Beer Draft Kits

Saturday January 7, 2012

PITTSFIELD -- Wandering Star Brewery has only been making beer for six months, but already the company is winning high-profile recognition.

Editors at Food & Wine magazine listed the Pittsfield brewery's Mild Heart -- an English dark mild ale -- as one of its five favorite beers of 2011.

The endorsement came as a surprise to Chris Post, brewer at and owner of Wandering Star, who said he had no idea they'd been picked as a stand-out until a colleague spotted the endorsement on the magazine's website.

"[This] was really, really exciting for us," said Post. "I guess it just shows we're really doing something right."

Food & Wine editor Megan Krigbaum likened Mild Heart to the beer version

of a chocolate milkshake.

"The beer is rich and malty, but remains somehow light on the palate," wrote Krigbaum in her yearly editor's picks, which included brewing heavyweights like San Francisco's Anchor Brewing Co.

Post said he wasn't sure about the comparison to a milkshake, but he appreciates the compliment none the less.

"I kind of get it, because it's got a chocolate flavor with no bitterness, but it doesn't taste very sweet," he said.

Post hopes the national recognition will help expand his business' distribution to pubs and bars across the Northeast.

"The craft brewing field is very, very competitive," said Post. "It's important to get recognition, and this will definitely help us stand out among our

peers."

Wandering Star officially opened in a nondescript building off Merrill Road in June. Last year they brewed 350 barrels of beer, equivalent to 700 standard-sized kegs or 86,800 pints. Post said he expects to produce twice that amount this year.

The brewery only distributes its beer to bars and pubs, primarily in New York City and the Berkshires.

Locally, Post says you can find his brews on tap at the Purple Pub, Hops and Vines and Desperado's in Williamstown. In Pittsfield,

it's available at Mission and Brulees. It's also on tap at the Brick House in Housatonic, and at the Old Forge in Lanesborough.

To reach Ned Oliver:
noliver@berkshireeagle.com,
or (413) 496-6240.
On Twitter: @BE_NedOliver

Friday January 6, 2012

Berkshire Eagle Staff

PITTSFIELD -- Editors at Food & Wine magazine listed the Wandering Star Brewery’s Mild Heart -- an English dark mild ale -- as one of its five favorite beers of 2011.

Wandering Star Brewery has only been making beer for six months, but already the company is winning high-profile recognition.

"[This] was really, really exciting for us," said Chris Post, brewer and owner of Wandering Star. "I guess it just shows we’re really doing something right."

Food & Wine editor Megan Krigbaum said Mild Heart "is rich and malty, but remains somehow light on the palate."

Her picks included brewing heavyweights like San Francisco’s Anchor Brewing Company.

Wandering Star officially opened in a nondescript building off Merrill Road in June. Last year they brewed 350 barrels of beer, equivalent to 700 standard sized kegs or 86,800 pints. Post said he expects to produce twice that amount this year.

The brewery only distributes its beer to bars and pubs, primarily in New York City and the Berkshires.

An updated and expanded version of this report will appear in Saturday’s editions of The Eagle.

When Bill Cox moved to Michigan a dozen years ago the cold winter weather kept him inside. To fight cabin fever, Cox took up beer-making, which he had learned from his father.

Soon, making beer evolved into making wine. Now, Cox, who has returned to his native South, is a frequent entrant in both national and international wine-making competitions. The Adairsville, Ga., resident is competing for the third year in The Georgia Winery's annual amateur wine-making competition, now in its seventh year.

"We sell the wine-making supplies, and we have people coming in all the time looking for different supplies," said winery spokeswoman Julie Anderson. "We thought this would be a good opportunity for them to show us what they've been making."

The competition was set to close at the end of 2011 but was expanded another three weeks due to a shortage of contestants. Anderson said last year's inclement weather might be at fault.

"With the [storms] in April, a lot of people lost their crops. Maybe it has something to do with the weather."

Entries now close on Jan. 21, and the awards ceremony is on Jan. 28.

Each year, the competition brings many creative flavors. A couple of the most notable, said Glynn Estes, the winery's winemaker, have included a pumpkin pie wine and a tomato wine.

