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  • BeerMenus Facelift

    By will
    on Jun 16, 09
    You may have noticed this morning we updated the design of the site reorganizing the navigation bars. We hope this makes navigating the site and finding great beer easier. If you have any feedback or comments please feel free to let us know in our forums.

  • "Hard times are good for craft beer"

    By will
    on Jul 21, 09
    In a program on NPR last week, Steve Chiaotakis reports that "For the beer business, it seems the better the brew, the more the bucks." Sales reports indicate that as the economy is tanking sales are up for the more expensive craft beer -- the ultra premium beers are growing the most. Why would people be spending more money on craft beer while their bank accounts shrink? The most likely reason is that when people are forced to cut back spending on big things like a vacation or a new car, they try to ease the blow by finding more affordable ways to splurge, like ultra premium beer. If you're not going to make it to Europe this Summer, why not drink a refreshing Berliner Weisse or Hefeweizen and pretend like you are in Germany? Listen to the program here

  • BeerMenus... now in Chicago

    By will
    on Oct 13, 09
    We are excited to announce the launch of Chicago on BeerMenus.
    A special thanks to the places that supported us before the launch:
    Beer Bistro
    Brisku Bistro
    Mirabell Restaurant
    Bad Apple Bar
    Fiddlehead Cafe
    Branch 27
    Jak's Tap
    Goose Island Wrigleyville
    Goose Island Clybourn
    Paddy Long's

    Is your bar missing? Add it now

  • Best Beers to drink for Thanksgiving

    By will
    on Nov 25, 09
    In the country that created fast food, Thanksgiving is the exception where people typically take their time and put together a big elaborate meal with several courses and eat all day. This focus on slowing things down and appreciating a real meal makes it a perfect opportunity to introduce your family to some interesting beers that are both full of flavor and accompany the traditional Thanksgiving foods very well. Beer is a great choice for Thanksgiving because you can find a huge range of styles and flavors to accompany each type of food and it is also much lower in alcohol than other drinks so you won't say anything you regret in front of your family and you won't pass out before you get to your much anticipated food coma.

    Serious Eats just wrote an article titled Serious Beer Pairings for Thanksgiving that includes some fantastic recommendations.

    On my list of beers to pair with the dinner tomorrow are the Sierra Nevada Porter, a light bodied, low alcohol beer, with roasted chocolate flavors to go with both mashed sweet potatoes and the dessert pies. I also plan to drink the Southampton Biere de Garde with the turkey and stuffing. This beer has an earthy, toasted malt, caramel flavor that should go very well with traditional turkey and stuffing seasonings. If you have any unusual dishes with strong or over bearing flavor, I would recommend trying out a smoked beer. These beers most notably go well with barbecue food, but can also pair well with any dish with a very strong flavor. Some examples that I like are the Captain Lawrence Smoked Porter and the Stone Smoked Porter.

    For further information about pairing beer with food I would highly recommend Garrett Oliver's book Brewmaster's Table

  • Holiday Gifts For Craft Beer Lovers

    By will
    on Dec 16, 09
    'Tis the season of gift giving and it can be tough to find the right gift for the discerning craft beer drinker. Here are a few gifts I personally would love to get, that I think any craft beer lover would greatly appreciate.

    Books
    Christmas Beer This book discusses the history of beers brewed just for Holidays. A great read for any beer lover who likes to learn about the history of various beer styles and who wants to get in the holiday spirit.
    The Brewmaster's Table This is a great book that discusses pairing beer with food. Many call it the textbook for beer and food pairing.
    Hops & Glory This book is great for any beer lover who particularly fancies the IPA and who might be interested in learning about its origins. I am currently reading this book and can't put it down.


    (Big) Beers
    There are a lot of big bottle beers released for the holidays that make fun gifts that are literally a party in a bottle. Serious beer drinkers say these large format beers taste different (or have subtle nuances) from their normally-sized counterparts, so getting these big bottles is sure to excite even the most serious beer lover. Most good beer stores will have a selection of big bottles to choose from and in my opinion you can't go wrong with any beer made in a big bottle. Personally, I would enjoy the Keegan Ales Hurricane Kitty, which comes in 1 liter bottles. I have also seen the Stone Arrogant Bastard in 3 liter bottles, which I would definitely love to see under the tree on Christmas morning. The Anchor Christmas is also a classic Christmas beer from Anchor Brewing Company, the brewery that pioneered the Christmas beer tradition in the US.

    Events
    Another fun gift idea would be to get tickets to a beer pairing or a beer dinner. I always enjoy "experience gifts" the most and if you buy tickets to an event, you can treat yourself at the same time. Check out our events section to see what's out there. You will find plenty of events where you can meet brewmasters, learn about various beer styles, and enjoy some eccentric beer and food pairings like bacon and beer, cheese and beer, chocolate and beer, or a full beer dinner with several pairings.





  • Beers to Drink on New Year's Eve

    By will
    on Dec 28, 09
    Instead of drinking cheap champagne this year or attempting to decipher what champagne has a good "price point" as they more often say in the over priced beverage industries, I plan to explore some equally bubbly and celebratory beers. You can even find beers brewed using the same ancient process used to make champagne called the methode champenoise. While this process has been perfected over the years by champagne producers who were attempting to get a higher carbonation level with smaller bubbles that create a softer velvety mouthfeel, brewers are using it now as well.

    To create exceptionally bubbly beers, brewers add sugar to each bottle before it is corked to allow for a secondary fermentation in the bottle. This fermentation infuses more refined smaller CO2 bubbles - the more heavy handed you are with the sugar, the more bubbly the beverage will be. The methode champenoise uses several more complicated techniques like riddling and uses specific types of yeast strains, but for the purposes of beer, you will find many bottle-conditioned beers that achieve the same mouthfeel and complex taste.

    These sparkling beers tend to be on the top shelf and are appropriate for a celebration like New Year's Eve. They also happen to cost about as much as a bottle of cheap champagne... so what do you have to lose? Below are a couple bubbly beers I will be popping open come New Year's Eve.

    Glazen Toren Jan De Lichte This is one of my favorites coming from a brewery in Belgium run by three people. It is an extremely carbonated double wheat beer with some amazing complexity.

    AleSmith IPA I just tried their most recent batch which has extremely high levels of carbonation and this is currently one of my favorite big IPAs.

    Beers brewed using the methode champenoise:

    Allagash Black

    Brouwerij Bosteels Deus

    Malheur Brut Noir

    Kasteel Cru


  • San Francisco Launch

    By eric
    on Mar 09, 10

    We’re excited to announce the launch of BeerMenus San Francisco!

    A special thanks to the places that supported us before the launch:

    Solstice Restaurant & Lounge
    Magnolia Gastropub and Brewery
    The Alembic Bar
    Front Porch
    Elixir
    Red Restaurant and Bar
    Rosamunde Sausage Grill
    CreoLa
    Fly Bar & Restaurant
    Porky’s Pizza Palace
    Fat Angel

    Are we missing a great place? Let us know in the forums or add a beer menu