Beer cans and BPA

Cans are an explosive source of growth in the craft beer industry. Beginning with Oskar Blues in Lyons, Colorado, breweries including Durango's Ska Brewing Co. and Steamworks Brewing Co. have turned to cans as it became clear than consumers in many cases prefer them to bottles.

Now many brewers, particularly in Colorado, are canning craft beers, and canned craft has become ubiquitous at retail.

Cans have certain advantages: They are lighter and thus cheaper to ship. They are easy to recycle and tend to be recycled at higher rates than bottles. They are more portable and conducive to outdoor activities. And they are impermeable, so beer-spoiling light and oxygen can't enter the package.

Craft breweries have responded to consumer demand with a rush toward cans. Ska's top-selling beer, Modus Hoperandi IPA, is sold primarily in cans. Durango's largest brewery just last year repackaged its summer seasonal, Mexican Logger, and greatly increased the lager's production and distribution.

Steamworks has also adopted cans. So has Colorado's largest craft brewer, New Belgium, the third-largest craft brewery by production in the U.S. Oskar Blues, the canned craft beer pioneer, is packaging "tall boy" 16-ounce cans. That's just the highlights; an exhaustive list of craft breweries using cans would be, well, exhausting.

Cans have been particularly popular in Colorado. This is partly because one of the nation's largest manufacturers of cans, Ball Corp., is located in Golden, not far from Coors.

The only disadvantage regarding cans that has been widely circulated is the obvious fact that aluminum for cans must be mined, and mining comes with a long list of environmental risks and drawbacks. Personally, I feel that I generally get a smoother pour from bottles than cans when I decant into a glass, but that's a minor quibble.

To arrive at my point: No one is talking about BPA in beer cans.

BPA, technically known as bisphenol-A, is a chemical used in the epoxy linings for beer cans and many other products, likely including the Ball Corp. cans used by most canning craft breweries in Colorado.

BPA has been an increasingly decried consumer bogeyman. It's an endocrine disrupter, and as USA Today put it, "It's been linked with diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease in humans and has been shown to interfere with reproductive development in animals."

Many consumer products have been redesigned recently to be BPA-free, most famously those Nalgene water bottles. Nalgene was forced to make BPA-free bottles to stem a consumer backlash.

A recent study regarding BPA in soup cans caught a lot of attention. The peer-reviewed study released in November found that people who ate canned soup every day had a more than 1,200 percent increase in BPA in their urine samples. The study is already prompting boxed soups to advertise their BPA-free status.

My question: If eating soup from a can every day increases your BPA level by 1,200 percent, what about drinking beer from a can every day? What about when you get a six-pack of, say, Modus Hoperandi and drink it within a few days? What if you're tailgating and drink several canned Coors?

The headlong rush to can craft beer seems to be ignoring this issue entirely. While some publicity has brought changes to products like water bottles and soup containers, no such backlash has occurred among some of the very same people who regularly drink canned craft beer.

I sent an email to a Ball Corp. spokesman seeking comment. To the company's credit, spokesman Stephen McCarty responded almost immediately. It's a long response, but I've included most of it because it's good information:

"Almost all aluminum and steel beverage and food cans use epoxy-based coatings inside cans as a barrier between the metal and the products in the can," McCarty said. "Ball buys these coatings from suppliers."
He added:
• Cans are coated with epoxy resin to prevent corrosion, extend shelf life, protect the food contents from the metal packaging and protect the metal packaging from the food contents.
• Metal packaging with internal coatings reduces the potential for serious illness by enabling high temperature sterilization.
• This sterilization virtually eliminates the dangers of food poisoning from microbial contaminants.
• Epoxy-based coatings have been used in cans for decades to protect the product inside the can through various packing processes and to increase its shelf life afterward.

Epoxy-based coatings may contain trace amounts of BPA. Scientific evidence evaluated by regulatory agencies in the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand has consistently shown these coatings to be safe, and regulatory agencies have stated that human exposure to BPA from epoxy-based can coatings is well below safe exposure limits set by government bodies worldwide.
 
• The U.S. Food & Drug Administration is expected to comment again on BPA later this year. The FDA last commented on BPA on Jan. 15, 2010, when it concluded, "FDA is not recommending that families change the use of infant formula or foods, as the benefit of a stable source of good nutrition outweighs the potential risk from BPA exposure." ...

"While these regulatory agency statements seem to affirm the safety of epoxy-based can coatings, public discussion continues regarding bisphenol-A. Ball recognizes that significant interest exists in non epoxy-based coatings, and we have been proactively working with coatings suppliers and our customers to evaluate alternatives to current coatings," McCarty said.
 
• Currently there is not a viable alternative to epoxy-based coatings that meets the existing requirements of all products packaged in cans.
 • Early results from ongoing test packs that began in mid-2008 using potential alternative coatings have been mixed.
 • There are limited alternatives for certain, nonaggressive products. Those alternatives pose performance, shelf life, environmental or supply availability challenges.
 • Coatings companies are working on alternatives to epoxy coatings. Once they are identified, it will then be a question of how long it will take the new coating(s) to obtain regulatory approval and to be produced in sufficient amounts by suppliers to meet the needs of the market.
 • In limited cases, Ball is converting some foods to cans that use an FDA-approved non epoxy-based coating, typically involving less acidic products.
• Ball continues to participate in industry trade associations on BPA-related issues, and we will work with the FDA to update the agency on our progress and avoid any unintended consequences from possible alternatives to epoxy-based coatings.

McCarty added: "We are committed to responding to our customers' needs. If interest continues in non epoxy-based coatings, we will offer cans with those coatings when the coatings become commercially available."

Essentially, Ball acknowledges that it does indeed use epoxy linings that may contain BPA in its cans, and says there is no good alternative at the moment.

For craft brewers, it may pay to keep their options open. New Belgium downplayed the risks in a 2008 online response to a customer's question: "We became aware of BPA in epoxy resin can liners during our due diligence prior to deciding on packaging in cans. We looked into the matter thoroughly. What became apparent is that there are no cans whose lining does not contain BPA. The industry is actively looking for alternatives, but as yet, none exist. We still believe the benefits of cans outweigh the potential risk of the liners because the anxiety surrounding BPA seems to have far outstripped the science."

