SUMMER 2014

www.vbcf.org

THIS ISSUE5—6 HaRdywood RUnS down THE RivER7—8THE SCiEnCE wiTHin THE CRaFT: yEaST in Rva9PUT SoME SUnSHinE in yoUR GlaSS11—12 all Hail CaPiTal alE13—14THE Ball iS RollinG14 aS CRaFT BEER GainS PoPUlaRiTy in viRGinia, SiMPliFy REGUlaTionS15CEREBRal KniEvEl19 dEMon dayS waFFlES wiTH BaCon 20 dRinKin’ wiTH TRinKin: THE TaP liST yoU’vE BEEn waiTinG FoR21 loCal MUSiC REviEw

OUr TEamCreative Director Matt GoodwynDesign Peachu MahantCreative Copywriter nakita Rowell-StevensCover Photo Chris JohnsonLocal music Sarah Moore lindseyWritersJeff o’donnellKatie GoodwynGarry Kranzalistair ReeceKristel PooleBrad CooperJeff ScullyRobert MartinMalachy McKenna & dr. Jason Ridlon

Virginia Craft Brews is a publication dedicated to a cause, while extending the stories of the people im-mersed in craft beer culture. This community shares its experiences on homebrewing, local hops, Virginia breweries and regional music. VCB attends various craft beer festivals and events to promote the publica-tion and collect donations. Our publication can also be found at all 5 Capital Ale House locations in Virgin-ia and has a donation lock box. Ad dollars are used to print hard copies for a separate release each season and we donate 5% of ad sales to the cause. We grow organically as more people get involved, providing local beer and small businesses with a unique voice. Each publication’s success is dependent on community support. Get involved today and tell your local brewer you support Virginia Craft Brews!

With our sponsors and readers help, we provided over 1,250 meals to needy persons through Feed More during Fall and Winter! Thanks to everyone for your support. It’s time for Summer! We know you will go out with the ones you love and enjoy all that these small businesses have to offer! Don’t be afraid to tell small business owners and craft brewers thanks for all that they do. They are the backbone of our communities. Thanks to all the small businesses that supported the spring edition and our efforts to raise money for the new spring and summer cause, The Virginia Breast Cancer Foundation!

For more information visit our website at www.virginiacraftbrews.org or contact Matt Goodwyn at matt@virginiacraftbrews.com

The Virginia Breast Cancer Foundation is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, and exists, thanks to its many generous individual donors and volunteers. VBCF’s mission is the eradication of breast cancer through education of and advocacy for Virginians. Our goals are to establish the end of breast cancer as a state and national priority, to advocate for the collective needs of people affected by breast cancer, and to educate all Virginians on the facts about breast cancer.

Over the last 20 years, The Virginia Breast Cancer Foundation has successfully advocated for national and state legislation that ensures funding and access to screening and treatment of breast cancer for all. National accomplishments include increased federal funding for breast cancer research and treatment and bills mandating insurance coverage for treatment and procedures—including the Breast and Cervical Cancer Treatment Act. www.vbcf.org

w w w . v i r g i n i a c r a f t b r e w s . o r g www.vbcf.org

Hardywood Runs Down The River by Katie Goodwyn

What’s your favorite local brew? Like many of you, my favorite is Hardy-wood Park’s Singel. So when my husband, Matt, asked me if I wanted to come along to Hardywood’s brewery for an interview for this publication, he didn’t have to twist my arm . A cold Singel, served to me directly from the brewery keg, on a hot summer evening…I was in.

When we arrived at the beautiful space that is Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, Matt and I met with Patrick Murtaugh, the Brewmaster and one of the co-found-ers of Hardywood.. Patrick told us that his business partner and friend, Eric McKay, would be calling in soon to join us for the interview. So the three of us each grabbed a cold Singel and our chat about the James River Rundown event began. Hardywood Park Craft Brewery sup-ports the James River Association, and the brewery’s participation in the JRA’s recent fundraiser was another way Har-dywood could help promote awareness about the association’s work to protect the James River. The 100-mile paddle took place on June 20 & 21. Patrick, Eric, and Eric’s younger brother, Chris, were ‘Team Hardywood.’ Below is what Patrick and Eric told me and Matt about their experience. Cheers!!