Contestants are both new and returning, and Anderson said each person is permitted to submit as many wines as desired.

"It's very diverse," said Anderson. "We have a lot of people in the area who like to get involved and show off their wines."

Estes acts as judge for the competition each year and has tasted a plethora of experiments. Some, he said, are better than others.

A favorite entrant was a persimmon wine. "The fact that [the contestant] took a really odd, strange fruit and turned it into a very nice wine was really impressive."

This year, Cox submitted two variations on mead. "It's very much in traditional style, only I used local honey," he said. "I used a special batch of honey that was harvested from a hive in a sorghum field, so it has a nice caramel-y back taste to it."

Though a honey wine would likely be perceived as sweet, Cox said his batch is actually quite dry.

"I was kind of playing around with a few different recipes, making beer most of the time, and I made what was called a mead ale," he said. "It was like a fairly alcoholic Mountain Dew, plus some hops for bittering. Then I moved away from making that into a very traditional style."

Though traditionally made from grapes, any fruit or vegetable juice, when combined with sugar, yeast and chemicals, then left to ferment, results in a wine, Estes said.

"Any ideas you might have, give it a try," he said. "You might stumble on something that no one else has before and you could have a really good product."

Some fruits, however, are beyond the pale. Estes said he has received several requests to make a banana wine.

"I absolutely refuse to even try that," he said.

about Holly Leber ...

© 2005 - 2012 Swift Communications, Inc.

"More people worldwide are killed by donkeys than die in plane crashes every year. True, or shit?”

Tom’s standing on the stage where the band Napoleon Complex will be playing later tonight.

This is Wednesday evening, Trivia Happy Hour at U-31, the bar/eatery/music joint on University at 31st Street, right across from URBN, the (unrelated) newer, less sporty/rock ’n’ rolly, more — urbane? — bar across the road.

Popped in here on a whim, and before you know it, Jennifer, the gal at the bar, is telling me they have 50-cent wings tonight, and, also, $2.50 veggie tacos.

That gets my attention. I order three spicy buffalo hot wings and three sweet-chili wings, plus the taco. And a draft Bud Light. Total’s $8.50. So, hey, less than you’d expect to pay at a bar.

Folks here for tonight’s trivia session cluster in booths, huddled around slips of paper that Tom has handed out. Place is all reddish walls, black matte ceilings and ductwork, with a marble bar, a stage, and the sound of adenoidal British lounge-rock.

Tom’s asking question five when Jennifer brings the food.

“When you look in a gecko’s ear, you can see clear out the other side. True or shit?”

I dig in. The wings are really good — I’d forgotten about wings. I like the hot buffalo and love the sweet-chili ones.

Ooh…I see some guy halfway into his Smoky Mountain Blue burger (with Memphis BBQ sauce, bacon, blue cheese, lettuce) and have a moment of burger envy. Because in the land of burgers, size definitely matters, and this one is big. Except, it costs $7.50, two bucks more than my entire seven-piece combo (not countin’ the beer), heh-heh.

One chomp into the veggie taco and I know I have the champion chew for the night. Zucchini, black beans, fresh chilies, cheddar cheese, tomatoes, cotija cheese.

And yet…erk? There’s something crunchy in there, too, and some guacamole and cabbage slaw. None of that stuff is in the menu description. Hey, maybe this is the fish taco (also $2.50). With all the other flavors, I honestly can’t tell if it’s fish or a veggie makin’ the noise.

Whatever, this taco is super-scrumptious. But right now I’ve gotta concentrate on Tom’s questions.

And answers.

Can you see clear through both ears of a gecko?

“True, you can,” says Tom.

Donkeys or planes? Which kill more people?

“Donkeys! True,” says Tom. And in here, Wednesday nights, Tom is King.

No shit.

---

Draft cocktails?

I’m across the road now, and, you might say, across the social divide.

Clue: bunch of fixies leaned against each other outside. Inside, it’s like an open barn, with original scrubbed-to-a-blush brick walls, ancient redwood rafters, and a huge garage door–type window rolled up to make the entire bar area a part of the street.