Dave Thibodeau, Ska's president and co-founder, leads a brewery that has rode a wave of mushrooming sales of craft cans. "There are very trace amounts of BPA in the liner of the can," he said in an email. "The levels are far less than that of steel cans and also way below what the FDA says is safe."

"As of now there is no aluminum can made without any BPA. The liner is there to protect the consumer from the aluminum."

Thibodeau added that Ska will be interested in BPA-free cans whenever they become available from Ball. "I know their mad scientists are working on an alternative and as soon as there is one we'll be all over it," he said.

Kris Oyler, a co-founder and general head honcho at Steamworks, said BPA seems to have little effect in adults — the main concern is the chemicals' effects on developing fetuses and children.

"From the research we have seen, it would take a lot of canned beer to have any overall adverse affects to an individual beer consumer," he said in an email message.

Oyler added, "We are not concerned that the general populous knows about BPA-lined beverage cans. To the contrary, more education is better. Beer drinkers can make their own educated decisions about what they want to put into their bodies and furthermore can make those changes. Studies have shown a reduction in BPA levels with the consumption of fresh foods — something we should all do more of. Balancing out a couple of canned beers with a fresh salad from a local farmer can go a long way."

"Our local consumers also have a choice to come in to our establishment for beer from the tap. Or they can purchase a glass half gallon growler for their beer. They can drink some of their beer from other brewers bottles. There are many choices and I think the key is balance and moderation in all things. Eating canned soup every day is not really healthy or balanced."

Oyler said Steamworks "would certainly be interested" in a BPA-free can. "We believe the can is a solid container for beer and the benefits ... are still worth pursuing."

For my take, cans certainly have their advantages, and craft beer drinkers love their convenience and portability. Hopefully, the market will soon demand that Ball and its competitors come up with a way to manufacture effective BPA-free cans.

As the Nalgene backlash illustrated, consumer preferences can turn on a dime, especially where their health is concerned. For their sake and mine, I hope brewers continue to offer their products in glass packaging as well as cans.

I'm not ready to give up on cans altogether. But until brewers can adopt a BPA-free can, I'll be buying my beer in glass bottles and growlers whenever I can, and limiting my use of cans to the golf course and backpacking trail — where bottles are clearly impractical — and for the occasional great beer that's only offered in cans.

It may not be time to get rid of those bottling lines just yet.

Holy Crap, it's Snowdown!

'Round these parts, it was Christmas yesterday. Then I woke up to find that it is already February and time for more celebration and revelry in the streets of Durango for the annual Snowdown Winter Carnival! As in years past, there are several local beer releases for the event. 

Carver's has a "Fairy Tale Pale Ale" on tap. It's a nicely hopped American Pale not unlike the mainline Jack Rabbit Pale Ale.  Though not related to Snowdown, they also had an Imperial Stout on tap that was thoroughly quaffable for being a relatively big beer. In fact, two of these and a burger totally changed my outlook on the day last Wednesday.

Steamwork's will be tapping a "Black Fairy Firkin" on Friday prior to the parade on Main Street. We are told that this is based on their award wining Backside Stout that has be re-fermented in the firkin with maple syrup and anise. This is a continuation of their first Friday firkin releases of experimental brews that have been fun to sample this winter.

Ska Brewing Co. has been tweaking a spiced Brown Ale recipe for a few months now, and the effort pays off in this year's Snowdown special release. Faeries Wear Boots is a spiced Brown Ale that would fit well in a Winter Ale/ Winter Warmer category (for those of you that heed such things). Brewed with all of the holiday spices, this one packs a punch of bold flavorings on top of a mid-bodied Brown Ale base backed with plenty of warmth from all of the delicious alcohol it contains. The brew available on tap, and in 22oz bombers at your favorite local package store. I believe this is part of their "local series" set of releases, so distribution outside of Durango may be limited.

I enjoyed last year's Black IPA, but I have to say that I really dig this year's brew. I was a fan of the Brown Ale release at Christmas as well, which seems to have been an earlier version of this beer.

Ska will also be hosting a "Punk Rock Breakfast Party" at the Lost Dog Saloon on Sunday morning. For those of you still needing to kick some ass on Sunday morning, or for those of you looking to get a start on the celebrations for the "Big Game" later in the day, this might be the place to go. Beer specials and punk music to get your day started.

Ska Brewing's year in review

Ska Brewing Co. looks back at its 2011 with this release:

Ska Brewing has had an incredible year, full of important milestones and proud accomplishments — at least according to notes taken by the brewery’s management team throughout the year. “I’m glad we wrote this stuff down. It all seems so hazy now,” admitted Ska President and co-founder Dave Thibodeau. “I know we grew, but without our notes I’d be looking to beer bloggers to find out how much and when.”

For example, one treasure trove of documentation — titled “press releases” — indicated that at the beginning of 2011 Ska Brewing was named Durango’s Business of the Year by the Durango Chamber of Commerce. That means for the past year Ska has been Defending Business of the Year. The title is notoriously impossible to defend, but Ska can claim many other highlights in 2011.

By the end of 2011, Ska had produced 21,257 barrels (bbls) of beer. (A U.S. bbl is 31 gallons.) According to notes found on a recently unearthed thumb drive, Ska announced near the end of 2010 that the company had reached regional craft brewer status, (as defined by the Brewer’s Association), by producing more than 15,000 bbls of beer. Math experts say these numbers show an increase of 28 percent over the previous year, or approximately 28 percent more than the S&P 500 stock index returned in 2011.

“Growth in production has allowed us to meet demand in our markets,” says Ska co-founder Bill Graham. “That’s a fancy way of saying we’ve been keeping people around the country supplied with fresh beer — and they’ve been buying it up pretty fast.”

According to pictures discovered on Ska’s Facebook page, last spring saw the addition of four new 240-bbl tanks, including three fermenters and one brite tank. This expansion increased Ska’s brewing capacity by 70 percent, and opened the door for the increase in production.

