SEATTLE—Pyramid Alehouses in California, Oregon and Washington are teaming up with Pints for Prostates to raise awareness about prostate cancer and give a lucky patron the chance to win a nine night Germany Beer Tour for two.

The Pyramid Alehouse locations will reach men through the universal language of beer starting with Oktoberfest events in Berkeley, Calif., and Seattle this week. All four alehouses, including the Pyramid Alehouse in Walnut Creek, Calif., and the Portland Brewing Company Taproom in Portland, Ore., will also host events in the coming months for Movember as well as events in 2014. The Pyramid Alehouse events will culminate in a drawing in July 2014 for a trip for two to Germany.

BeerTrips.com has put together a special beer tour of Germany to benefit Pints for Prostates. The beer adventure to Bavaria and Franconia will take place from Oct. 9-19, 2014. The nine night dream trip includes stops in Aying, Garmisch Partenkirchen, Bayreuth, Rothenburg and Bamberg.  The trip includes beer tastings, escorted beer hall crawls, guided city walks, brewery tours, monastery visits, special meals and more.

“We are excited to be teaming up with Pints for Prostates to raise awareness about a disease that touches the lives of so many Americans,” said Danielle Blumen, the Alehouse Community Development Manager for Pyramid Breweries. “This is a chance to support a great cause and give one of our customers the chance to win the beer adventure of a lifetime.”

BeerTrips.com is offering this special Pints for Prostates group tour to Germany to the public on a limited basis. Just 12 slots are available for this tour at $2,995 (+ air) based on double occupancy ($625 single room supplement). The tour will be hosted by Pints for Prostates founder and beer journalist Rick Lyke. Visit www.BeerTrips.com for details.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Pyramid Alehouses to help us raise funds and spread the word to men about the importance of regular prostate health screenings and early detection,” Lyke said. “This will be the fourth time we have teamed up with BeerTrips.com for a special Pints for Prostates European beer trip. This itinerary includes some amazing breweries and is really a unique way to experience Germany.”

“This is one of the most popular BeerTrips.com itineraries because it explores the best of Bavaria and Franconia,” said Mike Saxton, founder of BeerTrips.com. “We offer small groups an intimate experience with the chance for insider tours of some of the most famous breweries in the world. If you love beer and love to travel, this trip gives you a chance to experience the German countryside and some classic small cities that offer tremendous beers.”

As part of the BeerTrips.com and Pints for Prostates partnership, Pints for Prostates will raffle a trip for two for the special trip. For a $10 donation for a single ticket, $25 donation for three tickets or $50 for seven tickets, donors will be entered to win the trip that includes:

• The BeerTrips.com trip for two Oct. 9-19, 2014
• Roundtrip Airfare for Two from the Continental United States
• Nine Nights in Fine Centrally Located Hotels
• Brewery Tours
• Escorted Beer Hall Crawls
• Guided City Tours
• Breakfasts Daily/Special Beer Dinners and Beer Lunches
• Train & Private Coach Transportation

The total value of the trip for two is estimated at $8,500. The Pyramid Alehouse drawing will be held in July 2014. The prize is non-transferable. No cash substitute will be offered. The winner and their guest are responsible for obtaining passports and all trip related costs not outlined above. You must be 21 years old to enter.

About Pyramid Brewing Co.
Pyramid Brewing Co. is a leading brewer of specialty, full-flavored craft beers produced under the Pyramid family of ales and lagers since 1984.  Pyramid beers continue to be honored by beer drinkers and judges having received 22 medals at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF), including a gold medal awarded to Haywire Hefeweizen in 2009 as well as the honor of Mid-size Brewery of the Year in 2008.  The brewery has also been awarded seven medals in international competition at the World Beer Cup. With breweries in Seattle, WA, Portland, OR, and Berkeley, CA, the Company owns Alehouses at all three locations as well as an additional Pyramid Alehouse in Walnut Creek, CA. Visit www.pyramidbrew.com for more information.

