Those of you who have a hankering for beer and cheese steak should consider heading to Black Squirrel for "Philly Beer Week." On offer will be several beers by Sly Fox and Yards.The Beerspotter has more info and picks.

On Monday, as always, Room 11 has a special guest tap. This week features Coronado Orange Avenue Wit, a lovely summer beer that made our SAVOR super list.

On Tuesday head to Scion for a Troegs beer dinner with four courses and five beers. Seatings are at 6:30pm and 9pm. $45.

On Wednesday, you can get more Pennsylvania beer at Jackson 20, where Chef Dennis Marron will craft a unique meat-focused five-course menu. Christopher Hancq, from Philadelphia-based Yards Brewing Company, will lead guests through the pairings. The cost is $85 per person and the dinner begins at 6:30pm.

And on Saturday (11am-9pm) and Sunday (11am-7pm), sample beers from over 50 breweries at the NOVA Summer Brewfest in Leesburg. Advance tickets are $20 for drinkers, $15 for designated drivers. Tickets also available day-of for $25 and $20, respectively.

Click on an event in the DC Beer Events Calendar above for more details.

Paste Magazine's most recent "List of the Day" surveys the 25 best American breweries of the decade. Just hours after it was posted, a friend asked us what we thought. Overall, we think it's pretty solid. We've had beer from all of the breweries, some more than others, especially Paste's picks for the two top spots, Dogfish Head and Allagash. Still, we have a few beefs...

We wouldn't have placed Victory or Founder's in the top five. Those spots should have been reserved for cutting-edge breweries like Lost Abbey and Russian River. Similarly, we love Weyerbacher but probably would have placed Bell's in its top 10 spot. And Jolly Pumpkin way down at 19? We don't think so.

Perhaps going beyond the bounds of Paste's rating method, we would have  listed Brooklyn, Stone, and Samuel Adams much higher for their widespread efforts to inform American drinkers that there's more to beer than Bud, Coors, and Michelob, as well as raise the status of beer in general. We also would have tried to squeeze Flying Dog, Left Hand, Troegs, and Duck Rabbit somewhere into the top 25.

Beyond that, if we could have done a Top 40, we would have tried to get O'Dell's, The Bruery, Boulevard, Full Sail, Captain Lawrence, 21st Amendment, Sly Fox, Anderson Valley, New Holland, Clipper City, Bear Republic, and Elysian on the list, but it would have been very difficult to decide who goes where. Since many of the aforementioned breweries are up and coming, we have a good feeling several of them will be on next decade's list.

For those of you who don't have the patience to click, below is Paste's list. We won't take the time here to argue the reasons for our gripes, but let us know what you think in the comments and we'll continue the conversation there.

1. Dogfish Head (Milton, DE)
2. Allagash (Portland, ME)
3. Avery (Boulder, CO)
4. Victory (Downington, PA)
5. Founder's (Grand Rapids, MI)
6. AleSmith (San Diego, CA)
7. Russian River (Santa Rosa, CA)
8. Three Floyds (Hammond, IN)
9. Weyerbacher (Easton, PA)
10. Lost Abbey (San Marcos, CA)
11. Bell's (Kalamazoo, MI)
12. Lagunitas (Petulama, CA)
13. Deschutes (Bend, OR)
14. Rogue (Ashland, OR)
15. Samuel Adams (Boston, MA)
16. Oskar Blues (Lyons, CO)
17. New Glarus (New Glarus, WI)
18. New Belgium (Ft. Collins, CO)
19. Jolly Pumpkin (Dexter, MI)
20. Stone (Escondido, CA)
21. North Coast (Fort Bragg, CA)
22. Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY)
23. Brooklyn (Brooklyn, NY)
24. Sierra Nevada (Chico, CA)
25. Great Divide (Denver, CO)

In the September/October issue of Imbibe, the editors selected their 99 favorite beers in different categories, such as seasonals or beers to drink with a burger. In "Imbibe Vs. Beerspotter," Y&H's Beerspotter takes each list to task.

Offer a beer for a limited time, and beer lovers will chase it, as was the case last spring when Troegs Nugget Nectar and Bell's Hopslam lit up Beerspotter's Twitter feed like someone caught the Real World-ers sipping it. I look forward to them every year, as well as the nominated Anchor Christmas Ale and Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale.

But Imbibe left out at least two important seasonal styles: doppelbocks and barleywines. Brewed by German monks for sustenance during Lent, doppelbocks are as central to spring as March Madness (and for NFL fans, February's postpartum depression). Ayinger Celebrator is the standard-bearer for the style, while the Lager Heads have their eye on the rarer Weltenburger Asam Bock. Both, though, will fill your belly with raisiny and chocolate-cake malts while you're holding out for penitence.