The milestones haven’t all been operational, either. Last spring Ska ventured into filmmaking when it produced Brew Minions—a video parody of the Discovery Channel series Brew Masters—with appearances by Ska’s co-founders and employees, and by Dogfish Head Brewing Founder and Brew Masters star Sam Calagione. The not-so-short film poked fun at the Dogfish Head-focused television series, while silently acknowledging that every brewery wishes it had its own TV show.

Thibodeau says the film was a success, even though it didn’t fit any traditional mold: “It ended up being over 20 minutes, which was about three times as long as we planned. But people watched it anyway, and they loved it. It’s had 13,000 online views so far.”

Other Ska Brewing milestones in 2011:

• Ska cans Mexican Logger for the first time, releasing the seasonal lager in all of its markets.
• Ska celebrates American Craft Beer Week with the release of Big Shikes Orange Blossom Imperial Pilsner, a beer collaboratively brewed with Westword beer blogger and homebrewer Jonathan Shikes. (In 2010 Ska initiated the first beer blogger brewing collaboration when it invited two local beer bloggers to brew on its pilot system and write about the experience.)
• Seth Townsend’s Organic Dubbel wins Ska’s GABF Homebrew Competition and goes on to be entered in the GABF Pro-Am. The beer is also released by the brewery as Sethvleteren 8, no. 19 in Ska’s Local Series.
• Ska again participates in the Tour of BoulDurango it helped found, sending four riders to join four other breweries on a 470-mile tour of Colorado’s biggest passes and best brewpubs to raise money for local charities.
• Ska loses the L.A. International Beer Competition, but wins many others, including:
• Steel Toe Stout: Gold Medal, Great American Beer Festival
• Modus Hoperandi IPA: Silver Medals—Stockholm Beer and Whisky Festival and Australian International Beer Awards; Bronze Medal—AmeriCan Festival; Winner, Best Canned IPA—CraftCans.com Poll
• Pinstripe Red Ale: Gold Medal—North American Beer Awards; Bronze Medal—Colo. State Fair Nat’l Commercial Microbrew Comp.
• Ska Special ESB: Bronze Medal—Australian International Beer Awards; Silver Medal—Colo. State Fair National Commercial Microbrew Comp., Silver Medal—AmeriCan Festival
• Buster Nut Brown Ale: Silver Medal—Denver International Beer Fest
• True Blonde Ale: Silver Medal—Colo. State Fair National Commercial Microbrew Comp.
• True Blonde Dubbel: Bronze Medal—Colo. State Fair National Commercial Microbrew Comp.
• Mexican Logger: Winner, Most Sessionable Craft Can—CraftCans.com Poll
• Euphoria Pale Ale: Voted Durango’s Best Local Beer by Buzztown

• Ska celebrates its 16th Anniversary with a blowout party featuring The Toasters from New York City along with two other bands, more than 20 guest breweries and over 1,000 people in attendance
Ska attracts 11,150+ Facebook followers, 5,800+ Twitter followers, and one creepy stalker.

“13- or 14,000:1 is a pretty good fan to stalker ratio,” said Thibodeau. “But with all the new breweries starting up, we’re hoping that person will find another ‘favorite’ and lose interest in us."

Texas judge slaps down labeling requirements

A Texas judge, in a ruling issued Monday, slapped down the state's inane labeling requirements that required brewers to mislead their customers as to what they were drinking.

Until now, beer sold in Texas that exceeded 4 percent alcohol by weight had to be labeled "ale," while beer under 4 percent ABW was labeled "beer." This of course made no sense because ale is a type of beer defined by the sort of yeast used and the manner in which fermentation occurs. Ale, as it has been known for centuries, has nothing to do with alcoholic strength.

This led to absurdities.

Of local concern, Ska Brewing Co., which distributes in Texas, had to label its Mexican Logger with text that read, with admirable bitchiness, "Ale, in Texas." Mexican Logger is a lager and not an ale, so Texas was essentially requiring Ska to mislead its customers in order to sell beer in the Lonestar State.

Now Ska, and other breweries that sell their beer in Texas, may label their lagers lager and their ales ale. In another part of the ruling, Federal District Court Judge Sam Sparks (now doesn't that sound like a solid Texas name?), ruled that the state could not prohibit breweries from telling their customers the level of booze they were drinking. Under Texas law, breweries could not say "5.2 percent ABV" or "strong ale" or anything of the sort. Paradoxically, Texas required distillers to tell customers the strength of their hard alcohol.

Sparks, in a comedic judicial ruling, as far as such things go, chastised the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission for failing to vigorously defend its own rules.

Many of these rules date from the immediate post-Prohibition period, when states that had no clue how to regulate alcohol came up with a ridiculous maze of stupid, ineffectual and counter-factual laws. Breweries, and the consumers who love them, are forced to contend with far too many of these laws to this day. In my native state of Oregon, bars are not allowed to advertise happy hour specials, as the specter of people enjoying relaxation after their daily labor is far outweighed by the state's interest in prohibiting free speech.

Sparks' ruling rested on First Amendment grounds. Essentially, he ruled that Texas can't force breweries to include untruthful speech on their products, and also can't force them to hide useful information like alcohol content levels from customers.

It's really quite remarkable that we're still dealing with Prohibition 78 years after it ended. It's good on Sparks for defending our First Amendment rights. It's good on Jester King Craft Brewery of Austin for fighting the good fight, hiring the legal muscle to get this done.

And maybe, just maybe, this ruling will send a message to mediocre, stale and arbitrary bureaucracies elsewhere that their interventions are neither necessary nor welcome.

Thursday Nitro @ Ska Brewing Co.

Beer N' Chile at Ska on Thursday Night

Now, I gotta’ say, it’s a good thing when your local brewery takes care of you.

I stopped into Ska Brewing Co. this evening for the ongoing Thursday night live-music & chili special, and to pick up a keg of Euphoria. 

To wit, I had been hounding/begging Holly, (the front of house manager at Ska), regarding a 1/2bbl keg of delicious, fresh, my favorite Ska brew ever, Euphoria, for weeks now. Yesterday, she called to offer one to me. 

