Alesmith Yulesmith (summer) arrives in stores

Posted on June 30, 2008 by Adam Nason

[Update: This will also be on sale at the brewery Thursday, July 3 from 1-5pm for $7/bottle]

(San Diego, CA) – Alesmith’s prized Double IPA hits store shelves in Southern California as early as this week and distribution to select parts of the US should take place soon after. Alesmith Yulesmith (summer) is in a tie for #49 at RateBeer and sits at #40 on Beer Advocate.

South Bay Drugs is reportedly getting in a shipment today that goes 12-15 cases deep. [ed: Considering that SBD&L ships, some of you that don't have this locally could potentially swing an order that includes Yulesmith, Stone 12th (arriving next Monday), Hair of the Dog Fred, Hair of the Dog Blue Dot, The Bruery, etc. Just be wary of the Yulesmith selling out!]

As far as other SoCal stores, I haven’t seen any yet that keep very good beer pages or show this as arriving. Alesmith also doesn’t list distributors online. If a shipment of this is coming to your store soon, feel free to leave a comment for our readers.

Unibroue Quatre-centième celebrates Quebec City’s 400th Anniversary

Posted on June 30, 2008 by Adam Nason

(Quebec City, QUEBEC) – Unibroue Quatre-centième was first released a month ago at a special event in Montreal along with a tasting of two 5-year old Mathusalems (6 liter bottles) of Trois Pistoles. What’s the story with this beer?

From the Canadian Newswire’s press release:

[...] the Quatre-centième will be available to Quebecers and beer lovers in more than 20 countries worldwide, including the United States and France. Unibroue hopes this gesture will enable everyone to share in Quebec City’s 400th anniversary celebrations [...]

The Quatre-centième is a Belgian style double ale, with a strong profile and slightly tart. We managed to balance four spices: one for each century of Quebec City’s history.

According to Pubzone, as of June 9, “La Quatre-centième is available across Quebec in 750 mL bottles and on tap. A series of 400 6L bottles will also be available in limited edition.”

The Wine and Cheese Place in St. Louis is advertising pre-orders on its website.

For those that want the press release in French, click here.

Harpoon Brewery aims to capture craft market with new Leviathan Series

Posted on June 29, 2008 by Adam Nason

leviathan (lēvī’əthən) , in the Bible [Job], aquatic monster, presumably the crocodile, the whale, or a dragon. It was a symbol of evil to be ultimately defeated by the power of good. – Columbia University Press

(Boston, MA) – Harpoon Brewery, the 10th ranked craft brewery in the country (in 2007 sales), recently made a splash with the announcement of its new Leviathan line of beers. For years, the brewery’s 100 Barrel Series has been its only play at the limited release market, the biggest growth segment in craft brewing in 2007 according to the Brewers Association. Unfortunately, the 100 Barrel Series beers have been met with mixed reviews over the years. The new Leviathan line, however, could put Harpoon on the radar of those looking for upper echelon brews. Continue reading →

Weekly Friday Roundup: Three Floyds XI Anniversary Ale, Lost Abbey, KTG, Deschutes, Great Lakes

Posted on June 27, 2008 by Adam Nason

Let me preface this week’s roundup by pointing you to our new polling system. Each week I will throw up a new poll (found on the lower right sidebar). This week’s poll, which I will keep up through the middle of next week, asks readers what new item/improvement they would like to see on this blog next. I may have left out an option or two that you would like to see (i.e., more frequent updating of the release date list!). If I did leave something out, email me or leave a comment in this thread. While the most votes doesn’t necessarily mean that I will automatically introduce that feature, I will give the results strong consideration.

There are multiple forms of feedback available. This poll is just one of them. If there is anything pertaining to the site that you’d like to comment on (posts you like, errors/glitches, beer tips even if it’s from your own brewery, etc.), you can hit me up by email (upper left), comment in a thread, or send me a quick note on Twitter (upper left). OK, now that you’re asleep, here is the news in quick hit-style since there is so much ground to cover…

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Lost Abbey
Tomme Arthur has probably been more busy at his computer than brewing recently. He initially made waves this week in officially announcing this Saturday’s release of Continue reading →

Stone 12th Anniversary Site Now Online

Posted on June 26, 2008 by Adam Nason

(Escondido, CA) – You may have got to it already (thanks for still keeping me off your email list, Stone! :hot:), but the Stone 12th Anniversary fest website is now up. The site contains a list of breweries that will be at the event including Port Brewing, Green Flash, and a slew of others. You can also buy tickets for the event.

