Sixth Stop - Saint Arnold Brewing Co.

It’s another brewery in a warehouse district in a rough area of a big town I’m not familiar with. In fact, Saint Arnold’s itself is inside a big 100 year old former frozen food warehouse they renovated and moved into in 2009.

Saint Arnold was started in 1994 by Brock Wagner with two goals in mind. First was the Brock wanted to brew and sell the best beer in Texas, something he believes he has accomplished. Second, he wanted to create something that Houston could be proud of. This one is something that any beer fan can agree on. Brock has created a company that any city would be proud to have; Saint Arnold is a regular at community events and has a strong record of philanthropy.

When I tour small breweries I have usually been going on tours led by and speaking with an owner/founder. That makes sense for a small facility without too many employees. However, Saint Arnolds is one of the top fifty largest craft breweries in America. So yes, I was a little surprised when I was speaking with Lennie Ambrose, who works in events and marketing, and he suggested I take the brewery tour led by Brock Wagner.

There were two reasons the actual brewery tour was the shortest I’ve been on to date. First, the brewery layout is extremely logical. The brewhouse directly overlooks all of the fermentation tanks. It is just a simple set of stairs between the first and second halves of the tour. Reason two; we didn’t see any of the Saint Arnold bottling line. That’s not a huge deal, but I think a lot of people really enjoy seeing hundreds of bottles whizzing by every minute being filled, labeled, and capped. C'est la vie.

On the other side of the coin, Brock was an absolutely hilarious tour guide. He was constantly making jokes about all kinds of things. When explaining the brewing process he said that you can really brew using any kind of grain. That’s everything down to and including your morning Grape Nuts. He doesn’t suggest you try using fruity pebbles though, he thinks that’s how the make Miller Chill.

Also, after a detailed explanation of how yeast works and is utilized he also simplified it by saying “Basically, yeast eats sugar, pisses alcohol, and farts CO2.” I’ve heard similar explanations, but never phrased so elegantly.

In the book I’ll be featuring details of my conversation with Lennie Ambrose, some notes on the very, very unique events hosted by the brewery, background on Saint Arnold (both the brewery and the saint), and beer in Houston, TX.

Next posts will be Shiner and 512 Brewing.

Fifth Stop – Live Oak Brewing Company

Live Oak Brewing in Austin isn’t in the best neighborhood, they don’t use fancy marketing, and their facility isn’t the most picturesque. None of that matters. When you produce consistently excellent beer that you’re knowledgeable and passionate about you get a free pass on those periphery things.

I made it to Live Oak in Austin and met with owner/brewer Chip McElroy. I was also lucky enough to speak briefly with brewmaster Steve Anderson. The most significant thing I will say about my talk with Chip is that I learned more from him than I have from any single beer conversation I’ve ever had.

I know what wort is. I understand how yeast works. I get what hops add to the flavor of beer. Basically, I know the basics.

Chip however, is a fountain of knowledge. More than that, he’s completely happy and willing to share that knowledge. In fact, it seems like a mission of his to spread the word about good beer to the masses.

One of the many things we talked about was the Live Oak Hefeweizen. Currently, the hefe is ranked on Beer Advocate as the number 67 beer in the world. It also comes in as number two in the hefeweizen category. Not too bad for a little brewery in Austin that doesn’t bottle or can their beer. In fact, it’s downright tough to get their beer.

This is a list of cities where they have at least one tap:

Addison, Alpine, Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Kerrville, Marathon, New Braunfels, Plano, Rockdale, San Antonio, San Marcos, Temple, and Waco.

That’s right, 15 cities. All in Texas.

I looked through Beer Advocate and it seems like most of the ratings of Live Oak beers don’t actually come from cities where they distribute; they come from people who got it in trades. That means someone filled a growler from a bar’s tap and drove it to places like Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida, or Canada. I can’t imagine they’re getting anything close to the fullest flavor once the beer is driven twenty-four hours in a growler. And yet, it still ranks extremely well.

The Live Oak Hefe is one of their year-round beers brewed in a traditional Bavarian style. The head on it is thick enough that it could probably support your weight if you were inclined to try standing on your beer. The aroma gives off a clear scent of bananas and maybe a little bit of cloves and vanilla.

In the book I’ll write more about the Live Oak hefe, the new brewing facility they have planned, and all kinds of history and general brewing knowledge that Chip shared with me.

