Treating guests like family since 1984

FALL 2014

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Friday, Feb. 20, 2015 • 5:30 - 9:30 PMpresented by

• All-inclusive • 15+ artisan burgers• 30+ craft beers & ciders• 25+ Virginia and South African wines • Live music

benefitingBurger Blast is part of the 2015

Feb. 17-22 • RVA • Tickets at VirginiaWineExpo.com

explore the entire delicious schedule at

VirginiaWineExpo.comnationalbeerexpo.comSa

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BURGER BLAST

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w w w . v i r g i n i a c r a f t b r e w s . o r g Treating guests like family since 1984

Friday, Feb. 20, 2015 • 5:30 - 9:30 PMpresented by

• All-inclusive • 15+ artisan burgers• 30+ craft beers & ciders• 25+ Virginia and South African wines • Live music

benefitingBurger Blast is part of the 2015

Feb. 17-22 • RVA • Tickets at VirginiaWineExpo.com

explore the entire delicious schedule at

VirginiaWineExpo.comnationalbeerexpo.comSa

ve

th

e D

ate

Ju

ly 1

4-19

20

15

BURGER BLAST

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The James River Homebrewers Club (JRHB) got started with 13 original members in February of 1983 in an apartment on Park Avenue. Following that first meeting, another was scheduled in March and their first newsletter, The BrewsLeader, was born and circulated via U.S. mail.

During the next few months, the club became more organized with the adoption of by-laws and creation of leadership roles. This became particularly useful, as the club received press coverage from the Richmond Times-Dispatch and Zymurgy Magazine (when it had a Club News section); as a result, more people took an interest in homebrewing and joining the club.

Over the next decade, the fun continued with the creation of the now infamous Big Brew Day (then also known as the Monster Mash), Brews Cruises, club competitions and more fellowship of those involved in homebrewing.

During the summer of ’92, JRHB had the

role of organizing and planning a homebrew competition to be held on October 3rd at the State Fair of Virginia, as well as host an informational booth. This competition was sanctioned by the American Homebrewers Association (AHA), and became what is now known as the Dominion Cup.

The club history from that point on is a bit hazy (kind of like a good Hefeweizen), but JRHB became more involved with the local beer scene. It was at Commercial Tap House for the first ever keg of beer from Legend Brewing and also supported other new local breweries as they opened up.

Additionally, the club had found a new purpose: no longer was the club just for fellowship of homebrewers. Its purpose now included increasing public awareness on homebrewing, improving the brewing skills of its members and encouraging responsible consumption of brewed beverages.

In perspective of modern times for the club,

here’s what’s going on with the club as of 2014:

JRHB.org became the official website of the club; JRHB also has an official Facebook Page and open discussion group.

Monthly meetings are held at Mekong Restaurant, which has just earned the distinction as America’s Best Beer Bar for 3 years in a row from a nationwide survey on CraftBeer.com. These meetings include portions to share homebrewed beverages and receive feedback, club information, a featured presentation on a homebrewing topic and a raffle with plenty of useful prizes.

Intra-club competitions are still being held throughout the year, usually involving informal judging from members prior to club meetings.

This year saw well over 500 entries to the Dominion Cup in all BJCP regulated styles. Many were from JRHB members, but many more came from individuals and members of

other clubs from around Virginia. A few also came from out of state, as the Dominion Cup was selected as a neutral competition for other clubs to compete.

Big Brew Days are still continuously held in a format that allows for fellowship of club members, other non-club brewers and the non-brewing public to experience the fun of a brew day together.

Although the big news in the RVA beer scene (or Virginia, for that matter) may be about Stone Brewing’s decision to move to the Commonwealth, on a lesser-known front are actions to create a homebrew organization similar to the Virginia Craft Brewer’s Association, and to bring the American Homebrewer’s Association (AHA) conference to our state’s capitol. Both efforts are being spearheaded by the club’s current President, Anna Shore (president@jrhb.org). Look for the VA Old Dominion HomeBrewer’s Guild on Facebook to find out more!

2013 CLUSTERBREW The Annual Clusterbrew for 2013 at Weekend Brewer.Rules were: 5% or more of the grist must be from adjuncts. ABV < 6%. At least one hop grown outside of the US.

JRHB FINDS NEW PURPOSE IN GROWTHBY: TOM JONES, BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Virginia grown only ingredients’ all grain Home Brew Competition

Sponsored By

tHe weekend Brewer Home Brew supply

Virginia suppliers

rVa yeast laBs, piedmont Hop Farm kelly ridge Farm

woods mill malt House

Competition February 21, 2015

entries due By February 15, 2014

For more details see:

www.weekendbrewer.com/vaonlycomp.htm

VIRGINIA ONLY GROWN INGREDIENTS

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Virginia grown only ingredients’ all grain Home Brew Competition

Sponsored By

tHe weekend Brewer Home Brew supply

Virginia suppliers

rVa yeast laBs, piedmont Hop Farm kelly ridge Farm

woods mill malt House

Competition February 21, 2015

entries due By February 15, 2014

For more details see:

www.weekendbrewer.com/vaonlycomp.htm

WHERE ARE ALL THE MICRO-BREWERIES

COMING FROM?The explosion of Micro-Breweries and craft beers didn’t magically appear over-

night. They were created before by craft brewers with an idea to create a different flavor of beer never tried. Created to be unique and many times a personal favor-

ite. These brewers don’t get their cues from mass opinion polls or surveys. They don’t advertise or mass produce tankers of their craft beers. They create small 2-5

gallon batches they can perfect to a beer that they can call their own. They are winning local and national competitions and being recognized by their peers.

Who are these brewers? They are Home Brewers, WeekEnd Brewers who are learning, creating and mastering an age old craft. And sometimes and these art-ists of brewing have the desire to do more go bigger and expand to the next level.

Where are all the Micro-Breweries Coming From?

Home Brewers

Talk to any of our local professional brewers in Virginia or across America and you will find that they all started out as Home Brewers

This is where all the Micro-Breweries are Coming From.

**********************************************************

This November artisans of malt, hops, yeast and water will again soon be part of a great Virginia tradition of creating a beer using ONLY Grown in Virginia ingredi-

ents. ingredients, from the sweet bready taste of Virginia grown barley, the flowery spiciness of Virginia grown hops, water from Virginia rivers and wells and beer

brewing yeast cultured here in Richmond.

Homebrewers from across the state will create and compete in the “Virginia Only Ingredients” Beer competition that will win them the honor of having their beer on

tap at the Triple Crossing Brewery.

So fire up those kettles Home Brewers and enter.

This is truly a “Made in Virginia” competition.

For More Details See:

VIRGINIA ONLY GROWN INGREDIENTS

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ENERGETIC FOLK, ROCK & ROOTS

THANKS TO ALL THE GREAT BREWERIES WE HAVE PLAYED THE PAST 6 MONTHS!

