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D.C. Beer Week, Day By Day: Lagerheads’ Picks for Friday & Saturday

Tammy Tuck — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 17:55:05 +0000

This year's D.C. Beer Week is beginning to wind down, but hopefully you aren't. There are still two full days of craft beer madness and more than 35 interesting to-do's with tasty brews to choose from. Below are my picks for Friday and Saturday, but be sure to check out the full calendar after the jump.

FRIDAY

Dogfish Head Tasting & 90 Minute Randall Growler Fills at D'Vines (from 6 to 9 p.m.) - Josh Fruchtman from Dogfish Head Brewery will conduct a tasting and very special demonstration of Randall the Enamel Animal at this Columbia Heights wine and beer shop. D'Vines will be filling and selling growlers of 90 Minute IPA run through bacon and habanero peppers. If you've never had beer through a Randall, this is a heck of a way to start.

Flying Dog Night at Iron Horse Taproom (from 6 to 11 p.m.) - The Iron Horse Taproom hosts Flying Dog Brewery and six of the Frederick, Md.-based brewing company's beers in the downstairs bar. Featured brews include Raging Bitch, Table for Two, Snake Dog, Doggie Style, Imperial IPA, Single Hop Centennial IPA, Dogtoberfest, and Barrel-Aged Gonzo Imperial Porter.

Great Lakes Tap Takeover at The Black Squirrel (from 5 to 11 p.m.) – Ohio's Great Lakes Brewing Company will dominate the tap lines at this Adams Morgan beer bar with year-round and seasonal favorites like Holy Moses White Ale, Lake Erie Monster Imperial IPA, and Oktoberfest. Beer geeks will fawn over two Cleveland brew-pub exclusives that have made their way to D.C. and will be tapped at 8 p.m., Rye of the Tiger and Market Street Wheat.

Trinity Brewhouse Night at Capitol Lounge (from 4 to 11 p.m.) – Award-winning brewpub Trinity Brewhouse from Providence, Rhode Island, has brought their beer outside of the "Renaissance City" for the first time. The Capitol Hill event is a good chance to try Mercy Brown, Decadence Imperial IPA, Heffe Wisse, Pilsner, and Strawberry Bomb.

SATURDAY

D.C. Homebrewers Association Homebrew Competition at Red Palace (from 12 to 4 p.m.) - A $10 ticket gets you entry into the competition, sponsored by the DC Homebrewers club. Attendees will have the opportunity to taste beers from D.I.Y. brewers from across the D.C. area and get early admission to the same evening's "Nerd Nite" event at Red Palace. (See below.)

D.C. Beer Week Nerd Nite at Red Palace (from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.) – This special edition of Nerd Nite DC offers the chance to geek out over beer with featured speakers Greg Engert of Birch & Barley/ChurchKey, Brandon Skall of DC Brau, and local beer bar legend Bill Stewart. The State Department will provide musical interludes throughout the evening. For more details on each presentation, click on the event in the calendar below.

Mid-Atlantic Brewery Night at Smith Commons (from 7 to 10 p.m.) - Smith Commons on H Street, NE, is celebrating D.C. Beer Week by featuring breweries from different regions of the country over four nights. Saturday is Mid-Atlantic night with $5 pints, $15 bombers and $5 regional-themed small food pairings from D.C., Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and Delaware. Participating breweries include DC Brau, 3 Stars, Port City, Lost Rhino, Baying Hound Aleworks, Stillwater Artisanal Ales, Heavy Seas Beer, Olivers, the Brewers Art, Flying Dog and more. Click on the link in the calendar below for the full beer list.

Vegan Beer Dinner at Bread & Brew (7:30 to 9:30 p.m.) – Health nuts, this one's for you. Bread & Brew in Dupont Circle will host a five-course vegan dinner paired with a variety of vegan craft beers. Dishes will be prepared using the freshest local, organic produce. Tickets are $50 and reservations are required.

Send submissions for the D.C. Beer Events calendar to thelagerheads@gmail.com.

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This Week in Beer: Clown Shoes Launch, Great Lakes Rarities, Toledo Lounge Re-Opens, Big Hunt Barbecues & More

Tammy Tuck — Tue, 24 May 2011 20:00:12 +0000

Just like last week's American Craft Beer Week, which was heavy on organized beer fun in Arlington and Alexandria, venues in Northern Virginia are stepping up when it comes to craft beer events. Read on for a run-through, but click on any event in the D.C. Beer Events Calendar above for more details.

On Tuesday, savvy diners can enjoy food and beer pairings featuring Brewery Ommegang at Fire Works Pizza in Arlington. Beer nerds can bring their thirsty mugs to Rustico in Ballston to officially celebrate the launch of Clown Shoes Beer in the area and meet founder Gregg Berman. Those looking for an all-American experience can head to Mad Fox in Falls Church for a baseball-themed beer dinner.

On Wednesday, Red Rocks Pizzeria in Old Town is hosting a tasting featuring beers from Brooklyn Brewery. In D.C., Scion in Dupont Circle is throwing a beer blowout with seven brews from Great Lakes Brewing Company of Ohio and a chance to win free tickets to Savor.

On Thursday, Adams Morgan is the place to be with a lively re-opening party for Toledo Lounge, which is under new craft beer-focused management. The party continues down the street at the Black Squirrel, where the DC Homebrewers club will hold their monthly meeting, open for all to learn about home brewing and taste some of their DIY concoctions.

On Friday, Gatsby's Tavern in Old Town is having a history-themed beer dinner showcasing ales and lagers from Yards Brewing Company of Philadelphia.

