Portland is considering a tax that would shut down a local glass recycler. The lessons of this move touch on supply chains, pricing and availability of materials, and how laws can act as unforeseen variables that scramble business plans.
Read MoreLocated in the West Flanders city of Roeselare, Rodenbach has been making dark ales for 200 years in a brewery that inspires the reverence of an old church. The brewery’s history, their process, and the beer’s quality make Grand Cru one of the most important beers in Belgium.
Read MoreThe side-project of a Napa winery, Hanabi Lagers makes ultra high-end beer that sells for $90 a six-pack. Is it worth it?
Read MoreAchel is in danger of losing its designation as an authentic Trappist product. Why? Not because the monks have sold out to commercial interests or anything so crass. No, it’s because the monks are all gone.
Read MoreFor decades, Americans have been warned of the dangers of the “tied houses” and the sterling virtues of a three-tiered system of production, distribution, and retail. But is this all hogwash? Craft breweries are testing the theory.
Read MoreThe sense about craft beer right now, with assaults from a global pandemic and hard seltzer, is often morose. In purely financial terms, beer seems to be sputtering. But as a cultural force, it has never been stronger.
Read MoreOn February 5, 2021, Portland Brewing will close its doors for the last time. The brewery’s closure marks the end of that scrappy, DIY era of craft brewing. And while it’s sad, a review of what Portland Brewing accomplished also reveals what a success its 35-year run was.
Read MoreAt Schell’s Brewery, Jace Marti has revived not just authentic, mixed-fermentation Berliner weisse, but may be the only brewery using an old technique practiced by the last brewery to make authentic examples, Berlin’s Schultheiss.
Read MoreToday I welcome two new partners to the blog—but these aren’t ordinary advertisers. Together, pFriem, Reuben’s Brews and I plan to try a new model that strengthens rather than cheapens reader experience, and will result in a series of in-depth, interesting posts.
Read MoreA moment passing through a warm, cheery pub brought back vivid memories of cozy evenings I’ve missed the past nine months. As 2021 dawns, I kindle the hope we’ll be drinking together sometime this year.
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