LEGENDS, STRANGEWAYS, WILD WOLF, ISLEY,CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE & JAMES RIVER !

HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/TINCANFISHBAND

The current Virginia beer scene has been highlighted time and again by magazines, blogs and Websites. Heralded breweries such as Stone are deciding to make Richmond its East Coast home. I personally choose to show my love for VA Beer by pairing it with the bounty of the state’s small farms and local food by hosting beer dinners throughout the Northern VA region. People are always asking me how I choose certain foods to go with beers. The overarching thing to remember is that tasting is subjective, but there are some guidelines out there from the BA (Brewer’s Association) that help explain the basics. My next event is at Old Ox Brewery in Ashburn, featuring Spring House Farms of Lovettsville, VA, and their Large Black, Mulefoot and Ossabaw heritage breed pigs. These pigs are much more marbled than store bought chops or loins and are extremely flavorful. We wanted to showcase different techniques, as well as flavor profiles to match the strong beers coming from brewer Kenny Allen’s brew house. As in the formation of any menu, I had to start by tasting the beers we wanted to feature. I write down first aromas, taste, mouth, feel, and start to envision the direction of the menu. Since Spring House will be bringing master butcher Marc Pouvert to do a demonstration of a whole pig butchering, I already knew I wanted to start from the outside and work my way in on the animal. The Rye Black Porter has a light aroma of spice and I thought it could use something salty, so pork rinds are an easy choice. They will add both salt and richness to the mouth feel from the fat. Next, I worked on utilizing some fat below the skin by choosing chorizo sausage. These will get smoked, along with a sugar cured pork belly, over white oak and cherry, to go into a chili with roasted pumpkin. The spices in this will counteract the hops found in Kenny’s rotating IPA series, Oxplorer. This is a key pairing, as an IPA this early on could mean blown out taste buds early in the dinner, which can ruin the experience. We decided we needed a lighter course first, and went with a hickory smoked pork belly with apple, lychee and a chili nuts salad to eat alongside the Saison D’Ox. As homage to the farmers and field workers working hard to make harvest happen, the Saison is traditionally an easy drinking light beer with wild yeast, whose effervescence and slightly tart finish will help cut the amount of fat coming from the pork belly. Our next course pairs the roasted pumpkin Oxorcism with an Italian rolled porchetta on a spent grain/pancetta biscuit with fontina cheese and a stout beer jam. Both the pancetta and stout beer jam have fennel, while the spent grains will add some roasty caramel notes to the dish. Since the pumpkin beer is devoid of the spices found traditionally in pies and beers, I used the roasted malt bill as my pairing base. Our final dish is a Hungarian Hazelnut Torte that has slight chocolate notes which will play off the raisins maltiness of the high alcohol Belgian dark strong. This dinner will take place in the brewery with brewer Kenny showing off the equipment as we sit family style to celebrate both the Harvest Season and growing prominence of Virginia Craft Beer. Please follow @oldoxbrewery as well as @chefbeckles for more information including links for tickets, date and time.

HOSTING A BEER DINNERBy: Becky Jordan

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ENERGETIC FOLK, ROCK & ROOTS

THANKS TO ALL THE GREAT BREWERIES WE HAVE PLAYED THE PAST 6 MONTHS!

LEGENDS, STRANGEWAYS, WILD WOLF, ISLEY,CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE & JAMES RIVER !

HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/TINCANFISHBAND

CALL US! 804-264-4808

8764 W. HUGUENOT ROAD, RICHMOND, VIRGINIA 23235

804.272.7862 FASTOPSPECIALTYBEER.COM

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BOURBON

- R E L E A S E D A Y - ApocAlypse Ale Works Will be introducing the golden censer, orAnge honey WheAt

And red hoppocAlypse imperiAl Ale (the silver medAl Winner At us open)

in cAns in mid october. Ask for them At your fAvorite speciAlty store!

endofbAdbeer.comVCBoct14.indd 10 10/23/14 1:02 PM

ApocAlypse Ale Works Will be introducing the golden censer, orAnge honey WheAt

And red hoppocAlypse imperiAl Ale (the silver medAl Winner At us open)

in cAns in mid october. Ask for them At your fAvorite speciAlty store!

endofbAdbeer.com

Short ribs are perfect this time of year, and as everyone gets back into the swing of their busy fall schedule, slow cooker meals become ever more desirable. Just add everything to the slow cooker in the morning, and you'll have a delicious and hearty meal waiting for you at the end of the day.

The Belgian beer I used from Apocolypse Ale Works adds a delicious full-bodied flavor to the short ribs sauce. Its caramel notes make it a perfect match for brown sugar, and a little spice and smoke balance it out. You can easily understand why this sweet and slightly hoppy chest-nut-colored beer has won so many awards. Don't forget to pour yourself a glass with dinner.  SLOW COOKER BEER-BRAISED SHORT RIBS - SERVES: 4-6  Ingredients:•3 cups (24 ounces) Apocolypse Ale Works Lustful Maiden Belgian Dubbel•2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce•1/2 large yellow onion, chopped•1/4 cup packed brown sugar•3 tablespoons cornstarch•1 tablespoon cumin•1 teaspoon garlic powder•1 pinch red pepper flakes•1 pinch chipotle chili powder or smoked paprika•1 teaspoon salt•1 teaspoon black pepper•4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs

DIRECTIONS:1. Add all ingredients except short ribs to a (6-quart) slow cooker and whisk to combine. Add the short ribs, making sure to coat each one in the sauce mixture.2. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm and garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro.Optional: Add potatoes and carrots chopped into large pieces before cooking to make a delicious one-pot stew.

SLOW COOKER BEER-BRAISED SHORT RIBS BY: Kristel D. Poole

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That’s our motto at Huguenot Hops, but here in Virginia it’s easier said than done. The majority of hops in the U.S. are grown in Oregon and Washington; how-ever, the majority of beer sold in Virginia is brewed in Missouri at Anheuser Bus-ch. In contrast, the craft beer industry is booming in Virginia with more than 90 breweries in operation and more coming online all the time. There are less than three dozen farmers growing hops in Virginia, and most of them produce less than a few hundred pounds of hops each year. That’s not nearly enough to sup-port the growing craft brewing culture in the state. And so begins the story of Huguenot Hops.

“Hey, Hardywood is giving away rhi-zomes. If you get them, I’ll grow them,” my partner Kurt Stanfield said one Wednesday night in the spring of 2013. Yep, that’s how it happened. Kurt and I had been friends for several years. We go to the same church in Midlothian; Kurt runs the sound system and I lead the band. Kurt is an accountant and I had recently retired from a career in IT. Kurt had a farm and equipment and I was a home brewer and had the time. Kurt had grown up helping his grandpar-ents on their farm, while I grew up on a farm in Oregon. Our first year, we pur-

chased 70 plants from David Goode at Piedmont Hops and set up a hop yard. The poles for the tall trellis system were recycled power poles that had been ac-quired from Kurt’s old fraternity brother, who just happened to work at Dominion Power. Irrigation systems, cabling and twine all came together to support the hop bines that grew to over 15 feet and produced 16 pounds of fresh hops. Even though the rhizomes from Hardywood Park Craft Brewery never made it into the ground that first year, we donated about 3 pounds of fresh Cascade hops to the brewery for their RVA IPA.