[*Short post tonight as the WordPress servers have been quite buggy. Expect a Friday Roundup post late tomorrow afternoon (EST).]

Deschutes Black Butte XX and 20th Anniversary Wit on sale now

Posted on June 26, 2008 by Adam Nason

[7/3 Update: This Black Butte XX thread on BA is the best resource that we've seen on where people can find these beers locally. In addition, 99 Bottles in Federal Way sent out an email tonight that they had some extra cases but that they'd sell out quick.]

(Bend, OR) – The 2008/20th Anniversary Commemorative version in the Special Reserve Series, Deschutes Black Butte XX Imperial Porter, is on sale now along with Deschutes 20th Anniversary Wit, the next Bond Street Series release. Liquid Solutions is one site where bottles can be purchased online NOW (along with Hair of the Dog Fred from the Wood 2008 we might add). The beer has already made its way onto some shelves in Oregon, and will see some limited distribution in California and possibly elsewhere. It has also been on tap at the brewpubs recently.

The official release for these two beers takes place at the Bend and Portland locations this Friday. From 5-10pm, Deschutes will hold its 20th Anniversary party at the Bend Public House. The partying continues with an open house event at the Bend brewery on Saturday from 12-4pm. More details are available at the Deschutes site.

Why is this big news? Deschutes The Abyss, the last release in the Special Reserve Series, rose to the top 5 at Beer Advocate and to the top 50 at RateBeer. That certainly raises the expectations for Black Butte XX.

Struise Earthmonk Release Awaits in U.S. (and Japan and Canada)

Posted on June 25, 2008 by Adam Nason

(Woesten-Vleteren, Belgium) – Quick update on this. Taken directly from a post by Struise Head Brewer, Urbain Coutteau, at RateBeer earlier this week:

Besides 1 pallet (54 crates) of Struise Earthmonk (click on Aardmonnik.jpg in upper right) that were really exported to the US in January, another 4 go to Japan, 1 to Roland and Russel Ontario Canada, and 1 to Horizon Wines in Alberta Canada. Those were the third parties that were interested to buy Earthmonk at that time.

Date of approximative shipping is around the 30th of September.

Earthmonk 2009 is already sold out, too.

The Flemish brown ale is currently listed as retired at RateBeer; its beer ratings would be good enough to place it in the top 100 if that status were changed.

Lost Abbey Isabelle Proximus release will be this Saturday

Posted on June 23, 2008 by Adam Nason

(San Marcos, CA) – Fresh word delivered straight from Tomme Arthur’s blog earlier tonight! Lost Abbey Isabelle Proximus will be released at the brewery this coming Saturday. There was no confirmation [confirmed - all the details right here] of the rumors that are swirling on the beer forums that there will be a limit of one case per person or $30/bottle. He did, however, note that some bars around the U.S. will get at least ten cases. Between that and most of the cases being sold right at the brewery, it is unclear (and perhaps unlikely) whether any bottles will be distributed to stores.

Related stories:

Lost Abbey Isabelle Proximus due late June, more Angel’s Share in December
The Secret Beers of Lost Abbey: Inferno Ale and Isabelle Proximus

Ommegang Biere de Mars Comes Out of Retirement, Rouge out in July

Posted on June 22, 2008 by Adam Nason

[Update: See Larry Bennett's post on the third page of this RateBeer thread for more detailed information.]

(Cooperstown, NY) – Fresh off of the heels of its appearance at American Craft Beer Festival, Brewery Ommegang is set to release Biere de Mars in 750 mL bottles very soon, possibly within the next two weeks and is available now (see update above).

According to Larry Bennett, Marketing Director, Ommegang plans to release around 600 cases, all or most of which will be sold at the brewery. With an average of 4.21 at RateBeer, Continue reading →

Beer notes So-Cal style: Port 2nd Anniversary, The Bruery, Hollingshead’s, Ballast Point

Posted on June 22, 2008 by Adam Nason

According to South Bay Drugs, Port Brewing is working on another batch of its 2nd Anniversary Ale. The first batch made its debut at the Port 2nd anniversary party last month and is inching its way toward the top 25 Imperial/Double IPAs in the world as ranked by RateBeer. The hop bomb is already on the shelves in several places (or sold out already depending on your location). Even those in Massachusetts have been fortunate enough to get some. Pennsylvanians should be pleased byThe Beeryard’s report that the state will get in a shipment as well; the store is currently taking pre-orders [ed: at $4.25/bottle cheaper than what I paid for it!! :hot:]. The new batch will make the rounds in July.

