Slippin' into summer!

I know, I know. I've been "neglecting" my Brewer's Blog lately. Before you pass too harsh of judgement on me, hear my excuse.......I've been busy. NO REALLY!!
In case you haven't heard, my intrepid Assistant Brewer, Jim, has left good ole' GBC so he can fully devote himself to his own business, ImageQuest. So I guess you can say I'm a victim of Jim's success; his business has grown to such an extent that he no longer can work at the brewery. I am sad to see Jim go as he is not just a solid, responsible worker, he was fun to work with.

So, I've been picking up my jobs and the jobs Jim would do, keeping me crazy-busy! But fear not, beer lovers! We have a gentleman arriving this coming week to step into the Production Assistant position. When you stop into the brewery to satisfy your craving for your favorite Glacier Beer, pop your head into the brewhouse and say "Hello" to the newest member of the Glacier Brewing family.
This coming Friday night, June 5, is "Ask The New Guy 20 Questions" night.


.......by the way, does anyone know of a place in Polson he can rent?

Personal ethics.
We hear that term thrown around a lot. It's almost a buzzword, well, buzzphrase.
What about professional ethics?
I had a customer in our tasting room the other evening. It was just him and I and we began talking about the recent bill that passed to increase the amount of alcohol Montana breweries can produce and sell, HB400. This patron made his point that it was kind of silly to pass this since most breweries in Montana already product beers WELL in excess of 7% alcohol by weight (the current state limit). He even cited some examples into the double digits! I told him not all Montana breweries were thumbing their nose at the current law. He said to me "Name one that isn't currently making strong beer". I put my hand up. He pish-poshed me.

The examples this man gave were well known. I'm sure there are many readers out there that know of at least two breweries who have or are making beer in Montana stronger than 7%.
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not coming from the "Carrie Nation" camp (google it!). I'd love to make beer for sale 14, 15, 21%! Push the boundaries of malt and yeast!
Yet the fact remains: these are the rules we agreed to play by when we started this brewery, just like every other Montana brewer. You don't like being restricted to 7%? Lobby to change it! You don't like having to stop serving pints at 8:00pm? Lobby to change it! Don't just ignore the law and the rules and do whatever the hell you feel like doing. I guess the point of this little tirade is that these brewers could ruin it for the rest of us. The fallout of these callous actions could have a very real impact on ALL the Montana brewers. This is a tough enough business and we're restricted enough.

your humble brewer

Golden Grizzly Ale wins again!

My fellow beer lovers, I am very proud to announce that our Golden Grizzly Ale has won the Best Light Hybrid category second year in a row at the annual Garden City Brewfest in Missoula this last Saturday! Thank you to all the people who turned out for this fun event and thank you for supporting YOUR local microbrewery!
PROST!

still,
your humble brewer

#500!

Brewed batch number 500 yesterday!

Yup! Brew 500 is in the tank, fermenting (I hope) as I write this. I wanted to do something different with this one just because it is the arbitrarily significant number 500. So, bowing to sporadic public pressure, I concocted a very hoppy, American-style IPA! You read it here first! I know I've said in the past I'd never brew one of these, but I'm a push-over if harassed and badgered hundreds of times over a period of five years!
I really went overboard on this one. While I was crafting the recipe and researching the IPA style, I noticed that most "hoppy" IPAs had a bitterness "content" of around 40-60 IBU's (IBU stands for International Bittering Unit. This is a way to quantify how bitter a beer recipe will be. The higher the number, the higher the potential for a bitter, hoppy beer.). I then found some more "extreme" IPA beers that drove the IBUs into the high 60's and low 70's. Well, not wanting to be outdone and knowing how truly mad some of our local hop-heads are, I shot for the moon! This IPA (working title is Hoppy MoFo!) checks in with 80.6 IBUs! Triple-hopped! Extended boil! Alcohol around 6.9-7% by weight! I yelled and screamed at the wort as it boiled just to make sure I infused this sucker with plenty of attitude! This beer is scheduled to be racked (transfered into kegs) late next week or the next. I'll be tasting it as the fermentation progresses and will decide later if I need to dry hop it. Dry hopping is literally dropping more hops in through a hole at the top of the fermenter. This gives the finished beer more hop aroma. I did this on another very small batch of specialty beer I did in the past I called Stray Dog Ale. Whoo Hoo!
Oh yea, I'm still looking for a good name for this hoppy beer because Hoppy MoFo just might not cut it. So send me your name ideas to glacierg@centurytel.net.

In case you haven't heard, House Bill 400 (higher beer alcohol) passed and will go into effect October 1st. Huge thanks go out to Legislator Deborah Kottel (D) and Legislator John Brueggeman (R). If you run into either of these great Montanans, please shake their hand and thank them for carrying this bill through the houses so that it could be signed by our governor!


Until next time,
Your Humble Brewer

Back In The Saddle Again......

(Waterspout offshore Flagler Beach (June 30, 1999). Courtesy of Flagler County Emer. Mgmt.)

Well, Howdy Hi all and warm Spring wishes to ya'!