It was fun! We had support from family members and friends. We enjoyed being a part of the growing craft beer move-ment in Virginia, so we joined the Old Dominion Hops Cooperative (ODHC) and the Virginia Craft Brewers Guild and met a lot of awesome people. We became passionate about growing hops. Now, it was time to expand.

The expansion took place in the fall of 2013 and the spring of 2014. It involved purchasing an additional 32 poles that were 25 feet tall, 9,000 feet of galva-nized cabling, 4,000 feet of irrigation pipe, 50,000 feet of twine, almost 1,000 hop plants from a commercial

grower, ground anchors, turnbuckles, ca-ble clamps, irrigation pumps and more. Family, friends and members of the ODHC came out to help plant, install twine and train hop bines. Huguenot Hops is growing three vari-eties of hops: Cascade, Nugget & Zeus. The soil is tested by Virginia Tech who makes recommendations specific to growing hops. The local Virginia Ex-tension Agents, and specifically Laura Siegle, have been wonderful support-ers and advisors to the hops farmers in the State and they continue to push for more programs. This summer, Virginia Tech began performing hops analysis for farmers. This information is important to farmers and brewers alike and provides data about alpha and beta levels, oil per-centage and moisture content. We have had a lot of support from brew-ers who want to try fresh Virginia hops. The majority of hops sold this year were “wet” hops. Hops are considered wet when they are harvested and put into a beer without being dried and processed. Most of the time, brewers use dried hops, specifically pelletized, that have been stored for weeks or months in a freezer. Using wet hops for a harvest ale creates a unique flavor that most beer drinkers in Virginia have not yet experienced. Young Veterans Brewing used 100% wet hops from Huguenot Hops (Zeus and Cascade) for their anniversary beer, Old Frogman. (I wonder if that name came from the fact that I am a Navy veter-an that served on submarines? Proba-bly not.) The beer was a huge success, thanks to the artful use of the fresh hops by Tom Wilder, owner and head brewer at Young Veterans.

Our first sale came from Alewerks and head brewer, Geoff Logan. They were re-

ally taking a chance, and had to figure a way to get the wet hops into their brew-ing process but wanted to support local hops growers. Alewerks decided to “wet hop” a beer with 50 pounds of Cascade hops from Huguenot Hops. The beer was released in their tap room as “AKA” because they couldn’t come up with the perfect name. It was eventually released to their distributor as “Fresh Hop”, an IPA clocking in at 7.1% ABV.

Kurt said “It all started because of the guys at Hardywood Park. They are using all the varieties we grow for their RVA IPA this year and they bought a large portion of our crop. Brian Nelson and Patrick Murtaugh even came out to pick hops at our harvest this year.” The Har-dywood Community Hopping Project was a way to get the community involved in growing hops in their backyards and small gardens, and contribute to a local beer. It would appear that Kurt and I be-came obsessed with the idea and took it to the extreme.

Over this past year, we have had dozens of people tour the hop yard. Visitors in-cluded farmers interested in growing, beer enthusiasts who want to see locally grown hops and brewers, curious if we can really be successful at growing local hops in Virginia. We have hosted tours for students from Virginia Tech, brewers from across the state, artists from the area and farmers from everywhere. Next year we will offer additional tours when the hops are blooming and fragrant, and if you’re lucky, there may be a surprise sample of early harvest ale at the end of the tour.

This year’s main harvest was one of the highlights of our year. We had over 100

Local Hops for Local Beer.Article and photos by Devon Kistler

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adults (as well as dozens of children and even a few dogs) who came out to help pick almost 190 pounds of hops by hand. Harvesting hops is a labor intensive pro-cess without a mechanical harvester, but it provides plenty of time for folks to sit and talk, and maybe enjoy a cold beer or two. Huguenot Hops also had sever-al smaller harvests for specific brewer-ies, including Strangeways and Three Notch’d.

Since fresh hops quickly deteriorate and become unusable, Huguenot Hops (along with other hop yards), dry hops for use later in the year. Most commer-cial brewers prefer to use pelletized hops in their brewing process. Unfortunately, no one in Virginia had a pelletizer - until this year. We knew we wanted to expand and be able to provide a product that any brewer could use, so Huguenot hops invested in a small-scale pelletizer and hammer mill. This equipment will help all the hops famers in Virginia as they look to expand.” A hammer mill shreds dried whole hop cones into smaller material that can be compressed in a pelletizer. The pelletizer uses rollers and a die to form hop pellets, which are roughly the shape and size of rabbit food. In addition, Huguenot Hops converted a portion of their barn into a clean room that will be used to process and package hops. Kurt and I have big plans for the future. We know that our 1 1/4 acres of hops will not provide for the growing demand of local breweries, so we have plans for future expan-sion. Our goal is to double the size of the hop yard to 2 1/2 acres in 2015. With more than 2,250 crowns (plants) for next year’s har-vest, we hope to yield over one ton of fresh hops. But, it takes capital to build a trellis system, install irrigation and purchase hop plants. That is why we are planning to initiate a Kickstarter campaign to help with some of

the expansion costs. Kickstarter has helped dozens of breweries across the U.S to open, like Big Ugly Brewing in Chesapeake. It really is up to the craft beer community to deter-mine if they want to support these types of local efforts. True, it is easier and cheaper for breweries to purchase hops from nation-al distributors like Hop Union. It’s also easier and cheaper for consumers to buy a six pack of Bud Lite at the grocery store rather than drive to the local brewery or tap house. But beer enthusiasts in Virginia are driving sales and increasing the market for locally brewed craft beers. The craft beer industry is push-ing the boundaries of normal, and reaching for what is unique. Unique isn’t sitting at the back of your dads’ refrigerator. Unique isn’t always cheap, but it is always an adventure.We’ve met a LOT of great people during these past two years and can’t express how grateful we are for all the help and support we have received from everyone. Growing hops isn’t easy and it’s not sexy. It’s farming, and farming is dirty and sweaty, hard work. But we really enjoy it, and appreciate being a very small part of the craft beer industry in Virginia.

WITH BRIAN FROM HARDYWOOD AT THE FARM

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What do an operations manager from Virgin-ia, a financial economist from Connecticut, and an English teacher from Georgia all have in common? In this case – beer. These three happen to make up the founding members of The Virginia Beer Company! In fact Virgin-ia Beer Company’s origin is really comprised of three separate stories concurrently tak-ing place across the North, Mid-Atlantic, and South through 2012, when co-founders Chris Smith and Robby Willey made the decision to open a brewery in their college town of Wil-liamsburg, VA.