New bottles from the aptly named, The Bruery, have recently hit store shelves in or around Southern California. Based in Orange County, CA, the new brewery specializes in Belgian-style craft beers. The Bruery Orchard White is even staking a claim as a contender for top-rated Continue reading →

Friday Weekly Roundup: Beer Advocate and Founders Fests Highlight Summer Weekend

Posted on June 20, 2008 by Adam Nason

We’ll start out with the big events happening this weekend. One is American Craft Beer Fest taking place in Boston on Friday and Saturday. We challenge anyone to come up with a better list of the top 10 brews to try at this fest than ours. (Seriously, leave a comment).

Then there is Founders Fest, an all-day event taking place Saturday. The Beer Spot is reporting that Kentucky Breakfast Stout will be on tap among others. Michigan Live also had a story on its site yesterday.

The annual National Homebrew Competition took place in Cincinnati this week. The Brewing Network will be streaming the awards announcements live on Saturday night. The event, put on by the American Homebrewers Association draws thousands from all over. Last year saw over 5,000 entries breaking the prior record. Our money is on the record once again being broken this year.

Rumors are starting to fly about upcoming events as well. Greg Koch posted this tidbit about Stone Sour Fest Continue reading →

De Struise Brouwers give Black Albert and Pannepot Grand Reserva timetable

Posted on June 20, 2008 by Adam Nason

[7/19 Update: Matt Dinges of The Shelton Brothers, the U.S. importer for Struise, informed me that Pannepot Reserva and Grand Reserva will be delayed until fall. Not sure about regular Pannepot but these beers can still be found on store shelves in some locals.] (Woesten-Vleteren, Belgium) – De Struise Brouwers answered the rumors out in internet land with what is really going to happen with bottles coming to the U.S. this year. There will now be 600 cases and 20 kegs of Struise Black Albert coming to the U.S. but it apparently won’t ship until early-mid August. We are guessing that many of those bottles will end up at the August Belgian Beer Festival at Ebenezer’s Pub in Maine. (That festival may be very very big this year). The brewery did confirm, however, that Pannepot Reserva and Pannepot Grand Reserva will be coming to the U.S. late next month. The full details can be found at the official blog. Notice that there is no mention of Black Jack. Hmmm…

Americans may have to wait a little longer for a taste of Black Albert but we got some info from The Cracked Kettle, based in Amsterdam, that they are well in stock. The store is also stocked with Pannepot Grand Reserva and Westvleteren 12 as of a couple days ago. They do ship to the U.S., too, so consider paying the site a visit if you’ve been hoping to try any of these beers and can’t wait any longer.

Update on Mikkeller, Stone, + Alesmith’s Tripel

Posted on June 18, 2008 by Adam Nason

Mikkel updated me on the progress of the collaboration between Mikkeller, Stone, and Alesmith. The beer was brewed during Mikkel’s visit to the US earlier this month. They brewed 120 barrels to be released in 12 oz. bottles (math > 1 barrel = 3968 oz / 12 = 330 x 120 = 39,600 bottles?). With the craft beer niche’s packaging trend moving toward expensive bombers, it would be nice if this were to become available in six packs. The Belgian-style Tripel will resemble a more “classic” rendition of the style meaning less hops (German Perle and Amarillo) in this beer.

With that many bottles available, (we speculate that) there is a good chance of it being somewhat available around the U.S. though some will surely be exported back to Europe. Mikkel hopes that it will be ready for the European Beer Festival in Copenhagen in mid-September and also be ready for U.S. consumers around that time.

As for other happenings with these breweries that we haven’t touched on recently (i.e. Stone 12th Anniversary, Alesmith BASS release), Mikkeller It’s Alive just arrived in the U.S. market. Shelton Brothers imports this (and most other international brews) and could probably tell you if/where you can find it in your local market.

Tickets also just went on sale for the Stone Sour Fest to take place on July 20. They can be purchased at Brown Paper Tickets for 30 bones. A short description of the event can be found on Stone’s calendar (scroll to the lower right). Some comments on last year’s event can be found here. There are no details yet on this year’s event so we’ll probably revisit later.

