True Beer News

August 2005

USA - Medical research may result in better beer.  Chemotherapy and organ transplantation research may not only benefit patients undergoing such medical procedures, it might also lead to better beer.

Such medical procedures can compromise patients' immune system, leaving them vulnerable to infections from microbes such as pathogenic fungi -- the fastest-growing cause of hospital-acquired infections.

Now researchers from the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research report discovering why fungal microbes are such a scourge.

According to the research appearing in the online edition of the journal Nature Genetics, fungal microbes can quickly alter the appearance of their surfaces, their "skin," disguising themselves to slip past the immune system's defenses. And, for all the world's brewers, that also helps explain why certain beers are cloudy.

"It's all about skin," said researcher Gerald Fink. The skin of fungi microbes is what enables them to stick to your organs, and thus become pathogenic."

He also notes it also enables the fungi to stick together, which is desirable for fermentation in beer.

"The secret of a good, fresh, clear beer -- the kind Americans tend to like -- is the yeast cells all stick together," Fink said, noting when yeast cells don't adhere, the beer tends to become cloudy.  - CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 8 (UPI) --

USA - Beer buffs want gourmet brews available for sale in Alabama.   Danner Kline wants gourmet beer fans like himself someday to be able to buy the high-end products in Alabama, and has started a Web site dedicated to his cause.  Imperial stouts, dopplebocks, quirky Belgian beers, Dogfish Head's Olde School Barleywine, J.W. Lees Harvest Ale and other such brews are not available here because they have a higher alcohol content than the 6 percent by volume allowed by law in Alabama.   Imperial stouts, dopplebocks, quirky Belgian beers, Dogfish Head's Olde School Barleywine, J.W. Lees Harvest Ale and other such brews are not available here because they have a higher alcohol content than the 6 percent by volume allowed by law in Alabama.   "It's kind of like some people are wine aficionados and like fine wine," said the 26-year-old Kline, who runs www.freethehops.org. "There is also a segment of people that enjoys very fine beer, which we are unable to get in Alabama. I want to change that."

England - Hundreds of pubs are serving real ale which is too warm to be refreshing, an inspection has revealed. The recommended temperature for a hand-pulled pint is from 11C to 13C but assessors found 44% of pints bought in 2,000 UK pubs exceeded 13C. Publicans in London, Essex, Middlesex, Cambridgeshire and the West Midlands all pulled pints measuring between 25.9C and 28.1C, said Cask Marque. But the worst offender was in Kent, where an inspector found a pint at 35C.

Austria - An Austrian holiday resort is offering guests the chance to swim in a pool containing 42,000 pints of beer.  The Starkenber Beer Myth resort located in and around the medieval castle of Starkenberger in Austria's Tyrol region has filled seven 13ft long pools with the beer.  The management claims that beer baths heal various skin diseases. However, some guests are said to have enjoyed drinking their favourite brew while swimming in the pools.  Manager Markus Amann, 23, said: "I would rather swim than swallow, as we serve enough of a cold, fresh tapped beer on the bars next to the pools." (Ananova)

USA - Just in time for summer reading, a new book offers speculation about how beer, wine, coffee and other beverages helped shape human destiny. A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN SIX GLASSES by Tom Standage (Walker and Company) is an interesting look at civilization through the prism of what we drink. In the case of beer, Mr. Standage says that it didn't take long for early farmers to discover that cereal grain soaked in water turns into malt, and gruel made with malted grain turns into beer after a few days. The intoxicating effect was thought a gift from the gods. The invention of handwriting by the Mesopotamians is credited in part to beer-induced record keeping.

May 2005

IRELAND - Beamish & Crawford says it will not be applying any increase on the price of its draught products until 2006.  The company froze its wholesale prices last June and says its products are now around 50 cents cheaper than most others.  Beamish & Crawford's draught products include Beamish Stout, Miller Genuine Draught, Foster's Lager; Kronenbourg 1664, Carling and Beamish Red Ale. Beamish Stout has not imposed a price increase since March 2003. (BizWorld)

USA -The Supreme Court ruling last week that opened the door to direct wine shipments still gives state legislatures the last word. They may choose to loosen restrictions to let all wineries sell to consumers, or tighten laws to bar all businesses from doing so. Industry groups expect the ruling will soon apply to beer and other alcoholic beverages as well as wine sales. These groups cite tax collection and underage drinking concerns as problems that still need to be addressed.

GERMANY -Munich's annual Oktoberfest, which runs from Sept. 17 through Oct. 3, will be more expensive this year. A liter of beer will be about 19 US cents more, water about 9 US cents more and soft drinks, about 18 US cents more. It's the second year prices have risen.

BELGIUM -2005 is the Year of Belgian Beer, featuring tours, seminars and tastings. Visitors and locals alike are invited to find out about brewing and taste the final product at many of Belgium's 115 brewers. The best known of these, of course, is InBev which produces a staggering 190 million hectoliters of beer a year with a staff of 77,000.

SLOVAKIA -SABMiller announced plans to buy the last independent beer maker in Slovakia. If approved by Slovak regulators, the buyout of Topvar Brewery, the country's third largest brewer, would strengthen SABMiller's position in eastern Europe.

USA -  Distinguished Brands International of Littleton, CO has announced that they sent the first shipment of Czechvar (or Budvar in the Czech Republic) to Hawii.  This is great news for the lovers of true beer on the island paradise.   Czechvar is a favorite beer of the employees of True Beer and we rank it as a top Czech pilsner. 

Czechvar is the much publicized, world-renowned national beer of the Czech Republic. Distinguished by Old World brewing techniques, Czechvar is brewed in all copper kettles and made with full cone Saaz hops (never pellets), natural spring water, and select Moravian barley. Czechvar is then cold-lagered for over 90 days - nearly three times that of other leading brewers.