Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Beer Week: Wednesday, May 31st

Rock & Brews, where've you been all Beer Week? At least they are hosting a tapping of Idaho 7, Marble's latest Pale Ale release. Idaho 7 is the type of hop used, for all you beer trivia rejects.

The Barley Room is like another state away from where I live. After a Founders Imperial Stout, my house may as well be another continent away. A rare sighting of that Imperial Stout as well as PC Pils and All Day IPA.

Odell takes some of the taps over at Freight House in Bernalillo. 90 Schilling, Drumroll APA, IPA, and Brazzle (raspberry sour) will be pouring.

Marble's Brett IPA is released today, with a 5 pm Brett IPA/food pairing at all locations.

A chance to win a Firestone Walker longboard and free FW samples, including Bretta Rose. Thanks, Jubilation! Sampling goes from 4-6.

Total Wine, Jubilation's good friend, is also hosting a tasting and giveaways, also at 4. This one from Odell Brewing.

Irish Cream Porter, a special IPA, and Kilt or be Kilt Scotch Ale are featured on cask at Quarter Celtic today starting at 5.

Wine tasting at a brewery during Beer Week? Hmmm. Ok, well, Gruet wine pouring at Tractor with Cheese and Coffee Downtown providing food pairings. Event starts at 7.


The Grain Station hosts an early 90's themed party from 5-9. Upslope will be featured on tap and there will be a DJ spinning 90's music. Also a costume contest for the best early 90's outfits. Ok, who's coming as Chris Cornell? Too soon???

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Beer Week: Tuesday, May 30th

Kettle Sours are quite popular now, and Canteen has a special release of Social Capital, a sour with basil, coconut, and lemongrass. Your choice of white or brown rice.

Still supporting businesses on Central Ave throughout this nightmare that is ART? Goo for your! Even better for you: Tractor Nob Hill is offering $1 off pints for those who bring in a receipt from a Central Corridor business. You must bring in a receipt for something bought within the last week, so don't bother with that receipt from Bailey's on the Beach.

Marble Brewery's Westside Taproom hosts a beer trivia night from 6-8 pm with questions from the brewers themselves. Prizes awarded to the top teams. Food truck cleanup assigned to the worst.

Luponic Distortion, Parabola, Leo vs. Ursus, Kreiky Bones. Those Firestone Walker beers sound incredible on their own, but pair them with a dinner at Nob Hill Bar and Grill? Well, now you have a Firestone Walker beer dinner! Event starts at 6:30. Call 266-4455 to see if there is still space for you.

Drafty Kilt, home of Mike Campbell's award-winning beer, is pairing beers with local food trucks. Event starts at 5.

Taco Tuesday at Sister just got better: Upslope will be bringing cans of Citra Pale Ale to go along with your tacos. Tacos and canned beer seem to go together best, right?

Tractor Wells Park is teaming with Cheesy Street to create a flight of 4 assorted mini grilled cheese sandwiches along with 4 Tractor beers for $13. If that's not enough, karaoke starts at 7. Sing Bobby McGee with a mouthful of grilled cheese, I dare ya. You'll still sound better than Janis Joplin ever did. Yeah, I said it. Pairings start at 5.

Four Peaks and Farina Alto are pairing up for a beers and bites event. If you tell the Four Peaks rep that you don't like their beer, he'll bite the f*** out of you. And Hop Knot is good, so just keep your mouth shut and behave, ok?

Monday, May 29, 2017

Beer Week: Memorial Day

A fairly light day of events on this Memorial Day. Enjoy your cookouts!

If you are going out, it's probably to Marble for their Memorial Day Festival, which starts at 3. Four bands, food trucks, Double White.

Firestone Walker sampling at both Total Wine locations. If you go to the westside location, you can buy the can of Avery Raja DIPA that was canned on 12.10.2015. A real collector's item.

