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	<title>PJ Hoberman</title>
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	<description>Starting a Brewery</description>
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		<title>The Maturity of the Craft Beer Industry</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/30/the-maturity-of-the-craft-beer-industry/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/30/the-maturity-of-the-craft-beer-industry/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 31 Aug 2010 06:44:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Musings]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Anchor Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Anheuser-Busch Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brasserie dOrval]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Budweiser]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[globalization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Goose Island Beer Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kona Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Magic Hat Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Orval]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pabst Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pyramid Breweries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Redhook Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sierra Nevada Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Unibroue (Sapporo)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Widmer Brothers Brewing Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=556</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Beer has an interesting history. It goes back well before history was a major in college. In goes back before history was something written down, in fact. Beer goes back a long ways.
At the same time (time being a term used to describe my explanation of history, not history itself), beer has highs and lows. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/Brewing_monk.jpg"><img class="alignright" title="Brewing Monk" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/Brewing_monk.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="200" /></a>Beer has an interesting history. It goes back well before history was a major in college. In goes back before history was something written down, in fact. Beer goes back a long ways.</p>
<p>At the same time (time being a term used to describe my explanation of history, not history itself), beer has highs and lows. As we say at the homebrew shop, if you can boil water, you can make beer. Making good beer, however, is a little more involved. But, the fact is, making beer isn&#8217;t hard. It&#8217;s why it&#8217;s been around for so long. It&#8217;s a way to make dirty water clean and taste good, with some fun after effects.</p>
<p><a href="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/women-in-brewing.jpg"><img class="alignleft" title="Middle Ages Woman Brewing" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/women-in-brewing.jpg" alt="" width="170" height="288" /></a>Some good beer has been around for a long time. <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//brasserie-dorval/132/">Orval</a> was born in 1070 AD. That&#8217;s almost a millennium ago. That&#8217;s about four times older than America. <em>Correction: As an astute reader pointed out, construction on what would become Orval began in 1070. The beer has only beer around since 1931. Less fun, but still a long time.</em></p>
<p>Meanwhile, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp?PlaceID=7576">Budweiser</a> is the most sold beer in the world. And today, August 30th, 2010, craft beer sales are growing faster than their macro competitors. Significantly faster. And I&#8217;m using significant in the true scientific 5% sense. In fact, macro sales have been down the past few years. A<a href="http://www.brewersassociation.com/">nd craft &#8211; as defined by the Brewer&#8217;s Association</a> &#8211; is up.</p>
<p>Craft brewing has been around for a long time, but it&#8217;s had a recent resurgence. <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//sierra-nevada-brewing-company/67/">Sierra Nevada</a>, arguably one of the forerunners of craft beer in America, started in 1979. 31 years ago. Now, while I don&#8217;t expect to be mature when I turn 31, it looks like craft beer is starting to mature.</p>
<p>In the past few months, some of the bigger, older, more well known, and sometimes the obscure, but in general, some microbreweries have been bought up by bigger companies. There have been mergers, acquisitions, and other business terms that don&#8217;t belong on a beer blog.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//anchor-brewing-company/11/">Anchor Brewing</a> has been rolled up into Anchor Brewers &amp; Distillers LLC, a group owned by the guys who took Skyy from a no name to one of the most recognized vodka brands in the world. Included in the portfolio are Junipero Gin and Old Potrero Whisky. <a href="http://beernews.org/2010/08/anchor-brewers-and-distillers-llc-closes-acquisition-of-anchor-brewing-company/">Read more in the press release</a> and <a href="http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-08-11/business/22213963_1_spirits-liberty-ale-fritz-maytag">article</a>.</p>
<p>The Craft Brewers Alliance Inc. (CBAI) recently purchased <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//kona-brewing-company/435/">Kona Brewing</a> outright, adding Kona to their portfolio of <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//redhook-brewery/105/">Redhook Brewery</a> and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//widmer-brothers-brewing-company/98/">Widmer Brothers Brewing</a>. CBAI also distributes <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//goose-island-beer-company/128/">Goose Island</a>, though Goose Island is not wholly owned by CBAI. <a href="http://beernews.org/2010/08/more-details-insight-on-kona-brewing-sale/">Read</a> <a href="http://www.staradvertiser.com/business/businessnews/20100804_Kona_Brewing_in_14M_sale.html">more</a>.</p>
<p>North American Breweries purchased International Brewers United, and the combined portfolio includes <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//pyramid-breweries/154/">Pyramid Breweries</a> and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//magic-hat-brewing-company/220/">Magic Hat Brewing</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/pbr.jpg"><img class="alignright" title="PBR" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/pbr.jpg" alt="" width="168" height="168" /></a>And hell, even <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//pabst-brewing-company/10946/">Pabst</a> <a href="http://beernews.org/2010/06/meet-pabst-buyer-dean-metropolous/">was bought</a> by a Greek businessman recently. But they were going out of business. So there&#8217;s that.</p>
<p>On top of all these major acquisitions, many, many, many smaller craft brewers have been merging or buying out other breweries.</p>
<p>This goes a bit beyond collaboration brews.</p>
<p>It looks like the craft beer industry is maturing. While there has always been a tipping point, where a craft brewery goes from squeezing every penny out of every pint to having excess cash to spend on growth and marketing, it appears that craft breweries are starting to be recognized as legitimate businesses. Less than a half dozen breweries make up over 90% of the total volume and dollars of beer sold in America, and more than 1,400 breweries make the 10% left. But of those 1,400, a few are breaking through and being considered a worthy investment.</p>
<p>I&#8217;m not an economist. Or a speculator. Or really anyone with any sort of intelligence for this level of business. But, that qualifier aside, it appears that craft beer is getting the recognition it&#8217;s been striving for. For better or for worse. Good beer isn&#8217;t just a fad. It isn&#8217;t just a trend. It&#8217;s here to stay, it&#8217;s growing rapidly, and people like it.</p>
<p>Many industries go through this change. Skiing had a similar roll up recently, with almost all the brands being rolled up into three companies. And then another 50 sprouted in the wake.</p>
<p>I don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s a good thing that some of the biggest, most well known, most consumed breweries are being bought up, rolled up, and combined. It&#8217;s been happening for a while, and some breweries, like <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//unibroue-sapporo/180/">Unibroue</a>, continue to make amazing beer under corporate rule. <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/03/12/who-makes-your-beer/">Did you know they&#8217;re owned by Sapporo</a>?</p>
<p>Maybe this will make good beer more accessible. Maybe it will be the end of this phase of the craft beer revolution.</p>
<p>Or maybe we will soon experience better beer than the world has ever seen. Better beer than you or I can possible imagine.</p>
<p>Or maybe nothing will change at all.</p>
<p>What do you think?</p>
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		<title>When in Rome, err, Denver</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/22/when-in-rome-err-denver/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/22/when-in-rome-err-denver/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:53:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Metro]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[beer centric]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Breckenridge Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cheeky monk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[colt & gray]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[euclid hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[falling rock]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gabf]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[great american beer festival]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Great Divide]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mellow mushroom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pints pub]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rackhouse pub]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[star bar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Strange Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thin man]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[uptown brothers brewing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vine street pub]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wynkoop]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=549</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[According to the GABF countdown clock at Falling Rock, there&#8217;s about 22 days until the start of the Great American Beer Festival. Could be a little more or a little less. Counting is hard.
