Among brewers and brewery owners, Rob Palmer has a rather distinctly succinct and no-fuss approach to everything from running his namesake brewery to handling interviews. He also has a, not necessarily worldly, but stately view of the New Mexico beer scene after his time as the president of the board of directors at the New…
Author: Stoutmeister
Former sports writer in Tucson, LA, and Burque. Now I write about craft beer, which is a totally reasonable way to support my hobby of spending afternoons and evenings indulging in the finest stouts, lagers, and more.
Ex Novo and 25 other breweries paired up for return of United in Beer festival
While some of us (well, me) were working on Sunday afternoon, reps from 25 different breweries joined the Ex Novo staff at The Corral for the second United in Beer draft day. For anyone who missed it last year, United in Beer is a collaboration festival, with those breweries paired up at random. The goal…
Lizard Tail feels optimistic even after closing kitchen at main location
Kitchens can be a weird and fickle thing for breweries to maintain. At some places, the kitchen becomes the star of the show, such as Nexus. At others, they remain a constant headache. For Lizard Tail Brewing, the Industrial location’s kitchen was always more of the latter. Owner/brewmaster Dan Berry finally decided he had enough…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Edgewood adds a new craft brewing option
The East Mountains have another craft beer option at long last. JUNO officially announced the opening of their long-awaited Edgewood taproom, something that was first mentioned back when the former Dialogue Brewing was rebranded after the pandemic lockdown. It’s just a soft opening for now, with daily hours from 4 to 9 p.m. The kitchen…
Bombs Away aims to drop even more lagers that core customers demand
When a brewery finds its niche, it should always embrace and expand that comfort zone. For Bombs Away Beer Company, the connection to the military has always been there, and now from a brewing perspective, that niche has been found, too. I recently caught up with co-owner/head brewer John Degnaro and assistant brewer Ryan Benefield…
The Week Ahead in Beer: High and Dry gets its kicks with anniversary No. 6
After Valentine’s Day, Mardi Gras, and the Super Bowl, it would be perfectly sensible for breweries to take it easy this weekend. Most are doing just that, but High and Dry has an anniversary to celebrate, and the show must go on regardless. There are special T-shirts for sale, a new lager (High Desert Life)…
Brew Lab 101 stays focused on positives amid a year of significant growth
Brew Lab 101 is not just a Rio Rancho brewery anymore. Heck, it’s not just a New Mexico brewery anymore. To explain what that means, I caught up with owner/brewmaster Scott Salvas for our Look Back/Look Ahead Series. Rather than trek across town, we met up at the Northeast Heights taproom that Brew Lab took…
Stout Challenge: The end has arrived
There will not be a Stout Challenge in 2024. No, no, not the Brewers Guild event, that is the Stout Invitational, and it is still being held at Bathtub Row Brewing in Los Alamos on March 2. Tickets will be on sale soon, and we will share the link. We are referring to our Stout…
The Week Ahead in Beer: A confluence of holidays and one big game
This almost midpoint of February feels a bit jammed, doesn’t it? There is the Super Bowl on Sunday, Mardi Gras on Tuesday, and Valentine’s Day next Wednesday. It certainly gives the breweries plenty of fodder for the weekend, with events themed around one or all of the three holidays (let’s face it, at this point,…
Kilt Check begins process of transforming into Bossfight Brewing
When brewer/owner Mike Campbell passed away last year, the future of Kilt Check Brewing was left up in the air. Would the brewery close down? Would it be sold to new owners? Or would some members of the Campbell family choose to keep it going? The latter now appears to be the fate of the…
DARK SIDE BREW CREW 