Surprise!

Last Friday, under the metaphorical dark of night, a keg made its way to Blue Monk.

There wasn’t much fanfare, which is unusual for us. Usually I shout early and often about any update, but not this time. We played it cool.

Harpoon stopped by! It was quite fun.

The beer in question was Mr Superfantastisch, a Berliner Weisse. You might not be familiar with the style, which is understandable as it’s not often seen commercially, at least in the US. It’s a sour beer, light and tart and refreshing, standing at a slim 3.5% abv. It’s not dissimilar to lemonade in some ways, so even people who don’t like beer, or who make a face at the thought of “sour beer,” might like it.

So why did we keep it under wraps? Well, for now, the only place you can get it is Blue Monk (although if you went to Friday Night Flights last week you’d have gotten some there as well). It may be gone by the time you’re reading this. But do not despair! More is coming, albeit not immediately. Think of this as an advance diplomatic delegation. We’ll have some available at the brewery and hopefully a few kegs sent to bars during Beer Week. Stay tuned.

Buffalo Beer Week approaches

It’s September 12th already. Where has the time gone? Why, it’s almost the 20th, and you know what that means.

Buffalo Beer Week!

It’s about to be beer Christmas. Well, it’s eight days long. Does that make it beer Hanukkah? I’ll leave that to more qualified people to say.

What is there to do? Well:

Friday 9/20 will kick things off with the Brewed in Buffalo Release Party: how about In a Van, the CBW/Flying Bison Belgian Double IPA sequel to last year’s Down By the River? Oh, and some Wet Frank with fresh hops from McCollum Orchards? Then the CBW/Pearl Street/Big Ditch (feat. Willard Brooks) jam Lord Lupulin IPA. That’s just us, not including the other excellent breweries who will be there.

Saturday 9/21 is the Ballpark Brew Bash at whatever they’re calling Pilot Field these days. Coca Cola Field. It will most definitely be a great time, and if you have VIP tickets you can try Rutherford Brett Haze, our summer Belgian pale ale with wheat that’s been given a funky twist.

Tuesday 9/24 we’ll be saying goodbye to Rutherford B. Haze at Sterling Place. We’re holding a wake and everyone is invited to say goodbye with the last kegs of Rutherford, a tap takeover and a little something special. It will be quite an event, because we know how to send a beer off in style.

Saturday 9/28 will be the end of Beer Week: the Beer Geek Festival at Artisan Kitchens and Baths. Remember Rutherford Brett Haze? He’ll be there.

To reiterate: this is only what we’re involved in. The full event list is, well, lengthy. If there’s nothing that interests you or that you can make it out to then you must actively be trying to avoid fun.

An update! Rutherford Brett Haze is being a bit of a pill, fermenting out much more slowly than he should be. As such he’s not going to be able to attend Buffalo Beer Week. In his stead we’ll be bringing The Whale, aged in rye whiskey barrels with cherries.