The festival is sold out, but there are always tickets for sale on Craigslist and other such sites. But whether you got [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>According to the GABF countdown clock at Falling Rock, there&#8217;s about 22 days until the start of the <a href="http://greatamericanbeerfestival.com/">Great American Beer Festival</a>. Could be a little more or a little less. Counting is hard.</p>
<p>The festival is sold out, but there are always tickets for sale on Craigslist and other such sites. But whether you got tickets or not, Denver has a lot of beer to offer outside the hallowed &#8211; scratch that &#8211; beer-drenched hall that is the Festival. Why, just within a few miles of the Convention Center, there are more than a dozen beer-centric establishments.</p>
<p>Before I get into what those are, I want to impress upon you that Denver does in fact have more to offer than just great beer. We have whiskey too!</p>
<p>This town is wonderful, and I implore you to explore it, should you find the time and the sobriety. Our local <a href="http://www.yelp.com/denver">Yelpers</a> are fantastic, so trust that site if you need a quick lookup. Grab a <a href="http://bikerjims.tumblr.com/">reindeer  or wild boar hot dog</a>, see <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/el-chapultepec-denver">a show</a> or <a href="http://www.denverartmuseum.org/home">a show</a> or <a href="http://gigbot.com/shows/109175">a show</a>, <a href="http://www.tatteredcover.com/">grab a book</a>, or maybe even <a href="http://www.hikingincolorado.org/stmary.html">take a hike</a>. And if you like dive bars &#8211; and I love dive bars &#8211; <a href="http://www.denversbestdivebars.com/">we have a few of those too</a>.</p>
<p>But, in the end, you&#8217;re here for the beer. So let&#8217;s get to that.</p>
<p>I made <a href="http://bit.ly/d3ZW2v">a map on Google maps</a> of about 15 beer places within 2-3 miles of the Convention Center. There are hundreds, if not thousands of them within 100 miles of downtown, so I decided to stick to walk-able and bike-ride-able from downtown. If you want a more complete map of the region, check out <a href="http://beermapping.com/maps/citymaps.php?m=boulderdenver">beermapping.com</a>. Oh, and speaking of bicycles, we have an awesome <a href="http://www.bcycle.com/">bike rental program</a> too.</p>
<div class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 449px"><a href="http://bit.ly/d3ZW2v"><img title="Map of Denver Beer" src="http://img.skitch.com/20100823-ejbppu5c74bu15piqx8ewsbfyn.jpg" alt="" width="439" height="260" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Click the map to see the whole thing</p></div>
<p>In no particular order, here are the establishments I&#8217;ve pinned on the map. If you know of another I should add, please let me know. Click on the map for addresses, directions, etc.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.fallingrocktaphouse.com/">Falling Rock</a><br />
75 taps, 120 bottles, events every day, this is generally a good place to be. <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2009/12/18/stupid-questions-0-93-a-visit-to-falling-rock/">Full writeup</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.greatdivide.com/">Great Divide</a><br />
It&#8217;s no secret I love this place. I think I mention them in every single article I write. Do yourself a favor and go there.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.euclidhall.com/">Euclid Hall</a><br />
Brand new spot in town, tons of awesome beer and food. My <a href="http://twitter.com/denverbartender">friend</a> <a href="http://www.conkphotography.com/">Ryan</a> is pimping out their tap list.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mellowmushroom.com/">Mellow Mushroom</a><br />
New location right downtown. 36 beers on tap, from the cold yellow fizzy to the crazy Belgians nom noms.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.strangebrewingco.com/">Strange Brewing</a><br />
They just got started a few months ago and are rocking out. Go try their brews and support new micros.</p>
<p><a href="http://starbardenver.com/Star_Bar_Denver/Home.html">Star Bar</a><br />
Old dive turned into new dive with craft beer and liquors. You didn&#8217;t have a good time if you didn&#8217;t stop here.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.breckbrew.com/">Breckenridge Brewpub</a><br />
One of the biggest production breweries around here, and right next to Coors Field to boot!</p>
<p><a href="http://thecheekymonk.com/">Cheeky Monk</a><br />
Tons of Belgian awesomeness on tap and in bottles, plus great food. Try the mussels! <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/02/12/cheeky-monk/">Full writeup</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mountainsunpub.com/">Vine Street Pub</a><br />
Part of the Mountain Sun family, this place is one of the coolest spots in Denver. Great beer and guest taps too.</p>
<p><a href="http://thinmantavern.com/">Thin Man</a><br />
Funky little bar with a coffee shop attached. Right next to Vine Street.</p>
<p><a href="http://rackhousepub.com/">Rackhouse Pub</a><br />
I go here a bit too often. Amazing beer, liquor, food, and people. <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/01/08/i-like-beer-it-makes-me-a-jolly-good-fellow-rackhouse-pub-review/">Full writeup</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.coltandgray.com/">Colt &amp; Gray</a><br />
I told the bartender I liked scotch, whiskey, and new things, and he made me a pre-prohibition style Old Fashioned. Amazing.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.wynkoop.com/">Wynkoop</a><br />
Started by our current mayor in 1988 and still rocking right downtown.</p>
<p><a href="http://uptownbrothers.com/">Uptown Brothers Brewing</a><br />
Yet another new beer place in Denver. Tons of good stuff now, brewing their own soon.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.pintspub.com/">Pints Pub</a><br />
Largest single malt scotch collection in.. America? At least this side of the Mississippi. They brew there as well. <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/02/19/pints-pub/">Full writeup</a>.</p>
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		<slash:comments>11</slash:comments>
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		<title>How alcohol affects your brain and behavior. Part V &#8211; Relief</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/13/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-v-relief/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/13/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-v-relief/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 13 Aug 2010 16:00:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Beer School]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bacon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hangover]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hangover cures]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=544</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This is the last article in a series about how alcohol affects your brain and behavior. You can read the other 4 here:
Part I
Part II
Part III
 Part IV

Raise your hand if you like bacon.
