Jester King Craft Brewery Opens

AUSTIN - Jester King Craft Brewery has opened in Austin and is brewing their first commercial batch, according to a recent press release.

Owners Michael and Jeffrey Stuffings and brewer Ron Extract have begun brewing in their newly built facility located on 200 acres in rural Austin. They are planning on five different styles initially, including Boxer's Revenge, an oak barrel-aged wild ale, as well as a British-style dark mild, a rye IPA and "Franco-Belgian inspired farmhouse ales."

Jester King has also designed a 8000-square-foot rustic beer hall along with their brewhouse and plan to host tastings, festivals and special events at the brewery site.

Correction: Employee Ron Extract is assisting in brewery sales and distribution, not brewing operations.

The Covey Closes

FORT WORTH - Fresh off a medal at this year's GABF, Fort Worth's The Covey Restaurant & Brewery abruptly closed Friday night with only hours notice.

Owner and brewer Jamie Fulton has accepted an opportunity with a new brewpub project called Farmers & Brewers based in Washington, DC. No news yet on what will become of The Covey's equipment or location.

Update: The Covey's brewhouse equipment has been sold to a start-up brewpub in Bangalore, India, and Fulton will be consulting with them for a few months as they get operations underway.

Black Star Co-op Opens

AUSTIN - Austin's newest brewpub, the Black Star Co-op Pub & Brewery, has opened for business at their Midtown Commons location at the intersection of Lamar and Airport Boulevard, as posted on their Facebook page.

The Black Star Co-op is the world's first cooperatively owned and operated brewpub and restaurant, with a Workers Assembly managing body of more than 2000 members.

Houston's TwoRows Closing

HOUSTON - TwoRows Restaurant & Brewery of Houston has announced it will close on October 2nd, as reported by Ronnie Crocker of the Houston Chronicle on his blog Beer, TX.

The closure is due to rising rent prices for the prime Rice Village site that TwoRows has occupied for the past 14 years, and the owners being unable to sign an acceptable lease agreement. Currently, there are no plans to reopen or attempt to move to a new location.

TwoRows was the last operating independent brewpub in the Houston metro area. Hired just this past April, brewer Ray Mitteldorf has expressed interest in partnering to develop another new brewpub.

Texas Brewers at 2010 GABF

DENVER, CO - Winners were announced over the weekend at the 2010 Great American Beer Festival, and again three familiar Texas brewers brought home medals.

Recognized Texas brewers include:

• Saint Arnold: Gold for Fancy Lawnmower as a German-Style Kölsch
• Real Ale Brewing: Gold for Rio Blanco Pale Ale as an Ordinary or Special Bitter
• Saint Arnold: Silver for Elissa IPA as an Extra Special Bitter
• Saint Arnold: Silver for Oktoberfest as a Scottish-Style Ale
• The Covey Restaurant & Brewery: Bronze for Cowboy Lager as a Munich-Style Helles

The Great American Beer Festival (GABF) is an annual event sponsored by the Brewers Association, the professional organization for the craft brewing industry. This year's competition included 3523 entries from 522 brewers with a total festival attendance of more than 49,000.

Gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded for beers in 79 different style categories plus a separate pro-am competition.

Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling

SAN ANTONIO - Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling has officially opened and will soon begin supplying beer to local retail locations in San Antonio. Their initial product lineup will include four beers available on draft and in bottles starting in October.

Ranger Creek is owned by partners TJ Miller, Dennis Rylander and Mark McDavid, with head brewer Rob Landerman and assistant brewer Pete Landerman. Their custom-built 6000-square-foot "brewstillery" includes a 30-barrel brewing system and enough room to accommodate tours and tastings.

Ranger Creek will also produce Texas bourbon with much of the same equipment used for brewing, but due to barrel aging it will not be available until 2011.

Gulf Brewing Company

HOUSTON - Another Houston microbrewery has surfaced recently, the Gulf Brewing Company of Houston. Owners Joel Moore and Tip Strickland are looking to follow the historic Gulf Brewing built by Howard Hughes at the repeal of Prohibition.

No word yet on a final location or when they may be operational.

Rahr & Sons Resume Tours

FORT WORTH - Closed to the public since the February 12th snowstorm that collapsed their roof, Rahr & Sons Brewing will resume their public Wednesday evening and Saturday afternoon tours and tastings beginning this Saturday, September 11th.

Tours will be held every Saturday at the brewery from 1pm to 3pm. Admission is $7, which includes a logo glass and free samples.