Friday, May 31, 2019

ABQ Beer Week Friday, May 31

Friday? Beer Week? Must mean it's time for me not to be able to go to the Bourbon County event. Yup, Two Fools Tavern will serve regular BCBS and BRAMBLE RYE, damn it. Have fun. Starts at 5.

Nob Hill Bar and Grill and Ex Novo present Taste the Rainbow, featuring a gamut of Ex Novo beers at 5. The lineup includes IPA, Hazy IPA, Pilsner, Berliner Weisse, Mexican Lager, and Dry-Hopped Sour. I tried their impressive Hazy IPA at Sister Bar- this could be a welcome addition if the rest of their beers are nearly as good.

You won't find this deal north of Mexico often: three beers paired with three tacos at Canteen. Event starts at 6. Where do they make the tacos? In that panini press?

Dialogue gets in on the Beer Week fun with a beer and food pairing with M'Tucci's. Everyone wants to do something with this restaurant, which means they must be doing something right. Then again, Olive Garden goes on a wait on a Friday night.

Missed Marble's Beer and Cheese event last week? Come get a free taste of what you missed at Jubilation at 4. They'll have Marble beer and some free cheese as well. Just don't be surprised if you have to unwrap the plastic before eating. It's free, after all.

A little pre-Pride action at Tractor Wells Park, where Drag Queen Bingo happens at 8. The event benefits the NM Gay Men's Chorus.

Comedy Fight Club at Kilt Check, 8pm. Four of ABQ's funniest (we hope) comedians will perform and you get to crush the dreams of three of them. $10 entrance fee.





Thursday, May 30, 2019

Thursday, May 30: ABQ Beer Week

More good stuff as Beer Week winds down:

A barrel-aged Brett Saison? Isn't that style reserved for for Bow and Arrow? Apparently the folks at Ex Novo and Steel Bender didn't get the memo. Saison de Luxe debuts at Steel Bender on Thursday.

Upslope Brewing tasting at Jubilation from 4-6. I can't seem to pull the trigger on their Batch 1000 because it costs like $12 for a 12 oz can. But it's 17.5% ABV. If it was in a bottle I bet I would have bought it. I spent $10 for a 12 oz. bottle of Bourbon County in 2013 in Indiana.

Want to pay for beer instead? Go to Billy's Long Bar for Odell Pint Night. It's stated for 5-7 but I'd be willing to bet they'll still have it on tap after that. Billy's doesn't exactly get the Odell crowd. But I'm glad they carry the selection that they do.

Pints and Paintbrushes at Canteen's Tramway location. $30 gets you in. You could be the next Van Gose!

Great Gatsby Edition of Gin and Jazz at Tractor Wells Park. I love jazz but man do I hate the Roaring 20s. Tommyguns, flapper girls, bathtub gin...NO. But people find things fun, and things have never been my thing. You'll probably love it. And Le Chat Lunatique will be playing and they're really good.

Bell's gets repped at O'Niell's up in the heights. Still cranking out great beers, even if Hopslam doesn't do it for me anymore.

Saturday, May 25, 2019

ABQ Beer Week Saturday, 5.25

Rise and shine! Saturday features some early events, but none as painfully early as the Marbleous Modern General Brunch Pairing from 7:30-3. 2 Marble beers with 2 Modern General dishes for $20. Nap time to follow.

Doughnuts? Donuts? Bristol Doughnut spells it the hard way. Just like they could have gotten a Ford Fiesta instead of that big bus. The hard way. They're going to Steel Bender to pair some donuts with Steel Bender beer. 11 am.

More donuts! This time at 12-on, at Kilt Check. Rebel Donut samples paired with a flight for $10.

Ex Novo brings their Portland-inspired beers to Sister Bar starting at 6. Come see what all the hype is about from this transplanted brewery.

Quater Celtic holds a Mini Cask Fest, meaning only their own stuff, beginning at 11. BA MacLomas Stout? I'm in. Also Chai Irish Red, DDH Mor Buck IPA, and dry-hopped Gose. Four samples for only $5!