Good.

Hangovers suck. But they happen. If you like good beer, like going to bars, like scotch, like&#8230; ya, there&#8217;s a lot of [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>This is the last article in a series about how alcohol affects your brain and behavior. You can read the other 4 here:</p>
<p><a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/05/28/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-i/">Part I</a><br />
<a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/06/18/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-ii/">Part II</a><br />
<a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/02/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iii-tolerance/">Part III</a><br />
<a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/16/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iv-%E2%80%94-withdrawal/"> Part IV</a></p>
<hr />
<p>Raise your hand if you like bacon.</p>
<p>Good.</p>
<p><img class="aligncenter" title="Bacon" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/NCI_bacon.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></p>
<p>Hangovers suck. But they happen. If you like good beer, like going to bars, like scotch, like&#8230; ya, there&#8217;s a lot of ways to get a hangover.</p>
<p>Eventually, that gross feeling will go away. And everyone experiences said gross feeling differently. And just as different are people&#8217;s cures.</p>
<p>Personally, I like to eat and listen to really vocal-bass-heavy music. Give me some Magnetic Fields and Louis Armstrong or give me death.</p>
<p>Eating helps, if you can handle it. It doesn&#8217;t really matter all the much what you eat, it just helps to eat. Consuming some delicious munchies kicks the cobwebs off your metabolism, which starts a bunch of digestive and processing activities throughout your body. Like your liver.</p>
<p>Since a good portion of a hangover is the toxins leftover from breaking down alcohol, an active metabolism will help clear those toxins that much faster.</p>
<p>Greasy, crunchy, burnt food &#8211; read: bacon &#8211; may or may not help as well. One theory I&#8217;ve heard is that burnt meat is like taking charcoal tables. Take it or leave it, but eating in general does help. <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/5118283/Bacon-sandwich-really-does-cure-a-hangover.html">This is science</a>.</p>
<p>A little nip of whatever bit you, aka The Hair of the Dog, is an interesting remedy. It will in fact stop the hangover you&#8217;re experiencing, but only for now. Granted, you could slowly ween yourself off the alcohol, but in general, drinking to cure a hangover just postpones the hangover.</p>
<p>A dark room, air conditioner, comfy couch, and V for Vendetta or the soothing voices of professional golf announcers also works.</p>
<p><img class="aligncenter" title="V for Vendetta" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/9f/Vforvendettamov.jpg/200px-Vforvendettamov.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="295" /></p>
<p><span style="font-family: mceinline"><img class="alignleft" title="Pedialyte" src="http://www.medicalsupplybiz.com/images/T/Pedialyte%20unflavored.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="200" /></span>Rehydrating during all of this is also a good idea. Water, or an IV drip of Pedialyte, should do the trick.</p>
<p>But the best, most efficient, fastest, and straight up awesomsauciest method out there is to get your endorphins flowing. Go for a run in the blazing hot sun. Stub your toe on a spiked wall. Or, take the more fun approach: have sex. Of course, this requires a significant other nearby or someone willing to cure you of your pain, but hey, win win really.</p>
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		<title>The beer geeks are coming!</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/06/the-beer-geeks-are-coming/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/08/06/the-beer-geeks-are-coming/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 06 Aug 2010 16:00:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gabf]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[great american beer festival]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=539</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Much like Paul Revere riding the streets of Middlesex County alerting the townsfolk of the impending march of the Red Coats, I write for you today in hopes that you&#8217;ll heed my warning and prepare accordingly.
The beer geeks are coming! The beer geeks are coming!