Mikkeller, Alesmith, and Stone Brewing to collaborate on beer this June

Beer notes: Marin White Knuckle, Avery Gemini, Black Albert, Drake’s Night

Posted on June 18, 2008 by Adam Nason

Marin Brewing announced in its newsletter yesterday that Marin Eldridge Grade White Knuckle Double IPA is back on tap and available in 22 oz. bottles. The beer ratings for this hoppy ale have been phenomenal at Beer Advocate. It is missing from the top 100 despite having a high enough score and the number of reviews to have a spot. It is also listed in the top 200 at RateBeer. The bottles should go quickly and it may not last long on tap either.

In an interview held over at The Full Pint, Adam Avery, Owner and Brewmaster for Avery Brewing in Colorado, revealed the release of a new beer that he hopes will be ready to come out in November. Avery Gemini will be a big IPA weighing in at 8% ABV. He notes that it will be dry-hopped aggresively though not quite as much as the brewery’s popular, Avery Maharaja.

Toronado San Francisco is celebrating the release of four rare Belgian beers from Drake’s Brewing on tap tonight. One of the beers, Brettamber, for example, has been aged for two years in Merlot Oak with Brettanomyces. Drake’s regular beers should be on hand as well. For more info, visit the event page. And follow Toronado on Twitter for updates as to what is rotating on and off tap at the San Francisco location.

Lucky Baldwins in Pasedena also has on-going event right now. The bar is a stunning lineup of IPAs on draft for its 2008 IPA Fest. Someone posted the taplist here on BA. Among the options are Stone 10th and 11th Anniversary and Port Hop-15 just to name a couple. The events started June 14th so it is possible that some of the brews have already went offline but it is worth checking out.

Finally, the only news we have to report on Struise Black Albert is that there is no news. Matt Dinges from The Shelton Brothers informed me that they have not received nor picked up any Black Albert yet. It looks like beer people will have to wait just a little longer to get their hands on bottles of the Belgian Royal Stout.

Midnight Sun Brewing’s Planet Beer Series, Panty Peeler, and Berserker Imperial Stout

Posted on June 16, 2008 by Adam Nason

(Anchorage, AK) – A Midnight Sun Brewing mega-post filled with Planet Beer Series details, Berserker Stout news, an interesting marketing twist for one of the existing beers, tentative plans to get beer into Washington, and info on how those in the lower 48 states can get some Midnight Sun beers dropped off to their doorstep. Here goes…

Much in the same fashion it released last year’s popular Seven Deadly Sins Beer Series, Midnight Sun Brewing is at it again in 2008 with a new series based on the planets of the Solar System.

The brewery is in the process of releasing, in both bombers and on draft, nine Belgian-style beers named after the planets (note that Pluto is included for this series). Three beers have been released already on a monthly basis beginning this past April: Mars, Earth, and Mercury, the most recent being Mercury, a Belgian-style Small Beer spiced with Indian Coriander. Next in the series should be Uranus, an ale featuring 100% Brett fermentation. If the order on the site holds, the rest of the releases may fall in order like this: Pluto, Saturn, Neptune, Venus, and Jupiter. [Turns out that is not the order. Next in the series is Pluto on 8/21, Golden Ale aged w/ Brett] Styles for each beer can be found on the sales sheet [pdf link], and they are all up on our new beer release calendar as well. (Not to mention, craft beer with a space theme makes for the ultimate experience in beer geekiness

One of the brewery’s beers will soon get a name change. Midnight Sun Épluche-Culotte will finally don the nickname it has earned over time: “Panty Peeler.” Originally dubbed “Extreme Polar White Bier,” the brew should be released with its new label by late July. La Mâitresse du Moine, the #1 Abbey Dubbel in the world, will also get its “Monk’s Mistress” name back. Barb Miller, VP/Marketing and Business/Brand Development, notes that the recipe for Monk’s will stay the same but that Panty Peeler will “have more orange peel and coriander like it used to way back.” When it debuted back in 2003, its beer ratings hovered around the low-mid 4′s at RateBeer for much of the year, certainly making this something to watch.

What else is new in 2008? Midnight Sun Meltdown Double IPA is a recent new offering that is available in bombers through the summer. And Miller informed me that Berserker Imperial Stout will make its return either in late 2008 or early 2009. With any luck, the brewery will also be undertaking a very limited expansion in distribution before the end of the year. Miller mentioned Seattle, Washington as a potential target and would like to move the beers early this fall. Midnight Sun is looking to grow, and once a suitable facility is found, more focus can be placed on expanding into the lower 48 states.