About BeerTrips.com
Beer Trips.com was founded in 1998 to offer serious beer people the opportunity to travel to the world’s best beer destinations with other people who love great beer. Beer and travel, travel and beer — these are two of our favorite things. Both, in our estimation, are worth a fair amount of life’s energy. Our goal, and our very reason for existing, is to take our travelers the best beer destinations, drink, taste and enjoy the best beers, meet the beer-loving people of the countries we visit, and explore the history, culture, art and architecture of the interesting places where beer “grew up”. To do this we stay in nice, well-located hotels, eat at great restaurants that emphasize beer in their fare, and visit breweries, brew pubs, cafes, and museums that enhance our understanding and appreciation of beer and its rich history and culture.

About Pints for Prostates
Pints for Prostates 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, 238,590 men in the U.S. will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during 2013. More information is available at www.pintsforprostates.org. Pints for Prostates also has a presence on Facebook and Twitter (@pints4prostates).

SPOKANE, WA—The award-winning No-Li Brewhouse that brings you Spokane-Style beers is taking their growth one step further by bringing on board new Executive Chef, Branden Moreau.

Moreau, born and raised in Spokane, comes from a long history of cooking. He went to culinary school at the Western Culinary Institute of Le Cordon Bleu in Portland, OR. During his studies at the Institute, he traveled to Las Vegas for his internship at famed-chef, Thomas Keller’s Bouchon at the Venetian.

Moreau then went on to work as the Sous Chef at Place Pigalle in Seattle, and has since worked at a handful of top local restaurants, including Wild Sage, Twigs, Sante, and as the Executive Chef at the Manito Taphouse.

No-Li brought Moreau on board to revamp their menu and increase customer satisfaction, with a heavy focus on a food and craft beer experience. As the craft beer scene in the greater Spokane area grows, No-Li continues to strive to be a leader, helping to spread the movement and satisfy the customers demand for a memorable dining experience. In addition, Moreau is putting a big focus on building great relationships and local connections with purveyors, guests and staff.

“Building relationships and local connections only broadens the options and capabilities for what my crew and I can accomplish. We’re supporting the local economy, and creating a supportive community for everyone involved in the dining experience – purveyors, staff, guests,” states Moreau.

The new from-scratch menu, coming out in late September, carries on No-Li’s theme of “No Boundaries.” Moreau will put a new spin on familiar dishes, utilize weekly fresh sheets that include suggested beer pairings, and feature “Spokane-Style” dishes that utilize ingredients sourced from the Pacific Northwest.

The new menu will feature eggs, flour and lentils from Washington, as well as freshly baked bread from local artisan bakeries.

Moreau plans to change the menu a handful of times each year, with a few subtle changes in between, and will bring back popular items; the goal being to keep the menu fresh and creative.

“This is the kind of food that I love to put my spin and interpretation on. Not only are the local products inspiring, the beer is as well. I have been experimenting with utilizing beer in several recipes. Using product that is brewed 10 steps from my kitchen… that’s Spokane Style, and that’s what I’m all about,” says Moreau.

Staff will be trained on the new menu, and will have beer suggestions to pair with menu items, creating a more satisfying experience for guests. In addition to the new menu, No-Li now hosts weekly beer events, including live music on Sundays and Wednesdays, Thursday guest tappings, Firkin Fridays (cask beer), and brewery tours on Fridays and Saturdays.

No-Li is hosting it’s first-ever in-house beer dinner on Wednesday, September 25^th, to kick-off the new menu, as well as to celebrate Spokane craft beer leading up to the Inland Northwest Craft Beer Festival (9/27-9/28). The four-course menu will feature some of the dishes guests will see on the new menu. Each course is paired with a beer from No-Li, including their Dry Fly Whiskey Barrel-Aged Summer Wheat. See ticket site for the beer dinner menu. Tickets for the beer dinner are $40 each, and include tax and gratuity; they can be purchased at the pub or online at nolibeerdinner.eventbrite.com.

Chef Moreau encourages guests to follow him on Twitter (@ChefMoreau) for updates on what’s happening food-wise atNo-Li.