On Saturday, those looking for travel but not interested in roaming too far for Memorial Day Weekend can head to Frederick for the Maryland Brewers SpringFest, a craft beer festival featuring the wares of Olivers, DuClaw, Heavy Seas, The Brewer's Art and many other fine, "Free State" breweries.

Finally, on Sunday, The Big Hunt is having a barbecue night with tons of meat and fixin's prepared by beer manager Dave Coleman and paired with rare brews like Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout, New Holland El Mole Ocho, and Evolution Menagerie 5.

Send submissions for the D.C. Beer Events calendar to thelagerheads@gmail.com.

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The Lagerheads Talk Shop on East Coast Beer Cast

Tammy Tuck and Bruce Falconer — Thu, 20 May 2010 13:23:30 +0000

We had the pleasure of sitting down to share a few beers with Mike Kuykendall of East Coast Beer Cast last week. Mike, formerly a machine gunner on a U.S. Navy destroyer and now a business student, started his weekly podcast to promote East Coast beer and the community around it. If you haven't yet, you are likely to run into him with his laptop and headsets out at Lost Dog Cafe or DC Bread & Brew, two of his favorite recording spots.

The three of us had such a good time geeking out over beer together that Mike decided to turn the interview into a two-part episode. (And we are apparently the first of his guests to require a bleep out for explicit language... Sorry, Mike.) Check out Part 1 for our beginnings in beer, how the D.C. beer scene has changed over time, what we do in this blog, and what we see in our future.

In Part 2 we talk about some of our stickier content on the blog and through social media, the beer blogging landscape, and what it's like to write about beer. We also take some time to analyze GQ's list of 50 beers to try before you die and name our desert island beers. (And as you might expect, things got a little looser as the night wore on...)

If you enjoy our episodes be sure to check out some the East Coast Beer Cast interviews we have enjoyed listening to:

Homebrewing in the District with members of DC Homebrewers
Beer activism with Fermenting Revolution author Chris O'Brien
Gypsy brewing on the Eastern seaboard with Brian Strumke from Stillwater Artisanal Ales
A conversation with brewer Nick Funnell of Sweetwater
Brewing with Mike McCarthy from Capitol City Brewing Company
Fountain of knowledge Tom Cizauskas, a.k.a. Yours for Good Fermentables
A look at the three-tier system with beer distribution pro Jeff Wells

Photo by Vieux Bandit used under a Creative Commons license

This Week: Troegs at Birreria, Birthday Barleywines, Big Beers at the Brick & Our Beloved Beerspotter at Black Squirrel

Tammy Tuck and Bruce Falconer — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:17:34 +0000

That's a lot of B's, but B is for beer and this is a good week to go out and enjoy some, especially if you like the big (meaning strong) ones. Tonight Birreria Paradiso in Georgetown will feature Troegs Brewing Company at their monthly beer dinner. Both seatings are likely to be sold out, but you can always call to see.

Also tonight, DC Beer Week organizer Jeff Wells and Againn are hosting a four-course pairing dinner with five (yeah FIVE) barleywines to celebrate George Washington's birthday. After so many high-ABV beers you may be convinced that you are one of our nation's founding fathers and it is in fact your birthday, so for a more low-key night (but not that much less potent beer) head over to Room 11 for Weyerbacher Quadruple on their weekly guest tap.

Tuesday you can get more big brews at the Brickskeller's strong ale tasting redux. Participating breweries include Flying Dog, Sweetwater Tavern, Schmaltz, multiple Capitol City Brewing Company locations, and at long last (because you can't attend a Brickskeller event without hearing about it) Tuppers.'

In addition to SAVOR tickets going on sale, Wednesday is a DC Homebrewers meeting. If you are a homebrewer or interested in becoming one, you can check out their website for details about joining the club and attending their events.

Thursday is a very special night for Y&H. WCP is hosting a Tweet Up at the Black Squirrel for the Beerspotter to celebrate his total domination of Twitter. We expect all 1,000 of his followers to show up, so you better plan on being there.

Join the Homebrewing Horde

Tammy Tuck and Bruce Falconer — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:37:09 +0000

Think you have it in you to make great beer? Here's your chance. This Saturday, November 7, is the sixth annual Learn to Homebrew Day, sponsored by the American Homebrewer's Association (AHA). We got into the game a couple of years ago when our friend Jeff agreed to show us the ropes and, since then, have made three batches of delicious beer. Not exactly a commercial pace of production, but a welcome addition to our refrigerator.

Our experience reflects a national trend. It's been legal to brew your own beer since 1978, and that change in U.S. law has been responsible for the "Craft Beer Revolution" we've seen in this country over the last 30 years. These first homebrewers in the late 70's moved from their garages to starting the first wave of microbreweries in the early 80's, and then many like Sierra Nevada founder Ken Grossman developed their operations into today's craft beer giants.

This general mania is what we think gets more people into homebrewing each year, but we are sure that the AHA's annual event has helped things along a bit as well. Just last year, the group claims, 2,100 homebrewers taught 610 people how to brew, producing 2,800 gallons of beer in the process. So give it a try. After all, it's not all that difficult and requires a relatively tiny upfront investment in equipment, most of which you can find at your local homebrew store or here on the web. If you are not ambitious enough to go out and buy your own carboy and ale pail yet, perhaps one of the local homebrewers' clubs (DC Homebrewers or BURP) has something going on Saturday.

Meanwhile, there are two stores in the DC area that provide everything you need. We go to the Maryland Homebrew in Columbia and get plenty of advice from Chris and the other helpful folks there. If that's too far, consider myLocal-Home-Brew-Shop off Route 7 in Falls Church. Happy brewing!