Back to your regularly scheduled Session Beer Day...

Sorry folks: couldn't blog, I was at a conference in Louisville and had some serious computer and WiFi issues. I'm back...but I've got a lot of work to do (including writing a piece on session beer for All About Beer magazine). So I'll just note for now that Untappd has come through with a sweet Session Beer Day badge (and thanks to Chris at the Notch for his help with that, and to the Untappd members who asked for it!), and promise to get back to you soon as I can with the press the day has received, and if I can, an updated list of places celebrating Session Beer Day. If I run out of time -- and it is Good Friday, and I'm a church musician -- go to the last posts and check it out, go to the Facebook page, and check Twitter for the #sessionday tag!

The DING Question: am I riddling the very fabric of the session beer universe?

The DING question has to be faced, and now, the day before Session Beer Day, seems to be a good time to do so. DING (he uses the sobriquet whenever he talks about beer, so I’ll do the same) is a session hardliner: he firmly believes that 4.0% is the top limit for session, period, and seizes every opportunity to make his point. Tirelessly. He believes that the 4.5% cap I’ve put on it here on the blog — and I’d remind everyone again that it’s just me and my reasoning — is not only wrong, but breaks tradition to the point of allowing much stronger beers to call themselves “session beers.” 

I disagree, of course. Yet I have to echo DING’s sentiments from a post on his blog two days ago, where he talked about meeting me for beers at Memphis Taproom recently (we wound up drinking Half Acre Daisy Cutter, and enjoying the hell out of it; not every beer is session beer, even for us, you know?): I found him to be affable, authentic, passionate, and not at all the wild-eyed fanatic some think he is. Simply put, the man knows his beer, loves beer and pub culture passionately, and is simply stating what he believes. We got along famously. Also, he insisted on buying the beer, which means he’s a damned gentleman!

That said...I felt I had to respond to his post, and address the whole 4.0 vs. 4.5 question, as there are partisans. DING strongly questions the arbitrary nature of my number, and that’s what I want to address: my definition of session beer, and what it means, and where we go from here. 

To begin: while I have said all along that the 4.5% cap I chose to make part of my definition was arbitrary, that's not the whole story. I could, after all, have been completely arbitrary, and capped "session beer" at 6.5%. That would have been arbitrary and indefensible. 

However, most reasonable folks have recognized that if we’re reducing this argument to an ABV number, setting a limit at 4.5% vs. 4.0% is a lot different than 6.5% vs. 4.0%. It’s hardly like DING’s absurd (deliberately so, I have to assume!) scenario of half a percent difference being tantamount to “an Englishman…calling a black beer, brewed with roasted malts and an average ABV of 8% a ‘Hefeweizen’”. That’s a bit off the mark, and reminiscent of the “beer as a gateway drug to heroin” argument we used to hear. It does fall neatly into the dogma of his contention that apparently the Beer Gods have decreed that 4.0% is THE one, true limit for session beer, and that it is, in fact, the ONLY definition of session beer: the ABV.

As an American, I disagree. DING has also said that we have no beer culture in America; again, I disagree, and the linkage of these two disagreements is the key. The beer culture of the UK (from an outsider’s perspective, admittedly) is in two parts: swilling piss-lager, and appreciating their wonderful contribution to beer, cask ale. (DING, in aside, said we can’t graft or create a beer culture, yet the UK’s cask beer culture apparently needed CAMRA to keep it alive; grafting doesn’t work, but apparently resuscitation is allowed, and that may be a good thing, since their politicians are apparently looking to kill their pub culture as well…but that’s another story.) Our beer culture, I would argue, is also in two parts: swilling piss-lager, and appreciating the entire spectrum of the world of beer.

Like America itself, we are an immigrant beer nation. We have not limited ourselves to one or two areas of beer — real ale in the UK, a spectrum of lagers in Bohemia, altbier in Düsseldorf and kölsch in Köln, wild and strong ales in Belgium — but grabbed all of it, embraced it, and taken our own spin with it. Some of those ‘spins’ have been so successful that they’ve returned to their origins and thrived there; see the stronger ales hopped with American strains in the UK, or the hoppier beers Belgian brewers are making.