Since going to Live Oak I hit Saint Arnold’s in Houston yesterday and Spoetzl brewery in Shiner, TX today. Posts coming soon!

Fourth Stop – Coop Aleworks

That’s “coop,” like where a chicken lives. Not Co-op, like where hippies do their grocery shopping. I found that out fairly quickly after arriving at Coop Aleworks and hearing co-founder/general manager/sales/marketing guru and all around busy man JD Merryweather refer to it as coop. Initially, I was very confused.

It was explained to me that the name “Coop” is actually a combination of a couple of things. First, it’s a play on “co-op.” Coop strives to identify with their local community so “co-op” is an homage to the multitude of grain co-ops around the state of Oklahoma.

Next, coop is a play off of “coopersmith.” That’s a person who makes barrels. Coop has made and is currently making a few beers that are aged in bourbon barrels from Templeton Rye (Iowa pride!). If you’ve ever had Templeton Rye then you should know the intensely good flavor that will be imparted to the beer from those barrels. It makes a lot of sense for coop to identify with their barrel-makers when the barrels they use were full of such delicious spirits.

One thing about the Coop logo that I think is important to point out is the use of an anvil’s image. That partially comes from a blacksmith’s usage of an anvil. It was also incorporated because at the founding of Coop the partners wanted their to convey an industrial image.

The largest reason I added Coop Aleworks to my itinerary at the last moment was their commitment to sustainable brewing. They participate in the wind energy program from their electricity provider. They use ultra high-efficiency equipment whenever possible. And Currently they exclusively kegs their beer. Part of that was because of the cost restrictions of bottling, but part was also because that is the most environmentally responsible way to sell beer. Kegs can be used and reused many, many times with nothing but a simple washing and sterilization.

Despite the fact that Coop will soon be branching out and canning their beer even that was an environmental choice. Oklahoma City doesn’t currently have a glass recycling company so aluminum was the natural choice since it is recycled in their main market.

As with my posts about my first few stops I only have so much time and space here so most of the interesting goodies will be going into the book. The final thing I wanted to touch on here was the outstanding art Coop utilizes for their beers. The drawings for five of their six beers are put together by different artists. The final beer, DNR (for “do not resuscitate”), is a picture of two feet with a toe tag sticking out from under a sheet. The photo is taken by JD Merryweather, who outside of his positions with the brewery also has over 25 years of experience in professional photography. I think it’s hilarious.

Yesterday I went to Live Oak Brewing Company in Austin. Watch closely for a post about it to be coming up in the next day or so.

Third Stop - Free State Brewing

My last post said my next stop would be down I-35 at Coop Aleworks in Oklahoma City. Short answer, I lied.

Longer answer, I had it on very good authority from many people that I would be a fool to pass on a trip to Free State Brewing in Lawrence, KS. So instead of moving on I went to a KU football game (which they won handily) and had lunch at Free State Brewing.

Free State Brewing opened its doors in 1989 as the first legal brewery in Kansas in over 100 years. That’s understandable in a state that so many early advocates of prohibition called home. However, now Kansans seem more than ready to down a couple of pints of Free State beer. That was pretty well evidenced when my friend Emily and I tried to get a table around 1:30 in the afternoon and still had to wait a half hour; their line was out the door.

Free State is currently running a 14 barrel system in-house at their brewpub. They also just recently started bottling their beers for distribution in the immediate area.

With some time still left to kill after walking the neighborhood we took a seat at the bar to sample the beer. While sitting I tried out the Oktoberfest and the lemongrass rye. The Oktoberfest had a clear copper coloration and had an aroma that smelled a little like freshly baked bread. The first flavors resonate at the front of the mouth with fairly sweet malt. Then it slowly transitions into something with a more hoppy characteristic. It isn’t anything that completely blew me away, but it was extremely drinkable. Something I could easily see myself sitting down and having a couple of.

I was extremely full and had to be driving later so I only drank one more pint (something I deeply regret) before calling it quits. The second beer was one I chose because it is a completely different beer from the Oktoberfest, the lemongrass rye. The Rye was extremely refreshing with a LOT of lemon coming through in the aroma and flavor. In the aftertaste the lemon transitioned to a much more malty taste. It was a good beer, but I thought it could have used a little more bite.