Snifter-worthy barleywines show up at summer's end and linger until the last days of winter. They're fireside beers, often with malt and hops both pushed to a balance extremes, like extinguishing an overly spicy dish with a gob of mayo. Sierra Nevada Bigfoot and Anchor Old Foghorn are stand-bys; Bigfoot boasts an apricot sweetness while Old Foghorn subtly plays out with the dark fruit and anise notes of Anchor's Christmas offering. If your cognac habit is outpacing your bank account, switch to barleywines and you'll never look back.

What's your favorite seasonal? We'll never know if you don't tweet @Beerspotter.

Imbibe picks:

• Alesmith Yulesmith

• Anchor Christmas Ale
• Avery Kaiser
• Delirium Noel
• De Ranke Pere Noel
• Dogfish Head Punkin Ale
• Bell's Hopslam
• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Widmer W Series
• Troegs Nugget Nectar

The Lagerheads piqued our interest earlier about a potential D.C. Beer Week in August that would culminate with Brew at the Zoo on August 20.

It's official now: The festivities will run from Aug. 16 to 21, and so far 15 tastings, happy hours, meet-the-brewers, food pairings, and plain old drinking parties have been announced. There's lots of H Street NE action, what with one of the organizers being Teddy Folkman of Granville Moore's. Brew at the Zoo still seems like the main event, but The party ends on Friday with a Nats game featuring a discount for Beer Week attendees. (They're playing the Milwaukee Brewers, natch.)

Here are the full listings. You will want to bookmark this sucker because there will be updates. The Web site's not finished, but they're also Facebookin' (sorry, federal employees).

SUNDAY, AUG. 16.

• D.C. Beer Week “Unity Jam” at Rock & Roll Hotel — The week kicks off with a classic pairing: music and beer. For $20 you can buy ten 4 oz. sample pours of rare craft beers. No word on the beer lineup, but tune providers include: See-I, The Blackjacks, Laura Tsagaris Band, and The Jeff Wells Band. Beers include: Abita Abbey Ale, Allagash Double, Allagash Four, Brooklyn Local One, Brooklyn Octoberfest, Troegs Dead Reckoning Porter, Victory V-Saison (2008 vintage), and Victory St. Boistorous. 2-8 p.m., $10.
• Unity Jam After Party at The Pug — Featuring their usual lineup of craft beer in cans and, according to the press release, free cheese puffs. 8:30 p.m.

MONDAY, AUG. 17

• Allagash Beer Dinner With Rob Tod at Granville Moore's — A five-course, six-beer dinner with Allagash President and Brewmaster Rob Tod. Beer lineup includes: Hugh Malone, White, Dubbel, Tripel, Curieux, and Black.
  Menu: Meat and Cheese Plate; Roasted Beet Salad with Orange-Cumin Vinaigrette, Boucheron, Arugula; House Cured Pork Belly with Collard Greens; Crudo of White Toro with Rainier Cherries; Allagash-Marinated Lamb Shoulder with Melon-Pistachio Cous Cous; House-Made Cheesecake. $75.
• Sausage, Cheese, and Beerliciousness at Big Hunt — A hard trinity of food-beer pairings to argue with. Includes beers from some big boys of craft: Allagash, Bell's, Brooklyn, Dogfish Head, Troegs, and Victory. 7 p.m., $25.
• Dogfish Head Happy Hour at Brasserie Beck — Beck breaks from their all-Belgian mantra to pour drafts of Raison D'Etre, Fort, and Theobroma. 5-7 p.m.
• Chimay Vintage Beer and Cheese Tasting at Birreria Paradiso – Try Chimay Blanche on draft and their vintage Grande Reserve (the fancy one) with rich and nutty Chimay cheese. 5 p.m.
• "Hop Times in the City: A Beer Tasting for Hopheads & the People Who Love Them at The Black Squirrel – A tongue-scraping lineup of extreme offerings from Bear Republic, Green Flash, Avery, Dogfish Head, and Speakeasy, co-hosted by bloggeroo cohort DC Beer. For extra doses of ridiculous, the tasting also includes a hop cocktail and hop ice cream. 7:30-10 p.m., $40.

TUESDAY, AUG. 18

• Rogue Oregon Oyster and Ale Festival at The Reef — 1,000 Yequina Bay Oysters are being flown in from Newport, Ore. to our collective bellies. Pair the oysters and other food specials with Captain Sig's Deadliest Ale and "something imperial" on draft, plus a few bottles. Specials available 5-10 p.m.
• Brooklyn Brewery Beer and Cheese Tasting with Cowgirl Creamery at Café Saint-Ex — Think about the Cowgirl fromagophiles' evocative cheese descriptions. Now add Brooklyn beer. 7 p.m.
• Abita Beer Crawfish Boil at the Argonaut — New Orleans' dominant brewery will bring a boatload of crawfish and introduce it to a nice, warm bath. 6 p.m.
• Terrapin Beer Event at Galaxy Hut — Try beers on tap from the Athens, Ga. brewery: Big Hoppy Monster IPA, Sunray Wheat, India Brown Ale, and Rye Pale Ale — the latter of which is a Beerspotter desert island pick. 6 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 19