Have we made mistakes? Certainly! Do we go in many directions at once? Why, to quote one of our great poets, “Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes.” But that is the heart of this. “Session beer” is not English “session ale”, it is large, it contains multitudes. We embrace the Belgian tafelbier, the German alt and Helles, the Czech Desítka, as well as the English session ales. 

To encompass all these types of tasty, low alcohol beers — these contradictions, these multitudes — we need a term, and not, as some have said, a “style,” but a group, a class, a meta-style. It is a shorthand for this wonderful arena of lower alcohol, the “left side of the dial,” as Chris Lohring put it. It is not just about English session ales, but in America we do speak English, so the term is ready to hand: session beer.

Do we “misuse a well-established one that means something else” as DING asks? Since the earliest uses of “session ale” only appear about 30 years ago, not back in the misty ages of antediluvian English brewing, I’d say “well-established” is a stretch. But even so, I’d say this was not a misuse, but a typical American adaptation. DING doesn’t seem to mind quaffing American “IPA” or “barleywine” or “imperial stout” that comes in several full percentage points above their British counterparts (acknowledging that the origins of those beers in the ‘misty ages’ may well have been stronger also), it’s just this particular half-point of ABV that puts a beer in his bonnet.

I’d also remind him that when he says the following, he’s speaking in a foreign land:

Notch Brewing have also drawn the line at 4.5%, but have taken it further than Lew by using the terms “American Session Beer” and “American Session Ale”. This is much more to my liking, since it clearly distinguishes that the definition being used is ‘American’ in origin and therefore should not be confused with the original, authentic one. I can live with that as long as the ‘American’ aspect is emphasized to distinguish it from the real McCoy.

We’re in America. We don’t need to preface things with “American,” it’s understood: we live here. That's not chauvinism, every country is that way. They don't call it "Canadian bacon" in Canada. And again…we’ve already distinguished it from the British session ale. That’s because it was never my intent to encourage the enjoyment and appreciation and brewing (and ensuing innovation) of English session ales alone, but rather to encourage the enjoyment and appreciation and brewing (and ensuing innovation) of all types of good lower alcohol beers. To make that more easily understood, I adopted a top limit of 4.5% ABV — and said this was “for our purposes” — and have stuck to that

Now, about Session Beer Day…DING has also taken me to task for “reporting breweries and bars that are going to promote session day by using beers well OVER his limit of 4.5%. Without strict adherence to the traditional limit, things just spiral out of control, and pretty soon we get 5.0, 5.5, 6.0 etc. being included and the whole concept of session beer once again becomes meaningless and lost.” 

Well, not true. If the brewery or bar has included beers within the session limit of 4.5% and under, I’ve “reported” them; if they haven’t, I haven’t had anything to say about them. I have noted the over-the-line beers, as recently as a week ago: “New Holland Brewing jumped in with a special price for the day at their pub. And yes, I know Full Circle weiss is 4.9%; don't be a hater, just get the Doug E. Fresh at 3.0%! Thanks, guys!”

That’s it: I don’t want to just rant and rave and be all “Get off my lawn!” But I will point out when people go over the 4.5% line and call it “session beer” or “sessionable.” Done so already, you’ve seen it here (it didn't hurt, either: Mustang is celebrating Session Beer Day with Session 33, a 4.0% beer: cheers, guys!). And here. I’m not being a hater, but neither am I going to let anyone dilute this. Trust me; it’s working too well already to give up.

That’s what I’ve got for you. Get out there and drink session beer…of all kinds…as long as you keep it at 4.5% and under. And while you’re drinking, let’s do what folks do while they’re drinking session beer: let’s discuss. Cheers, see you tomorrow at the amazingly successful Session Beer Day!

