Beer Blotter

Urban Family should be open in the coming weeks!

Seattle is booming with breweries. Its become a task to keep up with them all. Seriously, I had to refer back to BeerMapping.com to make sure I was counting them correctly, there are just that many. Well, prepare for another one: Urban Family Brewing Co.

I have a little bit of extra excitement for Urban Family, because one of the owners was a fellow student at the almost unknown College of Wooster (Ohio). Wooster spewed out two of your writers here at BeerBlotter.com, along with David Powell, one of two owners at Urban Family. David and his business partners, Tim Czarnetzki and Sean Bowman, have been planning on brewery for some time. I have been hearing murmurings for about a year – but nothing tangible popped up.

This week, I learned that Urban Family had secured space on Ballard Avenue and were well on their way through the space build out. Wow. Ballard Avenue. And I’m not talking far off the beaten path, but right smack dab in the middle of Ballard Avenue excitement at 5329 Ballard Ave. NW. Pretty amazing.

Each of the men behind Urban Family are east coasters and appear to add something to the mix. Tim and David are experienced home brewers and Sean is running their media – and attractive media it is. Their website has been live for some time, and beckons a visit. According to the site, Urban Family will be serving a Pale Ale and Belgian Wit (nice call) to start out, though we are sure to see many more in the future.

Urban Family will be opening the doors very soon, so check out their Facebook page for frequent updates. Lately, they have been posting video and photos of the new location. Can’t wait to try the beer.

A shot of where the brewing and fermentation will take place

Elysian Brewing Co. is one of the top Washington breweries. Producing great brews, remaining innovative and hosting the Great Pumpkin Fest all lend a hand in crediting head brewer Dick Cantwell with a job well done. Last year, Elysian experienced an 82% growth. WOW! If that isnt a good reason to expand, I dont know what is. Supply and demand.

So, we arent just talking about adding a few kegs or a new line of seasonals, we are talking a major increase in production. Sometime later this summer, Elysian is opening their new production brewery- a 35,000 square foot space for a new 60 barrell, 4-vessel system with ten, yes ten 240- barrel fermenters. Not to mention a bottling line that can produce 12oz and 22oz bottles at a rate of 400 bottles per min (for those 12ozers).

4 batches will be brewed a day, filling one of those gigantic fermenters completely (with all the same beer of course). They will also be moving a smaller fermenter from their Capital Hill location, where they currently brew so that they have the option of doing a smaller fermentation batch. These guys will be brewing pretty much “round the clock”, 18 hours a day.

The new set up will produce a lot of beer and a lot of grain. True to Seattle form, the grain will be picked up by a local farmer to use as feed for livestock. I dont know if this farmer truly knows just how much grain will be available. Elysian Brewing Co.: keeping beer drinkers and cattle happy all at the same time!

What does this mean for Elysian? Only good things- the annual production will double in the first year of this new locations operation (from roughly 14,500 barrels to 30,000 barrels per year), Elysian will become the largest brewery in Washington state, more draft offerings and more beer for you to drink.

Last night, the collective at bb.com had a chance to check out the new digs. The shiny new mash tun, the stillness of the soon-to-be used bottling line and the enormous walk-in refrigerator made me proud to live in a city that Elysian calls home.

We will provide more updates as we hear about when the production is beginning and how it is going. But prepare to see more of Elysian!

The new brew.

In anticipation of summer in the Pacific Northwest (I am beginning to forget what that is like), Silver City Brewing Co. just released and is bottling Ziggy Zoggy Summer Lager.

In celebration of this new brew there are numerous events in May that will give you a chance to try the newest release. But first, a word from Silvery City about ZZSL.

Ziggy Zoggy is Silver City’s toast to summer and every moment we can cheers in celebration.

Ziggy Zoggy is an unfiltered lager that balances a crisp and elegant honey-like malt flavor with assertive herbal hop character.  Brewed in the tradition of German style “Zwickelbier”(look it up) Ziggy Zoggy is perfect for celebrating everything this summer; sun and surf, back yards and barbeques, camping or fishing, and friends & family.

So here’s to a great summer filled with sunshine & memories, friends & loved ones and all the other reasons to lift a glass of Ziggy Zoggy again and again. 5% ABV

“Ziggy Zoggy,

Ziggy Zoggy.

Oy! Oy! Oy!”

Available April 25^th @ Silver City Restaurant, April 26^th in 22oz bottles & the first part of May on draft

Where ~ Everywhere Silver City Beers are sold in Numerous locations around Puget Sound

~Draft @ Silver City Restaurant and Numerous locations around the Puget Sound

Don’t forget to attend the Kitsap Blast featuring a Silver City Beer Garden. This party benefits the Boys and Girls Club and features a garden full of delicious beer by Silver City (the perfect opportunity to try their new release and stellar line up).

Details- Saturday, April 30, 2011 6PM @ the Kitsap Pavilion (1200 Fairgrounds Rd. NW, Bremerton, WA 98310.

If you get your hands on this beer, please leave a comment and tell the world how it is! Cheers!

Picture courtesy of brewdog.com.

BrewDog Brewing Co. based in the United Kingdom never ceases to amaze me with their antics in the craft beer world. Not only do they produce tasty beers, they keep us all entertained.

First it was Sink the Bismark- a “quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times to create at a staggering 41% ABV.”  They caught some slack from various organization about the very high ABV of both this brew and Tokyo which clocks in at 18%. So then it was a beer with a 1.1% ABV- Nanny State.

