Coming soon: Cookout NYC!

Howdy Nation!  Squigs here.I prepared to write this entry by taking a look at THHG posts from last year, and I got that warm, fuzzy, fluttery feeling when you realize that vacation is almost here.  Time for sunshine and BBQ and great beer!

Cookout NYC hits the Big Apple July 7 & 8, 11:30am to 4:30pm each day.  The brainchild of Jimmy Carbone and the gang at Food Karma Projects, the Cookout features fantastic chefs from all over the city, grillin' and picklin' and otherwise ticklin' your tastebuds.  In addition to the piles of meat, there's a kimchi-eating contest, family activities, and live music.  And local fave Sixpoint will be bringing out its "Signal" smoked pale ale (likely the best brew we've ever paired with grilled vittles) as well as six more in their beer arsenal.  (This is the July Good Beer Month featured event!)  Ticket prices are tiered for general admission, with beer (four drink tickets), and premium (plenty o' suds). Check 'em out HERE.

One big perk of this event is the location.  Governors Island hangs tough at the southern end of the East River with stunning views of Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Lady Liberty herself.  And Admiral's Row, the exact location of the Cookout, typifies the genteel and historic feel of the island: tree-lined and lush.  It's a great daytrip to take even when there's not a festival, but how much sweeter is the getaway when a Cookout's involved?  And the ferry to the island is FREE and leaves from its own mooring just north of the Staten Island Ferry Terminal.  (Check out the Governor's Island site for more info: calendar, info, travel, etc.)

Will you join us?  Slather up with sunscreen, don your BBQ bib, and hydrate.  Cookout NYC is what's HOPpenin', y'all!

Collesi: Award winning craft beer from rural Italy.

Howdy, Nation!  Squigs here.  The Happy Hour Guys were recently invited by our pal Adam Levy – "The Alcohol Professor" and founder of the New York International Beer Competition in its exciting inaugural year – to experience the fine wares from the 2012 NYIBC International Brewery of the Year.

The fine beers of Collesi!Collesi comes to us from Apecchio, a small town in the foothills of the Italian Alps.  Giuseppe Collesi was looking for ways to diversify the offerings of his family farm, and research led him to form Fabbrica della Birra Tenute Collesi.  Working in Belgian style ale production and taking advantage of the resources at hand – the water coming out of the mountains and the grains and malts from the land his family has been cultivating since the early 1870s – Giuseppe created an absolutely wonderful line of artisinal beers.  Speaking of the water, the minerality of the land seems to affect a crispness to the beers that is somewhat unique to Italian beers.  Collesi's offerings are the true bounty of his home.  We sampled the Chiara (wheat), Bionda (blonde), Ambrata (amber), Rosa (red), Nera (stout), and Triplo Malto (triple malt).  I particularly enjoyed the Rosa which was full-bodied with a lovely sweetness, the Nero which was surprisingly light for a stout but with great flavor including a lot of cappuccino, and the Triplo Malto which is created with, yes, triple the normal malt (more sugars, more alcohol) resulting in a refreshing but complex blend of fruit and yeast and malt.  The Triplo Malto might be enjoyed as one would drink champagne.

Collessi is indeed looking toward distribution in the US, and this will be aided by their new state of the art brewing facility opening this autumn.  So, keep an eye out for these fine artisinal craft ales with roots deep in the Italian countryside.  That's what's HOPpenin', y'all!

Wonderful artisinal craft ales from Apecchio, Italy. Brewmaster Giuseppe Collesi (at center).