It has been quite a year for the beerheads.com crew.  It took a leap of faith, but we decided to leave the past behind and plow headlong into the wild world of craft beer merchandising and promotions.

We are now wholly owned by TotalBru Marketing and are making changes to our business and our web site to better serve a very unique demographic.  On the custom products side, we are still producing custom apparel and promotional items for a variety of customers, but we are now able to dedicate resources toward the development of new products that cater specifically to our core of beer-industry customers – from breweries to trade magazines to the Great American Beer Festival (see our customer list). 

For consumers, we are making slow but steady improvements to our product line, inventory maintenance, order processing and customer service.  We are getting better and have big plans for 2008 but we ask that customers always keep in mind that we are not LLBean.  We try to ship orders within 5 days, and around the holidays we tighten things up a bit, but we still occasionally occasionally have a hiccup.   We are a work in progress in some ways but we’ve come a long way.

Sometime in 2008, we plan to roll beerheads into a new site that will have more news and features…so keep an eye out for totalbrew.com.

At the moment, we are very excited about one new product specifically.  The Rockmount Western Hops Shirt is quite simply our best work yet.  Designed by us and manufactured with the Rockmount Ranch Wear Company in Denver (check out rockmount.com), this is a truly magnificent shirt with inspired embroidery and details…and we are already making more to meet holiday ordering demands.

And if you are looking for something unique for a friend or relative who may be new to the craft beer scene, try our Essential Beer Glass set.  We suggest pairing it with the right beers for a proper holiday gift, but alas we are not permitted to ship bottled beer just yet.

That’s about it for now.  We are currently designing a few new products – cool new hats, hoppy air fresheners, and some other goodies – so check back often.  And if you want to meet us at a great beer festival near you, send us an email about it and maybe we’ll show up…we are looking to hit some new regions in 2008.

Thanks,

Chris DePeppe
Head beerhead

“WHY THE FANCY GLASS?”

Bud in a can. Rolling Rock ponies. Mickey’s big mouths.

They all served their purpose.

We were all weened on bad beer and we were perfectly happy having consumed it directly from the container in which it was packaged. We had neither the inclination nor the time for the extra step required to actually pour beer into a glass. In fact, the only vessel we ever considered as a viable middleman in the transport of beer to bloodstream was a clear tube connected to a plastic funnel.

But the culture of beer is changing. Craft brewers in this country are making some of the most adventurous beers on the planet and more and more beer drinkers are learning that beer can actually be savored and not just expedited into one’s system.

While I’m sure there is still a generation of college students skilled in the art of the kegstand, I also think there is a growing appreciation amongst even our youngest legal drinkers of the existence of beers that are more enjoyable when not punctured by a key or infused with the taste of a dirty coin.

And while I will never look down my nose at a plastic cup filled with any beer at all poured ice cold from a keg, I have come to appreciate that really great beer is at its best when poured into a glass…and preferably the right glass.

Which is why we created our Essential Beer Glass Set. Six classic glass shapes designed to bring out the best in a diversity of beers. While a fancy tulip glass won’t turn a Miller Lite into a Westmalle Tripel, that same glass will certainly enhance the flavor of finer Belgian ales.

So whether you are drinking a lively Hefeweizen or a creamy stout, you can see and taste the difference when you use a proper glass for each.

Here is a description of our 6 glasses and the beers they were designed to hold:

Beers known as weizen (wheat) or weisse (white) are brewed with wheat for a tart, refreshing flavor. This tall glass allows the beer to be poured with a typically huge, pillowy head. Traditional German hefeweizens are slightly cloudy, with notes of clove or even banana from the yeast. American-style wheat beers avoid such unusual flavors and concentrate instead on a clean, crisp finish.

Also appropriate for: dunkelweizen (dark wheat beer), kristalweizen (filtered wheat beer), weizenbock (strong wheat beer) or Belgian wit (white) beer
The Czech beer style developed in the town of Plzen is the original golden lager on which all modern mainstream beers are based. This tall, delicate glass shows off the greatest characteristics of the original pitsner: the sparkling golden color, the long trace of fine bubbles, and the floral, spicy aroma.

Also appropriate for: Vienna/Munich/Oktoberfest lagers, dunkel (dark) lager
The classic pub glass is perfectly suited to a pale ale, whether it is the well-structured English bitter, with malt and hop bitterness in good balance, or the more assertive American interpretation. The complex fruit notes in ales can be appreciated at slightly warmer "cellar" temperatures, and this glass delivers all the full aroma.

