Beer News: An unveiling, a jamboree, anniversaries, and Pokémon

This week’s frothy forthcomings are a beautiful blend of new brewery announcements, celebrations, symbiotic colonies, and bumblebees! Gotta catch ‘em all!

June 12, 2015; 12:00 PM • by Ross Catrow

Photo by: Sterling College

Pull back the veil

Annie Tobey with the very newest brewery news! The Veil will look to open in Scott’s Addition in November. Matt Tarpey will head up the brewing opperation, which you should be stoked about as he’s spent time brewing at The Alchemist, The Portsmouth Brewery, and locally at O’Connor Brewing Co.. Tarpey, because he speaks directly to my heart, will even brew some naturally-fermented beer with yeasts captured straight out of our very own RVA air (RVAir™).

Bumblebee Jamboree

The Virginia Cooperative Extension is my new favorite thing to talk about, so now I will talk about their adorably named hop event: Bumblebee Jamboree! Head out to the Children’s Farm area of Maymont this coming Monday at 6:30 PM to learn about growing hops and how pollinators are essential to your way of life–assuming your way of life includes flowering plants at any point. This event is family friendly, so bring the kids and nurture their love of hops early.

Beer or Pokémon?

Ned Oliver writing for the RTD follows up on the local beer trading tip. Gotta catch ’em all, like Pokémon, which makes me want to start a Twitter account called @beerorpokemon. It’s a fun game! Which of the following are beers and which are Pokémon: Abner, Abraxas, Butterfree, Cloyster, Ditto, Fuzzy, Gloom, Golduck, Jynx, Nutulhu, Parabola, Pidgeot, Onix, Slowbro, Susan, Sosus, Flora, Wulver. Answers below!

Ardentaversary

This week’s big doings is definitely Ardent’s birthday party on Saturday. Head over to the brewery at 1:00 PM and experience 18 different beers, which I will now present as an ordered list:

1. Honey Ginger
2. Session India Pale Ale
3. Diamond Pale Ale
4. Virginia Common
5. IPA Batch #12
6. IPA Batch #13
7. IPA Batch #14
8. Saison
9. “Defenestrator” Dopplebock
10. Touchstone Wheat Ale
11. Berliner Braunbier
12. Szechuan Peppercorn Saison
13. Earl Grey Brown Ale
14. Dark Rye
15. Cask / Brew Crew Blend IPA #11 with NZ Rakau, Simcoe, Australian Pride of Ringwood, Mandarina Bavaria & Azacca Hops
16. Cask / IPA Batch #11 dry-hopped with Simcoe
17. Cask / Saison dry-hopped with Citra, Mosaic & Equinox Hops
18. Cask / Saison with Black Cherry & “Bourboned” Cherrywood

As per the ancient and time-tested ways, there will be food trucks.

Symbiotic colony of bacteria, yeast, and ninjas

Triple crossing now has Ninja Kombucha on tap. While nominally nonalcoholic, kombucha is tea fermented by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast which looks like bologna and is called a “mother.” Besides that previous gross sentence, kombucha is delicious and makes a ton of sense to have on tap at a brewery.

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Elsewhere…

Video edition!

Did you see this video of dudes opening five beers at once? Look how happy simultaneously opening five beers makes all of them!

Various people of various body types are recorded drinking craft beer for the first time in slow-mo while not wearing shirts. Safe for work!

Sometimes beer tries to kill you (not in the normal ways).

I love this Shiner Beer commercial! There’s a whole set of them which you should also watch.

Wait, just kidding I love this Brauhuaus Brew Labs commercial more. That dude double bass drumming is my favorite thing of all time.

Takeovers and releases and things

• This weekend, Center of the Universe will release Monkey’s Uncle. It’s a 9% Belgian Tripel brewed with locally-grown lemon grass, which sounds mighty right for this summer weather we’re having. Oh! Also! Today being the last day of school, it’s also Teacher Appreciation Party at COTU. Beer specials for mind molders!
• Ardent’s Honey Ginger is back to fill the sweet and spicy beer-shaped hole in your life. It also sports locally-sourced ingredients–namely the titular honey. I had no idea this beer was 7.8%–it goes down so quick! Danger Will Robinson!
• Hardywood drops its Vinalia Urbana on Saturday–a Belgian-style Strong Golden Ale (which clocks in at 9%) that’s aged in Sauvignon Blanc barrels. While you’re there sampling its delightful dryness on your palate and its hints of stone fruits, check out Lady God at 5:55 PM. Summertime means time for Surf Rock!
• Clever Girl returns to Triple Crossing! Just in time for Jurassic World! No, it’s not the fermented saliva of a Dilophosaurus,¹ it’s just an easy drinking, “soft and dry” American IPA. Also! They’ll be showing the Women’s World Cup game tonight. USA! IPA!
• I can’t promise you that Strangeways GWAR beer doughnuts will still exist at Sugar Shack by the time you read this, only that they existed yesterday. If they’re all out by the time you get there, maybe drown your sorrows in beermosas–which are on special until 3:00 PM at Strangeways on Sunday?
• Isley Brewing Co. will host their second annual luau this Saturday and it totally features a pig picking! The patio is open, they’re tapping crazy beer infusions, and even four-legged friends (assuming your friends are not opossums) are welcome.

‘Gramming with @OGgravity

Not a gram, but, hey, congrats!

It's been a long process, but we finally got this thing! pic.twitter.com/YGTG66BxDr— Original Gravity (@OGgravity) June 11, 2015

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Beer or Pokémon answers

Beer, beer, Pokémon, Pokémon, Pokémon, beer, Pokémon, Pokémon, Pokémon, beer, beer, Pokémon, Pokémon, Pokémon, beer, beer, beer, beer.

June 12, 2015 12:00 PM 0