The Virginia Beer Company is comprised of a three-man team, co-founders Chris Smith & Robby Willey along with Brewmaster Jon-athan Newman, who joined full-time in 2014. The company truly started when Chris and Robby first met during their university years at the College of William & Mary. They devel-oped a shared interest in craft beer, and that interest blossomed into an obsession as the two embarked upon their professional careers in finance. But even Chris and Robby’s chance meeting at the College of William & Mary was a longshot. To understand how far they trav-eled to finally arrive there, you have to go back in time to their childhood.

Chris was born in New York City and then spent

most of his formative years in Connecticut. His mother, a classical pianist, and his father, a composer, conductor, and classical pianist, engaged Chris and his three brothers in music from an early age. Days were spent learning to play assorted instruments, while each and ev-ery bedtime was accompanied by the sound of their mother’s practice. Sports entered the Smith family routine once they relocated to a small town outside Hartford, CT. The NHL’s Hartford Whalers were the only show in town; Chris and his brothers were soon obsessed. Hockey, soccer, baseball, tennis, and golf be-came a part of everyday life. Chris’s younger brother Ben would go on to play profession-al hockey for the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks, while Chris’s eldest brother James would go on to travel the world performing as a profes-sional oboist. With this background, Chris’s future role opening a startup business may have come as somewhat of a surprise to the Smith family if not for another piece of family history that, in hindsight, had a huge effect on Chris’s future career choice. A family business, Anglo-Oriental, which was founded by Chris’s grandfather, Haig Oundjian, in 1942, special-ized in purchasing and selling Persian carpets. The company was based in London but had offices across Europe and in Canada. Chris spent a considerable amount of time during his formative years traveling the world with his

family and learning about the life of a business owner through these family ties.

A few years older than Chris, Robby was born in Northern Virginia to parents who spent the years prior to their first child traveling all around the country. Robby’s mother was born in Kansas. One of Robby’s grandfathers, George Johnson, was a salesman for IBM in the firm’s early days, so the family spent time in Minnesota and Maryland before Robby’s mom attended college in Indiana and later started work at a bank in Washington, DC. Robby’s fa-ther was born in Ohio. Robby’s other grandfa-ther, Robert Willey, Sr., was a liaison for Ameri-can Airlines in the company’s beginning stages, so the family later had stints in West Virginia and Virginia. Robby’s dad attended college back in West Virginia before embarking on his career as a banker in Washington, DC, where he would meet his future wife. Soon after Rob-by’s parents were married, his dad was drafted during the Vietnam War and the young couple spent time in New Jersey before finally settling down in Maryland and then Herndon, Virginia, where Robby grew up. Robby is the eldest of three, with a younger sister, Aly, who is a spe-cial education teacher at a Northern VA high school, and younger brother, Christopher, who is an operations manager at a security firm. Af-ter an early life of travel, Robby’s parents de-

cided to establish roots in one place for their children and made Northern VA their home.

When the time to make decisions about col-lege came around, Chris and Robby took dif-ferent paths that in retrospect, makes it even wilder that the two would end up meeting at William & Mary. Because of the fact that Rob-by had grown up in one area for his entire life, and perhaps with some of that wanderlust passed down from his grandparents, he felt the need to spread his wings and experience life in another part of the country. He decided to accept a scholarship offer and attend the University of Rhode Island. Chris, with close family ties in the Northeast, initially began his college career outside of Boston at Tufts Uni-versity. The two probably had an equal chance of meeting in a craft beer bar in Providence or Boston as they did of meeting in Williamsburg! As fate would have it, both future entrepre-neurs decided to transfer to William & Mary early in their college careers. After some time away, Robby decided that Virginia was in fact the place for him (sometimes parents do know best). Chris decided much the same, and de-cided to head to Williamsburg to try out for the College’s Men’s Soccer team, and to be closer to then girlfriend, Erin, who Chris had grown up with in Connecticut and who was already attending W&M. Robby and Chris wound up as transfer students at William & Mary, and would soon after meet at the student Phonathon in 2004, where they would spend evenings call-ing alums to provide updates on the school and to solicit private giving. As it turned out the two would be putting their experience at sales calls to use again later in their Williams-burg careers!

Robby and Chris became fast friends at the College, working together as callers and then supervisors at the Phonathon. Robby and Chris shared interests in sports and music, and during their free time even formed a band together, The Cuddlesluts (seriously), with two fellow classmates. Robby would graduate first in 2005 with degrees in Finance and Interna-tional Relations. He began his career at the consulting firm Cambridge Associates, LLC, where he would work in marketable & hedge fund performance reporting and client ser-

TWO GUYS, A BREWER AND A COLONIAL PLACE Article and Photos By Robby Willey, Chris Smith, and Jonathan Newman

VCBoct14.indd 14 10/23/14 1:02 PM

vices, and eventually become an operations manager. Chris would attend W&M until his graduation in 2007, which worked well for Rob-by as it gave him ample time (and free room & board) to visit his alma mater and keep up with Chris. When the two were both 21, they began investigating the College’s local “deli’s” and stumbled into (and perhaps out of) the Green Leafe Cafe, one of the Tidewater Region’s first craft beer bars. Opening their palates to new flavors in the brewing world, the duo began a long journey into the realm of microbreweries and craft beers.

Like any good person with Canadian roots, Chris’s first taste of beer was a sip of Labatt Blue. That didn’t exactly pique his interest in beer, but the options available at the Green Leafe eventually turned him into a believer. His earliest memories of quality beer were pints from local Virginia breweries like Dominion (at that time a Virginia brewery), Starr Hill, Leg-end, and St. George. Once he moved to New York City, Chris spent many a night at venues like The Blind Tiger, Pony Bar and the Brooklyn Brewery. Boston offered venues such as Lord Hobo, Sunset Grill, Cambridge Brewing Com-pany and Deep Ellum. These venues and the beers served cemented his desire to become a part of the craft brewing industry in the future. Robby grew up in an Anhesuer-Busch family. His dad’s side of the family hails from South-ern Illinois, about 90 minutes outside of St. Louis. Robby even grew up with a cat named Budweiser! Suffice it to say his first (many) experiences with beer were alongside “The King”. While a senior at William & Mary, he fi-nally managed to expand his horizons. Legend Lager, an RVA favorite, and Abita Purple Haze were two of the craft beers that made an early impact on my palate. Harpoon’s Winter Warm-er was another that stuck out early on. Seeing the amazing flavors that one could imbue in a beer with hops, fruit, and spices truly opened Robby’s eyes to the wide world of craft beer.