Bigger brewers joining Session Beer Day

Up till today, Session Beer Day was all about the little folks: me, you, some brewpubs, and some bars. Today we got support from some much bigger friends!

New Holland Brewing jumped in with a special price for the day at their pub. And yes, I know Full Circle weiss is 4.9%; don't be a hater, just get the Doug E. Fresh at 3.0%! Thanks, guys!

And then, just after I got calmed down, I saw this on Twitter from @GooseIsland :

Make sure you're prepared for #SessionDay on April 7th, drink anything under 4.5%. 312, Honkers Ale, and Old Town Yard would qualify!

Thank you, Goose Island! Now...if we could get some Levitation Love at Stone World HQ...and some official love from our favorite session brewers in Philly, Yards and Philadelphia Brewing...and maybe some shout-out from Vanberg & DeWulf over Avril and Jade...my Session Beer Day world would pretty much rock. 

High and Mighty: mighty damned tasty

Massachusetts is lucky: they have two brewing companies devoted to drinkable, flavorful, session-to-middling strength: Notch, and High and Mighty. I drink both of them* whenever I can. High & Mighty has a lot of fun, and their beer philosophy sounds a lot like mine:

Sure, we used to like IPA quite a lot, and we still enjoy a pint now and then, but, as is the case with such things, our taste changed over time, and we found ourselves going back to classic European beers. We weren’t going to try to recreate those, either, but we like to think that our beer leans more in that direction, with a decided American accent.

Although I like IPA more than "now and then," I'm liking the classic European beers a lot. So H and M's Beer of the Gods (Germanic lager) and Two-Headed Beast (stout) hit me right in my happy spot...and they're both 4.5%. Thanks, guys!


*If it matters to you, both Notch and High and Mighty are contract brewers: they brew their beer at an existing brewery (Notch mostly at Mercury/Ipswich, High and Mighty at Paper City). I'm mostly of the "how's the beer taste" school of thought on this, and both outfits are run by people who know good beer, and have been involved with it for years. Just so you know.

Session Beer Day Participants: where YOU can celebrate!

We have our first official participants in Session Beer Day!

Cape Ann Brewing in Gloucester, Mass., will be tapping their 3.5% Rauchbier on Session Beer Day.

A natural participant, where they do great session beer every day: "We are thrilled to participate in Session Beer Day at the Pratt Street Alehouse in Baltimore. We will be offering our three "session" year round brews (Blonde Ale 4.3%, Dark Horse Mild 4% & Bishop's Breakfast stout 4.4%) at the special price of $3/pint on April 7th."

Add Prism Brewing in North Wales, PA to the list: "We're brewing White Lightning today, a 4.2% ABV wit brewed with chives. Should be done in time for a 4/5 tapping, so count us in! We'll run it at $4 a pint on that day as well!" Nice!

If YOU are hosting a Session Beer Day event, please add it as a comment to this post! Update: there are more events already; please check the comments for more Session Day events.

I don't mind this getting out of control...as long as it's about session beer at 4.5% or less. That's pretty much the only guideline. It's not about "sessionable!"

Eagle & Lion: another session-loving brewpub

Caught wind of this place recently: the Eagle & Lion Brew Pub (clever name for a place in Griffin, Georgia). I'll let their website tell the story:

The Eagle & Lion Brew Pub is now open for drinks and food. The unique brewery specializes in English-style Real Ale served from the casks they were conditioned in. The brewer, Mark Broe, trained at Brewlab at the University of Sunderland and worked several years at the Grand Union Brewery in London. The opening line-up will include a mild, an ordinary bitter, a gold, a special bitter, a single-hop varietal IPA, and a stout. The 8 barrel brewery is from the Birmingham Brewery in the UK. Craft keg beers will be featured along with interesting bottled beers, as well as a full service bar. The scratch menu emphasizes pub food and changes daily.

