Jester King on The New Brewer

Jester King brewers and owners Jeffrey Stuffings, Michael Stuffings and Ron Extract appear on the cover of the March/April issue of The New Brewer magazine, the official journal of the Brewers Association.

They also recieve a brief mention inside in the cover story by Horst Dornbusch.

Austin Beer Guide

AUSTIN - A new periodical has been published for the growing Austin-area brewing scene, the Austin Beer Guide.


Issues are available around the Austin area for free, as well as an electronic version online.

Shiner Ruby Redbird

SHINER - Spoetzl is introducing a new summer seasonal this year, the Shiner Ruby Redbird, a beer brewed with Texas Ruby Red grapefruit and ginger.

Another Beer Bill Introduced

AUSTIN - A third bill has been introduced into the current legislative session regarding brewers and their ability to sell beer, HB 2436.

Sponsored by Austin's Rep. Eddie Rodriguez (D), HB 2436 is more broadly written than either HB 660 or HB 602, and seeks to allow brewers to sell directly to the public with a cap of 5000 barrels annually.

Jester King, Mikkeller Collaboration

AUSTIN - Jester King has announced its first collaboration effort with the Danish "gypsy brewer" Mikkeller, with two collaborative beers brewed for 2011.

The first beer will be a hoppy wheat session ale named Drink'in in the Sunbelt, a beer inspired by a previous Mikkeller recipe, to be available later this month. The second will be a smoked-malt beer with chipotle peppers to be released later this spring.

Deep Ellum Brewing Hires Huerter

DALLAS - Proposed Dallas brewery Deep Ellum Brewery has hired Drew Huerter as their head brewer, as reported on a local St. Louis blog and confirmed locally by Deep Ellum Brewery.

Huerter was a former brewer at the award-winning Schlafly Tap Room and Bottleworks and most recently at the now-closed Mattingly Brewing Company, both St. Louis area breweries.

Rahr & Sons Pecker Wrecker

FORT WORTH - Rahr & Sons is bringing their Pecker Wrecker Imperial Pilsner out of retirement as part of their special 22-oz bottled "To Thee" series.

Jester King's New Website

AUSTIN - Jester King Craft Brewery launched a newly redesigned and updated website this week, featuring a more uniform look and bringing links to all their online efforts together under one brand.

Rahr & Sons in Star-Telegram

FORT WORTH - Rahr & Sons was the subject of a recent feature appearing in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram entitlted "Fort Worth brewery finds silver lining in snowstorm cloud."

Black Metal Selected for Rare Beer Club

AUSTIN - Jester King's Black Metal Imperial Stout has been selected as one of the February 2011 releases for the monthly subscription service of Michael Jackson's Rare Beer Club.

Details about the beer and brewery are available in the Rare Beer Club's February newsletter.

Rahr & Sons Snowmageddon

FORT WORTH - To celebrate the anniversary of their roof collapse in 2010, Rahr & Sons is releasing a new limited-edition seasonal beer each February named Snowmageddon.

The style will vary from year to year, with this year's version an Imperial oatmeal stout based on the recipe of a local North Texas homebrewer.

Karbach Brewing Company

HOUSTON - Another new brewery is currently under development in Houston, the Karbach Brewing Company, and hopes to open sometime in 2011.

Eric Warner, originally of Colorado's Flying Dog Brewery, is rumored to be their head brewer.

The Barber Shop Opens

DRIPPING SPRINGS - The newest Texas independent brewpub, The Barber Shop, is set to open this weekend at a historic downtown location in Dripping Springs, just west of Austin.

In-house brewing operations are not yet ready but until then, the beer bar will offer a selection that favors the region's growing commercial craft breweries.

Black Star Co-op Review

AUSTIN - Austin's newest brewpub, the Black Star Co-op, was recently reviewed by Mike Sutter of the Austin American-Statesman in the piece, "Atlas chugged: The Black Star Co-op experience."

Jester King Boxer's Revenge

AUSTIN - Jester King has released their next year-round beer, Boxer's Revenge Farmhouse Provision Ale. This beer will be a Belgian-inspired, farmhouse-style "stock ale" aged in oak wine barrels and blended to taste.


Boxer's Revenge will debut at their grand opening celebration this weekend, and should appear on tap and in bottles in the following months.

North by Northwest's New Website

AUSTIN - Local Austin brewpub North by Northwest launched a newly redesigned and updated website this week. Improvements include a more modern design as well as current menu, beer and live music listings.

Circle Brewing Opens

AUSTIN - Circle Brewing Company has become the latest Austin-area brewery to begin brewing and selling commercially.

According to Emma Janzen of the Austin American-Statesman, Circle Brewing will be selling their first beers this week at the Draught House and expanding local tap accounts over the next weeks.