According to the countdown timer staring me in the face at [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Much like Paul Revere riding the streets of Middlesex County alerting the townsfolk of the impending march of the Red Coats, I write for you today in hopes that you&#8217;ll heed my warning and prepare accordingly.</p>
<p style="text-align: center"><strong>The beer geeks are coming! The beer geeks are coming!</strong></p>
<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/gabf-008-hr.jpg"><img class="aligncenter" title="GABF - The Beer Geeks Are Coming!" src="http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/gabf-008-hr.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></a></p>
<p>According to the countdown timer staring me in the face at <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2009/12/18/stupid-questions-0-93-a-visit-to-falling-rock/">Falling Rock</a> last night, there are 40 days between now and the beginning of one of the best weeks in Denver: <a href="http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/">The Great American Beer Festival</a>.</p>
<p>Whether you&#8217;re a GABF virgin, entering the hallowed halls for the first time, awestricken by the plethora of pretzel necklaces and the bounty of breweries and booths, or it&#8217;s your tenth year in attendance and you know the nights to go and the route to follow, it&#8217;s time to get enthused, excited, fired up, and delighted.</p>
<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/gabf-012-hr.jpg"><img class="aligncenter" title="Great American Beer Festival Crowd" src="http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/gabf-012-hr.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></a></p>
<p>The 2010 Great American Beer Festival is September 16, 17, and 18 in the sunshine state that is <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2009/11/20/denver-craft-beer-overview-part-i/">Denver</a>. While two of the four sessions are already sold out, there are still two nights available. And there&#8217;s always tickets floating around places besides Ticketmaster.</p>
<p>The week is more than just the festival itself. Beer bars, breweries, and your neighborhood homebrewer pull out all the stops. Between now and GABF,  I&#8217;ll let you know what&#8217;s going on, where the best place to  grab a beer will be, and other fun stuff about this fine city and its wonderful beer traditions.</p>
<p>In return, I merely ask that you ask me questions. Guide my advice with your queries.</p>
<p>We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, the pursuit of Happiness, and a damn fine beer.</p>
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		<title>Denver Summer Brew Fest</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/30/denver-summer-brew-fest/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/30/denver-summer-brew-fest/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:00:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Abita Brewing Co. (Brewery)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Anderson Valley Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[beer festivals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bristol Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Denver Brew Fest]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Deschutes Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[festival]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Great Divide Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Left Hand Brewing Co.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New Belgium Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stone Brewing Co.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Strange Brewing Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=534</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last weekend was the 4th Annual Denver Summer Brew Fest at Mile High Station. I went. Surprise!
The event, thrown by RightOn Productions, and it&#8217;s colder sister event aptly named the Denver Winter Brew Fest, happen right near Invesco Field (where the Broncos play), pretty much right under the highway. This fest is different than most.
Some [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kellbenson/4835747530/"><img class="alignright" title="Denver Brew Fest - Grand Lake's Lineup" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4106/4835747530_0fef30c44e.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" /></a>Last weekend was the 4th Annual Denver Summer Brew Fest at Mile High Station. I went. Surprise!</p>
<p>The event, thrown by RightOn Productions, and it&#8217;s colder sister event aptly named the Denver Winter Brew Fest, happen right near Invesco Field (where the Broncos play), pretty much right under the highway. This fest is different than most.</p>
<p>Some beer fests are like going to a museum. There&#8217;s new exhibits, old classics, people who might be famous but you&#8217;re not quite sure&#8230; An overall air of respect and, maybe, almost, a little aristocracy.</p>
<p>Denver Brew Fest is more like a house party. Or maybe a block party. It&#8217;s a get together of good friends. Some people bring new friends for you to meet. But it&#8217;s just&#8230; comfortable.</p>
<div class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 343px"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kellbenson/4835753452/"><img title="Denver Brew Fest - A place for friends" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4149/4835753452_1668637eab.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="500" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Look how comfortable he looks.</p></div>
<p>There aren&#8217;t many crazy beers to try, or too many new breweries to experience. Don&#8217;t get me wrong, there were a handful of new guys on the scene, and beers I&#8217;d never tried or even heard of<a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//strange-brewing-company/11580/">. Strange Brewing</a> was there in full force. It helps that their brewery is around the corner. Two I&#8217;d never heard of were represented and delicious: <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp?PlaceID=7272">Abita</a> and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//anderson-valley-brewing-company/60/">Anderson Valley</a>.</p>
<p>And of course the usual suspects. <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//new-belgium-brewing-company/77/">New Belgium</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp?PlaceID=1945">Bristol</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//deschutes-brewery/233/">Deschutes</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//stone-brewing-co/76/">Stone</a> (<a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/oaked-arrogant-bastard-ale/39654/">Oak Aged Arrogant Bastard</a>.. mmm), <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//great-divide-brewing-company/292/">Great Divide</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//left-hand-brewing-co/78/">Left Hand</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//mountain-sun-pub-brewery/1926/">Mountain Sun</a>, etc. The full list is at the bottom, but you get the idea.</p>
<p>And I loved it. Every second.</p>
<p>It didn&#8217;t hurt that there was awesome BBQ and other delicious foods to be had. You know those big turkey legs they have at Renaissance festivals? Ya, they had those.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kellbenson/4835139499/"><img class="alignleft" title="Denver Brew Fest - Tunnel Vision" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4146/4835139499_94fc1cf247_m.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="160" /></a>Oh, and an 80s band. The Asteroids rocked it all night long. From ACDC and ABBA to ZZ Top and other bands that start with Z and everything in between.</p>
<p>For $30, it&#8217;s an awesome deal. They offer discounts if you ride your bike too. And you get a sweet tasting glass.</p>
<p>There&#8217;s something to be said about familiarity. It&#8217;s not like walking into a new museum/school/job/whatever and not knowing anyone. It&#8217;s like coming home and hanging out with friends. The beer is the focus, but you don&#8217;t need a checklist of things you have to try. You just grab what you like, maybe try something new, and keep on with the conversation.</p>
<p>For more information on the Denver Summer and Winter Brew Fests, go to <a href="http://denverbrewfest.com/">DenverBrewFest.com</a>.</p>
<hr />Participating Breweries:</p>
<ul>
<li>Abita</li>
<li>Alaskan</li>
<li>Anderson Valley</li>
<li>Asher</li>
<li>Blue Moon</li>
<li>Boulder Beer</li>
<li>Bristol</li>
<li>Colorado Native Now</li>
<li>Crabtree</li>
<li>Del Norte</li>
<li>Deschuttes</li>
<li>Grand Lake</li>
<li>Great Divide</li>
<li>Herman Joseph</li>
<li>Hops</li>
<li>Killians</li>
<li>Lefthand</li>
<li>Leinekugels</li>
<li>Mountain Sun</li>
<li>New Belgium</li>
<li>New Planet</li>
<li>Odell</li>
<li>Oskar Blues</li>
<li>Pyramid</li>
<li>Rock Bottom and Breckenridge</li>
<li>Sierra Nevada</li>
<li>Ska</li>
<li>Stone</li>
<li>Strange Brew</li>
<li>Tommyknocker</li>
<li>Trinity</li>
<li>Twisted Pine</li>
<li>Upslope</li>
<li>Wynkoop</li>
</ul>
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		<title>Green Beer</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/23/green-beer/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/23/green-beer/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:00:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Musings]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[environment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[green]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[home brewing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[homebrewing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[recycle]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[responsible brewing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reuse]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=530</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Yes, this is an article about St. Patty&#8217;s Day.