I truly wish that I could have taken the time to sit down and really sample what Free State has to offer but alas, there are only 24 hours in a day and the need to drive can really ruin a good beer tasting. Oh, and if you were curious I had the turkey bacon facaccia sandwich with peppered bacon, lettuce, white cheddar, and chive mayonnaise. As good as it sounds, it tasted better. Next time I’m anywhere near Lawrence I’m going to be stopping in at Free State and really giving them the time they deserve. As far as samples go though, I was pretty impressed with my brief visit.

I stopped in at Coop Aleworks today and talked to J.D. Merryweather all about who they are and what they do. That post will be coming very soon!

Second Stop – Boulevard Brewing Company

I barely know where to begin with this one. I suppose I should start with a HUGE “thank you” to Julie Weeks, the Marketing Communications Manager for Boulevard. She went above and beyond to make sure that I was taken care of today on my visit to Boulevard.

<--Me with Boulevard brewmaster Steven Pauwels

Boulevard’s bottle caps and much of their other artwork features drawings of their iconic brick smokestack. As I drove down Southwest Boulevard looking for the brewery I was more than a little frustrated from the complete stoppage on I-35 on my way into Kansas City. My mood sank even further when I realized that I must be lost because I had driven significantly past where the brewery was supposed to be. The landmark I had been searching for, the ubiquitous smokestack from all of their advertising, was shrouded for repairs. Also of little help to me was the fact that the side of the brewery facing the street is is just simple red brick that blends perfectly into the neighborhood. Aesthetically it’s nice, but I giant gaudy flashing sign would have been of significantly more help to me!

The building’s back is much more impressive! Four foot tall lettering spells out “Boulevard Brewing Company” across the roof and the architecture of a modern brewery is clearly visible. I was still forty minutes early so I took the opportunity to make a few laps around the brewery complex. I was impressed by the employees leaving with six-packs of beer to take home. I was later told that most of it was the brand new Smokestack Series beers that were being packaged in 12 oz bottles for the first time ever. Sure, they were going to have to let them sit in a cool, dark place for a couple of weeks, but they still get to take home what is absolutely the freshest beer around.

The one sad thing about my walk around the brewery was the number of broken Corona bottles strewn around the outside. Sure, the brewery is in a Hispanic neighborhood and it isn’t the richest area in Kansas City, but you can do better than THAT! You’re literally standing on the property owned by an excellent craft beer maker and you’re drinking….Corona? I don’t think I could do that if I tried!

Once inside my afternoon consisted of a tour of the brewery and an absolutely delectable lunch with each course paired to a Boulevard beer that was prepared by the executive chef of Lidia’s Kansas City, Dan Swinny. Each month Boulevard does one of these “Brewmaster Luncheons” featuring different local chefs. The event is limited to 35 participants but every month hundreds of people are vying for those spots. Then a lottery is drawn to see who is lucky enough to attend.

Are you ready to be jealous? If so, read on.

The lunch consisted of butternut squash stuffed ravioli in sage brown butter and toasted almonds paired with the relatively new Amber beer. Brewmaster Steven Pauwels said that he and Swinny chose that combination because of the way the toasted almonds and the sweetness of the amaretto in the pasta filling match with the amber. The meat course consisted of a succulent lamb shank coated in Venetian spices with sweet potato Swiss chard mash that paired masterfully with Boulevard’s Sixth Glass beer from their Smokestack Series. Finally for dessert we were treated to a copa of Boulevard stout ice cream, barley malt ice cream, and Boulevard stout granita. Atop all of those were lightly toasted grains of barley. This pairing was with another beer from the smokestack series, Long Strange Tripel. Despite being one of my favorite beers from Boulevard this pairing didn’t work nearly as well as the others. The amber and sixth glass matched almost seamlessly with the food. They each complimented the dishes in an ideal way which brought out the flavors in both the food and the drinks. The tripel was great, the desserts were great, I just wasn’t in love with how they mixed.

While the food was being served Steven Pauwels walked from table to table to talk beer with the diners. His friendly demeanor, in-depth knowledge, and passion for what he does helped make a great event even better.

In my book I’ll be detailing some of my conversation with Pauwels, the history of Boulevard, and many of the interesting things I found out about the brewery today. The important thing to take away from today’s post is that if you’re in the Kansas City area make sure you’re putting your name in for the lottery every time one of these evens happens, you’ll be happy you did!

Up next I continue south of I-35 to the Co-op Ale Works in Oklahoma City.

First Stop - Des Moines

The first official stop to my beer trip came Monday night at El Bait Shop in Des Moines, Iowa. I figured that since I’m going to a ton of breweries in cities all over the United States I should start the trip off here at home. And if that’s what I’m doing, then what could possibly be more appropriate than to hit up a homebrewing event?