Yes, this is URBN, the spinoff from Basic, down in East Village.

There’s a ceiling fan, too. But what a fan. It has, like, seven-foot-long blades whirring. Looks like the rotor off a Super Stallion helicopter.

“Comes from Big Ass Fans,” says Dustin Haarstad, the guy in the pork-pie hat behind the bar.

This is a big-ass space, too. Only a few booths, one settee arrangement, some tall stools at counters, and lots and lots of standing room. Thursday, Friday, Saturday, it’s gonna be packed, Dustin says. You won’t see a Trivial Pursuit quiz happening here.

Craft beers, on the other hand, are big-time. I haul up to a double-wide stool for two — cool! — at the bar and order a Mad River Jamaica Red from Dustin ($5).

Zach, guy next to me, is gnawing away at “coal-fired wings.” They’re in a little black iron skillet.

Menu promises it’s free-range chicken. Zach says “superb,” when I ask how they taste.

But I’m kinda winged out from U-31 (and they were really good, too). Also, things ain’t the cheapest here. We’re talking mainly pizzas, which start at $9, but can go to $15 and up.

So I order a $9 three-meatball appetizer from the “Begin” section.

Lord! Have to say, they’re big, with a luscious tomato sauce, sour cream, and a bay leaf. They come in one of those little black skillets. Tons of flavor and oh-so-filling. I can feel my gut swell.

I get to talking to Dustin. He’s their cocktail guy. Passionate.

“There’s a revolution happening,” he says. “Everything is bought locally and done by hand.” He says he’s trying two “run that by me again” things at URBN. One is making “beer cocktails.”

Jay R. Brooks
For the Bay Area News Group

Now that we're safely into the new year, it's time to make some new beer resolutions -- and try some different kinds of beer this year.

For a number of years now, India Pale Ales have been the fastest-growing type of beer sold -- and "seasonals" have been the biggest-selling category, which means people also are keen to try something new. But beer drinkers tend to stick to a small subset of the dozens of American craft beer styles. Last year, for example, seasonals were in the top spot again, and the next five best-selling beer categories were IPA, pale ale, amber ale, amber lager and wheat beer.

They're all fine beer styles, and I drink my fair share of them, too, but they're not exactly a diverse crowd. So this year, break out of your comfort zone and try one of these exceptional beers.

Craft pilsners

When microbreweries started making beer in the early '80s, the vast majority made ales. They took less time to brew, required less aging and, some said, were more forgiving. But pilsners have been a popular beer style since their introduction in the 1840s. If you have enjoyed a beer by one of the big breweries, you've already had a version of a pilsner, with added corn, rice or other adjunct to lighten the color and flavor.

If you've had Pilsner Urquell, you've had the original all-malt pilsner. But a growing number of craft breweries now make a pilsner, and many of them are

world class, too. Berkeley's Trumer Pils, for example, is one of the best pilsners brewed anywhere. Moonlight Brewery's Reality Czeck, a Czech-style Pils, and Lagunitas Brewing's Pils are both excellent pilsners, also. They tend to be a little spicy -- from the signature Saaz hop -- and crisp and clean, but still very full-flavored.

Altbier

In German, "alt" means old, as these ales continued to be popular in Germany even after lager brewing became all the rage in the 19th century, especially around Düsseldorf and other parts of northern Germany. But Rich Higgins, at Social Kitchen in San Francisco, is making a great example of this old style, calling his Old Time Alt. It's slightly peppery with great toasted malt character. If you can't make it to the source, Alaskan Amber is also an alt, and is available in six-packs. Altbiers are delicate and complex, with spicy hops and usually a dry finish, though sometimes they're nutty or bittersweet.

Oatmeal stout

Everyone knows Guinness, which is an Irish or dry stout. But I find its lesser-known cousin, oatmeal stout, much tastier and smoother. The oats can add a variety of flavors, including nuttiness, earthiness or graininess, and are often lightly sweet with coffee or chocolate notes.