Matt: How did Hardywood Craft Brew-ery get connected with this event in its first year?Patrick: The James River Association is one of the charities that we support. I happened to run into Sherry, who coor-dinates a lot of the events for the JRA, at the Conch Republic. She was going into a meeting for the James River Run-down. I asked her about this event, and the more she told me about it, the more interested I became. I told her that Har-

dywood would be happy to host their organizational and planning meetings for the Rundown.Matt: So the JRA started meeting at Hardywood to get everything orga-nized for the event. At what point did you and Eric think it would be a good idea to join in on this endurance chal-lenge? Anything with a limit of 40 hours for completion is intimidating to most people. Patrick: We decided to get involved right away. Eric has participated in some triathlon races and I was on the crew team in college, so we were up for this challenge. But once we got out there on the river and started the 100 miles, I realized that I do a lot of things that sound fun but end up being painful. Katie: Tell us about Hardywood’s team. It was 3 of you in one canoe, right?Patrick: That’s right-me, Eric, and Eric’s younger brother, Chris. Matt: That’s a lot of weight in a canoe…Patrick: Yeah it was- and we brought a lot of stuff, too. We weren’t exactly in it to win it, but we knew we had to finish by a certain time the next day. It was also Eric’s birthday weekend, so we made sure to have some fun out there. We did some swimming and fishing on the first day.Katie: Any luck?Patrick: No, but we did see a huge cat-fish and a few long-nosed gar…(looks at his cellphone)…that’s Eric calling us now. Hey Eric!Eric: Hey guys…sorry I couldn’t be there in person. I’m in the car traveling back to RVA from visiting with my folks. Matt: It’s all good. Thanks for calling in to talk.Eric: Of course…this was an awesome event.Matt: And I hadn’t said this to Patrick

yet, but congratulations on finishing the race. I don’t think all of the teams finished. Eric: Yeah, just over half of the teams completed the race.Katie: Wow….Eric, what was your favor-ite moment during the trip?Eric: Well, crossing the finish line was a relief…But on day one I think I had the best camping dinner I’ve ever had.Patrick: It was an awesome dinner. We were at the confluence of the Slate Riv-er and the James, about 45 miles into the race. There were race volunteers from the JRA there to assist us as we got off the river. Once we settled in, we made ourselves a dinner of steak ka-bobs, kielbasa, and ramen noodles.Eric: And of course we had Hardywood beer…Patrick: We turned some of the beer into a great sauce for the food.Katie: Which Hardywood beer did you take with you on the trip?Patrick: Our Capital Trail Pale Ale. Eric: We were out of Great Return.Matt: Yeah, it would have been fitting for you guys to take that beer on this trip. It’s awesome that $10.00 per bar-rel of The Great Return IPA went to the JRA.Eric: Yeah, we look forward to bringing that beer back soon.Katie: We will look forward to that, too! Well, what other memories will you guys take from that night on the river?Eric: One of the coolest, most memora-ble visual experiences for us was when the lightning bugs lit up the tree line af-ter the rain came. Patrick: It was a light show. It was in-credible.Eric: There wasn’t much moonlight. The trees were lit up. It was beautiful.Matt: So you guys got some rest and

the second day on the river was a bat-tle, right?Patrick: Yeah we woke up feeling sore, and we knew we had to get to the finish line by 6 p.m. Eric: Day 2 was a lesson in being syn-chronized and focused. It presented some amazing physical and mental challenges.Katie: Patrick, did being on the water remind you of any crew team experi-ences from college?Patrick: Well, the paddling is very dif-ferent, but certainly being on the water evokes memories for me…And we set little goals for ourselves. For example, we timed our one-mile splits.Eric: This improved our paddling as a team and helped us to keep a steady pace. This helped us get into a groove and we started to see the light at the end of the tunnel.Matt: Speaking of grooves, did you guys listen to any music on the trip?Patrick: We actually started listening to some tunes in the last few miles of the trip, and we started feeling really good that we were in the final stretch.Katie: What were you guys listening to?Patrick: I think it was Mumford and Sons Pandora.Katie: Awesome!Matt: Well, we really appreciate you guys supporting Virginia Craft Brews again, and I know the James River As-sociation appreciates your support as well.Eric: Yeah, we love what you all are do-ing, and we hope that the James Riv-er Rundown becomes a staple in the community and that more people get involved in the coming years.

