"2009" news and stories

Being a beer writer isn't as fun and easy as it looks. Most weeks I spend more time staring down a computer than a pint. I do say "most weeks," however. This coming week will not be one of those weeks.

From Friday, March 6th through Sunday, March 15th, Philadelphia will be host to Philly Beer Week 2009 -- a 10 day extravaganza featuring over 650 events from well over 100 participants, including dozens of different breweries and brewers crashing the city limits and some points beyond.

They've tagged the event "America's Best Beer-Drinking City," and though that title can certainly be debated, the official Philly Beer Week website lays out some compelling evidence to back their claim. A quick look at the event map makes you wonder if there's anywhere in Philadelphia not involved in Beer Week and the list of events is nothing short of overwhelming.

I'll be in town tomorrow (Friday) until Wednesday, March 11th, blogging about events along the way. My first stop will be the Opening Tap if you want to come follow me around. But better yet, check out phillybeerweek.org and see what strikes your fancy. As a former Philly resident, so many of these amazing bars have a special place in my heart, I wouldn't even know how to start playing favorites. You'll probably see me everywhere, because almost anywhere you can get to is worth the stop.

Ever wonder what separates a Stout from an Imperial Stout? Or what really is the difference between an English-style India Pale Ale and an American-style India Pale Ale? Or why isn't there an Indian-style India Pale Ale? Well, there's a handy guide that can help answer two of those three questions for you, and it's available for free on the world wide web. (The answer to the third question: Irony's sake.)

Back on February 14th, the Brewers Association released their annual Valentine's Day gift for beer lovers everywhere: the 2009 Beer Style Guidelines list. For those of you who prefer to be force-fed their hyperlinks, you can download the PDF file here.

I'm usually not big into guessing games, but how many different beer styles do you think the Brewers Association defines? Even avid beer enthusiasts might be surprised as the list continues to grow, but the casual drinker might want to add this one into their permanent trivia rotation: An easy way to impress your friends during your next happy hour. The answer after the jump... (I know, I feel guilty about forcing you to click through, too.)

The first Monday of 2009 is upon us: The first day reality sets in.

Was it just me or did the holidays fall in a very precarious position this year? Both Christmas and New Year's landed on Thursdays, leaving their respective Eves to precede on Wednesdays, resulting in anemic two-day work weeks barely worth thinking about, causing almost an entire 16 day period to be a wash, thus making getting back to any sort of actual life that much more difficult.

But here I am. My point: None.

However, I am building to a larger sentiment that New Year's Eve 2009 has come and passed without but a squeak from me on the beer blog -- begging the question: "How did Slashfood's resident beer snob kick off 2009 (beer-wise of course)?" Well, I'm not so proud to admit that after the requisite champagne toast, my first beer of 2009 was... drum roll please... a Budweiser!

Yikes! Equally requisite explanation: NYE09 was spent at a house party with but one keg to satisfy all beer drinkers' tastes, so I swallowed my snobbery and kicked off the new year with a Bud draft out of the barrel.

My beer expertise did come in handy though when someone was needed to tap said keg. So there: my knowledge did pay off after all.

We're now five days and one full weekend into 2009. What was your first beer of the year? Or fill me in on any interesting NYE beer drinking tales. Otherwise it's going to be a long, boring year, people!

[Photo Credit: anheuserbusch.com]

Looking into my crystal ball for 2009, I forecast a year that centers around value wine. Not necessarily value as related to price, because there will always be people who can afford $200 bottles, but value as related to what's in that bottle that makes it worth $200? See below for my actual and wishful predictions for the coming year.

Actual predictions

• Value, value, value. This is no shocker to most people, but in light of the economy it will finally hit certain wine drinkers that a status wine priced three times higher than a non-status wine isn't necessarily three times tastier. For us mere mortals who can't afford $3,000 Bordeaux, a whole world of inexpensive, good-quality imports awaits discovery. Regions like Spain, formerly-overlooked parts of Italy, Argentina, South Africa, and Chile will lead in producing excellent bang-for-your-buck wines, and California sales will suffer as import sales grow.
• "Natural" wine. However you define natural--unfiltered, unfined, naturally fermented, organic, made with organic grapes, biodynamic, sustainable...these topics will continue to dominate geek-wine conversations in 2009, although they won't be as hot as value and carbon footprint.
• New "it" regions. Bored winos will seek newer and zanier wine regions as they tire of the Last Big Thing (Austria, Oregon, Portugal beyond Port). Let's talk Brazil, Hungary, Mexico, Great Britain, Colorado, and Belgium instead.

"Wishful" predictions are after the jump.

George W. Bush. In the furor of elections, he's become back-page news. And, on January 20, he'll be out of our lives for good. Whether that prospect leaves you elated or crestfallen, you can celebrate it with the "Georgie Is Outta Here!" party in a box.

The set includes paper plates, cups, napkins, balloons, and a tablecloth decorated with our 43rd president's (rather caricatured) visage, as well as games and mock Bush "to do" lists. Suitable for both Republican and Democratic parties, though the latter might appreciate it a little more.