Great local examples include Anderson Valley Barney Flats, Iron Springs' Sless Stout and Lost Coast 8 Ball Stout. Others to try include Rogue's Shakespeare Stout and Firestone Walker's Velvet Merlin, which just came out in bottles. Wolaver's makes a nice organic version, too.

Smoked beers

Some of the most challenging beer styles include smoked beers. The originals -- Rauchbier -- came from Bamberg, Germany, and can still be found there. They're brewed with malt that has been smoked over beechwood, which imparts a strong smoky character to the beer. The flavors are hit-you-over-the-head big.

The classic example is Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen. On their own, they may be too much for some, but with certain foods, they're divine. The last time I was in Bamberg, I ate a meat-stuffed onion as big as my head and the rauchbier paired perfectly with the dish, as it often does with very heavy meat dishes.

American examples are tough to find, though Samuel Adams' new Bonfire Rauchbier puts its own spin on the style. Occasionally, Gordon Biersch's brewpubs will have one on tap.

Far more common is the catchall "other smoked beer," which is essentially any beer brewed with smoked malts that are different from the traditional rauchbiers. One of my personal favorites in this category is Alaskan Brewing's Smoked Porter, which is made using alderwood, the same wood used for smoking salmon. Not surprisingly, the two complement each other perfectly, too. This is also a beer that ages well. Other examples include Stone Smoked Porter and, for something really unusual, Rogue's new Voodoo Doughnut Maple Bacon Ale in the big pink bottle.

Happy new beer.

Contact Jay R. Brooks at BrooksOnBeer@gmail.com. Read more by Brooks at www.ibabuzz.com/bottomsup.

Seeds of entrepreneurial inspiration

New year, new you, right?

If you're thinking about ways to improve your eating in 2012, consider adding hemp seeds to your diet. The seeds, which are gluten-free, are packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals and the heart- and skin-healthy fatty acids that can also help balance hormones. They have almost twice the protein as flax seeds and a higher percentage of protein than beef. They are also a complete protein that delivers a set of amino acids that our bodies can't produce on their own.

"Even though the food has been around since 8,000 BC, most people don't know about it," says Tako Miko Grayless, who moved to Austin last year to launch her hemp seed company, Happy Hemp. She spends most Saturday mornings at the downtown farmers' market explaining the nutritional benefits of hemp seeds, how to cook with them and the crop's interesting role in American history.

Even though the Declaration of Independence was likely drafted on hemp paper and hemp fibers were used during World War II to make uniforms and rope, people often associate hemp with what Grayless calls "the black sheep" of the Cannabis sativa family: marijuana. According to the North American Industrial Hemp Council, both hemp and marijuana are members of Cannabis sativa, a species with hundreds of varieties, but industrial hemp is bred to maximize fiber, seed and/or oil, while marijuana varieties seek to maximize THC. Even though hemp is legal to sell and eat (and use to make clothing, oil, paper and even particle board), because of the botanical connection to marijuana, you can't grow it in the U.S. without a Drug Enforcement Administration permit, so Grayless works with farmers in Canada to source her product.

You can eat the seeds raw, but Grayless has found a number of ways to use them in everyday cooking and baking. She posts three or four new recipes a week on her blog, happyhemp.wordpress.com. "I try to be as informative as possible and make recipes that aren't complicated like chicken salads, turkey burger and chocolate chip cookies." She even has a recipe for hemp seed dog biscuits that she feeds her three rescue dogs.

Once you've opened a bag, the seeds will keep in the fridge for up to a year. You can buy the hemp seeds in 2-, 8- or 12-ounce packages (prices start at $6 for the smallest bag) at all four People's Pharmacy locations, the downtown farmers market on Saturdays and online at happy-hemp.com.

Chicken Salad with Hemp Seeds

1 lb. leftover chicken, pulled apart

1 green apple, chopped

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1/4 cup hemp seeds

1/4 cup mayonnaise

Salt and pepper, to taste

In a skillet over medium heat, lightly toast the almonds, stirring frequently. Pull them off the heat when they are golden brown, but before they start to burn on the edges. In a large mixing bowl, combine almonds with the rest of the ingredients. Serve on toast, lettuce, crackers or alone.