I obviously couldn’t show up to a brewery to find out much about homebrewing so instead I did the next best thing; I went to a meeting of the Iowa Brewer’s Union. When I showed up there were something like forty five people, 10 5-gallon kegs, 3 or 4 growlers, and a whole bunch of bottles of homebrew. All of the beer was brought in by members of the club to share with everyone.

The beer selection featured many of the standards such as a Belgian whit, an amber, and other basics. However, a couple were a little more…outlandish. One keg was full of a watermelon beer, something I’ve never heard of before. I’m still not sure if I liked it or not, but I can absolutely say that it was extremely unique! There was also an extremely potent coffee stout brought in by Lauri G, a local barista, that utilized coffee beans ground for a French press. I also enjoyed a brown ale that had a lot of vanilla in it.

The brewers I spoke with were all incredibly friendly and extremely knowledgeable. When I was tasting the vanilla brown ale I was speaking with a guy about the Saints v 46ers game. All I did was mention that it had a pretty strong vanilla flavor and he told me all about how it was probably from extract and not vanilla beans. Of course, I called bull&#!^ and asked how the hell he could tell.

Apparently this guy is for real; I checked when I got home. If a vanilla beer uses vanilla extract instead of beans the flavor and aroma will all emanate from the beer. If beans are used the aroma comes through clearly in the head of a beer. See? I learned something!

The last important thing to remember is that it is completely illegal to sell homebrew. So those 10 or so kegs, multiple growlers and the multitude of bottles were all free for the taking. Free beer every third Monday. Not just that, but unique beers that you’re never going to be able to try again. All free. And still only 40 people show up. I’m always shocked when I walk in a place with free beer and there aren’t 500 people around.

That’s all for tonight. Remember folks, this is only a taste of my evening at the Iowa Brewer’s Union. I got interviews with new members, old members, and current and past group leaders. All of that and more is going to be included in the book I’m writing about the beer trip I embark on Friday. I’m driving all over the country touring breweries and getting interviews with the people who make all the delicious beer I love. Stay tuned for more posts and a ton of pictures from all of the stops I make.

I’ll be at Boulevard Brewery in Kansas City Friday, watch for the post soon afterward!

Awesome Bottle Opener

I usually check in on the blog Neatorama.com fairly frequently. They’ve got all kinds of interesting articles about all kinds of nifty things of interest. One of my favorite things about the site is that beyond articles they have a lot of very cool products for sale.

I just wanted to tell you briefly about two of them. The first is a unique bottle opener. I’m too young to remember them, but aluminum cans used to have pull tabs that came completely off when you opened a can of soda/beer. The Neatorama shop has just started selling a an oversized pull tab that is a working bottle opener.

I’ve got a giant collection of beer koozies and I’m just starting to collect interesting bottle openers. I feel like this would be an ideal addition to a fledgling collection. The only problem is that it is 2-3/4” by 1-3/4” in size. I’m pretty sure that I would manage to lose this thing before too long. It would be excellent until I lost it though!

The second thing that I’m kind of digging is the “Hopside Down Beer Glass.” It is a pint glass shape but the interior is cut out to resemble the top of a beer bottle. When filled it looks like you’ve got an upside down bottle in your pint glass.

Just a couple gift ideas for your favorite beer blogger. I keep saying that, but no one is taking me up on it yet. Work on that everyone!

Personalized Beer Labels

So this is a beer bottle. I’m sure you’re familiar with those. This one originally held Sam Adams, the Boston Lager I think, but I’m not positive.

It is just one of many that I use when I try homebrewing. I always save most my pry off bottles when I’m drinking at home so they can be refilled with my own beer later. Here is the problem, they’re ugly, especially when the labels have been removed. I’m typically not too concerned about aesthetics, especially when it comes to beer, but it still bothers me a little.

You can make your own labels with a few kids of label-maker things. You can get labels that you run through your printer too. Usually either one of those options turn out looking like crap. I know, I’ve tried both.

I just found a website that may well be the solution, myownlabels.com/beer. There are two major draws to the site. First, you can print very few. As few six that are all together on a single sheet. Then you can buy the matching neck labels and back labels to go along with your basic front label.