Per the season, I received the joyous news that the production team had released 1/2bbl’s of Euphoria to retail with exultation and great praise.

I have to cast the scene of this phone call for you to appreciate the pure ecstasy that it brought me.

I love my job, but here it was, mid-day Wednesday – the shittiest of the workdays as there are equally as many in front of you as behind – and I was stuck in a dimly lit room with burnt-orange carpet sitting right next to a piece of equipment that was generating a whirlwind of fan-noise so loud I couldn’t hear myself think. Over the scream of wasted hot air, (kinda’ like this post, I’d guess ;-), I noticed that the phone was ringing by the blinking of the light on the console. This is the same blinking light that had me wondering for months, in the usual near-silence of my office, why in the funk someone had bothered to put an F’ing blinking light on the front of the damn phone in the first place. Ho HO!

Well, having solved that mystery, I grabbed the receiver and screamed, “HELLO”, into it.

“Erich?”

“Yah.”

“It’s Holly… I’ve got what you want.”

<short pause to figure out whom in the hell…. ding-DIng-DING- Oh YEAH!!>

“Sweet, I can come by tonight or tomorrow to grab it!”

“OK, I’ll put you down for tomorrow.”

Serious drug-dealer talk, that. I loved it – ‘Durango-vice’; although this involved killer brew and steel-toe boots, not booger-sugar and penny loafers (Ha! - screw you, Miami).

But back to my story…

The roar from the fan in the horrible witch-of-a-machine, (she’s a screamer), next to me faded to a whisper as a choir of angles began to sing, as if from on high. The flicker of the life-sucking neon lights ceased, and the 85 degree heat that I sit in, (right above the heater for the building), receded to a gentle breeze as the happy vision of a 15.5 gallon barrel of Euphoria beer danced like sugar plum fairies before my eyes.

Sidenote – “Sugar Plum Fairy” – A pint for the person who can comment and give the best explanation of what in the hell or on earth or in heaven this beast is. And I have a crude sense of humor, but this is a public post and we edit your shit, so keep it clever.

And so this evening, I stopped by for my prize. Most of you don’t know this, but I recently traded an automobile for three kegs of Ska Beer*, of which the above mentioned keg of Euphoria is the second. The sheer joy I felt when entering the taproom to the sound of live music, the sight of friendly faces, and the surety of excellent beer was a truly welcome vibe.

I have to admit that as I approached the bar, I had an agenda in mind. What was the “Imperial Nut Buster Brown Ale” that I had seen on taps around town, and what else had come up since I had stopped in ten days ago?  

Much to my delight, I was informed by Denise that the “Imperial Nut Buster Brown Ale” was indeed the brew formerly known as “Last Year’s Fruit Cake” and that it was available both on tap and in a cask-conditioned pour. It is a huge deep-brown winter warmer with a lovely rum-like finish from the additions of brown sugar and plums to the base brew. 

In addition to this, a “flavored” version of the mainline Steel Toe Stout was on tap. Christened, “Ole Mole Stout”, this one had more heat in the finish than the above pictured bowl of green chile had in each bite.  

I hate to hit-n-run on a good party, but I had ‘Mr. Puppy’ in the outdoor dog run at home in need of “puppy dinner” and so I paid my tab for the pint and the taster and proceeded to make haste with the loading of the keg. On the way out the door, I was happy to get an offer of help with the barrel from Ska head brewer Thomas Larsen. After using his well-honed professional skills to heft the keg into the backseat of my ride, he mentioned that he would be tapping a second round of the Mint Steel Toe Stout this coming week (Steel-Toe Stout finished in the keg with fresh mint). The last batch from a few weeks ago was very interesting, and the next should be well worth a stop by the taproom before the holidays.

*The story of the “car-for-ska-beer” swap is an ongoing phenomenon that will be committed to lore at a later date.

Ska's 16th birthday bash highlights Durango Beer Week

Ska Brewing Co. will host a big bash Sept. 24 to celebrate its 16th anniversary. Twenty of the region's best breweries will be pouring, and the New York City ska band The Toasters will headline the entertainment.

The party will mark the Durango debut of Shebeen Black IPA, brewed in honor of The Toasters. Shebeen has otherwise been available at a handful of Toasters concerts. The Clash cover band the Nuns of Brixton and the Blue Hornets will open the concert.

The breweries scheduled to join Ska's birthday bash include Avery, Breckenridge, Bristol, Carver's, Durango, Left Hand, Lumberyard, Marble, New Belgium, Oskar Blues, Ouray, Pagosa Brewing, Santa Fe, Santan, Steamworks, Stone, Three Rivers and Tommyknocker.

I'd highly recommend you stop by Marble's tent. This Albuquerque-based brewery distributes only in New Mexico, so this is a rare chance to get their beer in Durango, and they're doing some fantastic brewing. Last year, Marble brought a version of From the Wood, a sublime barrel-aged ale that earned national attention from Draft magazine.

Ska expects the 16th anniversary party to sell out. Last year's 15th anniversary party was probably the best event I've experienced in my six years in Durango. The Supersuckers hosted a rock show of the quality you just don't see in Durango, and a lot of the beers were fantastic.The event runs 4-9 p.m. Sept. 24 at Ska, 225 Girard St. Tickets are $25 and available online or at brownpapertickets.com, or by calling 1-800-838-3006.

Ska's birthday party is just the biggest event during Durango Beer Week. The week kicks off with Steamworks’ 15th Anniversary Beer Dinner, to be held 7 p.m. Sept. 16 on the brewpub’s back deck.

Chef Sean Clark will offer a five-course meal matched to the Steamworks beers from brewer Ken Martin. The events costs $40 per person, and reservations are available by calling (970) 259-9200.

“Chef Sean has taken a leading role nationally in pairing fine foods and craft beers,” said Kris Oyler, Steamworks co-founder. “The menu, which includes Cuban pork, Yorkshire pudding and braised plantain, and smoked elk tenderloin with Palisade cherry gastrique, is fantastic. Of course, so are the Steamworks’ award-winning beers paired with each course.”