For now, you will only find the beers discussed above in Anchorage. However, two online beer store sites are carrying the brewery’s regular releases in stock. You can find Midnight Sun Arctic Devil Barleywine, La Mâitresse du Moine, Sockeye Red IPA, and Kodiak Brown at both Liquid Solutions and Bottle Trek. The latter even appears to be carrying the Arctic Rhino Coffee Porter. Just search for “Midnight Sun” on either site.

New Beer Release Dates Calendar Updated

Posted on June 16, 2008 by Adam Nason

We’ve shifted around a lot of dates since late May, filled out the rest of Q3, and added Q4 and Q1 2009 pics! Click here to check out the most recently updated calendar!

Changes since last time include a few additions to Hair of the Dog (Nov. 15 dock sale), Midnight Sun (expect story Monday night or Tuesday AM), Lagunitas, Dogfish Head, and Port/ The Lost Abbey. We’re definitely looking forward to the newly rumored Struise Black Albert Reserva bottles this fall, too!

Next update will be in early July. Hoping to have some links integrated into the list at that time. Until then, enjoy the most recent installment of the internet’s most up-to-date beer release date list.

Struise Black Albert bottles already on U.S. Soil?

Posted on June 14, 2008 by Adam Nason

Time to consolidate all of the Struise tidbits of info out there in internet land. Shortly after I posted the Friday round-up, Struise Head Brewer, Urbain Coutteau, posted the following message on RateBeer:

[Struise Black Albert] came out of the warm room two weeks ago & already in the States by plane & a lot more vibrating transport. For the moment, your beer is more a yeast cocktail than a Struise beer. My advise is that you leave the beer in your cellar for a month for it to rest like it should. Beer should be drunk in the best of conditions.

And from Chris Lively, Owner of Ebenezer’s Pub, on Beer Advocate:

The [Black Albert] Reserva will also be bottled in 2-3 months from what I hear.

He also posted that all of the new batch of Struise Earthmonk went to Japan. [ed: certainly a curious decision to send this to Japan; Denmark and some other countries are known to be into craft beer as much as we are but maybe there are more out there we don't know about?] We’ve seen rumors in multiple places that there are still some cases of a batch of Earthmonk sitting at Shelton Brothers. Those could be completely false or outdated but we are holding out hope, if not optimistic, that some will get released in the U.S.

Even if no Earthmonk gets released in the U.S., New Englanders are in luck. Lively posted recently that there will be a 30-liter keg of Struise Earthnun at the Belgian Beer Festival in late August. The beer is a blend of “Earthmonk + Pannepot Reserva + 1968 Thomas Hardys.” One would expect Struise Black Albert will also be available in some capacity at the event.

And what does the mysterious “Struise Black Albert versus Black Jack” message posted at Lively’s pub site mean? Might there be a new Struise Black Jack beer that we have not heard about yet? I believe I’ve put two and two together and the Reserva version will be called Black Jack! Now what do I win?

And then there is Struise Pannepot Grand Reserva. Shelton Brothers have said in the past that this will get distributed in the States again but nothing new for information has come to light in some time.

Got a Struise-related tip (or any general beer tip for that matter)? Send an email.

[6/17 Update: If you're in Europe, your best shot to get this may be the Cracked Kettle in Amsterdam, or BelgianShop. It appears as though the Belgian Beer Shop has sold out. Not sure about the other two stores; I'll look into it.]

Stone 12th Anniversary Party Will Take Place on August 16

Posted on June 13, 2008 by Adam Nason

(Escondido, CA) – The brewery just released word tonight that the Stone 12th Anniversary Celebration & Invitational Beer Festival will take place at California State University, San Marcos, on Saturday, August 16. The brewery appears to be in the midst of planning still but should be releasing more details through stonebrew.com/12th [still no site there] very soon.

Beernews.org Friday Weekly Round-up: Alesmith BASS, Saint Arnold Divine Reserve, Tyranena, Captain Lawrence

Posted on June 13, 2008 by Adam Nason

We’ve received a bunch of newsletters this week detailing new releases so we’re dedicating the return of the Friday Weekly Round-up to the new brews!

