Is American beer any good?

The idea of weak American suds is being laid to rest by the boom in indie ales, stouts and pilsners

Ask most people where the best beer in the world comes from, and they'll probably say Germany or England. More worldly folks might mention Belgium.

But ask a beer aficionado these days, and odds are you'll get an answer that might surprise you – the good old U.S.A.

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MicroFueler Turns Stale Beer Into Gas

The dream of a home ethanol pump has been realized, says the New York Times, thanks to inventor named Floyd S. Butterfield. One of the world's only celebrated non-hillbilly still-makers, Butterfield has invented the $10,000 E-Fuel 100 MicroFueler, a gadget that combines heaps of sugar and a sprinkling of yeast to ferment an alcoholic brew which it then distills into ethanol. The notion is that, as long as the price of sugar stays relatively low, it could cost about $1 per gallon to make the fuel. It's even cheaper when you put un-drunk stale beer in the system: Since the fermentation is done, all it takes is the electricity to distill the beer into fuel for your car.

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The Murphy Twins

Two men were sitting next to each other at a bar.

After a while, one guy looks at the other and says, "I can't help but think, from listening to you, that you're from Ireland."

The other guy responds proudly, "Yes, that I am!"

The first guy says, "So am I! And where abouts from Ireland might you be?"

The other guy answers, "I'm from Dublin, I am."

The first guy responds, "Sure and begora, and so am I! And what street did you live on in Dublin?"

The other guy says, "A lovely little area it was, I lived on McCleary Street in the old central part of town."

The first guy says, "Faith & it's a small world, so did I! And to what school would you have been going?"

The other guy answers, "Well now, I went to St. Mary's of course."

The first guy gets really excited, and says, "And so did I. Tell me, what year did you graduate?"

The other guy answers, "Well, now, I graduated in 1964."

The first guy exclaims, "The Good Lord must be smiling down upon us! I can hardly believe our good luck at winding up in the same bar tonight. Can you believe it, I graduated from St. Mary's in 1964 my own self."

About this time, another guy walks into the bar, sits down, and orders a beer.

The bartender walks over shaking his head & mutters, "It's going to be a long night tonight, the Murphy twins are drunk again."

Report: Climate change will threaten beer production

We all know already that climate change will affect everything from food prices to cute baby polar bears.

But now it's really hitting home, folks. A report from a researcher at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in New Zealand suggests that rising temperatures may threaten beer.

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Beer For Helga

(I appologize ahead of time for this. Ed.)

It was a hot day in Minnesota. Helga hung out the wash to dry, put a roast in the oven, & then went downtown to pick up some dry cleaning.

"Gootness, it's hotter dan hell today," she mused to herself as she walked down Main Street. She passed a tavern & thought,"Vy nodt?"

So she walked in & took a seat at the bar. The bartender walked over & asked her what she would like to drink.

"Ya know," Helga said, "it is zo hot, I tink I'll have myself a cold beer."

"Anheuser Busch?" the bartender asked.

Helga blushed & replied, "Vell fine, tanks, und how's yur viener?"

Brewer of the Month

This Month's brewer is Rob Lanius

Rob has been brewing with MR.BEER® for almost 2 years now, and enjoys experimenting with his own custom brews. Most recently Rob has brewed one of his own recipes called Howlin' Hozer Jalepeno Brew at about 6% ABV. Rob likes a little kick in his beer!

Started brewing: April 2006
Favorite beer: Howlin' Hozer Jalepeno Brew
Favorite food: Cheese filled Jalepeno
The person Rob would most like
to share his beer with: Joe Montana

Do you or someone you know deserve to be the next brewer of the month?
Contact us at 1-800-852-4263 or e-mail brewmaster@mrbeer.com

I want some beer "Action"!

Question:
Dear BrewMASTER, Everytime I brew, the amount of 'action' I get in my keg is different. What's up?
Mixed Up Mike, Jasper, AL

Answer:
The amount of 'action' you see during fermentation will vary depending on a number of things. To name a few, temperature, the amount of fermentables, and the heartiness of the yeast will all affect your fermentation process. But rest assured, the key to a successful fermentation is not how active your keg is, but that you give your brew enough time to complete its process. A good tip is to keep your keg within 3 degrees of 73f create an optimal brewing environment.