Durango’s official annual Oktoberfest is set for 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17. on Main Avenue between 9th and 10th streets. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Women’s Resource Center.

“The event will include all the traditional Oktoberfest activities such as a stein-hoisting competition and a bratwurst-eating contest,” said Erik Maxson, Carver Brewing Co. head brewer. “Plus, the Bootleggers will collaboratively brew an authentic Oktoberfest beer to be tapped at the event.”

Food vendors, children’s activities and live music throughout the day from the Alpiners, Midnight Backhand and Moreland & Arbuckle are also planned. Durango Herald Arts & Entertainment Editor (and beer aficionado) Ted Holteen will serve as master of ceremonies.

Durango Beer Week continues with a variety of activities, including a beer brunch at Carver’s, a bike tour of the breweries, and a Brewathalon at Durango Brewing.

For more information on Durango Beer Week, visit www.realbeer.com. Here's the schedule:

* Friday, Sept. 16 Steamworks’ 15th Anniversary Beer Dinner, 7 p.m.
* Saturday, Sept. 17 Oktoberfest, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Main Ave.
* Sunday, Sept. 18 El Rancho Foosball Tournament, cash prizes, noon
* Monday, Sept. 19 Beer Brunch at Carver Brewing Co., 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
* Tuesday, Sept. 20 Lady Falconburgh’s Beer Bingo, 9 p.m.
* Wednesday, Sept. 21 Durango Brewing Company Brewathalon, 5 p.m. Test your skills at Shuffleboard and Ring Toss.
* Thursday, Sept. 22 DATO/Ska-b-que, at Ska Brewing, 5 p.m.
* Bootlegger Pint Night at Steamworks - $1 pints for anyone with a pint glass from any of the four Bootlegger breweries. Proceeds benefit the Colorado Brewers Guild.
*Friday, Sept. 23 Bike Tour of breweries, 5:30 p.m. start at Durango Brewing, finish at The Balcony.
* Book signing at Steamworks, 6-8 p.m.: "Mountain Brew: A guide to Colorado’s Breweries" by Ed Sealover.
* Saturday, Sept 24 Ska Brewing Co.’s 16th Anniversary featuring The Toasters and 20 regional breweries, 4-9 p.m.

Ska Brewing to release Belgian dubbel

Ska Brewing Co. on Wednesday will release the latest beer in its Local Series, Sethvleteren 8.

The beer comes courtesy of Seth Townsend, who won this year's Ska homebrewing competition and will have his beer entered in the Great American Beer Festival Pro-Am Competition in late September in Denver.

Sethvleteren 8 is an organic, Belgian-style dubbel. It should be strong and yeasty.

It might not be dubbel weather yet, but I'll buy a couple of bottles for when temperatures cool off.

(For now, I'm enjoying my dwindling supplies of Mexican Logger. For what it's worth, everyone around town is running out of the summer seasonal. Get some before it's gone if you wish).

Last year's winner of Ska's homebrewing competition was really nice. Clancy's Black Beer was a German-style Schwarzbier with a malty and chocolatey taste.

The great thing about this one is it's been pre-screened for deliciousness. As with all the beers in Ska's Local Series, Sethvleteren 8 will be available in 22-ounce bottles in and around Durango.

About that name: presumably, it's a play on Westvleteren 8, a rare Belgian beer that is something of a Holy Grail for beer geeks. A lot of knowledgeable people say it's one of the best beers in the world. Not that Ska is setting Seth up for any pressure or anything.

Anyway, stop by Ska on Wednesday evening to meet Seth and get a taste of this organic, Belgian-style dubbel.

Wheelsucker Wheat release Saturday

On Saturday, Wheelsucker Wheat Ale will be released at Ska Brewing Co. as the brewer-bicyclists arrive from their five-day, 470-mile tour of Colorado. This is the third year of the bicycle tour first organized by Ska and Avery Brewing Co. in Boulder. The ride continues to grow, with participation this year by cyclists from Oskar Blues Brewery in Lyons and Sierra Nevada Brewing of Chico, California. "Craft beer isn't about getting rich and cutthroat business practices; it's about following your passions and doing what you love, it's about being part of your local community and working with people who are just as psyched to be in the business as you are," Adam Avery, president and co-founder of Avery Brewing, said in a news release. Each evening along the tour, the brewers are teaming up with other craft breweries along the course to hold fundraising parties, with profits from pint sales, raffles and auctions going to local charities. Participating breweries along the route include Tommyknocker Brewing, Breckenridge Brewery, Eddyline Brewpub, The Brick Oven Restaurant, Ouray Brewing and Colorado Boy Brewery. "We’ve had quite a few brewers from around the country express interest in this," said Dave Thibodeau, Ska's president and co-founder. "I think it has the potential to become huge, whether it remains a brewer’s tour and another fun way to hang out with fellow brewers while trying to make a positive difference in our communities, or one day possibly opens to the public.”   Last year Oskar Blues joined Avery and Ska on the tour. Steve Grossman and others from Sierra Nevada Brewing are also joining their Colorado brewing brethren, the first time a non-Colorado brewer has joined the ride. The tapping party begins at 2 p.m., Saturday, July 21. Proceeds will go to the La Plata County Safe Roads Coalition Wheelsucker Wheat Ale is a strong, flavorful wheat ale brewed by Ska and Avery. It won Beer at 6512's inaugural Beer of the Year award in 2009. Check out that post for details on the beer.

Ska Brewing loses in L.A.

The crack beer journalists at Beer at 6512 (ahem) rarely post a full press release. But as press releases go, this one from Ska Brewing Co. is a gem, and heavy editing would only kill the humor. We have here perhaps the definitive beer competition humblebrag. Take a look:

Judging has been completed in the 2011 Los Angeles International Commercial Beer Competition, and Ska Brewing didn’t win a single medal, or even an honorable mention. Despite winning gold and silver medals in the 2010 competition, Ska came up empty-handed this year.