Currently, the house beers include Tipsy Toad (3.7%), Golden Eagle (4.2%), Brass Monkey (4.2%),
Yes Face IPA (4.5%), South of Taylor Special (4.5%), and the non-session but what the hell I'll throw it in anyway East Griffin Stout (5.0%). Now there's a session beer line-up! They do have non-session guest taps, too, so you can take your big-beer insistent buddies along (and carry them out if they try keeping up with you). 

About that sticker...

We've mentioned the Session Beer Project sticker a couple times. It is for sale at CafePress here. It's $3.74 plus postage; less than a buck of that goes to me. I'm not even sure why any of it goes to me; but it's minimal on all the merch there (including the big SBP hoodie I'll be wearing on Session Beer Day).

The reason I bring it up is because there are now two of them out there (and it only took three years...). Piper's Pub in Pittsburgh is now proudly displaying one, as seen below. This is the regular model; there is also a clear one now. Great way to show your sessionality!

Bulls Head Pub does a session beer takeover on April 7

I know, I was going to put all the events in the comments section of the Session Beer Day post down below, but this was so cool I decided to give it a whole post. Paul Pendyck's Bulls Head Public House, in Lititz, Penn. is doing a total session takeover on April 7! If you didn't already know, Paul's a cask beer guru, a cask consultant, and one of the people most responsible for bringing good cask ale to America. This will be session beer done right!

Session Beer Day, April 7

All beers will be 4.50% abv and all pints will be $4.50!

On Saturday April 7 bars and breweries throughout the US will be participating in Session Beer Day.  The Bulls Head will be participating by having a tap takeover of session beers (as long as we can get them all in!) Either way there will be plenty for you to try. In addition, all the beers that are served in pints will be priced at $4.50!

(Session beer is close to my heart as growing up in England most of the beers offered in pubs are session beers.) 

How about that! If I didn't have to sing at home on the evening of April 7, I'd be dropping anchor at the Bulls Head!

MORE session-friendly brewers: two NEW ones

Nimble Hill Brewing Co. (at Nimble Hill Winery) is in Mehoopaney, Penn. (really, look it up), and is so brand-spanking new that according to brewer Michael Simmons, "Our first brew as a new brewery will be an English Mild, called Fuggle, at 3.5% ABV. It will be ready by April 7th! It will be available in draft only, at restaurants near Tunkhannock, Penn." That's west of Scranton, and proves again that even rural Pennsylvania is rapidly getting hip to craft and session beer.

Next up is a brewery far from the Wyoming Valley: Strike Brewing is based in San Jose, Calif. They recently told me that "We are a three month old brewing company in the Bay Area and launched with a series of session beers. Our Blonde is 4.6% [very close...], Wit 4.3% and Brown is right at 4%." 

Pretty cool stuff, and thanks to both Nimble Hill and Strike for giving session a shot!

Another session-friendly brewery: Pateros Creek

Pateros Creek Brewing in Ft. Collins, Colo. also reached out thanks to the Session Beer Day buzz. I got this from "Beer Maker" Steve Jones:

I just found out about this and I am stoked! I have been brewing session beers for a while and when I (Pateros Creek) opened my doors last June I had opened with the thought of doing only session beers. That has changed some and I have a few that are over 5%. I know that you are saying 4.5% is the top so I was mistaken there as I couldn't find enough literature on the definition of session (no one can, Steve; we're happily winging it!). I have been creating small beers for my customers but being in Colorado, it has been hard to garner support at times. Everyone wants crazy amounts of alcohol in their beer (easy to hide flaws and get drunk I suppose). Anyway, I am going to have some sort of celebration on April 7th for Session Day. #sessionday

I'm pretty stoked, too! Steve currently has Old Town Ale (a kölsch) at 4.5%, Car 21 Best Bitter at 4.5%, and Remittance Ale (a mild) at 3.1%. Hope to hear more about his Session Beer Day celebration!