You can read more about the race at www.jamesriverrundown.org

Hardywood Runs Down The River by Katie Goodwyn

There has been a strong movement in the RVA to “buy fresh, buy local”, and with good reason. Local products don’t require extensive shipping, which both inflates, prices and increases our envi-ronmental footprint. They also do not sit in warehouses or on shelves for ex-tended periods of time—losing nutrients or viability. With a burgeoning Virginia Craft Brew market exploding, with no end in sight, we—two local scientists—have answered the call for fresh, local yeast. “Our passion for homebrewing led us to talk to professional brewers in Virginia and throughout the East-ern United States. We began to see a great need for a local yeast producer,” explains Malachy McKenna, biologist and co-owner of RVA Yeast Labs LLC. McKenna has teamed up with Dr. Jason Ridlon, a research microbiologist who also teaches fermentation and micro-biology to undergraduate and gradu-ate students. “Microbiology and brew-ing go hand-in-hand. Very soon after we started brewing, I began stocking yeast strains from commercial vendors, capturing yeast from bottles, and we soon began isolating yeast from Vir-ginia fruit orchards. We started win-ning medals in homebrewing competi-tions with our native ‘Virginia yeast’,” says Dr. Ridlon.

The spirit of the craft brew movement boasts innovation and experimenta-tion. The diversity of malt, hops, fruits, spices and other adjuncts ensures a vast range of experiences. Add the di-versity of yeast to this mix and the sky’s nowhere near the limit. It has been said that, “brewers make wort, yeast make beer”. This is in no way to dimin-ish the role of the brewer, who guides the craft – carefully arranging the ele-ments to please the yeast such that the brew produced pleases the palate. All

things being equal, the strain of yeast chosen will greatly affect flavor and aroma profiles. We encourage brew-ers to do an experiment: split a batch of wort and pitch two very different strains of yeast – then taste the results in the company of good friends. Or, split a batch using the same strain and ferment at two different temperatures. For instance, RVA 302 will make a nice malty bock beer at 55°F, but raise the temperature to 65°F and you now have a California Common. When making wheat beers, altering both pitch rate and temperature can result in very dif-ferent Hefeweizens.

Yeast are single-celled microorganisms abundant in nature. Some strains of Saccharomyces, or “sugar fungi” have been domesticated by brewers, vine-culturalists and bread-makers. Another group of wild yeast, the Brettanomy-ces, are different beasties altogether—producing flavors and aromas ranging from pear and pineapple to what has been referred to as “mousey”, “horse-blanket”, and “barnyard”. These two latter groups of microbes are consid-ered welcome guests by brewers or trespassers. The use of bacteria, most notably of the genera Lactobacillus and Pediococcus can also create some amazing sour flavors. RVA Yeast Labs offers a wide range of all of the afore-mentioned microbes to accomplish the flavor profiles desired by beer brewers, wine makers, cider and mead makers.

The brewing traditions of Belgium have greatly influenced the American craft brew scene. This includes the use of native yeast. RVA 804, our “Orchard Brett,” is the first native strain to hit our product list. Captured from a Virginia fruit orchard, it makes an excellent tart cider and adds complexity to Belgian

THE SCIENCE WITHIN THE CRAFT: YEAST IN RVABy Malachy McKenna & Dr. Jason Ridlon

beers. We have isolated yeast from the farm at Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery (LCCB) and used it to brew some Belgian style beers with great re-sults. We hope to enable the brewery to produce an all LCCB beer as they have been growing hops, grain and other items on their beautiful property in Goochland.

