and tour the pubs of London the rest of the time....which are some of the best in the world! I hope you enjoy and continue on with me on my "Dream" journey!
Bottoms up!
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