 

Barley John's Brew Pub -- sessioning along

Got an email recently from Brian Lonberg, head brewer at Barley John's Brew Pub in New Brighton, Minnesota. Just gonna reprint the pertinent bits; he's doing session beers, and I know you'd be interested. (They just celebrated their 12th anniversary, too: congratulations!) It's a sure bet they'll have session beer on Session Day, too. He's still using "sessionable," but I figure that could take a while for me to stamp out completely...(that's tongue-in-cheek, Brian!)

I have been following your blog for a little while now, and have a couple of session beers that would be prefect for your blog.
Our Little Barley Bitter (year-round beer!) is a pretty excellent example of a British Bitter, clocking in at 3.5%.
Our Northern English Brown Ale is also quite sessionable at 4.3%.
And at 5.2% (assuming you're still calling that sessionable) we have our newest seasonal called Vulgare's Munich Dark - a Dunkeles that is anything but your common lager. (It's not session, but I'm a big fan of Dunkel, so I certainly wouldn't kick it out of bed.)

Good to know more folks are doing session regularly (and doing lagers, too!). 

Session Beer Day, April 7!

I suggested to the members of the small (but rapidly growing) Session Beer Project page on Facebook that we should make April 5th (4.5) or April 7th (Little Repeal Day, when 4.0% ABV beer became legal before repeal of the 18th Amendment) our day, Session Beer Day. We could ask for session beers at our favorite bars, and brewpubs, and suchlike, invite people to try them, gin up plenty of social media whoopee, and all dat.

We decided on April 7: there are a lot of photographs of a LOT of Americans happily drinking 4.0% beer we can use, it's a day the beer industry is already aware of, and...it's a Saturday this year (the day before Easter, which is actually kind of weird for me; I have a tradition of drinking big beers that afternoon), which doesn't hurt when you're planning a beer event!

What to do? If you work at a bar (or manage one, or own one), please consider throwing some under-4.5% beers on for April 7th, and making a special price or promotion for them. Tell folks it's Session Beer Day, and encourage them to see how good lower alcohol beers can be. (Good day to get a "We Support" window sticker, too!) If you're a brewer or wholesaler, encourage your accounts to pick up your under-4.5% beers for that day; it's a great chance to promote those beers! If you're a beer blogger/tweeter/writer, please consider spreading the word about Session Beer Day: use the hashtag #sessionday . And if you're a session beer drinker...get out there and ask for it!

Stout Day!

I posted over at my other, main blog about St. Patrick's Day, and while some of it's about whiskey, there's a good chunk about how this is a huge session beer day. People suck down dry Irish stouts of various manufacture -- mostly Guinness -- and they're almost all under 4.5%. It's a good day for session beer, and I should have done more to point that out. I have to think about this stuff!

Hmmm...maybe April 5th -- 4.5 -- as Session Beer Day?

Blatant Session

I picked up some beer in Newton, Mass at Marty's last Friday when I picked up Thomas from BU; a sixpack of Notch Pils -- just cuz -- and 22 oz. bombers of Cambridge Brewing's Audacity of Hops, and Blatant Brewery's IPA and Session. I'd seen pictures of those three on Facebook, and made a stop at Marty's mostly to get some (and partly because I'd just done a telephone interview with Marty Siegal two weeks before, and was really interested in seeing the store -- rightly so, it's freakin' awesome). Of course they had Blatant: their distributor is Atlantic Importing, run by Marty Siegal's son Sean. I brought them home and have been waiting for the right moment.

Tonight we had burgers grilled outside in the cool evening, and we wanted something not to boozy: we're closing on our refinance in about 15 minutes. Blatant Session, at 3.9%, sounded perfect. Cathy's first sip put a smile on her face: "Oooo, that's yummy." It was a bit like Stone Levitation, but without the forward malt, and without quite as urgent a hop character. Tasty, bitter, good malt backbone, and very finishable.

I'd like to spend some time at a bar with this, three Notches, and the Sam Adams Belgian Session on tap, and play some cards, and talk some politics, and watch some baseball. I feel that day may not be so far away anymore. Maybe I was wrong about last year being the Year of Session Beer. Maybe it's this year.