Issue: September October 2009
Features
A Vine Grows in Michigan
by: Jessica Daynor
It’s the Midwest's best-kept secret: Michigan farmers are growing hops. Are we just a season away from a slew of Great Lakes IPAs?
How To: Hand-Crack a Lobster
by: Jessica Daynor
Three Tides’ David Carlson and Anglers’ Buddy Hall explain how to properly dismantle a soft-shell lobster with no hardware.
I (Heart) Lobstah
by: Jessica Daynor
It’s soft-shell lobster season in Maine, which is obvious because even the local McDonald’s is selling lobster rolls. Jessica Daynor hunts down shellfish in Mid-coast Maine, and picks up craft beer and a New England accent along the way.
Nine Beer Innovators to Watch
by: Assorted
Now approaching a decade of unbridled growth, craft beer is clearly no fad. It's also no secret that inventive men and women -- those watching the brew kettles, teaching at brewing institutes, manning the stoves at beer-centric restaurants -- are responsible for creating fine brews and the buzz that makes them worthy of the limelight.
Saint or Sinner
by: Noah Davis
Vincent Kartheiser isn't an asshole, but he's great at playing one on TV. The 30-year-old, Minnesota-born actor, who embodies the do-anything-to-get-ahead Pete Campbell on AMC's hit show "Mad Men," is actually a quite a nice guy.
The Cocky Chef
by: Jessica Daynor
Stefan Richter, our favorite ball-busting Top Chef contestant, has a new Santa Monica restaurant, Stefan's at L.A. Farm, and a mild obsession with pale lagers.
Vincent Kartheiser's Five Favorite Los Angeles Watering Holes
by: By Noah Davis
Vincent Kartheiser -- Pete Campbell of "Mad Men" fame -- shares his five favorite L.A. bars.
On Tap
A Beer Garden Fit for Queens
by: Laura Siciliano-Rosen
New York City’s outdoor drinking scene just got swankier: Studio Square, in Long Island City, Queens, is a new 30,000-square-foot beer garden that marries German tradition with modern sensibility.
Breweries and Bakeries: Kneading Each Other
by: Laura Kiniry
Belgium-born Olivier Vrambout is one smart guy. Since November 2008 the owner and head baker at Stillwater, Minnesota’s Bikery, a combination bike shop, café, and bakery, crafts bread using spent grain from the city’s newly established Lift Bridge Brewery.
Chain of Suds
by: DRAFT Staff
Scoping out local, hideaway brewpubs is one of travel’s great perks, but sometimes you just want beer you can count on. Here are our favorite chains that ensure whenever you’re away, you’ll feel right at home.
Crafty Communions
by: Laura Kiniry
Brewery/bakery partnerships are rising across the nation, and carbo-loading’s never been easier.
DRAFT Pick: Schmohz Zingiberene Ale
by: DRAFT Staff
Before beer, there was gruit -- hopless brew that gleaned its bitterness from wormwood, juniper, yarrow, or whatever happened to be sprouting in the brewer’s yard.
GABF Survival Guide
by: DRAFT Staff
A bit overwhelmed by the raucous beast that is the Great American Beer Festival? No worries; we're spilling the four tips to make your experience smoother than an oatmeal stout.
Three Biergartens to Remember
by: DRAFT Staff
Want to swig somewhere traditional? These three biergartens offer stein-swinging, Bavaria-style fun.
Top 10 Beers Without GABF Hardware
by: DRAFT Staff
Meet 10 of our favorite brews that have never scored at the Great American beer Fest.
Trek
Ride The Blue Ridge
by: DRAFT Staff
Located in the heart of Virginia’s wine country, in the foothills of the bucolic Blue Ridge Mountains, four breweries are proving that vino isn’t the only spirit worth touring.