We are now in the habit of carrying sterile tubes wherever we go as one never knows when a location will inspire a native capture. Recently, Jason did a native capture from Dunnottar Castle, while at a microbiology conference in Scotland, and we are currently charac-terizing yeast isolated from this locale. In recent weeks we have had the plea-sure of working with David Goode of Piedmont Hops, LLC and Swift Creek Berry Farm. It’s always wonderful to interact with people passionate about what they do. David showed us around the farm where he grew up, the same farm that is now growing hops for the local beer scene, thanks to his vision. We sampled from the plump blueber-ries, hop leaves, and oak trees on his farm hoping to have captured a unique yeast strain.

One of our customers and good friends, local mead pioneer Bill Cavender, has helped push our interests into wine yeast suitable for fermenting mead, the oldest alcoholic beverage. Mead is sugar-rich yet lacking in other nutri-ents. Our fresh liquid yeast has shown to be extremely favorable for mead and wine fermentations. We will soon be adding several wine strains to our offerings thanks to our work with Bill, who is preparing to open Black Heath Meadery in Richmond this fall. Further exploring honey, we have been working with Valerie West, Vice President of the

Richmond Beekeepers Association, in two ways – first as a source of amaz-ing local honey for which to aid us in learning the art of mead making, and second, as a potential source of yeast, as we are in the early stages of testing yeast we isolated from her bee hives.

Breweries currently experimenting with our strains include Triple Crossings Brewing Company, The Answer Brew Pub (both in Richmond), Roanoke’s Big Lick Brewing Company and Late Start Brewery in Tampa, Florida.

Although available to order via rva-yeastlabs.com, look for our products at Original Gravity in Richmond where Tony Ammendolia is excited to offer some of the yeasts that are harder to acquire commercially, such as RVA 103 Pacman Ale and RVA104 Headytopper Ale. We should also be available soon at The WeekEnd Brewer in Chester where Bob Henderson is very interest-ed in the native strains we are devel-oping and seeks to hold the first “all Virginian ingredient homebrew compe-tition” where only Virginian hops, grain and native yeasts can be used.

In sum, RVA Yeast Labs is a local yeast propagation company dedicated to working and growing with the local craft movement. We provide the fresh-est yeast for optimal fermentation and will work to ensure that the growing ranks of craft-fermented beverage ar-tisans have an ever-expanding range of tools for which to create their art.

For more information, ordering instruc-tions, and where to find our products go to rvayeastlabs.com. Check us out on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

CALL US! 804-264-4808

BEER gARDEN FRoM PlzEN IN THE CzECH REPuBlIC WITH PRAguE BASED BloggER/WRITER MAx BAHNSoN oF PIVNI FIloSoF FAME

TASTING BEER AT GARDEN IN PLzEN WITH PRAGUE BASED BLOGGER/WRITER MAx BAHNSON

There is, it has to be said, something wonderful about drinking beer in summer. Is there anything better in life than sitting on the deck of your favorite boozer, pint in hand, watching the world go by? Well, I can think of one thing, sitting in the garden of your favorite brewery tap, cut off from the noise and bustle of everyday life, surrounded by a throng of other people out to enjoy beer in the open air. It is days like this, when the sun is shining and everything is right in the world, that simply demand lager.

OK, I am biased. I spent 10 years living in the Czech Republic, with regular trips to Germany and Poland for good measure, so for me a well made lager is the height of the brewers' craft. There is, quite frankly, nothing to compare to the utter simple delight of a half litre of Pilsner, preferably Bohemian of course, a draft of Vienna, or a mug of Helles. A beer you can drink in four or five mouthfuls, order another, and just keep on until the sun decides you have had enough.

Thankfully, as I have been so happy to discover since moving to Central Virginia five years ago, there is enough excellent lager being brewed here to make my summer lager drinking days more than sepia tinged nostalgia. Here is my selection of must drink Virginian lagers for those long, lazy summer days and nights.

