Pints for Prostates Portland Pale Ale Invitational Celebrates America's Favorite Beer Style

PORTLAND, OREGON – The inaugural Pints for Prostates Portland Pale Ale Invitational will be held on July 25 from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland, Ore. The event celebrates the allure, complexity and flavors of pale ale.

The tasting event features pale ales from a dozen Oregon breweries and a dozen breweries from around the globe. Presented by Beer West magazine in conjunction with the Oregon Brewers Festival, the event benefits the Pints for Prostates campaign.

“We are bringing together a collection of great pale ales in a city where pale ales are truly appreciated, all to raise awareness about an important men’s health issue,” said Rick Lyke, a drinks journalist and prostate cancer survivor. Lyke founded Pints for Prostates in 2008 after successful prostate cancer surgery. “Our goal is to reach men through the universal language of beer with a message about the importance of early detection.”

Tickets for the Portland Pale Ale Invitational are $30 and will be available online starting on March 1 at http://www.pintsforprostates.org . All net proceeds support the mission of the Pints for Prostates campaign.

“We are excited about the brewers that have agreed to take part and the world class pale ales they will be pouring. Beer fans will get the chance to try a wide variety of pale ale styles in a single session,” said Megan Flynn, publisher and editor-in-chief of Beer West magazine. “Pale ales have become America’s favorite type of craft beer. This event salutes the passion brewers and beer drinkers have for pale ale.”

The 24 participating breweries include: BridgePort Brewing, Portland, Ore.; Caldera Brewing, Ashland, Ore.; Cascade Brewing, Portland, Ore.; Deschutes Brewery, Bend, Ore.; Fire Mountain Brew House,Carlton, Ore.; Firestone Walker Brewing, Paso Robles, Calif.; Full Sail Brewing, Hood River, Ore.; Lompoc Brewing, Portland, Ore.; MacTarnahan's Brewing, Portland, Ore.; Moa Brewing, Marlborough, New Zealand; New Holland Brewing, Holland, Mich.; Ninkasi Brewing, Eugene, Ore.; NoDa Brewing, Charlotte, N.C.; Odell Brewing, Fort Collins, Colo.; Oregon Brew Crew, homebrewers from Portland, Ore.; Rogue Ales, Newport, Ore.; Sierra Nevada Brewing, Chico, Calif.; Silver City Brewery, Bremerton, Wash.; Snake River Brewery, Jackson Hole, Wyo.; Southern Oregon Brewing, Medford, Ore.; Stone Brewing, Escondido, Calif.; Tree Brewing, Kelowna, British Columbia; 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco, Calif.; and Wells & Young’s, Bedford, United Kingdom.

“This year marks the 25th annual Oregon Brewers Festival so we are proud to be able to help support Pints for Prostates by making our venue available for the Portland Pale Ale Invitational on the eve of our silver anniversary,” said Art Larrance, one of the founders of the Oregon Brewers Festival. “The Oregon Brewers Festival is already one of the world’s biggest beer events and the Portland Pale Ale Invitational is another reason for people to visit and enjoy great craft beer.”

Judges at the Great American Beer Festival award medals in seven different pale ale categories. Pale ale categories attract the most entries and are the hottest contested.

“Men are 33 percent more likely to develop prostate cancer than women are to have breast cancer, yet few men know about the critical importance of early detection,” Lyke said. “The support of Beer West magazine, the Oregon Brewers Festival and the two dozen great craft brewers donating beer for the event will help us reach an audience that needs to hear our message.”

About Pints for Prostates

Pints for Prostates is a 501(c)3 a campaign that reaches men through the universal language of beer to encourage them to take charge of their health. The group was founded by prostate cancer survivor and beer writer Rick Lyke in 2008. The grassroots effort raises awareness among men about the importance of regular health screenings and PSA testing by making appearances at beer festivals, social networking and pro bono advertising. According to the National Cancer Institute, 240,890 new prostate cancer cases were diagnosed in the U.S. in 2011. More information is available at www.pintsforprostates.org. Pints for Prostates also has a presence on Facebook and Twitter (@pints4prostates).

About Beer West Magazine

Founded in 2007, Beer Northwest has grown to become the leading beer culture and lifestyle magazine in the Northwest. In January 2011, the magazine expanded into California and became Beer West. The magazine covers the thriving West Coast beer market and is the only regional publication of its kind. Beer West has more than doubled its circulation and visibility in the past year, with a focused readership of 80,000 beer and food enthusiasts. Beer West is a celebration of the unique Western beer-loving life.

About the Oregon Brewers Festival

The Oregon Brewers Festival is one of the nation's longest running and best loved craft beer festivals. Situated on the west bank of the Willamette River, with towering Mt. Hood as a backdrop, it is the ideal venue for anyone who loves craft beer. With a laid back attitude and scores of award-winning beers, the festival reflects the essence of the city of Portland, and is the crowning jewel of Oregon Craft Beer Month. The OBF was at the forefront of exposing craft beers to the public. A total of 84 craft breweries from all parts of the nation will serve more than 30 beer styles to nearly 80,000 beer lovers from around the world. Another 50 specialty beers will be available for tastes in the Buzz Tent.