About No-Li Brewhouse

Formerly known as Northern Lights Brewing Company, the brewery was renamed in April 2012 after co-founder/master brewer, Mark Irvin, and craft beer industry veteran, John Bryant, both with deep roots in Spokane, WA, forged a partnership. In addition to the state of Washington, No-Li is distributed in select states, including Idaho, Oregon, Alaska, Colorado, Maryland, North Carolina, and Washington, D.C., with plans to open up Hawaii, Texas and Ohio in late 2013. No-Li currently carries 22oz bottles and draft brands, and will add a 12-oz long-neck bottle 4-pack in November 2013.

Taking the craft beer world by storm in it’s freshman year, No-Li brought home nine international awards for it’s various beers, including a gold medal for Crystal Bitter ESB from the 2012 Great American Beer Festival in Denver, Colorado.

(Press Release)

BELLINGHAM, WA—Sept. 20 through Sept. 29, 2013, is a very good time to be a craft beer lover in Bellingham, as it hosts the second annual Bellingham Beer Week (BBW). This 10-day celebration of craft beer is a time to salute the many fantastic breweries, beer bars and beer stores that serve the Bellingham area, and it’s also an opportunity for these establishments to return the nod to their loyal, beer-loving patrons.

A wide variety of daily events are planned for this year’s Bellingham Beer Week. To kick off the festivities, Boundary Bay Brewery, Chuckanut Brewery and Kulshan Brewery have joined forces to create a collaboration beer, which will be canned at the Kulshan Brewery in Bellingham on Friday, Sept. 20 as a public event. This and many other special-release beers will be highlighted throughout the week.

Boundary Bay Brewery, Chuckanut Brewery and Elizabeth Station will all have Oktoberfest celebrations.

There will be a slew of brewer nights and tap takeovers, featuring breweries such as Ninkasi, Yakima, North Fork, Firestone Walker, Sierra Nevada, Elysian, Laurelwood, Fremont, Machine House, Silver City, Schooner Exact and more.

The Pickford Film Center’s Limelight Cinema will be showing “Beer Hunter: The Movie,” a documentary about the late beer and whiskey writer, Michael Jackson.

Elizabeth Station will be putting on a variety of events, including an Aged Barleywine Night and two beer-and-food pairing dinners.

Kulshan Brewery will have a Beer Trivia Night and a Cornhole Competition, among other events.

Chuckanut Brewery and Village Books will host author John Holl, who will talk about his new book, “The Craft Beer Cookbook,” along with a book signing.

The Copper Hog will have many events, including the return of the “Barleywood Squares” live game show, a Lager Off Competition, and an IPA Challenge with a whopping 21 IPAs on tap.

McKay’s Taphouse & Pizzeria will have four different Brewer Nights.

North Corner Brewing Supply will host a free homebrew demonstration.

Additionally, there will be brewery tours, beer-and-cheese and beer-and-chocolate pairings, a Beer & Bike Tour and special happy hours.

For more information and to see a continually growing calendar of BBW events, visit BellinghamBeerWeek.com and Facebook.com/BellinghamBeerWeek.

SPOKANE, WA—The continuously innovative team at No-Li Brewhouse is now offering the Fresh Sheet keg – one-off kegs crafted, brewed and transported to key accounts within 24 hours of production. As soon as the keg is racked, it’s thrown in a car and driven to Seattle and Portland distributors to deliver to priority retail accounts.

Each week, No-Li is offering only two Fresh Sheet kegs to craft beer pubs across the Pacific Northwest.

“Small is beautiful!” said No-Li co-founder and brew master Mark Irvin. “We still rack kegs one at a time by hand. We are taking freshness to a whole new level by this artisan approach relished by the beer customer.”

No-Li is the epitome of ‘Spokane-Style’ beer and as the name implies uses all ingredients from the Inland Northwest in addition to being brewed and packaged in Spokane. To date, Saraveza in Portland, Hop Shop in Spokane, and Elliott Bay Pizza in Seattle have received same-day keg deliveries from brewery to distributor to pub.

SEATTLE—Redhook Brewery, the Northwest’s original craft brew, announced today the release of “Joint Effort,” a new hemp beer brewed in collaboration with Seattle’s Hilliard’s Beer that celebrates the legalization of marijuana in Washington State.*

The relationship between the two breweries began with a Ballard bar-hopping trip down memory lane for Redhook’s brewing team. The area where it all started for Redhook in 1981 has since become known as the “Redhook District” and is a haven for beer lovers with a number of notable breweries opening and thriving. Among those is Hilliard’s Beer, founded in October 2011 by Ryan Hilliard and Adam Merkl.

