Arkansas Beer Scene: August 2014

August 28, 2014

Carlton Draught's Epic Big Beer Commercial

I'm just now seeing this, and it may very well be my favorite beer ad. Australian beer ads don't mess around! Love it.

August 26, 2014

Home Invasion Pic

OK, we have our first entry! Well, sort of. Here it is...

Got my @MothersBrewing haul! #MothersHomeInvasion pic.twitter.com/biz0j4n8ir
— Kelle Parton (@PartonKelle) August 25, 2014

Pretty awesome... but if you don't know, that's my wife. So yeah, not eligible. But you are dammit! Get that pic with some Mother's and tweet it with hashtag #MothersHomeInvasion! And I'll stop yelling.

August 20, 2014

Beer Song Countdown: Number 7

The countdown rolls on! We're at #7 and it's an Arkansas boy... Poyen, Arkansas' Justin Moore. His song "Beer Time" makes me smile for several reasons, but mainly for this part of the chorus:

Boys it's beer time,
this ol' town's dry
headed to the county line
for something cold.

Now THAT brings back memories. Great memories. When I first started drinking beer, nearly 100 years ago now (really), I was in a small dry town and as soon as that whistle went off at work it was often a mad dash to the county line (or Missouri state line in my case) where I'd see plenty of buddies and stock up on cold beer. Boys it's beer time!

Top 10 Beer Song Countdown

10. "Beer" by Psychostick
9. "Beer Pressure" by Drankmore
8. "Hell Yeah, I Like Beer" by Kevin Fowler
7. "Beer Time" by Justin Moore

August 16, 2014

Arkansas Untappd, Ranking the State's Check-ins

I'm not sure how I lived without it now, but I have loved the Untappd app since I finally joined when I got my iPhone about a year ago (wasn't available for my archaic Blackberry). I like to keep up with what beers I drink, take a few notes, snap a pic and be able to look back and see what I'm drinking the most often and where. It's also a good tool to see what else all my friends are drinking and also the hot beers in the area.

So for the hell of it I've compiled a list of some of Arkansas' breweries to compare how many check-ins they've had on Untappd since it's inception. Keep in mind, some of these haven't even been open a year yet and some have only had a small amount of beer available. But regardless, here's how the state's current production breweries stack up as of 8/15/2014. Of note... Boscos included Memphis' numbers so I left them off. Several more breweries to be added in the next 6 months as well it seems. But for now...

Number of Untappd check-ins:

Diamond Bear - 9,934
Core Brewery - 6,462
Fossil Cove - 2,880
Saddlebock - 2,852
Ozark Brew Co. - 1,761
Apple Blossom - 1,617
Vinos Brew Pub- 1,282
Stone's Throw Brewing - 1,046
West Mountain - 1,017
Tanglewood Branch - 466
Refined Ale - 27
Flyway Brewing - 22
Gravity Brew Works - 3

State's Total = 29,432

Not too shabby for the natural state! I know I've done my part as several hundred of those check-ins are mine. Now get out there and pump those numbers up for your favorite brewery!

I'll revisit this list a few times a year to update.

August 13, 2014

I'm Giving Stuff Away!

Yay, my first Twitter contest! I've got a pack of some Mother's Brewing swag to give away so I came up with a little contest. It's pretty simple really, because I'm a simple guy. Just buy some Mother's at your favorite liquor store in central Arkansas during their launch week Aug 25th thru 30th and drink it. It's that easy! Well, one more thing, you need to take a pic and post it to Twitter.

What sort of pic? Well entertain and surprise me. It can be with your cat, underwater in your pool, around the fireplace, on the porch with your grandpa, chillin in the backyard during the sunset, paired with some food... whatever. Keep it G rated (or hey at least PG rated), post it on Twitter and hashtag it:

#MothersHomeInvasion

I'll pick a winner and presto... free Mother's stuff for you, sure to increase your coolness factor! Plus even if you lose, you still got to drink a bunch of Mother's beer so it's a win/win for you really. What's the risk?

So here's an example that I took, which sucks, I know. So you can do better... much better. Although I must admit this looks delicious.

August 11, 2014

Beer Song Countdown: Number 8

We're to #8 on the Top 10 Beer Song Countdown and it's a no-brainer. Here's the chorus:

Hell yeah I like beer
It gets me grinning from ear to ear
Not just every now and then
But I'm talking 365 days a year
I can do it around the clock
I don't like it just a little
I like it a lot
Even Hot
Hell yeah I like beer

This should be an anthem for beer lovers and how it wasn't the #1 song on every chart I'll never know. Amarillo, Texas' Kevin Fowler and his song "Hell Yeah I Like Beer" keeps our countdown moving.