With degrees in Economics and History, Chris returned to New York City in 2007 to work for J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. He spent five years at J.P. Morgan (two and a half of them in Boston)

but never had a great interest in the work. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. has over 250,000 em-ployees – Chris came to the realization that it’s hard to feel like an individual’s work matters in the whole scheme of any business in that gi-gantic scope and he wanted to make an impact wherever he was working. In June 2011 Chris and Erin would be married, and Robby was the best man at their ceremony. The happy couple relocated to Boston where Erin was attending veterinary school at (of course) Tufts Univer-sity. A big part of Chris and Robby’s ability to brainstorm about future plans is due to Erin’s time in graduate school. Being a medical stu-dent meant many hours in study and practice, and as the best man Robby felt it was his duty to keep Chris occupied so Erin could focus on her studies. Chris began thinking of other potential options as a long career in finance began to look less and less likely. The most obvious (and interesting) option had first been discussed over a craft beer or seven at Will-liamsburg’s Green Leafe Cafe. As the start of any good brewery goes, the question (along-side a glass) was raised by Chris: “I wonder if we should start a brewery?”

Chris and Robby’s relationship based on con-suming great beer continued after both left Williamsburg, as did their consumption of excellent craft beer. The two continued their exploration of the country’s growing beer scene, this time with more resources at their disposal. Trips abounded to DC, Richmond, Charlottesville, NYC, Boston, St. Louis, Chica-go and Philadelphia, to name a few. Chris was avid that a career change was inevitable, and Robby couldn’t find any reason to be less than enamored with the thought of getting involved in the world of beer. The two tried their hands at homebrewing, often with explosive results. It was fun and an enthusiastic experience, which led to that much more appreciation for the beers that were being created all around them. It was in late 2011 that the pair agreed it would be worthwhile to learn more about the industry from an insider’s perspective. While they had spent copious time visiting breweries and asking questions of any brewer and owner who would listen, the two aspiring

businessmen needed to know more about the business of beer. They joined the Brewers As-sociation in 2012 and attended their first Craft Brewers Conference appropriately dressed as businessmen. The trip to San Diego was an eye opening experience – not only due to the amazing beer they were able to enjoy on the West Coast – but because they realized how much they had to learn about the industry. The conference afforded them the advice and the network to begin learning more about the business of brewing, and that’s just what they did.

The benefit of having backgrounds in finance and economics was that it permitted Robby and Chris to begin work on a business plan with experience and tools readily available to assist in the creation of this integral docu-ment. The two began fervent efforts to glean as much information as possible from the Brewers Association, Pro Brewer forums and any breweries who would offer them time and advice. The conversation and the research continued, and finally the formal idea to start Virginia Beer Company came about in 2012 when Chris & Robby realized their interest in the business world was bolstered by a passion for interesting and drinkable craft beers. They figured there was no reason not to start their own brewery, and with the support of family and friends (and most importantly, Chris’s wife Erin) they registered The Virginia Beer Com-pany, LLC in late 2012.

A lot of research went into the name of the brewery as well as its final destination. Chris and Robby immediately pinpointed Williams-burg as a desirable landing spot but did not want to simply assume it would be the right place for a new brewery. Just as the creation of their vision in the form of a robust business plan took a lot of patience and due diligence, the guys put a lot time researching the Wil-liamsburg and Hampton Roads demographics and craft scene. They were thrilled when they realized that Williamsburg had emerged as the perfect place to start the venture. It’s the state where Robby was raised, where Chris & Robby first met, and one with a thriving beer

scene. Plus, Chris and Robby were still active with the College, volunteering on an alumni board for some time with many connections to help them get settled. In addition, Williams-burg, beyond being the birthplace of the duo’s interest in great beer, is an incredible city with a rich history and thriving culture that has am-ple room for more growth in the world of craft brewing. Williamsburg had the added benefit of being the current home of Chris’s youngest brother, Will, who had followed in Chris’s foot-steps and joined the College’s Men’s Soccer team. The pull for Robby to be near his family in Northern VA and for Chris to have a rare chance to spend this time with his brother helped to fully convince the two that Williams-burg was the place for their plans. A lot of re-search and a gut feeling sealed the deal for the future home of The Virginia Beer Company.

The plan emerged for Chris to quit his job once Erin completed her first year of residency, and then the couple would relocate to Williams-burg in 2012 with Robby planning to follow soon after. The entrepreneurs had spent time visiting Williamsburg and meeting with officials from the City and surrounding counties to be-gin the process of getting approved for zoning and finding the right building for the brewery. Fundraising efforts had begun in earnest and the pair easily envisioned a smooth build-out process leading to a late 2013 or early 2014 opening. Fate would have other plans that would slow their enthusiastic roll to brewdom. In late 2012 Robby’s mom was diagnosed with breast cancer, which delayed his relocation to Williamsburg as he moved home to Herndon to spend time with his family. Chris and Erin were now in Williamsburg, so Robby and Chris recreated their college experience as Rob-by would come down for long weekends to crash with Chris. The two would catch up on progress with the building and investors, and continue tweaking the business plan as need-ed. The 2013 Craft Brewers Conference was in Washington, DC, which afforded the duo a sec-ond shot at interacting with their peers in the craft industry. Their confidence was bolstered by how much they had learned in a year’s time. While it had taken longer than anticipated

TWO GUYS, A BREWER AND A COLONIAL PLACE Article and Photos By Robby Willey, Chris Smith, and Jonathan Newman

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to find a location for the brewery, the added time had afforded the pair the ability to learn more about the industry and refine their plan. They made great strides (i.e., they didn’t wear blazers and sweater vests this time) towards committing to equipment, talking to ingredient suppliers, and locking down a head brewer.

One part of the business that Robby and Chris realized they were not equipped to handle was the role of brewmaster. While they had many experiences homebrewing and had logged numerous hours visiting and volunteer-ing at breweries, they knew they did not have the technical expertise to create the world’s next amazing brand of craft brews. Ideas, they had; experience, not so much. In 2013, the duo drafted their first open position for the brew-ery and submitted it to various sources in the microbrewing world with hopes of finding the company’s first full-time employee and the brewing architect that would help lead their brewery to greatness. Enter:Jonathan New-man. Jonathan was one of the first candidates to respond to the brewery’s job listing. He went through a screening process with VBC’s founders and after speaking on the phone a few times, Robby and Chris decided to meet Jonathan in person at about the half-way point between Williamsburg and Atlanta where Jon-athan was currently working for SweetWater Brewing Company.

Jonathan was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia and would later head off to college in Tennessee, attending Sewanee, The Univer-sity of the South. This proved to be a pivotal decision for Jonathan as he credits much of his college experience for leading him to his career in beer. While at Sewanee Jonathan studied English and Education with the goal of being a high school English teacher and base-ball coach. Jonathan first discovered the wide world of beer during time abroad in England. While he was overseas studying at Oxford, Jonathan experienced cask ale for the first time. The simplicity and authenticity of cask ale along with the art of cellarmanship prac-ticed by pubs like Lamb and Flag as well as Eagle and Child was simply an eye-opening ex-

perience for him. That summer he also made a friend over many beers, and that friend would end up helping him get a job brewing at Sweet-Water years later, so beer was a valuable part of that trip! After graduating from the Univer-sity’s School of Letters in 2006, Jonathan did become both an English teacher and baseball coach for just over five years. It was while teaching that he found homebrewing almost by accident, when on a whim he picked up a two-gallon brewing kit on sale at CVS of all places. Jonathan is quick to proclaim that his first beer was absolutely terrible, but nonethe-less he was hooked. Homebrewing became his escape from the daily life of a boarding school teacher, and he dove headfirst into the hobby.