Originally a seasonal, Port City Downright Pilsner is the closest American made pilsner to the many wonderful beers I drank throughout Bohemia and Moravia. Classic in its simplicity, pilsner malt, Saaz hops, water, and yeast, Downright is also unfiltered, and lagered for 30 days. In a slight de-parture from tradition, Port City dry hop, the beer with more Saaz, giving it a wonderful lemongrass and freshly mown grass aroma. At 4.8% abv, it is ideal for an afternoon of sun kissed drinking. The first time I had Downright at a party I was hosting for Czechs and Slovaks in the Charlottesville area, an older Czech gent, who had escaped the Soviet invasion of 1968, took a long mouthful and declared to the gathered room, 'now this is Czech beer'. Is higher praise possible?

Three Notch'd Brewing in Charlottesville has been a revelation in general since they opened their doors in 2013, so when I got word that they were releasing a pilsner, I was naturally intrigued. Of.By.For. is a slightly stronger pilsner at 5.6%, which is hopped exclusively with Sterling hops. Beautifully golden in color, with an aroma that showcases both Sterling's own distinct lemon character, as well as its ancestor Saaz's grassiness. Behind the hops is a solid malt base, like honeyed Graham crack-ers, which balances the beer perfectly. Like all great summer lagers, Of.By.For. has a long, lingering, clean finish that makes it insanely easy to wander to the bar and just order another.

Where Pilsners remind me of the simple pleasures of Bohemian village life, Vienna Lager feels more cultured, metropolitan, and even urbane. The deeper color, the additional sweetness, and the smoother mouthfeel screams sophistication to me, and nobody does Vienna Lager like Devils Backbone, not just in Virginia, but pretty much anywhere on the planet. At the heart of a true Vien-na lager is Vienna malt, just a touch darker than Pilsner malt, and with an added touch of bready sweetness. Devils Backbone's Vienna balances the additional sweet malts with a firm, yet unobtru-sive, noble hop bitterness that lingers, quenching your thirst, demanding you take another mouthful.

When that inevitable Virginia heatwave strikes, put your IPAs, amber ales, and barrel aged beers to one side, rediscover the simple pleasure of flavorful lager, and put some sunshine in your glass.

Put Some Sunshine in Your Glass by Alistair Reece

Virginia’s craft brew industry barely exist-ed when Capital Ale House opened its first restaurant on 623 E. Main Street in down-town Richmond in 2002. Legend Brewing Co., the now-defunct Richbrau and Com-mercial Tap House and Grill were pretty much the extent of the Richmond area op-tions available to microbrew aficionados.

A handful of craft breweries were scat-tered elsewhere in Virginia, but by and large, Old Dominion beer drinkers were stuck with select imports or commercially mass-produced domestics from conglom-erates, whose focus on profits often came at the expense of quality.

That is what makes Capital Ale’s ongoing success such a cool story. Since launch-ing their first restaurant, co-founders Matt Simmons and Chris Holder have expanded to five locations in Virginia, in-cluding four eateries in Richmond, one in Fredericksburg and one in Harrisonburg. Each location offers a varied selection of small-batch-processed craft beers—a tes-tament to the surging microbrew industry in Virginia and nationally.

Maybe it’s the other way round; the surge in the number of craft beer makers here is a testament to Capital Ale’s growing Virginia footprint. Either way, some peo-ple considered it a crazy notion to open a casual-upscale restaurant featuring craft beers by mostly unknown brewers —especially in Richmond, often viewed

as stodgy and set in its ways. The Main Street location was the center of much criti-cism, situated next to government buildings and vacant storefronts, naysayers predict-ed the venture would flop, like other restau-rants along that same corridor.

But, Simmons and Holder, both restau-rant veterans, firmly believed otherwise. Shortly after closing bank financing on the 19th century-era commercial prop-erty, they recruited friends and fellow beer enthusiasts to help transform its 6,000-square-foot interior. Exposed brickwork was restored, along with orig-inal hardwood flooring. Legacy wiring and rusted pipes were ripped out to make way for modern infrastructure. Soft pendant lighting was installed in place of garish fixtures. Walls were adorned with artwork reflecting Richmond’s history.