Calling all know-it-alls: Tractor Brewing presents Beer Geek Trivia, hosted by the NM Dark Side Brew Crew. Think you've got enough beer knowledge to stand above the rest? Get out there and prove it! Questions start at 7.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

Beer Week: Sunday, May 28

The BIG Beer Week takes place at Sandia Casino today: ABQ Blues and Brews. The fest has been a favorite of local beer fans for 7 years now and is largely responsible for getting people turned on to the craft beer scene. Over 70 breweries and 4 hours of tasting makes for a busy day. Get some food in you first!

It's an Oregon invasion as Deschutes takes over the taps at Gecko's in Nob Hill. Is Deschutes on AB-InBev's radar for buyout? What's your guess for the next craft brewery to get bought out?

Pints, Planks, and Pups is going on till 6 at Rio Bravo. Come adopt an animal in need of a friend. $1 from each pint sold will go to Animal Humane.

Defying Gravity Car Club wants to show off their rides without turning Central Ave. into a standstill. Instead, they'll be in the parking lot of Ponderosa Brewing from 1-4. Ponderosa is also doing that tapa/beer pairing all day/all week.

It's always nice to see breweries get together to make a beer. Dialogue and Quarter Celtic did just that, and the result is Common Irish Conversation. I suppose a common Irish conversation topic is alcohol. Actually, I know it is.

Head over to Imbibe for a pairing of KBS and your choice of cigar. Buy a KBS or PC Pils and get $1 off your cigar purchase. I can see KBS and a cigar together, but a cigar and a Pilsner- not so much. There's my expert recommendation for you.



Saturday, May 27, 2017

Beer Week: Saturday, May 27

As if the Santa Fe location at Green Jeans wasn't busy enough, they're throwing a party to celebrate Beer Week. An all day party featuring Bocadillo's TV star chef Marie Yniguez cooking up a storm while you sit back and enjoy your beer. Party is going on now!

O'Niell's Juan Tabo presents The Beer Olympics: channel your inner Bruce Jenner and challenge your team of four in olympic style events. I'm betting there will be no swimming nor ice skating. Event starts at 2.

Eclectic Pizzeria hosts a family style dinner with Upslope Brewing. So get ready to yell at the people across the table about how they held you back and mom always treated them better than you. Fights cost $25, start at 7.

The Freight House in Bernalillo is holding a pig roast and special Marble tapping at 1 today. "Hi, can you scoop me out some of that belly, please?" Marble Flower Digger Pale Ale, featuring NM lavender, will be tapped to complement your pig.

The annual 505 Collaboration beer is being tapped at multiple breweries today. Golden Strong, a well-hopped Belgian Strong Ale, is this year's special beer.

A fundraiser for NMARB Youth Music program takes place today at Rio Bravo at 1. Lots of music, including Red Light Cameras (the Lachiomas have been camped out since last night to get a good seat) and Le Chat Lunatique will be performing. Art stuff, food trucks, beer, fun. I wish I had been more diligent in learning an instrument as a kid. Maybe if my mom forced me into guitar instead of trumpet I would have cared.


Does running from brewery to brewery sound fun to you? Or safe? If so, join the Hash House Harriers at Canteen beginning at 2 as they drink and run, drink and run from brewery to brewery. Where's my Uber?


Friday, May 26, 2017

ABQ Beer Week: Friday, May 26

Friday, the day where its almost a law that you have to drink. The police have enough to worry about rather than come after your ass for teetotaling, so hit up some of Friday's Beer Week events.

Red Door is releasing a Blackberry Hefeweizen at both of their locations. I love the look of the downtown location. There's lots of empty space on Gold St. Wouldn't it be cool if all those business spaces were filled with brewery taprooms? Like 6th St. in Austin has all those music venues, or the Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego has all those douchebag bars? We could have Brewery Boulevard, where Albuquerque craft beer is the only alcohol served.

Remember: when it happens, you read the idea here first.

Be honest: Have you been getting growler fills at Jubilation? Why not? What do you want, an Altbier collaborated on by Mother Road from Flagstaff and your own Tractor Brewing? You got it. Fills (and a tasting of various Mother Road cans) begins at 4 pm.

Tractor hosts a rare tap takeover from one brewery in another's brewery. Yup. Rowley's Farmhouse Ales will be the focus of Sour Hour, featuring John Rowley's spectrum of sour beers. From 5 pm till they're all gone.