After a few years of brewing at home, Jona-than joined Jackalope Brewing Company in Nashville, TN during their start-up phase. The job was basically glorified homebrewing on a Sabco BrewMagic system at that point, but the beers he was producing were on tap in a brewery. Jonathan loved the feeling of watch-ing a taproom full of people having fun drink-ing beer that he personally helped to produce. It was then that Jonathan knew he needed a career change. In September 2011, Jonathan got an offer that he simply could not refuse. Jonathan quit his job as a teacher (a month into the school year…oops!), packed up and moved to Atlanta to join the brewing team at SweetWater Brewing Company. When Jon-athan first arrived at SweetWater they were brewing on a mostly manual, four-vessel, 50 barrel brewhouse, and they were cranking out 45-50 batches a week, brewing 24/7. It was an absurd pace, but a great learning experience! The brewery would later move on to a 330 barrel brewhouse in order to fill 1,000 barrel fermentation vessels. Jonathan remarks now that brewing at one of the largest craft bre-whouses in the country “was a pretty great experience.” While at SweetWater, Jonathan also completed The American Brewers Guild’s Intensive Brewing Science and Engineering di-ploma program.

It was at this time that Jonathan began to seek out a role for a head brewer’s position. While he loved the experiences and capacity at

SweetWater, he wanted a chance to showcase his growing skills and help to build a brand that would rise or fall in large part due to his ca-pabilities – capabilities that he was very confi-dent in, and with good reason. He had already won local and national awards for a number of his beers, and had been mentioned in ar-ticles in Zymurgy and Southern Brew News publications. As fate would draw the three key members of The Virginia Beer Company closer together, Jonathan was especially open to the idea of brewing in Virginia. Jonathan had spent some childhood summers at camp in Virginia and had personal ties to the area, so when a job posting for a head brewer role hit Pro Brewer’s forums in 2013, it seemed like something out there was guiding him to revisit those roots.

Fast forward past the initial outreach and phone screens with the brewery’s co-founders, and Jonathan, Robby, and Chris would have their first face-to-face meeting in Asheville, North Carolina. The three would spend 48 hours touring breweries, sampling local brews, discussing brewery buildout, and sampling many (many) of Jonathan’s bottled recipes. As summer turned to fall, Jonathan continued to keep in touch with Chris and Robby as they leveraged him for questions about brewhouse setup and contracting future ingredient needs. Jonathan came up to visit Williamsburg in June 2013, and spent time on the ground looking at possible brewery landing spots, learning more about the brewery’s startup progress, and sampling more (much more) brews. Jonathan’s background with water chemistry manipula-tion also came in handy as Virginia Beer Com-pany expanded its location search beyond the City of Williamsburg to the surrounding York and James City Counties. In late 2013, a formal offer was made for Jonathan to become Brew-master of The Virginia Beer Company some time in 2014. In the meantime he would contin-ue his full-time role at SweetWater as he com-pleted his American Brewer’s Guild program and while Chris and Robby continued to raise money for their venture. Jonathan acted as a consultant for the brewery, offering his exper-tise to the company’s evolving business plan

and beginning to work as part of the team to create Virginia Beer Company’s pilot recipes.

Robby was still in Northern VA during this time. His mother succumbed to the illness that she had been battling for over a year and passed away from breast cancer in late 2013. Chris was by Robby’s side during the funeral and thereafter. Friends through and through, Robby and Chris had stood with one another through times of triumph and times of need, and those experiences continued to bolster their confidence that building a business to-gether was the future they both wanted. Once Robby’s family’s affairs were in order, he relo-cated to Williamsburg at the start of 2014. The duo redoubled their efforts to pin down a lo-cation and complete their startup investment fundraising. They had worked with artists to come up with logos for the brewery, attended another CBC in Denver, worked with Jona-than to formulate recipes and test batches for early brews and established The Virginia Beer Company, LLC as a formal business presence in Williamsburg. After three years at Sweet-Water working in both brewhouses and the cellar, Jonathan resigned his position in 2014 in order to move to Williamsburg and help build The Virginia Beer Company. The road had been a long one, but finally in August 2014, the brewery had its team in place in Williams-burg and was ready to move forward with its next milestone to open in 2015 and finally re-alize the vision of three guys with three very different backgrounds but one shared desire to open the world’s next great craft brewery. Looking back, it’s fitting that the three ended up meeting in Virginia about halfway between their roots to make their next move together.

So what type of brewery are the three working to create? The Virginia Beer Company plans to specialize in a variety. VBC will focus on a small, high quality core lineup of year-round products, along with a boundary-pushing ro-tation of limited edition beers (what the team refers to as, Burg Beers!). The brewery will feature a large taproom and will have the abil-ity to offer multiple taps for a wide range of beer styles. VBC plans to have both a large, 30

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barrel production system as well as a smaller, three barrel pilot system. Using the two, the group aims to offer three to four year-round offerings as well as a multitude of one-offs in the taproom. Depending on the season and the interest in each style, other beers beyond VBC’s full time brews will move into the regu-lar rotation on the larger system. Beers will be featured in both the taproom and in local retail accounts to start, with plans to distribute draft beer throughout Virginia within the first few years of operation. The team also plans to get creative with cask ales and is really stoked to take advantage of the planned brewing capaci-ty and taproom to have some truly invigorating styles while at the same time offering some-thing for everyone from the most experienced Beer Advocate reader to the newest entrant into the craft beer world.

The trio has a diverse background in business and beer. They are leveraging their many dif-ferent experiences to help grow their current passion in order to emerge as part of the do-mestic and global beer scene. The three are confident that with their individual profession-al backgrounds and personal strengths, they have a great chance to achieve their goals and more. While they have ambitious plans to offer a sizable variety of beers and flavors, Chris, Robby, and Jonathan also realize that they want to make their name in the quality of their early recipes. They’re already brewing test batches of a citrus American Wheat Ale, an IPA hopped with Azacca (a relatively new variety), an Oatmeal Stout, an Amarillo/Sim-coe Rye ESB, as well as varieties for a rotating Saison series. The brewery is founded under the principal that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel to make a name for yourself – beer drinkers appreciate a well-crafted ale or lager, and if you do it right you’re more likely to get repeat customers who are interested in trying some of the more exotic offerings in your port-folio. In their business plan Robby and Chris projected over 35 styles of beer (at least) that they’d like to brew, and that was before being anywhere close to having a facility to brew them in! The three-man team is focused on bridging the gap between those who don’t

know much about craft to the people working in the industry who live, breath, and drink it every day.