Also appropriate for: India pale ale, brown ale, porter, stout
A stemmed glass with a bell-shaped mouth concentrates the rich aromas of dessert beers, in the same manner as a brandy snifter, and makes an occasion of a special beer. An English barleywine is an ideal after dinner beer, with enough sweetness to pair with a dessert. and enough strength to satisfy.

Also appropriate for: strong ales, doppelbocks, fruited Iambics, Belgian golden ales, Scotch ales
Six breweries in Belgium are entitled to use the title "Trappist" indicating that their beers are brewed in a monastery by monks. The monasteries produce between one and three beers each, most of them strong beers. The distinctive chalice concentrates the flavor of these beers, many of which can be aged, like fine wine.

Also appropriate for: Abbey-style beers, made outside monasteries in both Belgium and America
This elegant glass suits any beer that needs to be protected from the warmth of the drinker's hand: everyday lagers as well as delicately flavored beers such as Dortmunder or helles styles.

Also appropriate for: smoked beers or porters

So if you are into great beer, you should own the proper vessel with which to enjoy them. Let’s face it, if you are spending $85 for a case of Delirium Tremens, you really oughtta drink it out of something other than an old Smuckers jar!!!




TOP 10 LIST OF U.S. BEER FESTS

10. State College, PA - STATE COLLEGE MICROBREW EXPO
9. Mt. Snow, VT - MOUNT SNOW BREWERS FEST
8. Ashburn, VA - OLD DOMINION BEER FEST
7. Syracuse, NY - EMPIRE STATE BEER & MUSIC FEST
6. TIE: Portsmouth, NH - GRAND OLD BREWERS FEST
and Providence, RI - GREAT INTERNATIONAL BEER FEST
5. Burlington, VT - VERMONT BREWERS FEST
4. Durham, NC - WORLD BEER FESTIVAL
3. Portland, OR - OREGON BREWERS FESTIVAL
2. Denver, CO - GREAT AMERICAN BEER FEST
1. Chicago, IL - REAL ALE FESTIVAL

10. State College Brewers Exposition
 O.k., we're Penn Staters and a little biased, but Happy Valley in July is always a treat.
And while the event itself is indoors, it is well-organized and roomy and the beer selection
is SERIOUS. With premier regional craft brewers and some distributors offering very fine imports (I tasted my first Leann Fraoch Heather Ale there), you can take your time and enjoy world-class beers right there in the shadow of Beaver Stadium. Just don't wear your Ohio State sweatshirt. The music is usually pretty good too. And, if you haven't had your
fill after 4 hours, go to Zeno's for the best beer selection in town.

 9. Mt. Snow Brewers Fest
 Spread out in a huge tent and adjacent amphitheater at the base of this southern Vermont resort and held each Labor Day weekend, this event draws a crowd of weekend tourists, local beerheads and pleasantly surprised mountain bikers. Sure, the accents may lean more toward Brooklyn than Brookline, but a beautiful backdrop, (usually) great weather and some big-name bands, like Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes in 2001, make this is an annual event that deserves a smiley face sticker on the calendar.
* Insider advice: check out the nearby and plentiful tent sales from local retailers selling last year’s skis at cut prices

 8. Old Dominion Beer Fest
 You wouldn't think it as you drive through a corporate center/industrial park in this concrete jungle DC suburb ten minutes from Dulles Airport, but this festival is like a county fair, with pony rides for the kids and all. But don’t be misled: You can have a helluva time and sample the libations of dozens of brewers without feeling like you are corrupting the “younguns”. It all blends together perfectly, and credit goes to the Old Dominion Brewery crew that runs this event - these brewers and brewery workers turned farmhands for a weekend know how much work it takes to put on a great event and they do whatever it takes. These guys carry the kegs, lug the ice and unload the hay bales that serve as concert seating inside the fenced in field behind their award-winning brewery that becomes the festival site one weekend each June. I didn't see them build the stage with hand tools, but it would not have surprised me.

 7. Syracuse
 We didn't expect a first-year event to make our Top Ten. First year fests usually mean a few things, like poor attendance, hotel mix-ups and drunken volunteers. But this one was well-planned and marketed and, of course, cooperating weather always helps to make for a successful event. The downtown street setting was ideal and the organizers from Empire Brewing obviously did their homework to avoid any rookie mistakes. Check it out next summer. The ride up from Philly was quick and scenic.