Just kidding.
It&#8217;s about the environment and recycling and all that jazz.
Brewing is a pretty resource heavy endeavor. Take lots of water, boil it, and then cool it to a proper temperature. It takes a lot of water and a lot of energy to do this.
More and more, [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 231px"><img class="   " title="Green Bottles" src="http://www.rnw.nl/data/files/images/lead/Heineken_experience_amsterdam.jpg" alt="" width="221" height="177" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Not what I mean by green beer, being green, or the bottles you should give to a homebrewer.</p></div>
<p>Yes, this is an article about St. Patty&#8217;s Day.</p>
<p>Just kidding.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s about the environment and recycling and all that jazz.</p>
<p>Brewing is a pretty resource heavy endeavor. Take lots of water, boil it, and then cool it to a proper temperature. It takes a lot of water and a lot of energy to do this.</p>
<p>More and more, breweries are spending time and money focusing their efforts on brewing environmentally friendly. There are thousands of things they&#8217;re doing, and some of them are pretty neat. For example, they&#8217;ll take the hot water from the counter-flow cooling system and use it for the next batch, so that they don&#8217;t have to heat that much water again.</p>
<p>New Belgium is one of the breweries at the forefront of this movement. When <a href="http://startingabrewery.wordpress.com/2010/07/02/my-week-shadowing/">I shadowed a brewer there</a> a few weeks ago, he lamented that they don&#8217;t recapture carbon dioxide from the fermentation tanks. They save pretty much everything else. Steam? Yup. Hot water? Of course. Unused wort? Ya, they sparge with that. They send a tanker of spent grains to a farm every 3 hours!</p>
<p>As a consumer, you can help out too. Supporting breweries who support the environment is an obvious one. Canned beer is great, as are glasses rather than plastic cups. But here&#8217;s one you might not have thought of.</p>
<p>Give your empty bottles to a homebrewer.</p>
<p>Recycling is great and all, but why not just reuse? I guarantee there&#8217;s a homebrewer near you who would love a few dozen empty brown pry-off top bottles. He or she might even give you some beer in return!</p>
<p>Yes, you could sell them on Craigslist, but I suggest trading them. I&#8217;d be more than happy to give you a 6-pack of my homebrew for a few dozen empties.</p>
<p>You get beer, you don&#8217;t waste bottles, and you get to meet other local beer lovers.</p>
<p>They get bottles, get to share their craft, and get to meet other local beer lovers.</p>
<p>How do you find these elusive beer makers? Ask the bearded fellow at work. Or. Try Craigslist. Or. Find your local homebrew shop. <a href="http://beermapping.com/maps/citymaps.php?m=boulderdenver">The Beer Mapping Project</a> has great maps that include homebrew shops. Or. Walk around your neighborhood until you smell the sweet sweet smell of wort cooking on a kitchen stove. <em>Note, if you live in a dangerous neighborhood, please don&#8217;t blame me for performing this action. </em></p>
<p>As they say, Drink Locally and Think Globally. Well here&#8217;s another way to keep it local.</p>
<p>Cheers!</p>
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		<title>How alcohol affects your brain and behavior. Part IV — Withdrawal</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/16/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iv-%e2%80%94-withdrawal/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/16/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iv-%e2%80%94-withdrawal/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2010 16:00:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Beer School]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[alcohol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hangover]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[neuroscience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[withdrawal]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=519</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A few links to get you started before we dive in:
Part I
Part II
Part III
This series is wrapping up. We&#8217;ve talked about how alcohol gets in your body, what it does there, and how it gets out. Sadly, alcohol doesn&#8217;t always pick up after itself. It leaves a mess and moves on to the next party, [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>A few links to get you started before we dive in:</p>
<p><a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/05/28/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-i/">Part I</a><br />
<a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/06/18/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-ii/">Part II</a><br />
<a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/02/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iii-tolerance/">Part III</a></p>
<p>This series is wrapping up. We&#8217;ve talked about how alcohol gets in your body, what it does there, and how it gets out. Sadly, alcohol doesn&#8217;t always pick up after itself. It leaves a mess and moves on to the next party, and you end up with a hangover.</p>
<div class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 224px"><img class="  " title="Flapper" src="http://echostains.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/flapper.jpg" alt="" width="214" height="273" /><p class="wp-caption-text">The word hangover first appeared for this purpose in 1904. Therefore, this girl is probably hungover. Logic.</p></div>
<p>A hangover is alcohol withdrawal.</p>
<p>A hangover is generally not fun. The Hangover is fun. Notice the difference.</p>
<p>A few weekends ago I had some friends from college in town. We experimented with these symptoms and causes. For your benefit, dear reader.</p>
<p>There are many symptoms of a hangover, and a few causes for these as well. People experience hangovers differently. I have a few friends who can&#8217;t stand the thought of food after a big night out. I have other friends (read: me) who can eat everything in the house, and then do it again an hour later. I Sometimes you gotta feed the beast.</p>
<p>One of the biggest causes of a hangover is dehydration. Alcohol is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diuretic">diuretic</a>, meaning it makes you pee more. Many of the symptoms of a hangover can be linked directly to dehydration. Dry mouth, headache, laziness, that amazing feeling when you have your first glass of water in the morning and you feel like every cell in your body is coming back to life&#8230; Those are all because you&#8217;re dehydrated.</p>
<p><img class="alignleft" title="Hangover dog" src="http://anneelicious.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/hangover_dog.jpg" alt="" width="173" height="119" />Nausea is a big one. My friends I mentioned earlier who can&#8217;t handle food in the morning (I&#8217;ll take a plate of bacon, please) know this one pretty well. First, alcohol screws with your stomach lining. Things down there that normally wouldn&#8217;t affect you now have more access, and thus more power. Second, do you remember when we talked about acetaldehyde? That stuff is toxic. If you drank enough to get a bad hangover, your liver is most likely still trying to break down all the stuff from the night before. While you might not be drunk anymore, you most likely still have stores of acetaldehyde in your body. Stores of toxic waste sitting in your system? No fun.</p>
<p>Do you remember when we talked about GABA and Glutamate? This part is pretty cool. When you drink, the levels of these neurotransmitters change. Your brain is awesome at adapting to new situations. Turn off the light, and you can still see. Go to a concert, and you can still hear. Put on a shirt, and you stop noticing it&#8217;s there. Our brains work in relative differences, and it&#8217;s awesome.</p>