Texas Brewpub Legislation

AUSTIN - Two new bills have been introduced into the current state legislative session that could impact Texas brewing laws, HB 660 and HB 602.

Sponsored by San Antonio's Rep. Mike Villarreal (D), HB 660 seeks to allow brewpubs to bottle and enter distribution for off-premise consumption.

Sponsored by Houston's Rep. Jessica Farrar (D), HB 602 seeks to allow breweries to charge for tours and to give bottled beers away to paying participants for off-premise consumption. The current language of this bill does not provide for brewers to ultimately sell directly to consumers.

Jester King Wytchmaker Rye IPA

AUSTIN - Jester King has received label approval for their Wytchmaker Rye IPA, a hoppy 6.6% ABV American IPA with a rye addition that has been available only on draft until now.

Saint Arnold Growth in 2010

HOUSTON - Saint Arnold grew by 22% in 2010 despite a lagging economy, as reported by Ronnie Crocker in the Houston Chronicle piece, "Saint Arnold thrives during lukewarm times."

Also included in this piece are a few other interesting items regarding the brewery:

• The Divine Reserve No. 9, an imperial pumpkin stout, will become an annual fall seasonal named The Pumpkinator.
• Capacity for 22-oz bottles will be added this year for special releases.
• Expect two or three releases of the Divine Reserve series in 2011.

Real Ale in Imbibe Magazine

Erik Ogershok of Blanco's Real Ale Brewing was featured in part of a piece on brewing with rye in this month's Imbibe Magazine entitled, "Against the Grain."

Brock Wagner on Forbes Blog

Saint Arnold owner Brock Wagner was featured in a short interview with Forbes contributor Christopher Helman on his Southwest Bureau blog.

Poll Results 2010

Poll 20 (January): Monthly Spending for Beer?

1. $50 to $100 (45%) #2 in 2009
2. $20 to $50 (22%) #1 in 2009
3. $100 to $200 (12%)

Total 31 votes

Poll 21 (February): Best Session Beer in Texas?

1. Rahr & Sons Ugly Pug (37%) #1 in 2009
2. Spoetzl Shiner Bock (22%) #2 in 2009
3. Real Ale Fireman's #4 (20%)

Total 58 votes

Poll 22 (March): Best Beer Store in Texas?

1. Spec's (50%)
2. Central Market/Whole Foods (42%)
3. Majestics/Grapevine (14%)  

Total 14 votes

No Poll (April)

Poll 23 (May): Favorite Beer Style?

1. IPA (45%) #2 in 2009  
2. (tie) Belgian ale (22%)
   (tie) Hefeweizen (22%)

Total 31 votes

Poll 24 (June): Best Brewery in Texas?

1. (tie) Real Ale (25%) #2 in 2009
   (tie) Saint Arnold (25%) #3 in 2009
2. (tie) (512) Brewing (14%)
   (tie) Live Oak (14%) 

Total 35 votes

Poll 25 (July): Best Summertime Beer in Texas?

1. Live Oak Hefeweizen (35%) #2 in 2009
2. Saint Arnold Summer Pils (27%)
3. Real Ale Fireman's #4 (21%) #3 in 2009

Total 37 votes

Poll 26 (August): Is Spoetzl a Craft Brewery?

1. Yes (47%) 35% in 2009 
2. No (42%) 57% in 2009 
3. Depends (10%)

Total 38 votes

Poll 27 (September): Best IPA in Texas?

1. (512) IPA (37%)
2. (tie) Real Ale Lost Gold (17%) #3 in 2009
   
   (tie) Saint Arnold Elissa (17%) #2 in 2009

Total 29 votes


Poll 28 (October): Best Oktoberfest in Texas? 

1. Real Ale Oktoberfest (32%) #1 in 2009
2. (tie) Franconia Oktoberfest (21%)
   (tie) Saint Arnold Oktoberfest (21%) #2 in 2009

Total 37 votes


Poll 29 (November): Best Brewpub in Texas?

1. Freetail Brewing (68%) #1 in 2009
2. Uncle Billy's Brew & Que (15%) #1 in 2009
3. North by Northwest (10%)

Total 19 votes


Poll 30 (December): Most Anticipated New Brewer for 2011?

1. No Label Brewing (33%)
2. Austin Beerworks (25%)
3. (tie) Circle Brewing (16%)
   (tie) Kreuz Creek Brewing (16%)

Total 12 votes

No Label Brewing Opens

KATY - No Label Brewing Company has opened and sold its first beer commercially at an event held last week at The Public House in Katy, just west of Houston.

No Label Brewing is still awaiting delivery of a larger 15-barrel system early next year, after which their production should grow considerably.