 6. TIE: Portsmouth/Providence
 Portsmouth - Just a short drive (or a chilly swim) from Maine, the town of Portsmouth itself and the salty air combine to make this a distinctly New England experience. It starts early on a frigid field with a homebrew tasting where men with incredible beards and winter gloves admire each other's creations with very few words and a serious demeanor. These are not chatty people and they do not frolic easily. And yet, with some sun poking through the whale-gray clouds, the field and the people slowly warm up. Knowledgable and quirky beer lovers abound and the crowd that assembles is proud to tell you all about the history of the Strawberry Banke site that hosts this charity event. Sadly, it is not being held in 2003 but we hope it returns.

Providence - only a few hours south but worlds apart in atmosphere, this raucous event held in downtown Providence every Fall is still a solidly New England weekend. With the requisite weather and abundance of Red Sox caps, this one is fast-paced, loud and consistently sold out. It's also efficiently run by Maury Ryan and his staff and held in a convention center hall and adjacent hotel that easily handles the crowd. And Providence itself always surprises as a burgeoning city with plenty of history, architecture, live music, beer bars and real Italian restaurants.

 5. Burlington
 With its picture perfect setting on Lake Champlain, this is easily the most aesthetically pleasing event and one I would even go to as a designated driver. The Vermont Brewers Association puts this one on and you can do worse than to drink only the beers made in the Green Mountains (Magic Hat, Otter Creek, Long Trail, etc.). And Burlington in July is always worth the trip.
Tip: take the ferry across the lake if you have the time

 4. Durham
 Make your way slowly from the foul pole in right field to third base in the old Durham Bulls ballpark. Go to the mound and imagine Susan Sarandon in the seats behind the dugout. Go behind the plate and tell the hitter it’s a fastball coming. O.K., now once the novelty of the “Bull Durham” experience has worn off, go back to center field and drink the world’s best beer. You wouldn’t expect any less from the very beer-wise folks at All About Beer magazine that run this event, and they do not disappoint. Quite simply, this is a major league party in a minor league ballpark.

 3. Portland
 O.K., we’ll admit it. This event would be hands-down, no argument No.1 on our list if they’d just let us come back and have a booth. Too much competition for their event souvenir sales, we’re told, but with 80,000 beer lovers you’d think there’d be enough to go around. Anyway, it’s their prerogative and we don’t see it worthy of the Supreme Court’s time. We just wish we could be a part of this great festival! As beerheads we simply cannot keep them off the list and we cannot recommend to you enough how great this one is. A perfect setting. A huge but really peaceful crowd of serious beer lovers. Really well-run with great volunteers and an efficient pouring system. And the Pacific Northwest may well be paradise for beer lovers and gourmands. What can we say? Just go! (And ask them why beerheads.com isn’t there.)

 2. Denver
 No pony rides. No strollers. No riverfront parks. No historic setting. Not much in the way of musical guests (unless you count the bagpipers). In short, nothing to distract you from the mission of your pilgrimage to Denver every Fall. You come for beer and beer you shall receive. You will need the program just to plan your attack. You will not drink them all and you cannot even try to do this in one session. Walk slowly, drink small samples, eat and drink water. Every brewery brings their best to Denver each Fall in hopes of winning a prestigious Gold Medal in one of the many beer style categories. It’s loud, it’s raucous and it’s a must-see for beerheads and an eye-opener for new initiates. Bring your group and make it a long weekend. Go to Wynkoops while you’re there and raise a toast to the city’s new mayor, former brewpub owner John Hickenloop.

 1. Chicago
 If you love golf, go to Scotland.
If you love to surf, go to Maui.
If you love food, go to Italy.
But if you love beer, and I mean really love it, go to Chicago in February. That’s right, February in Chicago. Maybe they planned it that way to scare off pansy-assed wannabees, but the folks from the Chicago Beer Society that run this baby do not suffer fools. This is a REAL ALE event. We’re talking cask-conditioned ales blasted open with pomp and ceremony before a crowd of beer-crazy revelers who will tell you all you want to know about every beer in the building. It is held in a warehouse with no windows in a Chicago industrial center and it is beer drinking at its most primal level. There are beers from all over the U.K. with names you can’t pronounce but it doesn’t much matter. Just grunt approvingly and try another. In short, if you love flavorful beer, sticky shoes and a lot of shop talk between brewers, this event will not disappoint.

 Got a recommendation for a festival we have missed? We haven’t been to every event yet so let us know what we’re missing…maybe we’ll get there next year.

Cheers,
Murphy