Sister Bar already carries La Cumbre handles. Tonight, they'll carry a lot more! Stick around for music from Biome and Esh One. Taps at 5 pm.


Nob Hill Bar and Grill, you always get the good kegs! Bourbon County Brand Stout makes a glorious return, joined by Goose Island's first beer in the Cooper Project: a barrel-aged Scotch Ale! Something that tastes like a bourbon-y band aid or something that tastes like a bourbon-y band aid but gets described as something more acceptable, like "peaty"? You be the judge. I'm actually excited to try it, as Goose Island just does something magical with their barrels, but mad I won't be able to until Saturday...please leave me some.

Sing it with me:

Hop on
Hop off
Hop On Hop Off: The Brew Cruise

Thank you to The Clapper for giving us a tune that will live forever. And thank you to ABQ Trolley Co. for driving a bunch of eager beer drinkers to 4+ breweries in this "Hop On, Hop Off Brew Cruise" 3-hour tour that begins at 7. All participating breweries will offer a discount to those wearing their ABQ Trolley stickers, and free beer to those wearing K-Swiss.

That is, you should get free beer for wearing K-Swiss. Don't sue me if it doesn't happen.

Monroe's? The place that the little kid does the radio ads for? And they're participating in Beer Week?? Excellent. Loteria for prizes and Upslope pouring freely* (not the same as being poured for free). The games begin at 5 pm. Don't drink the Fabuloso.

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

ABQ Beer Week 2017, Day One

This is the week you've been waiting for. Not the one where your attempt at the Whole 30 Diet ends, though the amount of drinking you'll do is probably the same both weeks. ABQ Beer Week 2017, in my opinion, is the best lineup of events since the whole dang thing started. Here's some highlights of Thursday's events. All events can be viewed at Abqbeerweek.com

Bow & Arrow has quietly been releasing solid beers at their chic location since they opened, and this dry-hopped Sour Farmhouse Ale should be no exception. A refreshing way to kick off the long week.

All Beer Week long Ponderosa will be featuring a different beer with a different tapa for only $7. Want to know what this one's going to be? Don't ask me, I just work here. At the computer. The tapas deal runs from 3-6 each day.

M-Tucci's Moderno joins in the Beer Week fun with a special tapping from Upslope Brewing at 4 pm. Upslope has been sending some nice stuff down here in those 19 oz. cans, including a tequila barrel-aged Barleywine and a barrel aged Coffee Stout.

Get a sneak peek of Chris Jackson's upcoming book, "Albuquerque Beer: Duke City History on Tap" at Jubilation. A small amount of books will be there for you to get signed. Pre-orders for the book will also be available for those of you who couldn't get an early copy.

Bubba's 33, home to all the sports on TV and all the pickups in the parking lot, will be hosting an Alaskan Brewing tap takeover a 4 pm. Some Alaskan Smoked Porter sounds pretty good right now...


Marble Brewery's most popular event? Beer and Cheese takes place at the Heights Taproom this year, with the usual format: 5 cheeses, 5 beers, $25. Get your tickets NOW; they sell out every year. Event begins at 5 pm.

The official beer of Pork and Brew, Big Sipper IPA, will be released in cans as well at Tractor Wells Park. The Silver String Band performs 7-10.

Sierra Nevada beer paired with Girl Scout cookies at O'Niell's on Central? Sure, why not? You know the moms who do all the selling of the cookies for their kids? They'll be there. They won't be selling anything, but you can buy them a drink. Event starts at 7.

Torinos at Home hosts a multi-course beer dinner with La Cumbre Brewing Co. at 6. Salmon slider, beef filet, peach tart, arancini...yum.

Have a big belly and a Tommy Bahama shirt? Then come to Jinja on the westside for a a cigar night with Jake and Harley's Cigar Gallery and a tapping of Alaskan's Perseverance, Raspberry Wheat, and Summer Kolsch. Cigars are from Perdomo's Craft Series. Event starts at 5:30.