“Our friends at Odell Brewing and Lagunitas Brewing won medals,” said Dave Thibodeau, Ska Brewing President and Co-Founder. “Last year we won two medals in L.A… Samuel Adams Light won a medal. How am I supposed to tell our shareholder about this?”

Despite recently winning two medals at the Australian International Beer Awards—a silver for Modus Hoperandi, and a bronze for ESB, out of 1195 total entries—Thibodeau remained strangely focused on the loss. The medals in Australia weren’t the only recent wins, either, with Ska winning a silver medal at the Denver International Beer Competition for Buster Nut Brown Ale, and a two medals at the North American Beer Awards—a gold for Pinstripe and a bronze for Steel Toe Stout.

“We’ve actually been winning a lot of medals this season, but this loss at L.A. is all I can think about,” said Bill Graham, Ska Co-Founder and Overlord of Brewing Operations. “I know [Ballast Point Brewing’s] Sculpin IPA is a nearly perfect IPA, but I thought Modus would bring home some hardware. Nebraska Brewing didn’t even name their IPA. I don’t know where the justice is in this crazy mixed-up world.”

According to well-placed sources, Ska has actually won as many competition medals this season as they ever have, including a previously unmentioned bronze for Modus Hoperandi IPA and a silver for ESB at the AmeriCAN Craft Beer Festival.

That fact notwithstanding, Thibodeau insisted on putting out a press release about Ska’s “loss” in L.A.
According to a Ska PR manager who requested anonymity in order to speak candidly, Thibodeau didn’t even want to make the release funny, or poke fun at beer competitions in general. “Press releases are supposed to show your company in the best possible light,” said the source. “No one here listens to me. We’ve been winning things left and right, and all these guys can think about is not winning at one event. I don’t know if I can keep doing this.”

Top 5 Colorado summer beers

A great summer beer must be light. It must be refreshing. It must also be flavorful and interesting. In Colorado, where the winters are long and cold and the summers are sunny and beautiful, craft breweries have the summer beer dialed in. The five beers pictured above and praised below represent the best Colorado summer beers.

All five represent different styles and separate breweries. Three are ales, two are lagers. Two are from Durango; three are from the Front Range. Two are Belgian-inspired, two are German-inspired and one is Mexican-inspired. Two are strictly summer seasonals, while the other three are light beers brewed year-round.

This isn't a definitive ranking. But it gives you an idea of the quality and breadth of summer beers in Colorado.

1. Great Divide Colette
7.3 percent ABV

It was a pleasant surprise when Great Divide Brewing of Denver started bottling a first-rate saison in six-packs. Before Colette, it was impossible to find a saison locally that wasn't sold in expensive bomber bottles.

The price would be irrelevant if the beer weren't great. Fortunately, Colette, a summer seasonal, is among the best saisons anywhere. This tasty Belgian-inspired farmhouse ale took home a silver medal at the 2010 Great American Beer Festival.

Saisons are wonderful, yeasty beers that manage to be light and refreshing and extraordinarily flavorful. Colette is as good as it gets. (Full review here).

2. Ska Mexican Logger
4.2 percent ABV, 18 IBUs

It's difficult to make low-alcohol beers like Ska's Mexican Logger carry much flavor, because alcohol acts as a sort of wave on which flavor can ride.

While Mexican Logger is light in alcohol, this little beer punches far above its weight. The deliciousness that is Ska's Mexican Logger defies explanation. Just drink it. (Full review here).

3. Left Hand Polestar Pilsner
5.5 percent ABV, 33 IBUs

The folks in Longmont got something right when they brewed their Polestar Pilsner. This lager has a perfect amount of hopping that doesn't get in the way of the funky yeast flavors. Delicous. Refreshing. Not to be missed.

4. Steamworks Colorado Kolsch
4.8 percent ABV, 17 IBUs

Not long ago, I found myself sharing an affordable $8 pitcher of Colorado Kolsch at Steamworks' bar in Durango. It was a hot day, and this ale was everything I needed at that moment in time. This kolsch is another beer that manages to be very flavorful while relatively low in alcohol.

It's also one of Steamworks' signature beers, and one of the cooler cans (or bottles) around, featuring the Colorado flag.

5. Avery White Rascal
5.6 percent ABV, 10 IBUs

A fantastic Belgian-style witbier from the consistently excellent Avery brewery in Boulder. These sorts of Belgian-style wheats are tough to pair with food, but they're great on their own and with some foods.

There's a nice hint of citrus along with ample Belgian yeastiness. This Rascal is worth confining in your refrigerator, until you can let it runneth over the top of your glass.

Please feel free to argue in the comments below. I tasted all five of these with my wife and a friend. My wife would have ranked White Rascal and Polestar Pilsner up top. My friend would have ranked the pilsener lower. Others would have included local favorites Durango Wheat and Carver's Raspberry Wheat. What do you think?

Review: Ska Big Shikes Orange Blossom Imperial Pilsner

Ska Brewing Co.'s latest Local Series release comes as the result of a project with Old Chicago restaurants. The restaurant chain asked Ska to come up with something unique for them to put on tap as part of an effort to reconnect with craft brewing.

Ska invited Jonathan Shikes, managing editor and prolific beer blogger at the Denver weekly Westword, to help design and brew the beer

This project follows an earlier blogger-brewer collaboration Ska did with myself and Jeff Hammett, formerly of Beer 'N Bikes and currently writing at San Diego Beer Blog.

Ska also bottled Shikes' batch for release as no. 18 in its Local Series, which is distributed only in and around Durango. Ska has been doing the Local Series for many years (a list of releases is here), brewing at its whim special creations. It gives the brewers a chance to experiment, and Ska's customers a chance to try something new.

Shikes' beer was tapped May 16 at Old Chicago in Denver, timed to coincide with American Craft Beer Week.

Now on to Shikes' beer itself. It's a big recipe, an imperial pilsner that comes in at 8.7 percent ABV and 73 IBUs (incidentally, Ska brewed a standard pilsner as no. 3 in the Local Series in 2005).

It pours a pale yellow color, topped by a short froth of white foam. The taste is bready and heavy on the palette, with a little citrus and sweetness from orange blossom honey.

