Once it's noon, raise your glass to the Kansas House, which approved a bundle of liquor bills last Friday. The legislation allows bars to offer happy hour; distilleries to sell and serve booze like microbreweries; and liquor stores to sample beer, wine and spirits. The package of bills did not include a provision to let grocery stores or convenience stores sell full-strength beer and alcohol.
Stone Brewmaster Mitch Steele will be in KC on Monday and Tuesday.
It's always smart to travel with brewmasters. They bring the best beer. And now one's coming to us - Stone Brewing Co.'s brewmaster, Mitch Steele, will be in Kansas City for Craft Beer Week. Tonight, he's stopping by Julian (6227 Brookside Plaza) for two events. At 5 p.m., he leads a dry-hopping seminar, where participants will create their own version. Then, he's sticking around for a beer dinner at 7:30 p.m. featuring Stone brews, Citra and Simcoe hops braised pork belly and duck with Chinese black vinegar (served with Stone 11.11.11 Vertical Epic Ale). The class is $40 per person, and dinner is $60 per person - if you stay for both, the cost is $90.
Tomorrow, he's at the Martin City Brewing Co. (500 E. 135th St.) in Martin City at 6 p.m. for an informal meet and greet. And with him will be the 2012 Stone Imperial Russian Stout and the Stone Smoked Porter with vanilla beans. The Pitch caught up with him via e-mail to find out what the California brewery has in store for KC.
Leinenkugel has figured out how to get gum in a bottle.
At first, I got a hint of Bubble Tape. Then just a smidge of Bubble Gum flouride. The finish was pure Hubba Bubba.
I felt good about my decision to head to the first beer stand I saw upon entering Livestrong Sporting Park on Saturday night. It said Leinenkugel on the marquee, and "Leini" had never wronged me in the past. I felt just fine until I actually took a sip of the Wisconsin brewery's Sunset Wheat.
After seeing the Cave, you'll be rethinking your post-apocalyptic accommodations.
For a little while, Kansas City had Manifesto all to itself. But the secret is out, and the cocktailerati? cocktailians? drinkers of renown? are all clued into the idea that you can get a spirited spirit right below the Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange.
USA Today is the latest entity to discover Manifesto. The travel section named the Kansas City speakeasy to its '10 Great Places to Have a Drink Underground.'
By 6 p.m. tonight, your bracket will likely be in the garbage. These are the facts of March Madness. Therefore, you should focus on something eminently achievable: drinking beer. The second annual Brew Madness returns to Cellar & Loft (525 Walnut) in the River Market tonight from 6 to 8 p.m.
"We pick our top 64 beers by sales, put them up against each other, and then have everyone vote on taste," says store manager Caroline Doyle.
The weekend intersection of St. Patrick's Day and the NCAA basketball tournament is like a Dear John letter to your liver. But as long as the two of you are breaking up, you might as well go out with a pop-top or two.
A pair of local releases are serious fridge contenders: Boulevard's Rye-on-Rye returns to the Smokestack series for the first time since 2010, and Tallgrass Brewing Co. has released its newest canned beer, 8-Bit Pale Ale.
Kansans may finally be able to celebrate happy hour.
We told you Kansas was only going to get wetter. Now, it just looks like it might start courtesy of a cheap pint of Tallgrass Beer. The Topeka Capital-Journalreports that the Kansas House gave first-round approval to a bill, House Bill 2550, that would overturn the state's ban on happy hour.
The happy-hour ban has been on the books since 1985 when the Kansas Legislature voted to prohibit businesses from selling alcoholic drinks at different prices during different times of the day. The House session resumes at 11 a.m. today, and a formal vote is scheduled for the happy-hour bill. The Kansas Senate has already approved a similar measure, in addition to bills that would allow microdistilleries and retail liquor stores to offer free samples.
Boulevard beer is now distributed in 23 states, and with greater distribution comes great recognition. In the February issue of Men's Journal, Boulevard Wheat is highlighted as one of the three craft wheat choices to seek out in the United States:
"Kansas City's Boulevard is the Midwest's biggest selling craft beer, thanks to its Belgian brewmaster's unfiltered wheat. It has a bright citrusy kick that most American hefeweizens lack."
The article, part of the Men's Journal quest to discover "the best beers in America," is on the Craft Beer Universe, picking three choices in eight categories arranged from light (pilsner) to dark (stout and porter). Boulevard is featured alongside a lot of well-known craft producers: Big Sky (Moose Drool), Lagunitas (Pils), Surly (Coffee Bender — no relation), Deschutes (Mirror Pond Pale Ale) and New Belgium (Ranger IPA). The magazine is on shelves now.
A sample of the comments on Boulevard's Facebook page.
It's been less than a month since Boulevard Chocolate Ale hit the shelves, and euphoria has sadly given way to griping. People have complained about manufactured hype and inadequate supply. Conspiracy theories about shipments and marketing decisions have run rampant in the comments section here and media across town. And then, Boulevard discovered that some batches had an unwanted taste. Founder John McDonald and brewmaster Steven Pauwels recorded a video last week to somberly offer an apology and a refund. It's the second apology in two years for Boulevard on what was supposed to be a fun little collaboration. The apologies are not the issue; it's our behavior that has led to this moment that is troubling. Kansas City, I don't think we can have nice things.
Chef Celina Tio pours a glass at Julian of the sour she blended.
Any chef can throw together a beer dinner that pairs their creations with a few carefully selected pints, but actually blending your own beer that's served from the tap at your bar — that's a different proposition altogether.
Julian's chef and owner Celina Tio will be in the kitchen at her Brookside restaurant tonight preparing a few new bar snacks, but the real draw is probably Julian NBB Love, the blend she created at the New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado, this past December. It will be poured for the first time at 5:30 p.m.
"I'm a fan of having things that you can't get anywhere else," Tio says, while sitting at the bar yesterday afternoon, feet from her restaurant's signature bourbon, which she worked with Kentucky's Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery to create shortly after Julian's launch.
A block party in Westport and other weekend possibilities
Sama Zama serves serious snacks where a cinema once stood
Does it bother you to dine alone?
Aaron Confessori plants his Boot in Westport
Chef Charles d'Ablaing wins 2012 Golden Fork Award
Walking the aisles at Natural Grocers
Parkville's Rusty Horse Tavern is now open and serving burgers and beer
New Plaza Bo Lings opens on June 11