<p>So, back to the neurotransmitters. As you drink for a bit, the levels of these two change. You have way more GABA and way less Glutamate being released from neurons. The receptors for these two neurotransmitters change as well. The GABA ones are over-sensitized from the onslaught of extra releases. Neurons begin to get rid of the receptors to regain the proper balance. Likewise, neurons used to getting Glutamate aren&#8217;t getting enough, so they create more receptors. It works just like that, honestly. A neuron thinks to itself &#8220;man, I miss getting glutamate&#8221; and pushes some more out.</p>
<p>Ok, it&#8217;s more complicated, but whatever, you get the point.</p>
<p>Anyway, so now you&#8217;ve got a bunch more Glutamate receptors, and a lot less GABA receptors.</p>
<p>And then you sober up.</p>
<p>Now your neurotransmitter levels start returning to normal. You have more Glutamate reacting in your system, and less GABA. But, the receptors are a little slower to respond. So not only are you lacking GABA receptors, but there&#8217;s even less GABA to receive. That results in the ability for many more excitatory reactions and much less inhibitory reactions.</p>
<div class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 210px"><img class=" " title="The shakes" src="http://www.northbaycouncil.org/x/images/hand_shake.gif" alt="" width="200" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Not what I mean by the shakes</p></div>
<p>This is where the shakes come from.</p>
<p>The shakes are a phenomenon you may or may not be aware of. Not everyone experiences them. It&#8217;s sort of a heavy drinker thing. Extreme withdrawal, like a hardcore alcoholic giving up the sauce, is accompanied by this, but some &#8220;normal&#8221; hangovers are as well. See <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_tremens">delirium tremens</a> for more on this next level of hangover.</p>
<p>The next time you have a big night out, in the morning, see how steady your hands are.</p>
<p>What&#8217;s happening is this: random excitatory reactions occur all the time. Inhibitory reactions are supposed to stop those. We have tons of feedback loops in our brain to ensure things go smoothly. But, the baseline is off, and a few of this excitatory reactions break through. And cause you to move a little uncontrollably.</p>
<p>That&#8217;s it for now. I think I&#8217;ll do one more post on remedies and &#8220;remedies&#8221;.</p>
<p>I also have a theory on why thinking about alcohol the morning after hurts, but it&#8217;s pretty raw.</p>
<p>Questions?</p>
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		<title>Festival Season</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/10/festival-season/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/10/festival-season/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 10 Jul 2010 16:05:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Breckenridge Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Deschutes Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[festivals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Great Divide Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New Belgium Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Odell Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Strange Brewing Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=515</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[When is festival season anyway? I&#8217;ve gone to beer festivals in almost every month of the year. Summer is generally filled with some great ones, but I&#8217;ve also done back to back fests in the winter. And then there&#8217;s the fresh hop / wet hop season in the fall. Avery alone has enough festivals in [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>When is festival season anyway? I&#8217;ve gone to beer festivals in almost every month of the year. Summer is generally filled with some great ones, but I&#8217;ve also done back to back fests in the winter. And then there&#8217;s the fresh hop / wet hop season in the fall. Avery alone has enough festivals in the Spring to make it&#8217;s out festival season. Maybe Colorado is just a festival state?</p>
<p>All ramblings aside, I love festivals. This is on my mind today as I prepare for Blues &amp; Brews, a sweet little outdoor music festival with craft beer lining the streets. The website doesn&#8217;t tell you much, but here&#8217;s some more info: <a href="http://www.oldsouthpearlstreet.com/festivals.html">http://www.oldsouthpearlstreet.com/festivals.html</a></p>
<div class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 372px"><a href="http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs004.snc3/11137_524766322221_30000465_31229604_553986_n.jpg"><img class=" " title="Beer Festivals" src="http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs004.snc3/11137_524766322221_30000465_31229604_553986_n.jpg" alt="" width="362" height="272" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Random picture from a random festival. mmmm beer + sun.</p></div>
<p>There should be about 8-10 breweries represented. Most are local, but a few out of state wanderers show up. I haven&#8217;t seen a beer list, but I expect <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//great-divide-brewing-company/292/">Great Divide</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//new-belgium-brewing-company/77/">New Belgium</a>, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//odell-brewing-company/371/">Odell</a>, and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//breckenridge-brewery/383/">Breckenridge</a> to be there. <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//strange-brewing-company/11580/">Strange</a> will also have a booth. And <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//deschutes-brewery/233/">Deschutes</a> generally shows up as well.</p>
<p>What makes a good festival for you? Blues &amp; Brews is pretty &#8220;small&#8221;, with only a few thousand people. In a few months GABF descends upon Denver. That one is a bit bigger.</p>
<p>For me, there are a few factors that make a festival great. I love outdoor festivals. I wish there were more in the winter. (Skis and Suds anyone?) I love when they&#8217;re crowded, but not oppressively so. An empty festival isn&#8217;t fun. I need some people watching! I love music. Honestly anything will do, but I love me some blues. I love food too. While some gourmet grub is great, just give me a bucket of bread and I&#8217;ll be fine. Something to hold me over.</p>
<p>What does it for you? What are some festivals you&#8217;re excited for?</p>
<p>I&#8217;m off to listen to some blues in the sun.</p>
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		<title>How alcohol affects your brain and behavior. Part III &#8212; Tolerance</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/02/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iii-tolerance/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/07/02/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-iii-tolerance/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 02 Jul 2010 18:59:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Beer School]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[alcohol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[neuroscience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tolerance]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=510</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the past, we&#8217;ve talked about how alcohol gets in your system, how your body breaks it down, and what a few drinks will do to different parts of your brain. Now, let&#8217;s talk about tolerance.