That's all I can give is "warm wishes" because our Spring here in Polson is definitely NOT warm. We're still getting snow in the morning, the bird bath is still frozen, and I'm still grumbling about the weather. For those of you keeping score, I was gone this last week. Gone to western Florida, gone to the white sand beaches of Carillon Beach, gone to the beautiful Florida weather, gone to.....tornado warnings? flash flood warning? water spout warnings??!? Yup, had almost a solid week of extreme downpours! Got one solid day of sun, though. The funny dichotomy for me was that while all this rain was falling (almost a years worth in one week), I was in a drought of good craft beer. I was warned before I went down there that the pickins' would be slim, but whoa doggy! Couldn't find a brewery anywhere in that area. I'd be lying if I said it didn't get me to thinking; thinking about the potential of opening a small microbrewery in that area. True, real estate and rent prices are through the roof (1.6 million for a three bedroom "hotel room"), but still it seems that area is ripe for it. I dunno, maybe western Florida just doesn't have as sophisticated of a beer palate as Montana. We are so fortunate to have so many really good Montana-made beers and breweries. So, almost needless to say, it's good to be back!I did miss April Fools Day at the brewery, however. Bummer. I was gonna lock Jim inside one of the tanks in the brewhouse as an April Fools joke. Oh well, maybe next year. Speaking of fun in the brewery, we have a fun, new event coming up the 18th of this month. We'll be doing a Luau party at the brewery! We're gonna have games, fun, food, great brews and who knows what else. Wear your best beach wear, drag out your tropical shirts, put on your flip-flops, show off your farmer's tan! It'll be $5.00 at the door per person and this BENEFITS THE CHEMOTHERAPY DEPARTMENT AT ST. JOSEPH'S HOSPITAL.
So remember,the date is April 18th, a Saturday, from 2:00pm 'til 8:00pm. C'mon down and help us help the Chemo Department at the hospital.

Now, also apparently, while I was gone, Jim and Bill and Cynthia (the three tap-a-teers) exercised their independence by offering beer specials in the tasting room. If you missed out, well, you missed out. People responded pretty positively. The brewery faithful enjoyed the spontaneity of these three. Now, I've offered this before with little feedback from you, dear reader. I'll offer it again: If there is something you'd like to see in our little dog and pony show, shoot me an email, write it on a scrap of paper and leave it in the mail box, whisper in my ear in the tasting room, anything but TELL ME!!!! Keep in mind that this is actually a business so suggestions like "Give away free beer" probably won't get much traction (I'd like to continue feeding my kids!). But, beer specials, whacky events, special nights, game nights, trivia, whatever. Just let me know. Okay, end of rant.

Until next time,
your humble brewer

STRONG BEER BILL UPDATE!!

House Bill 400 is up for a hearing before it goes to the Senate. This hearing will take place this Thursday.

BUT, before that hearing, please take a moment to contact the legislators and let them know in YOUR own words that you support HB400.

• This bill properly expands the portfolio of traditional craft beers that brewers can produce and retailers can carry
• It provides for greater use of Montana agricultural products
• It meets consumer demands and expands market access within and outside of Montana
• It helps small Montana businesses grow
• It provides access to craft beers that are generally available in all surrounding states, and in most states nationwide
• It does not create greater access to alcohol for youths in that traditional craft beers are generally highly priced (often $10 or more), and are marketed to adult beer connoisseurs, much like fine wines are marketed."

You can get a hold of your legislators in a couple of ways; 1. Call the switchboard at 406-444-4800 to leave them a message and 2. go to http://leg.mt.gov/css/sessions/61st/legwebmessage.asp. and fill out the online form.

After the bill passes this hurdle it's onto the Senate, then the Gov, then STRONGER BEER FOR ALL (with valid ID)!

your humble brewer!

New Outlet For Six-Packs!

Wake The Kids, Call The Neighbors!!!

For those of you who know us at the brewery, know two things: 1. We've been talking for a long time about putting our bottled beers into stores. And 2. we tend to take slow baby steps. Well, your patience has payed off. We now have three of our beers available in six-packs in the Polson Super 1 grocery store! What this means is that you, our loyal customer, are no longer tied to the, sometimes bizarre, fluctuations of our tasting room schedule. You will be able to get your mitts on three of our more popular beers whenever Super 1 is open. They are currently carrying our Flathead Cherry Ale, Golden Grizzly Ale, and Glacier Select Oktoberfest. It's kinda' surreal seeing our products sitting on a shelf next to Sierra Nevada and Blue Moon. How far we've come. Another outlet in Polson for our six-packs is the Polson Liquor Store where you can build your own six-pack! Two great Polson business now carrying our six-packs.

Before I forget, join us at the brewery this St. Patrick's Day from 4:00pm 'til 8:00pm to enjoy a gourmet dinner! Isabel's Bistro (another fantastic Polson business) will be catering this event. For $13.00 a plate you'll get a heaping portion of Isabel's famous corned beef, Irish soda bread with honey butter (drool!), sauteed cabbage, and roasted veggies! Space is limited so get your tickets early at the brewery.

Until next time,
I remain, your humble brewer