“We have a real appreciation for the brewing energy in Ballard right now. Thirty years ago Redhook was exactly where guys like Hilliard’s, Reuben’s Brews and Populuxe are today,” said Karmen Olson, Redhook Brand Manager. “We’re stoked to be working with our friends at Hilliard’s and to raise a pint to our Emerald City heritage.”

Joint Effort is a session ale brewed with hemp seeds. Dry-hopped with Zeus, Cascade, Summit hops, Joint Effort has a dank, resinous hop aroma balanced by nutty, earthiness from hemp seeds. It’s the perfect brew for hanging with your buds, grabbing some munchies and enjoying a beer. ABV 5.6%, IBU 25.

“We’re really excited to release Joint Effort with Redhook because we have a lot of respect for how they helped shape craft beer in Washington,” said Hilliard’s Beer co-founder Ryan Hilliard.  “It’s the first collaboration beer either of us has done with another brewery and it’s fitting they started in Ballard a few blocks from where we are.  Voting to legalize marijuana use in Washington is another example of the pioneering spirit that makes this state so great.”

In keeping with Redhook’s reputation for creating imaginative tap handles, Joint Effort will be poured by a handle shaped like a bright yellow bong. Joint Effort will be available on draught only beginning July 15th and will launch in 22oz bottles under the Blueline Series in late October. The beer will be available in Washington State only. Locations can be found using Redhook’s “Beer Finder” at www.Redhook.com.

* Initiative 502, passed by voters in November 2012, legalized possession and use of moderate amounts of marijuana in Washington State.

It’s a puzzling sight, as everybody here seems to be well served. In fact, the “protest,” organized by Premium Distributors of DC, is actually a celebration of the 75th anniversary of Repeal, which took place on December 5, 1933 with the ratification of the 21st Amendment.

Across the city, revelers are toasting Repeal on a day that the Wall Street Journal has dubbed “Cinco de Drinko.” And Washington, as I write this, is bracing for an even bigger blast on January 20, when Barack Obama takes the oath of office. The DC City Council has passed legislation allowing bars to serve alcohol until 5 a.m. for the four days preceding the Inauguration. The media is predicting that two to three million visitors might try to crowd into the city for the swearing-in of America’s first black president.

“I was talking with a cab driver, and he said the closest available hotel rooms are in West Virginia,” Charlie Papazian, president of the Brewers Association, told me earlier in the week. Papazian had flown in from Boulder, CO for the association’s biannual Capitol Hill beer tasting. He confers regularly with Congress’s Small Brewers Caucus, a group of 37 lawmakers who keep abreast of developments in the craft brewing industry and strive to educate their colleagues. Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR), cofounder of the caucus, is a homebrewer who (according to the Congressional newspaper The Hill) enjoys sipping his homemade pale ales on the porch of his Springfield, OR home.

This city has a watering hole for every income bracket and taste. If you’re an intern or a college student on a budget, prowling around for cheap beers and half-price burgers, you can solve the country’s problems over a couple pitchers at such Capitol Hill dives as the Hawk ‘n Dove, Bullfeathers and the Pour House.

If you’re a K Street lawyer on an expense account, you can plunk down $40 at Brasserie Beck, DC’s premier Belgian-style bistro, for an 11.2-ounce bottle of De Dolle Oerbier Special Reserva fermented in Calvados casks.

Capitol City Brewing Co., the local brewpub chain, was offering InaugurAle, a golden ale spiked with orange blossom honey from Obama’s home state of Illinois. The District ChopHouse, another brewpub, was brewing up Barack Bock. Premium Distributors was augmenting its portfolio with Primo, an old brand from Hawaii (Obama’s birthplace), as well as a lager and ale from a new operation called Half Acre Beer Co. in Chicago.

Premium also offers Shiner Bock, but that brand might have been more in vogue eight years ago when president-elect George W. Bush was toast of the town.

Tavern Negotiations

Administrations come and go, but alcohol has always lubricated the cogs of government. The city of Washington was, quite literally, born in a bar.