— Happy Hemp owner Tako Miko Grayless

Adelbert's lets beers condition in the bottle

The Central Texas craft beer scene is evolving at breakneck speed, and the latest brewery to open, Adelbert's Brewery, is finding a way to stand out in a crowded field by offering Belgian-style, bottle-conditioned beers. "I didn't see the need to put out another amber ale, IPA or porter," says Adelbert's owner Scott Hovey, so he set out to make the kind of beer that you could serve at a fancy dinner or put in a cellar to age, just like a fine wine.

Last month, Hovey released the first two beers: the Scratching Hippo, a Biere de Garde ale, and the Rambler, a Belgian-style blonde ale. Both are available at several markets and bars around town, including Sunrise Mart on Anderson Lane, Rosedale Market, Hyde Park Market, Flying Saucer, Whip-In and Draught House. In coming weeks, Opal Divine's, Alamo Drafthouse and Homefield Grill will also start carrying the beer in kegs, and in the retail markets, you'll find them in 750 ml bottles. The dubbel ale — named Dancin Monks — and Tripel B, a tripel ale, will ship in February.

Hovey is encouraging customers to hold on to some of the bottles to age them. Because Hovey uses hops that can withstand the aging process, over time "the floral stuff will fade out, but you'll get more of that earthier, more complex flavor, kind of like a well-aged cheese." 568-1462, adelbertsbeer.com.

Fermentation suits my son-in-law, Roger. Guess he comes by it naturally; his brother is a highly regarded winemaker in California's Russian River region. Instead of grapes, though, Roger works with apples.

Back in mid-November, we pressed over 500 pounds of apples, most of them from my trees. The mix included Jonagold, Melrose, Golden Russet, Calville Blanc, Gala and several mystery varieties from my own and a friend's orchard. All these fruits were hand-picked; no windfalls went into the juice.

From the yield of juice, Roger set aside about five gallons for making hard cider. He'd not made hard cider before, but had recently purchased a cider kit from Olympic Brewing Supplies in Bremerton. He recalled spending about $60 for the kit which included a five-gallon fermenting bucket, airlocks, yeast, sulfite (to prevent the growth of wild yeasts and bacteria) and potassium sorbate (to stop the fermentation process).

Before starting the process, Roger consulted his brother, Jeff. Jeff impressed on Roger the need to use only squeaky clean equipment; this to keep undesirable microorganisms out of the fermenting juice. Thus warned, Roger began the fermentation. Ultimately, he made about 1½ gallons of still and 2½ gallons of sparkling cider.

On December 27th, I opened a bottle of still, not knowing what to expect. Its color was a pleasing gold. The first surprise was its aroma. Through the smell of fermentation, there was a definite and attractive apple nose. A swallow established the cider as medium-sweet or medium-dry, neither bone dry nor sweet, with a pleasant though transformed taste of apple. The second surprise was the aftertaste, reminiscent of a fresh, unfermented apple.

So enjoyable was Roger's still cider, it started me thinking. Why not acquire my own fermenting kit and increase production next year? Why not design a family label? Why not cobble up some original recipes using the product?

Back to apples. What went into Roger's cider are all considered eating apples. Traditionalists don't favor such ciders, arguing that special cider apples make for more complex flavors. Specifically, the traditionalists want the inclusion of bitter-sharp varieties like Kingston Black or Foxwhelp and bittersweet varieties like Michelin or Yarlington Mill. If I grew cider varieties, they'd certainly go into our mix. But I confess to being satisfied with what Roger made from the sweet, sharp and aromatic varieties we had on hand.

The most important conclusion I draw from Roger's experiment is that it's possible to make high quality hard cider at home without major outlay for materials and equipment. In that sense, it's analogous to making beer at home. Making wine is far trickier, and in my opinion, best left to the professionals if you crave a high-quality product.

If hard cider is new to you and you're curious to sample some, I suggest you begin with the products of local, artisanal producers. Here are contacts for a few of those producers: eaglemountwinery.com in Port Townsend, finnriver.com in Chimacum, redbarncider.com in Mount Vernon, vashonwinery.com on Vashon Island, westcottbaycider.com on San Juan Island, and wildfirecider.com in Port Townsend. Once you're familiar with the varied tastes of hard cider, you can more easily decide the ones you like. Whether you buy them or make your own, that familiarity should help.