Strong lagers are tough to brew well. Often, they end up syrupy, overly sweet and difficult to drink. Unfortunately, this describes to an extent this Imperial Pilsner.

Ska sometimes falls into a common trap for ambitious craft brewers: beers that are too big, too much, too flavorful. Looking back at the few Ska beers that seemed to miss the mark, it's been one ingredient that dominated the taste: too much Scotch in the barrel-aged Scotch ale, too much lemongrass in 2010's DIFF, too much hops in Ska Sour.

For Big Shikes, it's simply too big to really enjoy. It's not a bad beer, but neither does it leave you wanting more. About 12 ounces is all you really want to drink; a 22-ounce bomber ought to be shared. I ended up drinking the 14 ounces or so pictured here and pouring the rest down the drain.

Ska makes some great beers: their ESB, Ten Pin Porter, Modus Hoperandi IPA and Mexican Logger, in particular, are superb examples of their styles. But while I look forward to trying their next Local Series effort, Big Shikes I can do without. C

(P.S.: This seems to be the consensus on this beer).

Townsend wins Ska homebrewing competition

Catching up on some news, a fellow by the name of Seth Townsend won Ska Brewing Co.'s GABF Pro-Am Homebrew Competition with his Organic Dubbel.

Townsend won "Best In Show" and also took top honors in the Belgian Strong Ale category.

As with past winners, Townsend will have his beer entered in the Pro-Am category of the Great American Beer Festival – the nation’s largest beer competition and festival. The beer will also be brewed on a commercial scale for release as part of Ska’s popular Local Series, which is distributed around Durango and Southwest Colorado. Townsend will have the chance to participate in the commercial scaling and production of his recipe for the Local Series.

Last year's winner, Clancy Calhoun of Aztec, N.M., brewed a tasty Schwarzbier, a dark German-style lager. The nice thing about competitions like these is the winning beers tend to taste good.

Ska has its own roots in homebrewing: the three co-founders all got their start as homebrewers.

“Homebrewers have the kind of DIY spirit that drove us to keep growing and improving," Ska President and co-founder Dave Thibodeau said in a news release. "We really respect that. That’s how a lot of craft breweries — including Ska — came to be."

Townsend is understandably excited at the leap his homebrewing career has just taken.

“My goal this year was to earn a spot in the GABF Pro-Am, so I focused on homebrew competitions that were selecting beers to enter it,” Townsend said. “The best part of this is that I’ll get to work with one of my favorite breweries, right here in Colorado. Honestly, I can’t think of a more fun brewery to be collaborating with to scale up my Organic Dubbel. I think it also shows that organic beer can stand up — and out — in a crowd.”

Chris Swersey, GABF's competition manager, had this to say about the Pro-Am category: “Because so many professional brewers began as homebrewers, the GABF Pro-Am competition is a great reflection of craft brewer unity at all levels. The Pro-Am serves to keep professional brewers and homebrewers in touch with each other, and serves as an exciting competitive forum for both AHA and BA professional members. But most importantly the Pro-Am is fun.”

Complete judging results for Ska' competition can be found here.

This is your weekend, Durango

Memorial Day weekend is a big one in Durango, with 2,500 bicyclists coming for the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, a grueling 40-mile climb to Silverton.

Motorcyclists come, too, as does every other stripe of tourist. Fortunately, our local brewers have several events on tap this weekend. The studies say beer is good for recovery after exertion:

* Steamworks Brewing Co. continues its Firkin Fridays today, tapping the beer cocktail “Skip and Go Naked” at 3 p.m.

“Unlike the quick and dirty fraternity house versions, Steamworks’ Skip and Go Naked firkin uses our Colorado Kölsch as a base, and in the brew process we’ve added fresh lemon juice and zest with a peach simple syrup,” Ken Martin, Steamworks head brewer, said in a news release. “This is another fresh and delicious cocktail, perfect for savoring on Steamworks’ back deck as the days get warmer.”

Steamworks initiated its Firkin Fridays to introduce a range of specialty craft beers not suited to large draft production. Each month one of these beers is tapped, coordinated with the season or holidays.

“Serving a firkin beer requires a special tap and it’s gravity-poured,” said Spencer Roper, Steamworks assistant brewer. “Folks also need to remember that a firkin is served at about 55 degrees - cool but not cold. Because it contains no preservatives, it’s also designed to be consumed after tapping. We expect the Skip and Go Naked to be especially popular.”

* Steamworks and Ska Brewing Co. release Face Plant Ale at 6 p.m. Friday (tonight). It's an amber hefeweizen that's been brewed for 16 years in what's got to be one of the oldest and most durable brewery collaborations around. Incidentally, it's quite tasty, if memory serves.

Bicyclists can meet at Ska at 5 p.m. and pedal to Steamworks, if you want to work extra hard for your beer. I'll just stroll the six blocks from my place. Winning, as Charlie Sheen would say.

* Less momentous, but worth a note: Carver Brewing Co. has a great lineup right now. A new IPA is on tap, brewed with Cascades and Centennials. The Dandelion Saison is almost gone, but it's much improved from last year. Erik Maxson, Carver's head brewer, said they dialed back on the dandelion a bit this year and added a nice herb mix. The result is a very well-balanced and smooth saison. I quite like it this year. Also, the fine Power House Porter is back after a long absence. As always, the Cascade Canyon IPA on cask is a good bet.

* Finally, Oskar Blues Old Chub, a beautiful Scottish-style ale, is on tap at The Irish Embassy. It's 8 percent ABV, so please fasten your kilt.

Ska to host beer dinner

I'm going out of town for a little while, so of course Ska Brewing Co. has decided to hold a beer dinner. This was after I harangued President Thibodeau to hold a beer dinner in Durango after seeing they had held similar events in Denver and Texas.

Oh, well, I suppose the show will go on without me.

For those of you who might actually be able to go, the dinner is Thurs., May 19 at the Palace Restaurant in downtown Durango. It includes a four-course menu at the Palace and dessert at the Back Space Theatre for a private screening of the documentary film I Am, which in which a film director finds an inspiring story — himself.