####

Shipyard Prelude

Anchor Brekle's Brown

Oskar Blues HGH

HGH poured a clear, dark amber color with a thumb width, off white head.  The nose is inviting, clean and hoppy with sweet malt that balances everything perfectly.   The body is short, has a nice malt base that is sticky and ends with a crisp, bitter finish.  There was some ringed, hanging lace left on the glass.

Overall, this is just a wonderul beer.  It is big and bold yet balanced and refined.  HGH hides its big ABV very well, and one of the best new beers I have tasted in a long time.

Goose Island Mild Winter

Harpoon Winter Warmer

Brewers Association Announces 2012 Style Guidelines

Boulder, CO • February 8, 2012—The Brewers Association (BA) recently released its 2012 Beer Style Guidelines. Updated annually, the guidelines currently describe 140 styles of beer and are used in prestigious beer competitions, including the Great American Beer Festival® and the World Beer Cup®.
For this year, a new beer style has been added-the Indigenous Beer Category. The guidelines specify that this beer must contain "at least one regional combination of ingredients and/or techniques must be unique and differentiated from ingredients and/or techniques commonly used by brewers throughout the world...Examples of indigenous beers might include current day versions of highly regional and/or historic styles which are not represented elsewhere in these guidelines, such as Finnish-style sahti, South American chicha, African sorghum based beers, and others." For competitions, brewers will provide 100-word descriptions of why their entry is relevant to the category, to aid judges in their evaluation.

Since 1979 the BA has provided beer style descriptions as a reference for brewers and beer competition organizers. The beer style guidelines developed by the BA use sources from the commercial brewing industry, beer analyses, and consultations with beer industry experts and knowledgeable beer enthusiasts as resources for information. Much of the early work was based on the assistance and contributions of beer journalist Michael Jackson. For 2012, revisions were aided by over 100 comments and suggestions from Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup judges, as well as other beer industry members.

"These guidelines help to illustrate the growth of craft brewers in the United States and also offer insight and a foundation for helping appreciate the hundreds of beer types brewed for the beer lover," said Charlie Papazian, president of the Brewers Association.

The 2012 Beer Style Guidelines are available for download in the Publications section of BrewersAssociation.org.

###

The Brewers Association is the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers, their craft beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The Brewers Association (BA) represents more than 70 percent of the brewing industry, and its members make more than 99 percent of the beer brewed in the U.S. The BA organizes events including the World Beer Cup®, Great American Beer Festival®, Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America®, SAVOR: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience and American Craft Beer Week. The BA publishes The New Brewer magazine and its Brewers Publications division is the largest publisher of contemporary and relevant brewing literature for today's craft brewers and homebrewers.
Beer lovers are invited to learn more about the dynamic world of craft beer at CraftBeer.com and about homebrewing via the BA's American Homebrewers Association. Follow us on Twitter.

Victory Brewing Company Celebrates 16th Birthday

Victory Brewing Company Celebrates 16 Years in Business

Brewery launches a mobile app, creates a new beer and throws a party to celebrate.

DOWNINGTOWN, PA – On February 15, Victory Brewing Company turns 16 years old. In typical sweet-sixteen fashion, celebrations will include a big gift and a big party. But in typical Victory fashion, the gift and party are geared toward the fans, not toward the company.

The Gifts:

Victory Brewing Company Mobile App

In honor of the tremendous technological growth Victory Brewing Company has experienced in its 16 years, Victory is launching a free mobile app for Android and iPhone users.

“When Ron and I first started Victory Brewing Company, we registered one email address for all business-specific email,” said Bill Covaleski, President and Brewmaster of Victory Brewing Company. “Back then, only serious businesses needed e-mail addresses. What could we possibly need with more than one?”

Now Victory employs 50 corporate employees, each with his or her own email address, manages a web site, blog and social media presence. And, by the end of the month, Victory is going mobile.

"I believe we are ready to enter the 21st century now." Bill said.

A New Beer

To celebrate the sweet victory of turning 16, Victory Brewing Company has created a chocolate beer. Éclat Cocoa Lager is a beer created in collaboration with West Chester, Pa.-based Éclat Chocolate. The dark lager is brewed using the world’s rarest cacao bean, Peruvian Pure Nacional, which offers just a touch of perceived sweetness to the beer.

“Working with Éclat was an obvious choice for us for our birthday beer,” said Ron Barchet, CEO and co-Brewmaster of Victory Brewing Company. “Their dedication to the finest ingredients and flavors mirrors our own.”

Victory’s Éclat Cocoa Lager will be available at select locations in Pa. and NJ for a limited time, on draft only.

The Party: Sweet and Savory Beer Dinner

On February 15, Victory will be hosting its own sweet 16 party. The Sweet and Savory Beer dinner will debut Victory’s Éclat Cocoa Lager and will feature a number of food and beer pairings selected to highlight both sweet and savory flavors.

Sixteen lucky attendees will also win birthday gifts from Victory.

For more information about the dinner, visit www.victorybeer.com/events.

Victory Brewing Company is a privately held microbrewery located in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. Begun by Bill Covaleski and Ron Barchet, childhood friends who met on a school bus in 1973, the brewery formally began operations in February of 1996. Victory, Pennsylvania's widely acclaimed brewery and restaurant, now serves fans of fully flavored beers in 29 states with innovative beers melding European ingredients and technology with American creativity. To learn more about Victory Brewing Company visit us on the web at www.victorybeer.com