© 2005 - 2012 Swift Communications, Inc.

As 2012 looms, I have three wishes to begin the year. First, I wish success for new local breweries, which will undoubtedly offer unique and flavorful beers. Second, I wish for more big bottles; 22-ounce bombers are just the right size for sharing with a friend or two over a meal. For my third wish, because I enjoy finding and sampling one-offs, I hope there will be even more opportunities at our local breweries, brewpubs and taphouses to sample those special limited batches that change on every visit.

Here are a few of the brews and events to watch for in 2012.

Ale Asylum broke ground in early December for its new location on the north side of Madison. The brewery hopes to have its 45,000-square-foot brewery open by summer. This new facility will allow Ale Asylum to distribute some of its mainstays like Madtown Nutbrown and Hopalicious to more areas of the state. It will also allow brewmaster Dean Coffey to introduce new beers into the seasonal rotation. He's been planning some small specialty brews that are sure to appeal to beer scavenger hunters who seek out the limited one-time releases. When the brewery opens its new taproom, look for an Imperial Stout. Among the guaranteed seasonals in 2012, Ballistic IPA just started turning up in stores, Sticky McDoogle is planned for a February release, and Bedlam will be back in April.

Not only this Madison brewery expanding in 2012, but you will be seeing, hearing about and tasting the products of at least two new breweries in southern Wisconsin. Sweet Mullets Brewery, based in Oconomowoc, is hoping for a February opening. Brewmaster Mark Duchow is no stranger to our area. He's the former brewmaster at the Grumpy Troll brewpub in Mount Horeb. He and his partner, Barbara Jones, have an ambitious goal to make nearly two dozen beers a year. To help them get off to a good start, their first couple of beers will be produced in collaboration with Scott Manning, brewmaster at Vintage in Madison.

In the Wisconsin Dells, Port Huron Brewing should be on track for a great year in 2012. Tanner Brethorst learned brewing first-hand while working part-time at Tyranena, Lake Louie and Capital breweries over the past few years. He spent much of 2011 building his own brewery in a warehouse on the city's north side. In November, he was firing up his brew kettle with test batches. While Port Huron's main market will be the Dells, I hope his beers will find their way to special tap houses in Madison.

House of Brews in Madison has ambitious plans for its first full year of brewing. After opening last September, the east-side brewery introduced a half-dozen beers through well-known venues like the Malt House and the Old Fashioned. A partial beer schedule for 2012 includes a barley wine, saison, dark farmhouse ale and an imperial pumpkin ale. Owner Page Buchanan just purchased fermenters that had been used by O'so Brewing in Plover, and he's signed with a distributor to help him keep up with demand. Buchanan is still planning to launch the community-supported brewery (CSB) side of his business, in which shareholders get a monthly supply of beer. It's hoped that CSB members will be getting beer by March.

Lake Louie Brewing added additional fermenters in its brewhouse this past year. The extra capacity will allow the brewery to extend its distribution statewide in the new year. You might say that Lake Louie beers are on the fast track; to promote his beers brewmaster and owner Tom Porter recently purchased two rail dragsters and had them painted with his brewery's logo.

Capital Brewery in Middleton gave us the first batch of Eternal Flame in 2011. This year Brewmster Kirby Nelson is thinking about how he might top that brew. He's talking about adding a special bottler that will allow him to offer 22-ounce bottled beers. One beer he is considering is a special hopped version of his fall classic, Autumnal Fire.

Central Waters Brewing Company in Amherst celebrates another year in business in January. Around the brewhouse, the beer to mark the occasion is called "Fourteen-point-two," a beer aged for 14 months for the brewery's 14th anniversary. While we may not see much of it in Madison, it's a good reason to attend the brewery's birthday party on Saturday, January 28, when it'll be available in the taproom.