In 1790 Congress voted to establish a federal city on the Potomac River. But before all those marble building could rise from forest and marsh, the real estate had to be obtained from about a dozen-and-a-half landholders, some of whom insisted on driving a hard bargain. Among these was an irascible tobacco farmer named Davie Burnes who owned a large chunk of territory between where the White House and Capitol Hill stand today. He once sassed George Washington himself, insisting that “had ye nae married the widow Custis … you would hae been a land surveyor today, ane a mighty poor ane at that!”

However, large amounts of liquor can alleviate even the most trying negotiations, and a congenial tavernkeeper by the name of John Suter kept progress from stalling. His establishment, called Suter’s Tavern or the Fountain Inn, stood in Georgetown, a village that preceded Washington, DC by 40 years but was absorbed into the District of Columbia after the Civil War. It was here that Washington and Jefferson lodged when they visited the future capital; it was here that architect Pierre l’Enfant laid out the city’s streets and avenues; it was here that the first parcels of land were auctioned off.

No one today knows where “here” was, because eighteenth century buildings lacked addresses. A marker commemorating Suter’s Tavern sits near Georgetown waterfront, around the corner from a multiplex movie theater. An alternate view places the tavern on nearby Wisconsin Avenue, on a plot of ground now partly occupied by an erotic novelty shop.

The citizens who frequented Suter’s establishment probably drank wines imported from France and Portugal, Jamaican rum, and ale from Philadelphia or London. But Washington, DC soon had a local producer. A physician named Cornelius Coningham, sometime in the mid-1790s, set up a brewery/distillery in a two-story stone house not far from where the Vietnam Memorial stands today. Coningham proffered strong beer and a weaker “table beer,” sold whiskey and vinegar on the side, and raised hogs on the offal from his vats. He later moved to an abandoned sugar refinery on the opposite side of town, and quietly went out of business in 1811.

You’re probably wondering whether a place this busy and intense can make room for a watering hole where you relax and enjoy a decent beer. Not to worry. It doesn’t matter if you’re attending the upcoming presidential inauguration, looking for a staff job, chaperoning your local high school’s government class on a field trip, or planning to attend a Nationals game, there’s a variety of places to quench your thirst.

For over 50 years, beer lovers have beaten a path to The Brickskeller (1523 22nd Street NW), which boasts the world’s largest selection of beer. It can be a bit tricky to find since it’s in the middle of a residential street with less-than conspicuous signage. Once you make your way up the front steps, you can either continue upstairs to the Dining House, or follow the footsteps of other pilgrims. Open the door immediately to your right and head back down to street level and the Down-Home Saloon. The Brickskeller won’t pamper you, but it’s one of those one-of-a-kind experiences—like sharing a table at the Hofbrauhaus or hoisting a pint in a London pub where Samuel Johnson once held court—that earns it a place on everyone’s “don’t miss” list of beer destinations.

Once upon a time, Paul was a researcher in academia. Much of his work was sponsored by Uncle Sam, which required him to make the occasional trip to Washington. On one of those trips, in 1978, he met a friend at the Brickskeller. This was before anyone heard of the phrase “craft brew,” and most of the beer sold in America was mass-market lager. In those days, the Brickskeller had a large collection of canned beer, much of it directly facing the bar in a row of coolers—which are still there. Paul had spent a lot of time on the road and tried many local brands, but he’d never tried some of the beer on display and in some cases, hadn’t heard of them. The beer was undistinguished, but the cans were colorful and the bar staff let customers take them home to add to their collections. To this day, Paul regrets his decision to unload his collection: he had no idea that someone would invent eBay and turn his clutter into wealth.

The beer list—actually, it’s almost a book—has everything from Abita to Zywiec, and everything in between. As you look at it, you’ll be amazed how many more brews you’ll need to drink before you even come close to sampling everything the world has to offer. But keep trying: as Beer Travelers, we can think of no nobler goal.

Absolutely Capitol

Our next stop is the Capitol City Brewing Co. located right outside Union Station (2 Massachusetts Avenue NE). It served as the Federal City Post Office until 1986. Now, after a painstaking restoration, part of the building has become the Smithsonian National Postal Museum.