Here's a first: food trucks at a brewery! Red Door hosts its annual Food Truck Battle at noon. Food truck employees fight to the death and serve up the losers to a hungry crowd. Or something like that. Sorry, I'm watching The Walking Dead for the first time.

One of the more cleverly named events of the year, Ciderday Night Fever at Tractor Nob Hill. All the ciders from local breweries plus a few special Tractor ones. Ciders at noon-until you can't stand them anymore. For me, 12:01. But I know people love them. Listen to DJ Dave 12 spin at 8.

Friday, May 24, 2019

ABQ Beer Week Friday, 5.24

Friday always seems to be a good day for Beer Week events, probably because I work in the evening and can't make any of them. Let's see what I'll be missing out in this year...

Canteen is a brewery that seems to fall under the radar for people except for the regulars who have been going since the 5 seat bar location was open. Get over to the larger bar and try the Social Capital Key Lime Pie Gose release.

High and Dry Brewing and the Taos Mountain Energy Bar people got together to create... a bunch of people wearing Patagonia. That, and the Taos Bar Hazy Pale Ale that was made with real bits of the Taos Mountain Almond Agave Bar as well as classic Cascade hops. If you buy a pint, you get an energy bar as well. It's the new age vodka and Red Bull.

Didn't get enough free samples on Thursday? Another Albertson's beer and cheese event with Sierra Blanca takes place at the 4950 Montgomery location from 3-5. That's the one in the colorful area near San Mateo. The Albertson's on 7101 Wyoming will host Bosque for beer and cheese, also from 3-5. Wait, there's more. Albertson's is putting the A in ABQ Beer Week this year, because they'll also have events with Santa Fe, Tractor, and Alaskan, at 2801 Eubank, 2910 Juan Tabo, and 12201 Academy, respectively.

It's heartburn for days at the Wild and Sour tasting featuring Steel Bender, Rowley, and Bow and Arrow beers at Jubilation. And it's free. Event runs from 4-6.

Canteen continues their dessert-themed day with a Sweet Samplings dessert and beer pairing. $14 gets you beer and dessert offerings. It's like a deconstructed pastry stout. Get stuffed from 6-10.

Beer and belly dancing? Sounds like what ends up happening at every beer fest, but usually by guys in sandals. This time, however, it will be a class taught by people who wear the jingly stuff. Kilt Check hosts this $10 class taught by Charlotte Montoya and includes a pint of your choice. 6-7 pm.

Awww, c'mon, I'm going to miss to 21 and Over event at Nob Hill Bar and Grill? All breweries representing at this event are...mature. They've all been in the beer biz 21+ And they'll be bringing some heavy-hitters: Stone (Wine Barrel Winter Harvest), Boulevard (Bourbon Barrel Quad), Sierra Nevada (BA Bigfoot), Firestone Walker (Maple Parabola), Odell (180 Shilling), Bell's (Mango Habanero Oberon), Four Peaks (Imperial Pale Lager) and New Belgium (Le Terroir). Damn it, I want some Maple Parabola!

Rio Bravo Brewing invites you to their Biergarten (would you like Google to translate this page?) for a movie night. At 8 pm, the will be showing The Waterboy, starring Adam Sandler and featuring Colonel Sanders. Rio Bravo has a surprisingly good new hazy IPA. They're making some high quality beer.

Tractor Wells Park welcomes another brewery to their house with three guest beers on tap from Truth Or Consequences Brewing. T or C will also have limited release bombers for sale on premise. Event begins at 5. Wells Park also hosts Magic Night on Friday with magician Dave Grimm. Oh look, belly dancing there too, though I don't think you're supposed to get up and show your stuff. Leave that to the Desert Darlings. You just sit back and watch them and the magician perform. "And for my grand finale, I'm going to make this customer's beer disappear..." Chugs beer, takes off down the street. Thank you. I'll show myself out.