At the Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company, look for a Belgian dark ale in the weeks ahead. Collectively, the Great Dane brewers are developing a caramel weizenbock for release in 2012. You may also remember that in 2009 the downtown Great Dane and Capital brewmaster Kirby Nelson teamed up to make a high-alcohol beer using only malted grains. They fell short by a few percentage points of their 17 % ABV goal. Look for another attempt at this big beer recipe in 2012. It could be 2013 before we know if Rob LoBreglio and the Great Dane team have succeeded, because it takes a long time to ferment to reach such a high level of alcohol.

The Grumpy Troll in Mount Horeb will expand its seasonal lineup in 2012 to include a lager. In the spring, Mark Knoebl plans to make the brewpub's first bock beer. He's also looking to go more local, increasing the use of Wisconsin-grown hops and barley.

Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee just started a new series of beers called "My Turn," that are designed by longtime brewery employees and will carry their names. The beers will be released approximately on a quarterly basis. First up in 2012 will be Brad's Scotch Ale, named for Brad Spring, the brewery’s packaging supervisor. My Turn beers are available in 22-ounce bomber bottles.

Lithia Beer, a brew with ties back to 1848, was reintroduced in southern Wisconsin this past year. By next winter, the brewery hopes to bring back a holiday tradition with its Christmas Beer, a dark brew based on a historic recipe that included additions of brown sugar and molasses.

New Glarus Brewing has two of at least four Thumbprint Beers scheduled so far for 2012. This winter's Barley Wine should be on shelves now. Dan Carey chose the hop fields from where the Styrian Golding, Willamette and Columbia hops were harvested for this brew. In March, Carey will release a cherry stout in his special signature series of beers.

This will be the breakout year for O'so Brewing in Plover, which recently relocated to a new building just off Interstate 39. The facility will double production to over 5,000 barrels in 2012. Brewmaster Marc Buttera says that his India Pale Ale called Hop Whoopin' will be offered for the first time in bottles by late February. He's also planning a new summer beer called Third Wheel, as well as a fall brew called Memory Lane (part of the proceeds will be donated to Alzheimer's research). The brewery's additional capacity will allow Buttera to focus on a new monthly series of one-batch beers that will be released on draught only. He intends to make an oak-aged Belgian pale ale with rose hips and a full-bodied wee heavy.

The Potosi Brewing Company will make its Czech Style Pilsner -- which took top honors as my favorite beer of the year -- available on a year-round. It first appeared in bottles as a spring seasonal in 2011, but it'll be joining Potosi's standard offerings in 2012. Fans of Potosi might also want to watch for some special draught-only releases from Potosi, like a java stout and a Belgium abbey ale. By late next year, the brewery hopes to release a pumpkin ale in 22-ounce bottles. Potosi is also beginning a barrel-aging program that takes advantage of the caves that the original Potosi Brewery used in the 1800s.

The beers of Stevens Point Brewery are likely to be more plentiful in 2012. The brewery has hired a new brewmaster, Gabe Hopkins, a native Oklahoman, to join John Zappa in the brewhouse. It's poised for 25% growth in capacity, which will push its annual production to over 100,000 barrels.

In Lake Mills, Tyranena Brewing is planning special releases in its Brewers Gone Wild series, including the imperial rye porter named Dirty Old Man in late winter, and its HopWhore imperial IPA in late summer. Tyranena is also planning a number of special tasting room events; the one I'm really looking forward to surviving is the Armageddon Party on 12/21/12, when according to the Mayan calendar, the world will end.

Vintage Brewing Company will be offering another opportunity in 2012 to try its summer treat, Hibiscus Saison. And its 2011 silver medal-winning Wee Heavy returns this March. The west-side brewpub is planning a modest expansion; a new fermenter and bright tank will allow Scott Manning to increase production by as much as 75% in 2012. His off-recipe approach to making beer occasionally puts him in the "extreme" brewing category, well out of the mainstream. In 2012, he'll be working on a gruit, a historical version of beer that predates the use of hops. Manning jokes that he's calling it "Wisconsin Roadside Gruit" because he intends to take advantage of the flavors and aromas of local flora and fauna for its spices.