The brewery and taproom experience, along with the quality and variety of the beers, are integral to Virginia Beer Company’s future success. The brewery will feature a tasting room with standing room at the bar along with seating throughout, plus an outdoor area with a patio and a green for picnics and lawn games. While it won’t feature food prepared in-house, VBC is working with food trucks, catering com-panies and local restaurants to arrange dining options. In the warmer months they also plan to allow customers to bring their own food for picnics on the patio and lawn. The founders are cognizant that in a place like Williamsburg they want to cater to a full spectrum of cus-tomers from craft beer fans, to local groups coming in to check out a band one evening, to families coming through as part of a Colonial Williamsburg sightseeing weekend.

Williamsburg has been a brewing town for a very long time. The recent discovery of an 18th century brewery on the campus of the College of William & Mary has generated many head-lines over the last few months. More recent-ly, Anheuser-Busch opened a Williamsburg brewery in the early 1970’s. The predecessors to AleWerks Brewing Company opened in the early years of the new millennium. The Green Leafe Cafe was one of the early craft beer destinations in Hampton Roads and has since been joined by DoG Street Pub, which opened in 2012 and now rivals the best craft beer bars in the nation. Other bars and restaurants in the area are quickly catching on, with establish-ments like Berret’s, The Cheese Shop, Oceans & Ale and The Wine Seller leading the way. The local homebrew club, Colonial AleSmiths and Keggers (C.A.S.K.) has a strong presence as well. AleWerks Brewing Company rebranded in 2012 and is developing some amazing new recipes, and craft beer enthusiasts including Robby and Chris are happy to have Geoff Lo-gan and his colleagues continuing to introduce Williamsburg to great craft beers. The Virginia Beer Company can’t wait to join their ranks!

It’s been a long and winding road up and down the East Coast, but The Virginia Beer Compa-ny has found its way to Williamburg, VA. and is projecting a 2015 opening date in the middle to latter half of the year.

The team is documenting its adventures on their website, www.VirginiaBeerCo.com, and is providing regular updates through social media channels such as Twitter and Facebook. The founders have had a lot of time to contin-ue to refine their vision and are confident that along with Jonathan they can work with both of their systems to grow at a regular pace, and expect to exceed some of their early projec-tions (“We really like our beer!”). But as they’ve learned over the past two years, it’s important to be fluid. VBC has been seeking a space with more capacity than they need now so they can grow into that location over the next 10 years. The team is quick to confirm that they

don’t want to expand too quickly. But with a name like The Virginia Beer Company they absolutely want to visit as many parts of the state as they can and share their passion for craft beer with the state that brought them all together. They are now close to a deal on a space and if all goes well, after opening in 2015 they’ll start expanding to other areas in the Commonwealth before their second year, perhaps with some can and bottle offerings in addition to draft beer. Robby and Chris note that it’s hard to project out five and 10 years, but they truly expect to continue grow-ing VBC’s portfolio and distribution footprint after the brewery’s opening. “For now,” Rob-by says, “we’ll just focus on opening so people can come to us and sample some Burg Beer, but we plan to get out to the people in Virgin-ia and beyond as soon as we can!

JONATHAN WORKING AT SWEETWATER IN 2012

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SEARED DUCK BREAST WITH SUGARED FIGS & ARUGULA

INGREDIENTS:12 Figs (Mission preferably)

6 Tbsp Olive Oil1 tsp Chianti (White Wine) Vinegar

1 bunch Arugula1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Kosher SaltPepper

Turbinado/Raw Cane Sugar

PREPARATION:Preheat the Oven 400 F.

Clean Figs, halve lengthwise and place on wire rack on baking sheet. Drizzle figs with olive oil, sprinkle with sugar and roast 15 min or until soft. Drizzle with

vinegar upon removal from oven.

In sauté pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil and turn to medium low heat. Cut an X into the fat of the duck breast and place in pan fat side down. The fat will render out slowly and as it does, spoon back over to crisp up the skin. Once golden brown

and pan is filled with rendered duck fat, flip over for 1-3 minutes for medium rare or longer depending on your temperature preference.

Rinse o� arugula, toss with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Slice duck breasts, spread on arugula and finish with roasted figs.

Goes great with Saison beers, Barleywines and Belgian Triples.

Enjoy!

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Brewing competitions are a time-honored tradition that allow brewers of any experience level to submit their best brews for judging and critique. The opportunity to get feedback on a brew is crucial for brewers. Anyone who’s brewed a beer or cooked a meal understands the value of an outsiders perspective in shaping a recipe.

Once again, I was recently afforded the opportunity to talk with Bob from the Weekend Brewer. This time when we talked, he had some really exciting news about a new competition that he’s sponsoring that’s on the horizon: the Virginia Only Ingredients Home Brew Competition. The competition takes place in February and will be the first contest to require that all Virginia ingredients be used. Among the suppliers are RVA Yeast Labs, Piedmont Hop Farm, Kelly Ridge Hop Farm and Woods Mill Malt House.

Bob Henderson and the Weekend Brewer have been involved with more competitions than Bob can recall. He’s taken part in more than 22 Dominion Cups, numerous West Hundred Opens, VA Beer Blitzes, James River Homebrewers contests and various other local and national competitions. It’s clear when you talk to Bob, that he’s passionate about brewing and he believes in the growth that’s brought about by competitions.

“Entering competitions allows brewers to feel out how their beers are received,” says Bob. Basically, brewers can use competitions as market testing to tweak their recipes based on feedback. It’s an amazing and intimate thing to see brewers putting forth their creations for critique. At the same time, it’s also inspiring to see what brewers come up with when experimenting with recipes.

Without competitions, beer styles probably wouldn＊t have evolved the way they have. Bob explained to me how classifications of beer have evolved, particularly in the case of the Pale Ale. A traditional English Pale Ale is defined as having 25-35 IBUs and containing 3.2-3.8% alcohol by volume. An India Pale Ale (IPA) will have 40-60 IBUs and contain between 5-7% alcohol by volume. There are more distinctions for American Pale Ales and Imperial Pale Ales, but you get the point. Beer styles and classifications evolve as brewers try new things and try to get new effects and flavors for their beers.

It’s hard to say where brewing trends will be in another 5-10 years, but you can bet that competing home brewers and the Bob Hendersons of the world will be the first to know. Every home brewer should get involved with the community and enter a competition or two. If you＊re up for a challenge and you want to represent Virginia, check out the details for the Virginia Only Ingredients competition in February.