• Hitting the Cycle at Marvin — Drink Smuttynose Star Island Single, Brooklyn Local #2, Allagash Tripel, and Weyerbacher Quad, with a dinner buffet of Belgian food. Also includes a drawing for tickets to the Aug. 21 Nats-Brewers game. 40 tickets are available in all. 5:30 p.m., $35.
• Belgian Beer Invades the Capitol at Capitol Lounge — Discounts on Belgian and Belgian-style beer, food specials, and beer chat with Larissa Hill of Granville Moore's. 4-11 p.m.
• Coney Island Freak Show at Palace of Wonders — In a match made in hell, the founders of Schmaltz Brewing Co. (makers of Coney Island lagers and Hebrew ales) present their big, creative beers with a freak show backdrop. 8 p.m.
• Meet the Brewer Happy Hour at District Chophouse – Meet the talented Barrett Lauer and check out his shiny brewing setup. Half-price beers from 3-7 p.m.
• Drink to Victory at CommonWealth Gastropub – Beer and food pairings, plus seasonal Victory beers and a pair of brews on cask. 5-10 p.m.
• Terrapin Launch Party at Rustico – Featuring all four Terrapin flagship beers as well as the 2008 Big Hoppy Monster and, new from their Side Project Series, Maggie's Farmhouse Ale. Free Terrapin glass with every beer you buy. 6 p.m.

THURSDAY, AUG. 20

• Brew at the Zoo at the National Zoo — The main event of This event has nothing to do with D.C. Beer Week, but it features 35 microbreweries, including Sierra Nevada, Dogfish Head, Brooklyn, Smuttynose, Great Divide, and Stoudt's. Anheuser-Busch InBev is also pouring, so you can quaff that presidential Bud Light. 6-9 p.m., $35 for FONZ members, $50 for nonmembers.
• Brew at the Zoo After Party at Asylum — After the [completely unrelated] beer fest, swap pandas for drunks as a backdrop, at a place that always surprises with one or two great finds on tap. 9:30 p.m.
• Troegs Pint Night at the Red & the Black — Taste tasty Troegs and snatch a free pint glass at H Street's sleeper venue for good beer. 7 p.m.

FRIDAY, AUG. 21

• Nationals v. Milwaukee Brewers, D.C. Beer Week Special – Drink the Nationals Park's awesome new microbrews while watching the punniest beer-related sporting event since Bud Bowl. Drafts include Bell's Kalamazoo Stout and Stone Arrogant Bastard! Come on! Beer Week attendees receive 25 percent off tickets in selected areas — enter the super-secret promo code (“Beer”) to receive the discount. 7:05 p.m.
• DC Beer Week Happy Hour at RFD – Nurse (or feed) your Beer Week hangover with specials on Allagash, Bell's, and Dogfish Head beers. As a bonus, catch the worst team in baseball live on TV. 4-8 p.m.

When I was little I once saw a Family Circus cartoon in which the father, on Independence Day, thanked China for their fireworks, Germany for their picnic of sausages and coleslaw, and so on. It was about as funny as, well, Family Circus — but the message stuck with me.

So on that note, I remind those of you stuck in the imports section of your beer store that America is home to the world's most diverse beer selection, including many of the finest and certainly the freshest. This Independence Day weekend (I'm starting mine today), buy American beer. If you have a friend who thinks Stella Artois is the gods' gift to Belgium, send 'em this way for a list of proper American substitutes.

• Heineken (or Stella Artois) — Of the imports on this list, Heiney's the one I'm least offended to get for free at a party. But it's still just the Budweiser of Europe. If crisp, clean lagers are your thing (and in July, they're certainly mine), try Stoudt's Gold Lager or Sierra Nevada Summerfest.

• Guinness — Stout in the summertime is a bold move anyway, so go whole hog with Stone Imperial Russian Stout, a black hole of a beast. For something on the sweet side, Founders Porter is possibly the best American porter I've ever tasted, with huge chocolatey flavors and a hint of roastiness to balance.
• Corona — Sigh. White wine, I guess. I hear they sell that stuff in juice boxes now.
• Newcastle or Amstel Light — Brown ales, like the sweet Ellie's Brown Ale from Avery, are perfect for introducing newcomers to good craft beer. For something a bit hoppier, I turn to Troegs Hopback Amber Ale again and again.
• Chimay (and Belgians in general) — Of course, there are imports out there that don't come from giant conglomerates and even taste like beer. And guess what? America's got that style down. Jolly Pumpkin excels in many Belgian styles, with beers like their Bam Biere saison. (Check De Vinos in Adams Morgan.) For some that are more widely available, Brooklyn Local 1 and Allagash Confluence are two complex Belgian-style ales made just up the East Coast.

That's just a quick list. What are y'all drinking this coming weekend? Any other imports you'd like a recommendation on? Fill up that there comments section, and I'll get right back at you.

Photo by cristinabe via Flick, Creative Commons Attribution License