Tolerance is when the effect of a substance decreases when compared to previous usage. The effect of one beer is [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In the past, we&#8217;ve talked about <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/05/28/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-i/">how alcohol gets in your system</a>, how your body breaks it down, and what a few drinks will <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/06/18/how-alcohol-affects-your-brain-and-behavior-part-ii/">do to different parts of your brain</a>. Now, let&#8217;s talk about tolerance.</p>
<p>Tolerance is when the effect of a substance decreases when compared to previous usage. The effect of one beer is different if it&#8217;s your first beer ever than it is after you&#8217;ve been drinking for a few years. This happens with other drugs as well. How many cups of coffee do you need to wake up in the morning now?</p>
<p>Having a tolerance to a substance can be bad, in that one requires more of the substance to achieve the same effect. Every person and every drug are different.  For some drugs, one can build up a tolerance really quickly. See: heroin. For others, it takes some time. Similarly, some people build tolerances faster than others.</p>
<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://s814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/?action=view&amp;current=beercans-706565.jpg"><img class=" aligncenter" title="Beer cans" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/beercans-706565.jpg" alt="" height="300" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center">
<p>There are a few different forms of tolerance. One type occurs across multiple uses of a drug, your body begins to adapt to the effects. Another is purely psychological. If you&#8217;ve never been drunk, you&#8217;re likely to &#8220;feel it&#8221; from a sip of your first beer, and faster than alcohol could possibly be affecting your body. Your brain starts to adapt to this over time as well. Lastly, there are &#8220;in-session&#8221; tolerances. We&#8217;ll dive into all three.</p>
<p>With continued use of alcohol, our bodies react and become less sensitive to the drug and it&#8217;s effects. The liver is more primed to deal with alcohol, and can break it down faster. The brain is ready for it as well. We talked about GABA and Glutamate last time. The changes that occur there become less pronounced with the same amount of alcohol, if one consumes alcohol frequently and at some volume. One beer once a week probably won&#8217;t have much of a noticeable affect. A few drinks a night, six nights a week, every week for a few years (read: college) might show some change.</p>
<p>Similarly, drinking a lot, and often, will yield psychological changes. Essentially, you understand what&#8217;s going to happen, and when it does, it&#8217;s not a surprise. When your cheeks get a little warm and things start to look a little different, you&#8217;re not likely to yell this to everyone in the room if you&#8217;ve had a few beers in days past. Obviously, not everyone shows this. Think about the last time you told your best friend you loved them after some shots.. Exactly.</p>
<p>Lastly, there is a form of tolerance that occurs while you&#8217;re drinking. If you&#8217;re doing a marathon sort of day, like this weekend for the 4th (if you&#8217;re a real patriot, of course), or any festival, you might experience this. As you drink and drink and drink, your blood alcohol level goes up. You might slow down a bit, as you feel the effects. Or you might just keep on drinking. As you slow down, your BAC is going to drop a little as well. On your BAC&#8217;s way up, you felt drunker and drunker. As it starts to level out and decrease, you feel less drunk.</p>
<p>Our brains work in relative differences. Light is only lighter than something that&#8217;s dark. Fast is only faster than something slower. And &#8220;more sober&#8221; is only soberer than a minute ago.</p>
<p>So you feel less drunk, because you are, but you&#8217;re still more drunk according to BAC than you were, say, three hours ago. But you might feel less drunk than at that point. This is an in-session tolerance. Here&#8217;s a graph:</p>
<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://s814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/?action=view&amp;current=Picture1.png"><img class="aligncenter" title="Tolerance" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/General/Picture1.png" alt="" width="440" /></a></p>
<p>And that&#8217;s tolerance!  The actual physiological changes that occur can get a bit complex, but ask in the comments if you have any questions, and I&#8217;ll try to answer.</p>
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		<title>Bottle Shops: Joy Wine &amp; Spirits</title>
		<link>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/06/25/bottle-shops-joy-wine-spirits/</link>
		<comments>http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2010/06/25/bottle-shops-joy-wine-spirits/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jun 2010 17:30:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>PJ Hoberman</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Metro]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Arcadia Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bottle shop]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dogfish Head Midas Touch Golden Elixir]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dogfish Head Pangaea]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Golden City Brewery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Great Divide Brewing Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[joy wine and spirits]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Odell Double Pilsner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Russian River Pliny the Elder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Russian River Pliny the Younger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Snake River Brewing Co.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stone Ruination IPA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stone Smoked Porter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Upslope Brewing Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/?p=503</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In February, I moved from Old South Pearl to Capitol Hill (in Denver). Even though it&#8217;s only a few miles north, everything is a little different. Much more &#8220;urban&#8221;, or as urban as Denver gets. More people, more cars, more bars. Different grocery stores, different farmers&#8217; markets, and, the point behind this article, different liquor [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In February, I moved from Old South Pearl to Capitol Hill (in Denver). Even though it&#8217;s only a few miles north, everything is a little different. Much more &#8220;urban&#8221;, or as urban as Denver gets. More people, more cars, more bars. Different grocery stores, different farmers&#8217; markets, and, the point behind this article, different liquor stores.</p>
<p>On a side note, I really like to cook, and I like to cook new and interesting things.</p>