Thursday, May 23, 2019

ABQ Beer Week 2019 BEGINS

I say it year in and year out, which may be why I stopped listening to myself years ago. But this year may be the best lineup for ABQ Beer Week events since at least last year, and possibly ever. If this year's Beer Week doesn't have something to make you happy, you may not like beer.

The week kicks off with a number of chances to drink beer for free. Samples, of course, but who's stopping you from having more than one, at more than one location? Albertson's Market hosts a Sierra Blanca beer and cheese event at the 6200 Coors location from 3-5. The 2910 Juan Tabo location hosts a similar event but with Isotopes beer, also from 3-5. Stone Face Liquor (where I found two lone bottles of Cantillion few years ago) will host a Firestone Walker tasting from 4-6. Jubilation welcomes Bell's Brewery for a tasting from 4-6. That's a day's worth of drinking you can get in at no charge.

Straight from the ABQ Beer Week Website, since I can't state the facts any better: "Bubba’s 33 will be hosting an ABQ Beer Week kickoff event with Alaskan Brewing from 4-7pm on Thursday May 23rd! Giveaways include swag from Alaskan Brewing Co, and a VIP Blues & Brews package with 2 VIP tickets, a one night stay at Residence Inn, dinner at Bubba’s and a roundtrip ride from zTrip to the festival!" Bubba's is quickly becoming a place where the craft beer lovers flock, so this should be a good event. And the Alaskan beer cooler looks sweet.

Tractor and Rowley Farmhouse Ales team up for a Sour Hour at the Tractor Wells Park location beginning at 5. Come sample some of Rowley's award-winning sours. Tractor sours will be available as well. Musical performance by Alex McMahon. Alex is quite the beer connoisseur so hopefully he will be ok to perform after trying all those beers.

Beer, Cheese, and More, one of Beer Week's original events, returns to Marble Heights at 5. $25 gets you five carefully selected cheeses paired with 5 Marble beers. As the name promises, the $25 also gets you More.

Pay money to run! $5, or only $1 per K, gets you into the Laid-Back Lager Jogger 5K run put on by Canteen and Heart and Sole Sports. I'll pay you $10 to run in my place. Meet at Canteen to register at 5 and start running at 6. Finish in time for last call.

A Drinking Songs Themed Karaoke?? It's all capitalized, so it must be a real event. Red Door hosts this unique event from 7-11. Will they have "Beer" by Murphy's Law or "More Beer" by Fear available to sing? I bet not. But you should listen to those songs. And break stuff.

Learn how beer is made with the head brewer at Casa Vieja Brewery. For $20 you can hear how it is brewing on one of the nano-ist of Albuquerque's nano breweries, located in a very Corrales-like setting.

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Hopsoulution to the Haze Craze?

First, is it still a craze if it has been around for years? I say no, but some people still look down on the "Hazebro" types as gimmick chasers. I get that anyone who can be labeled as some sort of bro is most likely annoying, but that shouldn't affect your opinion on the beer itself. Old school IPA brewers talk about their distaste for the style and mock it in much the same way as the non-IPA brewers used to say say, "Well anyone can brew an IPA, you can hide flaws with all the hops..." You know what you can't hide? A shitty-tasting IPA. And I've talked to more than one (two) brewers who found the hazy style to be more challenging than expected to nail down. So if it's a gimmick, gimme more.

THAT BEING SAID, this post is to say that there's still hope for you who long for more of the clear IPAs, and from a trusted veteran and innovator in the IPA world: Bell's has re-introduced (year-round in six states that aren't near us) Hopsoulution DIPA to the Albuquerque market. It's not hazy. In fact, it's amber in color, which worried me at first. I had flashbacks to so many easy-to-brew darker IPAs that tasted like malty messes. Thankfully, Hopsoulution benefits from a lower than normal (for Bell's) DIPA ABV of 8%. This, along with a deft use of hops, makes this a welcome addition to crowded shelves. It's got traditional pine mixed with some of the tropical notes of today's IPAs. Really a pleasant drinker for those who aren't adverse to drinking a beer you can see through. And if you are, there's always Bell's Official Hazy.