Beers for Bro

Last Thursday night, I poured beer at the "Beers for Bro" fundraiser in Omaha. More than 100 very enthusiastic beer drinkers turned out for the occasion, as did fellow Nebraska breweries Upstream, Empyrean, and Spilker. They drank a sixth-barrel of my Novemberfest, and came damn close to killing of the sixters of Bugeater Brown and Tin Lizzie Hefeweizen too! The show officially ended at 9:00pm, but a few of us stayed until they kicked us out at 11:00.

The venue

The revellers

The hardcore

Russian draught beer dispenser goes international

This appears to be a device that allows beer bottles to be filled right in the store. I'm not sure how useful it would actually be, but it's kinda nifty.

A Russian company has made a device which it says allows retailers to sell draught beer easily from stores.



Pegas, made by Novosibirskprodmash, has been available in Russia for the past four years and is now being launched internationally.



The device can be installed into a beer column with or without a standard beer tap and can also be connected to a beer chiller or a beer line.



It is designed to be used with plastic bottles, which the company says are lighter, stronger and cheaper than glass.

Read the entire article at Drinks International.

Expert Nose

Live Science reports that "nearly everyone can train their brain for olfactory expertise" — great news for beer judges!

You can watch the video at LiveScience.com.

Beer after sport 'is good for the body'

This is something that hockey players have known for a long time: beer always makes you feel better after a game.

A beer after playing a game of football, a long run, or a strenuous round of golf can be good for the body, scientists say.



In a rare piece of good news for those who like a pint, Spanish researchers say beer can help someone who is dehydrated retain liquid better than water.



Prof Manuel Garzon, of Granada University, also claimed the bubbles in beer help to quench the thirst and that its carbohydrate content can help to replace lost calories.

Read the entire article at The Telegraph.

Miller to Expand Test of 64-Calorie Brew

"As light as it gets"...this is a good thing?!?

Chicago—Less than three months after introducing MGDL-64 in Madison, Wisconsin, Miller Brewing executives are strongly considering expanding the test throughout the Midwest as well as other territories, per a source.



The 64-calorie brew, also dubbed Miller Genuine Draft Light, debuted in August. Its tagline “As light as it gets” has appeared on retail displays as well as on out-of-home signage.

Read the entire article at BrandWeek. In the meantime, you want light? Drink bottled water.

$600 for Breast Cancer Research

Back at the beginning of October, I announced our pledge to donate my monthly sales bonus to cancer research. Thanks to our loyal customers, that donation totalled $602¹⁷! I passed the money along to the Gateway for Cancer Research this evening.

Thanks to everyone who lent their support! We'll do it again next year.

Quiet in here

I see I haven't posted much since the middle of October. I could say that's because not much has been happening around here since the middle of October, and I wouldn't be lying much. I could also say that I've been pathologically lazy lately, and I wouldn't be lying at all.

So here's the quick-and-dirty on the activities at Gottberg lately:

• Filtered the All-American Gold.


• Brewed Tin Lizzie Hefeweizen.


• Brewed Bugeater Brown.


• Did the mid-October taxes. Cleaned and filled kegs. Kegged off the old batch of Brown.


• More shots in the back. Physical therapy every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.


• Poured beer at the Oktoberfest in Leigh.


• Cleaned the draft lines. Calculated new wholesale beer and soda prices.


• Cleaned a bright tank and filtered Johnny the Jet's Red Beer into it. (It's not as red as I wanted it to be.) Tried to figure out how much hops we'll go through next year.


• Cleaned a fermenter.


• Cleaned and filled kegs.


• Kegged off the Princess of Darkness Porter and the Moll Dubh Irish Ale, and cleaned both tanks.


• Moved seven barrels of Root Beer downstairs. Filtered our Novemberfest beer. (I brewed it way too late and way too strong to be an Oktoberfest beer.) Spent the evening at the Pint Night at the Crescent Moon, featuring our Princess of Darkness Porter.


• Cleaned a fermenter.


• Filled kegs. Tapped the Novemberfest.


• Did October's monthly tax reports. Filtered the Bugeater Brown. Transferred the Tin Lizzie Hefeweizen.


• Cleaned the draft lines. Filled root beer kegs for Norfolk. Cleaned a couple dozen picnic taps. Sent letters to our customers outlining our price increases, to take effect January 1.


• Delivered the kegs to Norfolk. Cleaned two fermenters.

Same shit, different month.

Here's what's coming up:

1. Clean and fill kegs. Clean the tap faucets. Give a tour to 45 people.


2. Deliver kegs to Lincoln. Pour beer at the Gesu Housing fundraiser in Omaha.


3. Clean the draft lines.


4. Brew some Gold, Pale Ale, and maybe something else.