<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://s814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/?action=view&amp;current=IMG00084-20100622-1825.jpg"><img class="aligncenter" title="Joy Wine &amp; Spirits" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/IMG00084-20100622-1825.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></a></p>
<p>So, one day, I was at Safeway on 6th and Corona, and I needed some white wine with which to cook. Our laws here don&#8217;t allow such fineries to be sold in grocery stores. It just so happens that one block east is a lovely little store called Joy Wine &amp; Spirits.</p>
<p>Whenever I walk into a liquor store, I head straight to the beer. It&#8217;s not conscious. I just do it. It doesn&#8217;t matter if I&#8217;m looking for wine, a lime, or if I accidentally wandered in with no thought in my mind (often occurrence), I head to the beer section.</p>
<p>Joy Wine &amp; Spirits has an amazing selection. This place is tiny. There&#8217;s maybe 8 doors in the cooler section, and that includes the macros and the white wines. But packed into that little area is one of the best beer selections I&#8217;d seen in Denver. It wasn&#8217;t as expansive as Argonaut or <a href="http://pjhoberman.hoppress.com/2009/12/04/total-bev-a-review-or-why-pj-shouldnt-be-given-a-shopping-cart/">Total Bev</a>, but for it&#8217;s location and size, it was impressive.</p>
<p>And then I went back the next week. And the selection had changed.</p>
<p>That happened the next 2 times I went in.</p>
<p>So I asked for the beer buyer and I interviewed him for you guys. His name is Kyle.</p>
<div class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 450px"><a href="http://s814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/?action=view&amp;current=IMG00077-20100622-1821.jpg"><img class=" " title="Joy WIne &amp; Spirits" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/IMG00077-20100622-1821.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Patriotism yay!</p></div>
<p>Kyle is from Grand Rapids, Michigan. He moved to Denver in 2004, and started working at Joy very soon after that. He started as a regular employee, helping customers find the right wine for their salmon dinner and working the register. He had very little craft beer experience, save for the fact he grew up in a hot bed of some of the best breweries in the country. Growing up with Bell&#8217;s nearby is a pretty strong start.</p>
<p>About two years ago, he started helping one of the managers purchase beer. That manager left about a year and a half ago, and Kyle became the official beer buyer. Of note, craft beer sales have grown by 30% in the past year. He&#8217;s doing a good job, apparently. Craft beer sales in general have been on the rise almost continuously over the past decade, and Colorado enjoys a larger percentage growth than most markets, but 30% is still quite impressive.</p>
<p>I asked Kyle about his favorite brews and some other random stuff. His favorite beer currently in stock is <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/dogfish-head-midas-touch-golden-elixir/7293/">Dogfish Head Midas Touch</a>, followed closely by <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/odell-double-pilsner/31761/">Odell Double Pilsner</a>. Of all time, he loved when <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/russian-river-pliny-the-elder/8936/">Russian River Pliny the Elder</a> came out, and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/dogfish-head-pangaea/23382/">DFH Pangea</a> was a good day in his life. His least favorite beer is Blue Moon. He&#8217;d never tried Lost Lake&#8230;</p>
<div class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 450px"><a href="http://s814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/?action=view&amp;current=IMG00080-20100622-1822.jpg"><img class=" " title="Joy Wine &amp; Spirits - Great Selection" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/IMG00080-20100622-1822.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Joy Wine &amp; Spirits - Great Selection</p></div>
<p>Joy Wine &amp; Spirits gets almost the entirety of their beers from distributors. In Colorado, we&#8217;re lucky to have beer laws that allow self distribution. So small breweries, like <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//upslope-brewing-company/10057/">Upslope</a>, can sell their cans directly to shops like Joy. And they do.</p>
<p>Kyle really wants to get some <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//golden-city-brewery/1160/">Golden City</a> onto the shelves, but since they don&#8217;t package, it&#8217;s a bit difficult. He fully supports local beer, and wants to showcase it when possible.</p>
<p>Some breweries he can&#8217;t get into the store due to lack of distribution in the area include Bell&#8217;s, <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//snake-river-brewing-co/354/">Snake River</a>, and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//arcadia-brewing-company/1109/">Arcadia</a>. Likewise, he wishes he could get more access to brews like Pliny the Elder and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/russian-river-pliny-the-younger/43181/">Younger</a>. Don&#8217;t we all.</p>
<p>Joy has in store tastings all the time, for both wine and beer. They&#8217;ll do pairings, like <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/stone-smoked-porter/421/">Stone Smoked Porter</a> with stinky gouda and <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/stone-ruination-ipa/14709/">Ruination</a> with aged irish cheddar.</p>
<p>One time they tried a beer and wine taste off. No food pairings, just a comparison. It didn&#8217;t go so well, apparently.</p>
<p>Check out a tasting. They have either wine or beer tastings every Wednesday and Saturday in the store. For beer, they&#8217;ll do a brewery, a style, or just random. For instance, they had every 6-pack bottled offering from <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/brewers//great-divide-brewing-company/292/">Great Divide</a>. Sometimes they&#8217;ll do a Belgian series, with a Double, Tripple, and Quad. They&#8217;ve yet to do a sour tasting, but it&#8217;s in the works.</p>
<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://s814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/?action=view&amp;current=IMG00083-20100622-1822.jpg"><img class="aligncenter" title="Joy Wine &amp; Spirits" src="http://i814.photobucket.com/albums/zz67/hoppress/PJ%20Hoberman/Joy%20Wine%20and%20Spirits/IMG00083-20100622-1822.jpg" alt="" width="440" /></a></p>
<p>Overall, Kyle is excited about his opportunity to educate people on craft beer, and to help the local beer scene grow. He loves how Denver embraces craft, and wants to continue being a part of that growth.</p>
<p>For GABF, Joy will promote medal winners, especially local ones who no one knows about. It&#8217;s all about the education and the local beer.</p>
<p>One other nice perk at Joy is the sampler pack. For about $10, you can mix and match a 6-pack of any 6-pack beers. They&#8217;re working on a second tier, with some more expensive brews as well.</p>
<p>Check out Joy Wine &amp; Liquors. They have a great selection, helpful and knowledgeable staff, and they&#8217;re a local small business that supports local as much as possible.</p>
<p><em>Joy Wine &amp; Spirits<br />
1302 East 6th Avenue<br />
<a href="http://www.joywineandspirits.com/">joywineandspirits.com</a></em></p>
<p><em><br />
</em></p>
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