With its white masonry exterior it is a quintessential Washington structure, so we were surprised to find a sleek modern interior. The large, centrally located rectangular-shaped bar surrounds copper serving tanks and immediately catches your eye. The open design also boasts a spectacular staircase that leads to a second level with the fermentation tanks and an additional dining area.

Sitting at the bar, we shared a sampler. You can customize your own, choosing between five and eight glasses, depending on whether you just want the regular rotation, or the seasonals as well. We found all of the beers spot on, and we particularly enjoyed the kölsch, a style many American brewmasters struggle with. The food menu is pub/casual and reasonably priced for the location.

By the way, there are two other locations: 1100 New York Avenue NW (at the corner of 11th Street and H Street) and 2700 Quincy Street, Arlington, VA. The first was established in 1992 as Washington’s first brewpub since Prohibition and was part of the new downtown retail area in the renovated Greyhound Bus Terminal.

The Metro, Washington’s ultra-efficient public transportation system, makes it easy to get around town, so in just a few minutes we found ourselves at the Old Dominion Brewhouse (1219 9th Street NW). As you might gather from the name, this establishment specializes in serving beer brewed at its mother ship, Old Dominion Brewery. They have 11 Dominion tap handles with both ales and lagers; and here, too, you can make a sampler to suit your fancy. Guest beers included Murphy’s and Tennants. It’s also a place where you can order any fancy or complicated cocktail your mind can conjure.

The interior is eclectic: breweriana, NFL team logos, and an unusual mural of DC icons. The sheer number of flat-screen TVs (including one inside the men’s room) gives off an unmistakable message: this is a sports bar. We half expected a talk show crew to set up shop and start fielding calls from antsy Redskins fans—and the pre-season hadn’t even started.

That’s the same approach British beer writers Ben McFarland and Tom Sandham employed in writing the latest book in CAMRA’s “Good Beer Guide” series. They reached across the Pond and asked brewers, fellow journalists and the beer cognoscenti for their recommendations, and then joined them at their favorites. [In the interest of full disclosure, that includes this reviewer, who invited them to judge at the Bistro's Double IPA Festival.] That approach formed the basis for their book on West Coast USA. By tapping into a corps of local experts and enlisting them as their guides, the book feels more like an insider’s look into the wide area the book covers, which includes the three coastal states of California, Oregon and Washington, along with Alaska, Hawaii and the city of Las Vegas.

The book also includes a brief history on each of the areas the authors visited and generally what to expect when traveling in America, and so it reads more like the typical travel guidebook than the usual brewery tome. It also includes information on American beer history and our beer styles to help orient the average British traveler more used to their local bitters. It’s beautifully appointed with photographs, beer labels and maps, and each place’s listing gives all the pertinent details. It’s also written with such wit, charm and skill that you’ll find yourself wanting to visit each every beer place they describe. This is quite simply how all beer guidebooks should be done.

The 54 locations in the McMenamin empire start in the north at Mill Creek Brew Pub near Everett, WA. They range south to Roseburg Station Brew Pub in southern Oregon, east to Old Francis School in Bend, OR, and west to the Lighthouse Brewery Pub in Pacific City on the Oregon Coast.

They are on the verge of opening their 54th establishment: Chapel of the Chimes, a renovated 1932 funeral home here in Portland at 430 N. Killingsworth, set to become the company’s headquarters with a pub attached.

The brothers have long specialized in buying and renovating wonderful old historical landmarks. They are now in the process of reworking many of their early acquisitions.

Notable among these is our local poor farm, Edgefield Manor, (2126 SW Halsey, Troutdale, OR), built in 1911 and acquired in 1990. This is a five million dollar project, with a bed and breakfast and a 25-acre campus, including an 18-hole Scottish Rules golf course, a brewery and pub of course, a winery and wine pub, a distillery-pub, a movie theater, and the Black Rabbit, a first class restaurant. Edgefield—said to be haunted—is currently undergoing some renovations.

Many other fine Northwest landmarks (some on the National Registry of Historic Places) have been added as well. St. Johns Pub (8203 N. Ivanhoe St. Portland) has a truly amazing history, starting at Portland’s International Lewis and Clark Exposition in 1905 as the elegant and ornate National Cash Register Pavilion and Movie Theater. Although featuring only one short film, it was unique in its time.