The other huge draw is the fact that they’re cheap. The most expensive labels are $1.17 each. That’s a little pricey but the lower end goes all of the way down to $0.39. Even with the most expensive label, matching neck label and matching back label it comes out to $2.14/bottle. With each 5 gallon batch of beer averaging 45-50 bottles of beer that comes out to about $122.00/batch. The six pack carriers only come in increments of six, so you would need 12 for a price of $16.00.

That’s a little expensive, but it’s also the absolute most expensive option. While no, this wouldn’t be something you did every time you made up a batch of homebrew it could be pretty neat if you’re doing something classy. Maybe a wedding or something. Either that or maybe you just want to class up a six-pack or two to give away, that would only run you twenty bucks or so for the expensive ones!

If you homebrew, it could be a great thing to check out for something special. If you end up ordering one send me a picture at allhoppedupblog@gmail.com

My Homebrewing Attempt: Bottling

Last week I put up an article about the cooking stage of my attempt at homebrewing a Bavarian Hefeweizen. Today, the bottling!

I checked on my brew a day after I put it in my fermentation bucket. True to form it was bubbling away as the yeast ate my priming sugar and pooped out alcohol. Is that not the most magical thing you’ve ever heard of? Well, the yeast kept kicking out alcohol and bubbles through the airlock for the next three or four days. Then I let it sit a few more days and it was time to bottle it up.

I brought up my beer in the fermentation bucket, sanitized the heck out of my bottling bucket, and I was ready to go. By the way, yes, it is extremely important make sure that everything is sanitized again. Even if you’ve already taken care of it, it won’t hurt to do it again.

I always have trouble getting the flow going between the fermentation bucket and the bottling bucket but once it gets started, it doesn’t stop. I use the extremely simple method of putting the first bucket higher than the second and using a hose as a siphon. I filter the beer with a wire mesh thing I found in my kitchen. Filtering the beer isn’t actually all that important for the first ¾ of the process, but gets pretty crucial in the last bit. The bottom of the fermentation bucket is always covered with a weird sluldge. Filtering is a huge help, but don’t even try to get that last part filtered, it won’t work (I tried once). So when it starts getting low, just give up.

The bottling process is simple, but a little tedious. I attach my siphon hose to the bottling bucket nozzle and the bottle filler goes on the other end of the hose. This was my first time using a bottle filler because before this, I couldn’t figure out what the heck it was. It works extremely well and solved the biggest problem I had in past bottling experiences. That problem was that I would always over or under fill the bottles. The filler puts just the right amount of beer in and when you pull it out, leaves just the right amount of air in the top of the bottle.

Once bottled and capped the beer needs to sit in a cool, dark place for a week to condition. After the week you can either leave the beer where it is or move it to a refrigerator. Either way, the official suggestion is that it needs to age for another three weeks. Personally, I always make sure to add another week or two to that for good measure. To me, it usually tastes a bit better.

By the time my homebrew is ready for drinking I’ll be on my beer trip. I think I’ll be in Fort Worth when it’s ready to drink, maybe I’ll bring a six-pack with me. I’ll let you know how it is when I try it out!

My Homebrewing Attempt

I’ve only homebrewed a couple of times. I’ve had a couple of disasters, but mostly just mediocre beer. I’ve tried a pretty decent number of homebrew that was delicious though, so I keep trying. I figure that even if my batch sucks, I can always boil some bratwurst in it!

This time I bought the Bavarian Hefeweizen ingredient kit from Beer Crazy in Urbandale. It’s a fairly simple kit (which is needed for a guy like me). Instead of having to steep the grains I got one that uses malt extract. The only ingredients were a couple cans of malt extract, liberty hopes, yeast, and priming sugar.

As with most things, the process is simple but the devil is in the details. If you’ve been following the homebrewing guest blog series written by my friend Ian then you’ve got this down, but I’ll give you the brief version.

1st – Sanitize everything you’re going to be using. Then do it again, just to be safe

2nd – Boil 1.5 gallons of water.

3rd – Stir in 1 can of malt extract and 1 oz liberty hops, return to a boil for 35
min

4th – Remove from heat, add second can of malt extract and 1 oz liberty hops

5th – Return to boil for an additional 15 minutes

6th – Put 2.5 gallons cold water into your fermenting bucket (vessel if you want to
sound fancy)

7th – Slowly pour your hot mixture into the fermenting bucket

8th – Once mixture cools to under 90 degrees, sprinkle 1 pack yeast over mixture.
Wait 10 minutes, gently use 1 or 2 spoon strokes to stir yeast in.