Alesmith Barrel-Aged Speedway Stout 2003 & 2006 – Just a reminder not to forget. Bottle sales will begin at 10:00am and Jessica will start handing out tickets at approximately 9am. Limit is one bottle for 2003 and two for 2006 though they’ll limit to one if a lot of people are still in waiting in line. If you miss out, there is a barrel-aged Alesmith night currently in the works at O’ Brien’s Pub for next month.

Saint Arnold Divine Reserve #6 – You may have seen the press release on Beer Advocate; the beer, a Barleywine, was released at some stores yesterday and will be hitting other stores today. Another quick-seller, it is (likely) the top-rated series of beers brewed in Texas and the rest of the Deep South.

Tyranena Scurvy – The brewery is working on bottling over 400 cases. A release party will be held at the Blue Nile Restaurant in Minneapolis, MN on Friday, June 27. Not clear when it will be available in stores but probably not for a week or two.

Additionally, for those in Duluth, MN, Fitger’s Brewhouse is now delivering growlers.

Captain Lawrence St. Vincent’s Dubbel – The Belgian-style Abbey Ale will be made available today at 4pm. $10/750 mL and the current batch of 180 cases is IT for 2008. On an aside, was Yankee Brewing News serious when it reported in its latest issue that only eight cases exist of Captain Lawrence Cuvee de Castleton, tentatively scheduled for release next month? [ed: I never confirmed this but some forumgoers allege that there are 80. Don't shoot the messenger!]

Struise Black Albert – Nothing new to report on this. No official word has come out from the brewery in the last couple months on the US release since we first reported, Head Brewer, Urbain Coutteau’s projection that it would be making its way over “around June 15.” The Belgium release got pushed back about one month or so; given what little we’ve heard, we’d expect that the beer will probably see a late June, or even more likely, July release at this point. Just speculation though.

Events

A couple of big events this weekend:

Pizza Port Real Ale Fest: June 13-14. What’s on tap for the 11th Annual Festival? “From the Pizza Port site: “The VIP ONLY Casks include Green Flash Double Stout, Alpine Duet IPA, Ballast Point Tongue Buckler, Pizza Port Carlsbad Night Rider Imperial Stout, the Lost Abbey’s Angel Share Barleywine.” From Tom Nickels’ O’Briens newsletter: “There are casks from Washington (Elysian, Big Time, Pike), Oregon (Rogue, Deschutes), Nevada (Big Dog, White Pine), Arizona (Papago, Four Peaks) and Colorado (Avery). We have tons of great local and California beers as well including Hollister, Craftsman, Firestone, Marin, Moylan’s, Speakeasy, Lagunitas and many more.”

Washington Brewers Festival: June 13-15. Here’s the beer lineup [pdf]. It will be a great opportunity to try out beers from some of the lesser known Northwest breweries like Diamond Knot, Big Time, and Anacortes.

First look at Dogfish Head Theobroma, due in August

Posted on June 11, 2008 by Adam Nason

(Milton, DE) – Dogfish Head Theobroma got label approval last week, and somewhat surprisingly considering what Santa’s Butt went through just a year and a half ago. But the beer is clearly a respectful tribute to ancient times and traditions, after all, the Latin translation of “Theobroma” means “Food for the Gods.” Theobroma also refers to Theobroma cacao, or the cocoa plant.

The beer is, indeed, big on (Askinosie) chocolate and big on alcohol at 9% though it isn’t billed as an imperial stout. It is, instead, dubbed an ale, brewed with honey, Soconusco cocoa nibs, cocoa powder, ancho chili peppers, and ground annatto. It will be released in August [8/1 Update: Site now says September] in 750′s according to the Dogfish Head site.

The beer was actually featured on tap just a few months ago, and much has been written about its historical influences already:

Dogfish Head’s Official Web Site:

This beer is based on chemical analysis of pottery fragments found in Honduras which revealed the earliest known alcoholic chocolate drink used by early civilizations to toast special occasions

The Zythophile:

[...] it looks as if chocolate-flavoured beer, like DC Stout, is one of the most ancient beer styles in the world, dating back more than 3,000 years.

Joe Sixpack’s Blog:

According to McGovern, early Mesoamericans likely consumed the cacao tree’s fruit because the seeds were too bitter. As they discovered how to brew with the bean, they added honey, chilies and spices to offset the bitterness.

Beernews.org

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Monthly Archives: June 2008