The menu (which you Facebookers can read here) features a Ska beer paired with each dish. The Ten Pin Porter paired with wild mushrooms and polenta in a truffle cream sauce sounds especially appealing.

The other beers used in the pairing are Mexican Logger, DIFF, Dubbel Blonde and Steel Toe Milk Stout.

Tickets are limited, so Ska suggests you stop by or call the tasting room to reserve your seats. Tickets cost $95 per couple or $50 per person.

Update: Ska's full list of American Craft Beer Week events is here. Also, the latest Ska Local Series beer, Big Shikes Orange Blossom Imperial Pilsner, is on the shelves in Durango in bomber bottles. It's also being tapped Monday at Old Chicago in Denver's LoDo neighborhood.

Ska-B-Q launches today

Today marks the official beginning of summer-ish in Durango with Ska Brewing Co.'s first Ska-B-Q of the season.

Zia Taqueria is open again on the side of Ska's building, charging $2 for tasty little tacos. Mexican Loggers will also be $2 for the Cinco de Mayo event.

The band Ten Cent Raise will play some sort of tunes as drunken Americans celebrate some battle in Mexico a long time ago. Awesome.

It's a 5-7 p.m. thing.

Review: Ska Brewing Mexican Logger

Until now, Ska Brewing Co.'s Mexican Logger has been merely a local's favorite, a beer appreciated by a few of us in Durango while barbecuing, rafting, hiking and watching the thunderstorms roll down the Animas Valley.

Photo courtesy Ska Brewing.

This is changing. Ska recently began canning Mexican Logger, its summer seasonal, and distributing it widely. No longer will the lager be our little secret.

Ska is brewing about 900 barrels of Mexican Logger this summer, double last year's production, and distributing it to all of the brewery's markets.

Ska began brewing Mexican Logger in summer 2001. "We had been going through a multi-summer Pacifico phase, sometimes even drinking it instead of Ska beers when it was particularly hot out," Ska co-founder Dave Thibodeau said in an email. "Well, that couldn’t fly for long so we decided to brew our own beer to put limes in."

Mexican Logger  (4.2 percent ABV, 18 IBUs), is brewed with a yeast strain from Mexico City and a light helping of Saaz hops. It's Ska's lowest booze beer, and the only lager it regularly brews.

It comes in bright green cans that will probably attract lots of eyes on the shelves of liquor stores (there's some in bottles, too). Amusingly, in the fine print next to the UPC code, it says "Ale, in Texas," even though Mexican Logger is, of course, a lager.

"As we all know, Texas likes to make up their own rules despite facts, i.e. creationism vs science," Thibodeau said. "Contradictory to the actual definition of 'ale,' Texas defines it as beer over 4 percent ABW. Beer under 4 percent ABW is called 'beer.' Because the Mexican Logger is a lager we couldn’t get it approved to sell in Texas, unless we called it 'ale,' so there you go, it’s 'ale, in Texas.'"

Anyway, Mexican Logger pours a pale yellow with a white, fluffy head of foam. It's fairly strongly carbonated. Despite the low booze and hopping, Mexican Logger is surprisingly flavorful. Corona, it's not.

Mexican Logger is a middle-aged beer in Ska's history. It's not as old as True Blonde and Pinstripe, which date to Ska's founding in 1995, but nor is it a young buck like Modus Hoperandi IPA (born in 2009).

Ska seems a little anxious over how Mexican Logger will be received in its newer markets like Missouri and Texas. It's not a hop bomb, nor barrel-aged nor sour.

But it's clear that people enjoy Mexican-style lagers. Corona is the no. 1 imported beer in the U.S., and more and more American craft breweries are doing their own. One worth mentioning is Del Norte Brewing in Denver, which brews a whole lineup of Mexican-style lagers.

For a decade, Mexican Logger has been a well-liked summer seasonal in Durango. I bet it'll do fine out in the big, wide world. B

Ska imperial Pilsener almost ready

Ska Brewing Co. is close to releasing its Big Shikes Orange Blossom Imperial Pilsener, a beer brewed in collaboration with Jonathan Shikes of Westword.

Ska brewer Thomas Larsen with the double Pils.

The super-Pils will be on tap at Old Chicago restaurants in the Denver area. A short supply will be available at Ska's tasting room, says head brewer Thomas Larsen. The beer will be tapped May 16 for American Craft Beer Week.

Big Shikes comes in at 8.7 percent ABV and 73 IBUs, so we are indeed talking about a big beer here. It would be illegal in some states.

Shikes and Larsen essentially used an amped-up pilsener recipe for it, adding orange blossom honey.

I had a quick taste of it for which I had to put down my Mexican Logger. Let me tell you, there's a difference on your palette between a 4.2 percent ABV beer and an 8.7 percent ABV beer. The Pils was hot!

Big Shikes was still being filtered. I'm looking forward to trying the finished version.

Sometimes, you get lucky

Ska Brewing Co. cans on sale at Super Market Liquors, Fort Collins, Colo. Photo by Dustin Bradford

Make beer

Ska Brewing Co. is once again hosting a homebrewing competition that serves as a preliminary round for the Great American Beer Festival Pro-Am Competition.

The entry deadline is May 9, and beers must be received between April 25 and May 11.

Previous winners include Clancy's Black Beer, a schwarzbier brewed by Clancy Calhoun of Aztec, NM, and a "Merlo" Stout that was aged in oak barrels.

Entries will be judged May 20-21. If the winner joins the American Homebrewers Association, his (or her) winning beer will be sent to Denver to compete in the Great American Beer Festival.

Good luck to this year's entrants. Now get brewing!

More on Ska's expansion

The Durango Herald has a fine story on Ska Brewing Co.'s recent expansion. (The expansion was also covered, with a slightly different focus, by this post on Beer at 6512).

It's nice to see Ska getting more attention for its growth. Sometimes companies grow too fast for their own good and lose control of quality, but I think Thibodeau and Co. are aware of that danger and are concentrating on satisfying the demand in their existing markets.

These new fermenters will help them do so.