9th – Put airlock in the lid of your fermenting bucket and leave it alone for about a week

Coming soon I’ll put up a post about the bottling process. For now, isn't that picture of the bottom of my fermentaion bucket disgusting?

Pabst Raps

Coming pretty soon here I’ll be doing a lot of things. Upgrading the blog (I already added nifty tabs, more are to come later), leaving on my beer trip (the 23rd), and I’m going to be writing a few articles for beerandvideogames.com. They found me last week and asked if I would be interested in writing a few articles for them from time to time so I am jumping at the chance. I’ll let you guys know when something of mine goes up over there, but you should really just check out the website regardless. It’s a pretty awesome place for big dorks like me!

All that aside, I think it’s pretty obvious that I’ve been watching the Beer and Videogames posts pretty closely since I originally heard from them. Today something went up that was just too good to not link to. Apparently Pabst is putting out a blue vinyl record full of rap songs out that are all about Pabst Blue Ribbon. Only 300 are being printed and they're being given out tonight in Boston.

This link is to the original article on Beer and Videogames and includes two pretty impressive excerpts from the record.

Go. Listen. Enjoy.

Fight On Intrepid Warriors!

Cheers to you the Society of Beer Advocates (Ironically, SOBA)! They’re fighting the good fight for all of us. They’re a volunteer-run organization in New Zealand that is currently in month 18 of their lawsuit against DB Breweries (the bad guys), also of New Zealand.

So here is the situation. DB Breweries makes a lot of beer. Good, right? Yes. The problem comes with what DB Breweries does outside of their beer. They make a product called Radler (German for bike) which is basically a shandy beer. That would be, for all intensive purposes, beer with 40 or 50% carbonated lemonade or citrus soda. It is German in origin and dates back to sometime around the early 20th century.

I’m personally not a huge fan of Shandy beers. They’re nice on a hot day. They’re low in alcohol because of the non-alcoholic mix-ins. They’re pretty damn refreshing though. Still, none of that is the point. The problem is that many breweries make Radler, but DB Breweries has trademarked the word. When the good folks of SOBA found out they filed suit to have the trademark declared invalid.

It is ridiculous to think that a company could trademark a beer style. If DB Breweries is allowed to trademark a beer style, then what is to stop them from trademarking “ale” or “lager?” Sure, it sounds outlandish, but I thought it was supposed to be IMPOSSIBLE to trademark a beer style.

The scary part is that I read in this article that SOBA could be forced into bankruptcy by the situation. Apparently DB Brewing has sent a letter to SOBA saying that they would probably sue them for the court costs associated with the trial. That would most likely put them under.

They’re still fighting though. And I say fight on you intrepid warriors! You’re doing the whole beer-drinking world a huge favor.

Guinness: Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

I’m a blogger. As far as I know that means I’m supposed to work on sketchy/limited sources, anonymously attack anything or anyone, and of course, use subpar grammar. At least…I think that’s what it means to be a blogger.

Okay, so maybe I try to avoid that stuff (except the grammar thing), but it’s still in there. Newspapers check their sources. They have their journalist’s names out there for anyone to see. Oh, and the grammar is usually stellar. I’ve got a lot of respect for newspaper writers and that is one of the reasons that when I see a good newspaper article about beer, I’ll usually toss up a link to it.

Image Source

That’s the plan for today thanks to an excellent article written by Lauren Marmaduke (I think it sounds like a fake name too) of the Houston Press about Guinness’ “Good Things Come to Those Who Wait” advertising campaign that aired from 1998-2007.

The name of the campaign alludes to the fact that you’re supposed to let your Guinness sit for about 120 seconds after pouring before you take your first sip. That was something I hadn’t known before going to the Guinness Brewery in Dublin. Once I was educated by a bartender in their tasting room, Guinness became a new beer to me. If you’re not waiting to drink your Guinness, you really are missing out. And no, this isn’t just me being an elitist, beer snob prick, it makes a big difference. Hence the advertising campaign.

The article is a good one with interesting information about all five of the embedded videos. Also, notice that each video is about the amount of time you’re supposed to let your Guinness rest before drinking. However, if you don’t feel like spending seven minutes watching Guinness ads (even though they’re awesome) then be sure to watch the second, The Surfer, all of the way through. It was voted by the Sunday Times in Great Britain as the greatest ad of all time. That’s some pretty high praise!

Okay, here is the link. Go. Watch. Enjoy!