I happened to be in SF for an unrelated matter (buying a used guitar), and was in the neighborhood, so I thought I'd take a pilgrimage to Anchor Brewing, to say farewell. more...

It was with an incredible sense of sadness that I read the press release today regarding Sapporo's decision to cease operations of Anchor Brewing, and liquidate the assets (see here and here). I find it very difficult to believe that they were unable to find a buyer. Sapporo has made some unbelievably stupid changes to the operation since their 2017 purchase of the brand: the awful re-branding in early 2021, the decision to discontinue to iconic Christmas ale earlier this year (despite apparently already having purchased all the ingredients and consumables!), and decision (also earlier this year) to limit distribution to just California. Suspiciously myopic decisions. more...

When the Camp Fire raged in northern california, Sierra Nevada Brewing took an interesting approach to raising awareness about the fire, and donations for the victims. They decided to create, and publish, a recipe for a unique IPA called Resilience IPA, dedicated to supporting victims of the Camp Fire. They sent out the call to fellow breweries, and in all, over 14,000 commercial brewers and countless homebrewers across the nation agreed to all brew this recipe, and donate the funds raised through sale of the beer to Camp Fire victims and relief organizations. more...