Hell yeah, I like beer / It gets me grinnin’ from ear to ear / Not just every now and then / I’m talking 365 days a year / I can do it around the clock / I don’t like it just a little, I like it a lot / Even hot, hell yeah, I like beer,”

Read More: Kevin Fowler, ‘Hell Yeah, I Like Beer’ – Lyrics Uncovered | http://tasteofcountry.com/kevin-fowler-hell-yeah-i-like-beer-lyrics/?trackback=tsmclip

“Hell yeah, I like beer / It gets me grinnin’ from ear to ear / Not just every now and then / I’m talking 365 days a year / I can do it around the clock / I don’t like it just a little, I like it a lot / Even hot, hell yeah, I like beer,”

Read More: Kevin Fowler, ‘Hell Yeah, I Like Beer’ – Lyrics Uncovered | http://tasteofcountry.com/kevin-fowler-hell-yeah-i-like-beer-lyrics/?trackback=tsmclip

10. "Beer" by Psychostick
9. "Beer Pressure" by Drankmore
8. "Hell Yeah, I Like Beer" by Kevin Fowler

August 10, 2014

More on the Mother's Brewing Launch in Central Arkansas

Finally! Here comes Mother's Brewing Company to central Arkansas. I've been drinking their beer for years and made a few visits to their brewery, but to have them here on our shelves and taps? Such great news. There's just so much liquid awesomeness coming from these guys.

So I've got a little more info on launch week (Aug 24th - 29th) and I thought I'd put it all together here for my reference, but hey you can use it as well. I'm a sharer.

Sunday August 24th - Mother's is sponsoring the fantastic party blues master Andy Frasco at Stickyz Rock n Roll Chicken Shack at 8pm. There will be some great music and your first crack at some of their taps to start the week (or end your week as it may be). I believe there will be 4 Mother's taps flowing to keep you hydrated while you dance.

Ongoing all week: Big Orange Midtown and Big Orange West are putting on taps all week long starting Monday. The Mother of All Tap Takeovers! Also various tastings at liquor stores around town begin Monday. Watch the Twitter feed for what's going on tap at the Big O's as well as liquor store tasting and such.

Monday August 25th - Industry only event at a top secret location which I could tell you about, but then I'd have to kill you. You could just go back to Stickyz or hit one of the Big Orange locations this night and drink their taps? Sure you will. Or hey, hit your favorite local liquor store as bottles should start showing up and have a home bottle takeover. In fact, take a picture and post it to Twitter with #MothersHomeInvasion and I'll retweet it and give some Mother's swag to the best pic of the week!

Tuesday August 26th - Mellow Mushroom in West Little Rock will have a firkin of Three Blind Mice brown ale with chocolate and raspberry added. Boom. On the north side, Old Chicago in North Little Rock will be having a pint glass night with 3 drafts.

Wednesday August 27th - The Flying Saucer in the River Market will have a mind-blowing 20 tap takeover. Yes, 20 f'n taps. Biggest tap takeover in Saucer history? I believe so. All sort of great brews you will not want to miss.

Thursday August 28th - A wonderfully paired beer dinner at Big Orange Midtown and I say this with all confidence despite not knowing the menu yet because Big Orange doesn't miss on these beer dinners. This is a must. Great beer is sure to be paired with great food.

Friday August 29th - Argenta Pub Crawl starting at 6pm at The Joint, then to Creegen's Pub, Crush Wine Bar and ending at Reno's. This should be fun!

There's more! Like I said I'll update the Twitter feed with liquor store tastings and such and fill in a bit more meat and potatoes like times and costs on all of these events at they come in. Keep checking!

August 6, 2014

Beer Song Countdown: Number 9

We're counting down my top 10 beer songs and at number 9 is one that not only has the wonderfully truthful line "I'm only gonna have one, but then I start to have fun." but the lyric video also show some beers from Oklahoma craft brewery Mustang, which is cool.

So my number 9 video is from Oklahoma/Texas boys Jarrod Denton & Marshal Dutton, known as Drankmore, and it's their ultra-catchy track "Beer Pressure":

10. "Beer" by Psychostick
9. "Beer Pressure" by Drankmore

August 4, 2014

Welcome To Arkansas: Crazy Mountain Brewing Company!

It looks like the latest addition to the central Arkansas brewery scene is going to be Crazy Mountain Brewing Company, from Vail Valley Colorado. They should be hitting the market tomorrow!

Crazy Mountain Brewery is the Vail Valley’s first production brewery and is owned by Kevin and Marisa Selvy. Here's a recent interview with Kevin about their Snowcat Coffee Stout with a nice glimpse inside the brewery (it's not embeddable for some reason, so you'll have to click to launch): http://youtu.be/PgKvJxmRmzs

Below is list of the beers they make, but I'm not sure what we can expect yet. Checking some online sites it seems like their most generally available beers are the wit, amber and pale ale. I guess we'll know more tomorrow when they hit the shelves!

Year Rounders:

Seasonals:

http://www.crazymountainbrewery.com/

August 2, 2014

Beer Song Countdown: Number 10

I was sitting around thinking of some really serious beer themed posts and it hit me. Beer has just gotten too serious. I enjoy beer... drinking it, talking about it and seeking it out. But all these ratings and snobbery and elitism and know-it-all-isms are really starting to get my nerves. Beer is fun. I like beer. I'm often guilty of forgetting that while sipping on a PBR.

So for the next few weeks I'm going to countdown my 10 favorite beer songs. You may count along, or try to figure out why your latest $20 bottle has an off flavor slightly with the 6 types of hops in the profile. Whichever.

My first pick is a no-brainer really. The humorcore metal band from Tempe, AZ screams the lyrics "Beer is good. Beer is good. Beer is good. And Stuff." Sheer brilliance. Sing along kids!

#10. "Beer" by Psychostick