Nanny State is a 1.1% ale. We have gone from making Britain’s strongest beer to a brew so low in alcohol it is below the legal classification of beer and not strong enough to be subject to beer duty.

Take that people- whoever you are!

Moving right along- beer sold in dead animals. Taking branding to a whole new level. Twelve bottles of The End Of History ale were made and placed inside seven dead stoats, four squirrels and one hare. Animal rights groups were not into this idea.

Now, in honor of the royal wedding that has capitvated the American news…BrewDog brings you….

Royal Virtuality Performance- a beer brewed with Viagra. Below is what BrewDog says about their limited release:

We are going to release a limited-edition beer containing Viagra to mark the forthcoming royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton on April 29th. Brewed using various well known aphrodisiacs, the limited edition artisanal beer will only be available to buy from the BrewDog.com website and will be dispatched on the day before the wedding.

According to the specially commissioned label, the Royal Virility Performance contains Viagra, chocolate, Horny Goat Weed and ‘a healthy dose of sarcasm’. The beer is a 7.5% ABV India Pale Ale and has been brewed at BrewDog’s brewery in Fraserburgh.

With this beer we want to take the wheels off the royal wedding bandwagon being jumped on by dozens of breweries; The Royal Virility Performance is the perfect antidote to all the hype. A beer should be brewed with a purpose, not just because some toffs are getting married, so we created something at our brewery that will undermine those special edition beers and other assorted seaside tat, whilst at the same time actually give the happy couple something extra on their big day.

We want to make other people as passionate about great craft beer as we are and products marketed according to an event rather than their flavour is an example of what’s wrong with the industry. There is more to brewing and tasting beer than putting a royal wedding label on it, so we’re showing everyone just how ludicrous it is.

This craft ale will cost £10 per bottle, with 20% of all proceeds going to the charity Centrepoint, which Prince William supports. Just 1,000 bottles of the beer will be sold via BrewDog.com and the brewery has sent a complimentary bottle to Prince William himself.

I have always been facinated by BrewDog because of the quality of beers, the innovation and their strong determination to send a message by ways of craft beer. Cheers to that!

Most worthy.

The Visual Art of Craft Beer Series continues with a look at several American breweries making a name for themselves with more than just good beer – good visual branding.  I have already discussed many of my personal favorites in parts one through three.  Here, I will take the opportunity to give credit to some really excellent examples that have not yet been discussed.

In Part 3 I mentioned that I very nearly put Half Acre into my top 5 best visual art list.  Fort Collins, CO’s Odell Brewing was just on the verge of making that list as well.  Pretty much every element of their “look” is impressive.  Their logo is simple yet attractive and distinct.  Their bottle labels are consistent and beautiful.  The website is well done and everything is just warm and inviting.  Much respect is due.

One of my favorites of Odell's

Anchorage Brewing Co. has just barely started up their operation but if their artwork is any indication of their quality, they are going to be a standout addition to the craft scene in the Northwest.  Gabe Fletcher, formerly of Midnight Sun Brewing, is the man behind this operation.  Clearly he has a good eye and knows how important it is to join forces with a competent visual artist.  These are some of the most impressive label designs I have ever seen.  Touche!

Anchorage Brewing Co.

Somerville, MA’s Pretty Things Beer and Ale Project is appropriately named.  Though their imagery could be considered somewhat nursery rhyme like, and therefore, dangerously near to catering to children (apparently our government doesn’t think so), it’s impossible to deny the skill that went into their execution.  But seriously though…how are they getting away with distributing beers called “Baby Tree” and “Fluffy White Rabbits” and Flying Dog is having issues with “Raging Bitch”?  Another conversation for another day perhaps.

Yes, pretty.

In an attempt to transition with the up most grace, I believe it is now time to discuss one of the most bad-ass beer labels on Earth.  The very exciting Austin, TX brewery Jester King is doing amazing things to combine extreme beers with extreme visual artwork.  From punk to metal to ghouls to freakish nerds to some strange bizarre that I can’t even fully grasp, Jester King is downright bonkers.  They may be catering to a very small audience with some of these but I, for one, am in that minority and I am absolutely loving it.  A trip to the lone star state is in order.

This kills me. I love it so.

I’ve always been a big fan of propaganda posters, wheatpastes, graffiti…pretty much all things street art.  The folks at New Albany, IN’s New Albanian Brewing seem to share this penchant with me.  A lot of their artwork has an underlying “war” or “revolution” motif going on.  My favorites are the pieces evoking Soviet connotations.  The old hammer and sickle will always find it’s way into such works.  Industry and agriculture.  A classless society.  If there is any movement here in America that could parallel this realm, may it be craft beer?  Now I need someone to design me a logo with a mash paddle in place of the hammer and a stalk of wheat or barley as the sickle.  Get on it.

The Reds are coming!

There are two more pieces of art that I’d like to share in this Part 4.  In both cases, the brewery behind them does not necessarily represent an organization with consistent, striking art programs.  Each have created one particular logo or label design that I feel very strongly about.

The first is White Birch Brewing from Hookset, NH.  They have a very simple, almost nonchalant logo, but I love it.  The other is from Bend, OR’s Deschutes Brewery.  In this case it’s a beer label, and it just so happens to be one of my favorite beers of all time.

Trees and birds.  A recipe for success.

Simple. Captivating.

Simple. Captivating.

Check out more on our Flickr page.