EVERY EXPERT WAS ONCE A BEGINNERBy Rob Martin

Bob at Clusterbrew 2013

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Old Dominion Mobile Canning has added a second canning line to meet demand. With our expanded capacity we have more schedule flexibility and under daily capacity than ever. Since our inception we have filled over 2.4 million craft cans in Virginia and North Carolina. Brewers, the barrier to canning entry has been blown away! We have the ability to fill up to 100 barrels of 12 or 16 oz cans per day Low minimums and pay for only what you use Flexible configurations and adapters can fit us into almost any brewery Unmatched experience and support of the Mobile Canning Systems

affiliate network with over 10 million cans filled Use your capital to brew beer and let us take care of the packaging and

maintenance hassle that comes with packaging lines Extensive industry contacts to make the addition of cans to your

portfolio easy and smooth Cans are the Craft Beer Drinkers Choice Aluminum Cans are better for the environment than glass bottles. Cans cool down faster than any other beverage container resulting in

fresher, better tasting beer. Cans are extremely portable and perfect for outdoor activities. Cans are impenetrable to light and oxygen thus preserving the high

quality of craft beer. There is NO metallic contamination or flavor. Think of a can as a mini-keg for your craft beer.

Contact us at info@olddominionmobilecanning.com

THE ANSWER BREWPUB

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As the nights draw in, and the clocks eventually go back to normal, the beer drinker's mind naturally turns away from the refreshing beers of summer to something a bit darker, more intense. Soon we’ll see the beginning of 'the Holidays', five and a bit weeks of parties, soirees, over-eating, and, best of all, plenty of free flowing booze.

Seasonal beers, as the mercury plummets, tend toward the boozy. Barleywine, Imperial Stout, and many a Belgian over 8% abv. While they are all wonderful styles to drink ensconced in the warmth and comfort of your home, I sometimes wonder if they are the best thing to drink at the neighborhood Halloween party, Thanksgiving family dinner or company Christmas bash?

People that know me are more than aware that I am a fan, and perhaps even an advocate, for session beers. Those wonderful pints, proper imperial pints

naturally, of complex, flavorful brew that weigh in under 4.5% abv (sorry but 6% is not sessionable). Sadly, many relegate session beers to the warmer months, disparaging them with terms like 'lawnmower beer', but I am convinced that with so many parties to go to, this is the time of year when session beers come into their own.

With several hours of socializing to get through, I’d like to share a selection of Virginia session beers that will keep you happily coming back for more.

My first legal beer, as an 18 year old back home in Scotland, was Guinness, and I have been a fan of the black stuff ever since. Here in Virginia thankfully, is a dry Irish-style stout that simply surpasses modern day Guinness, not to mention Murphy's and Beamish as well. Starr Hill's Dark Starr Stout is everything an Irish-style stout should be, roasty, abounding in coffee and chocolate flavors, with a

medium body and when served at the right temperature, (about 50°F) a complex wonder of a beer. Best of all, its abv is just 4.2%, making it the perfect session stout for multiple pints. It is, quite rightly in my opinion, worthy of being the most award winning dry Irish stout in America.

A misunderstood and under-appreciated beer style on this side of the Pond is the Dark Mild, a low gravity, low IBU, beer that belies its alcohol content, usually below 3.5%, with a medium body, and an easy drinkability that lends itself perfectly to an evening's drinking. Based in Falls Church, Mad Fox Brewing makes some of the finest examples of cask conditioned ales I have had and uppermost on that list is Mason's Dark Mild. Served through a beer engine, with a sparkler naturally, Mason's Dark Mild is moreish beyond words; think fresh, warm, toast spread with Nutella and you are in the right ballpark.

For the hop heads amongst us, the Session IPA craze that seems to be sweeping the American brewing scene hasn't missed the attention of Virginian breweries, and arguably the best hoppy session beer available at the moment in the Commonwealth is Devils Backbone Bravo Four Point Session IPA. Hopped exclusively with the eponymous hops, Bravo Four Point packs a floral, spicy punch that more than satisfies any lupulin lover's need for a fix. Eminently quaffable, Bravo Four Point is a reminder that winter session drinking need not be all about darkness.

As social gatherings pile up, and the need not to embarrass yourself in front of the neighbors, in-laws, or even the boss, is an ever present concern, the session beer shines. Balanced, flavorful, and well suited to social lubrication, these are beers that you can enjoy multiple pints of without becoming the party pariah.

SESSION BEERS FOR THE HOLIDAYSBy Alistar Reece

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Wow. To say that the past few months have been crazy would be the understatement of the century. My initial thought in deciding to undertake this project was to be up and running within two to three years. How the tides have turned. I now hope to be open by late Summer/early Fall 2015.

The Virginia beer community has been an amazing resource for me. All of my friends in the industry have been incredibly generous with their time and advice. Every time I think I’ve hit a roadblock, someone appears to show me the way.

Trinkin’ Ben, who also happens to moonlight with Chesterfield County Government, has been a priceless resource in helping me find a suitable location. Initially, we both thought we found the perfect place, a warehouse in Midlothian that would become available in March 2015. There would be ample time to tackle the plethora of permits and licenses required to produce and sell beer. That property unfortunately fell through, but the hunt continues.

One huge break came from a conversation with Bill Cavendar of Black Heath Meadery. A few years back, Ardent’s Kevin O’Leary had purchased some 7 bbl brewing equipment from a defunct brewery in the Boston area. The equipment consisted of a kettle, mash tun, heat exchanger, and three refrigerated dairy tanks used as fermentation vessels. Bill had his eye on the fermentors, but didn’t have any need for the brewing equipment. On October 1, we flew up there together, rented a 26’ truck and drove everything back to Richmond. All of the equipment is repurposed dairy equipment, even the heat exchanger has ports labeled “MILK IN,” and “MILK OUT.” Everything had been sitting in someone’s back yard up in Boston for a few years, so it was all quite grungy, but a few days worth of elbow grease shined everything right back up.

The scariest and most unforeseen step in the process came when I lost my full-time job back in September. I soon had offers for other full-time jobs in related fields, but I have chosen to go with a part-time job with Mike Horn and Old Dominion Mobile Canning. This has both allowed me to gain more related experience and contacts, and has afforded me the flexibility as I remain focused on building my business.

I am still indecisive on a name, and that’s where the fine folks over at Campfire & Co have been incredibly helpful. They have continued to listen to me spout off what I want the brand to portray and then turn around and pitch thoughts and topics back at me. We have narrowed the decision down to a few possibilities, and hope to have something trademarked in the near future.

The remainder of the past few months has consisted of planning and meeting with people. By the time the next article is published, I hope to have my business plan and projections complete so I can begin showing them to my friends and family who have expressed an interest in investing.

I invite you to visit my blog at www.homebrew-inc.com for more detailed updates.

My dad and I brewing version 1.0 of my flagship beer- an Amber farmhouse ale.

THE HUNT CONTINUESBy: Brad Cooper

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804-780-ALES | CapitalAleHouse.com | Facebook.com/CapitalAleHouse | Twitter: @CapitalAleHouse

VIRGINIA’S

BEER AUTHORITYSERVING UP THE LARGEST SELECTION

OF CRAFT AND IMPORTED BREWS

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