The beautiful domed building was then barged down the Willamette River to its present location in the St. Johns district as a Congregationalist Church. It had to be hauled from the riverfront, up the bank elevation of some 100 feet, over at least half a mile by what must have been huge teams of horses. That church didn’t really prosper, especially when the pastor was accused by a fellow preacher of being a traitor and wife stealer.

Accordingly, in 1931, the church was sold to the Lutherans, who flourished and outgrew the building by 1951, after which it became an American Legion Post until 1988, and, as its fifth incarnation, Duffy’s Irish Pub. After the McMenamins acquired it in 1998, they returned movies to the now elderly establishment.

But that dream kept receding further into the future as one unprofitable brewing year gave way to another. Heurich figured he needed to sell at least 20,000 barrels a year to make his brewery viable. He sold one-fifth that amount last year.

On March 1, Heurich announced he was shutting off the taps. He figured that his Foggy Bottom Lager and Ale—made at the F.X. Matt Brewing Co. in Utica, NY,— would soon vanish from area outlets, and that the Washington Monument-shaped tap handles would reemerge as collectibles on eBay.

Heurich is the grandson of Christian Heurich, whose brewery on the Potomac turned out Senate Beer and Ale (and other brands) until it closed in 1956 and was razed to make way for the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

A disillusioned Gary emailed his supporters, “As our predecessor, the Chr. Heurich Brewing Co., learned… the Washington area is unique among major urban centers in its relative lack of a hometown spirit, and as a native Washingtonian this is something that is deeply and personally disappointing.”

Is DC a bad beer town? In 2004, District residents quaffed 30.9 gallons per capita, higher than Maryland (26.1 gallons), Virginia (29.3 gallons), New York (23 gallons) or Pennsylvania (29.3 gallons). The selection here is unparalleled: two establishments, the Brickskeller and Chevy Chase Wine & Liquors, offer over 1,000 brands. And DC has spawned a successful brewpub chain: Capitol City Brewing Co.

But Washington, DC is also, to a large extent, a city of transients who bring along their own beer loyalties. And Heurich, with his real estate dealings and many charitable endeavors, never had enough time to grow his beer business.

Heurich intended to move to upstate New York, near the shore of Lake Champlain, where he plans to convert an old pinewood barn into a brewpub and do some hands-on brewing. He leaves behind one triumph. The stately brownstone mansion his grandfather built, a.k.a. “The Brewmaster’s Castle,” has (so far) stayed out of the hands of private developers and remains open to the public, thanks in part to Gary’s efforts. The 31-room late-Victorian home (complete with suit of armor, hand-carved breakfast nook, chandelier and other luxurious furnishings) is well worth a visit after you’ve done the museum circuit. Check out www.heurichhouse.org for more information.

Congressional Plaudits

As we went to press, the Brewers Association (the Boulder, Colo.-based group that represents the interests of professional and amateur beermakers nationwide) was seeking to have Congress declare May 15 to 21 as American Craft Beer Week.

House Resolution 753, introduced by Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) and Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-New York), would commend the craft brewing industry for “providing jobs, improving the balance of trade, supporting American agriculture, and educating Americans about the history and culture of beer while promoting the responsible consumption of beer as a beverage of moderation.”

As of mid-April, the bill was before the Committee on Government Reform, and had picked up 54 cosponsors. “Rep. DeFazio went on the floor and got 50 of his Democratic friends to sign in one day,” noted BA president Charlie Papazian at April’s Craft Brewers Conference in Seattle.

Come Back With That Keg!

The Washington, DC, area, which in recent years has survived terrorist attacks, a Beltway sniper, a serial arsonist and innumerable political scandals, is now being menaced by a keg thief. A bandit in a blue pickup truck is estimated to have snatched as many as 400 empty kegs from local bars over the last couple months, according to the Washington, DC, City Paper. The thief, it’s believed, is returning kegs to liquor outlets for the $10 to 20 deposit or selling them for scrap metal. The Department of Homeland Security has yet to post a reward.