Physically reconstructing the building was only step one, however. An even bigger task awaited- to imbue the place with a jazzy coolness, an “exclusive-to-everyone” vibe that is elegant without being snooty. This, of course, was no small feat, consid-ering the prior tenant was a redneck beer joint serving Pabst Blue Ribbon on tap and a table-sized “Big Ass Pizza.”

Selecting which beers to offer was the easy part. The hard part was developing the menu, choosing the right paint colors and hiring competent staff that knew and understood the craft-brew industry.

ThE BEginning of ThE BEginningNo one would have blinked if the Main Street property had been occupied by another hole-in-the-wall beer joint serving the standard fare of nachos and wings. But from the start, Capital Ale’s founders had a fundamentally different vision for their company. The goal was to serve a full-featured menu of food items, comple-mented by an assortment of local craft brews. And, these items were high-end entrees and appetizers, not haute cuisine.

Microbrews rule the roost at each Capital Ale House location. No “crap on tap”—just a diverse inventory of small-batch brews from Virginia, some other states, and even Europe. But Simmons is no beer bigot. The size of the batch doesn’t matter “as long as it’s a good beer,” he says, noting that Capital Ale sells select name-brand beers with a reputation for high quality.

Capital Ale House-Main Street is the mother ship of all six locations. It was re-designed to take full advantage of its his-toric architecture, a massive undertaking that took about six months. It debuted Nov. 2, 2002, pouring microbrews from 30 taps and offering more than 250 va-rieties of bottled beer.

The company never had a formal grand opening. The plan was to have a soft opening, get established, then sched-ule a gala grand opening later. That all changed hours after the doors first opened at E. Main Street. By the time patrons were standing three-deep at the bar, Simmons and Holder knew they had a hit. A beehive of customers kept the place buzzing until closing time. Finally, with clean-up and setup complete around 4 a.m., beers were hoisted in a mutual toast.

MICRoBREWS, NATuRAllY. It’s worth noting this all happened in

the pre-Facebook, pre-Twitter era. No tweets or posts. Word-of-mouth was used to spread the news about Capital Ale House’s debut. Sitting in a booth at his restaurant at Innsbrook Shoppes in Richmond’s Far West End, Simmons re-calls the weary euphoria of that heady opening night. “I remember thinking, ‘We did it. Dreams come true,’” Simmons says between sips of a Northern Lights IPA by Starr Hill Brewery in Crozet.

SETTINg A HIgH BARCapital Ale House is arguably a big rea-son for the growth of micro-brewing in Virginia, which appears to be evolving from a cottage industry to a full-fledged sector. More than 80 craft breweries re-portedly operate across the state, nearly double the number from 2011.

When its Main Street restaurant opened in 2002, the number of Vir-ginia-produced craft beers could be counted on one hand. Few restaurants routinely stocked craft brews since they were unfamiliar to most patrons and difficult to obtain through distri-bution channels. Capital Ale explicitly reversed that by reaching out to dis-tributors anxious to bring their entre-preneurial products to a wider audi-ence. In the early days, Simmons and his staff tasted every beer personally before buying a keg. Quality control can be a tough assignment, but Sim-mons & Co. proved up to the task.

Market saturation is changing those dynamics for craft breweries. Now, microbrews are more often selected based on their reputation or at the suggestion of customers. Compe-tition for tap space is forcing some distributors to narrow their focus to regional markets where customers know them.

All HAIl CAPITAl AlEThE Virginia rEsTauranT chain ProBaBly has donE MorE To adVancE ThE causE of Virginia crafT BrEws Than any oThEr BusinEss. By garry Kranz

Along those lines, Capital Ale has beefed up its Virginia selection of craft beers at all its restaurants. The 10,000-square-foot Innsbrook restaurant pours craft beer from 66 taps, about 40 percent from Virginia breweries.

Simmons got his start in the restaurant business at 16 when he was hired as a dishwasher at an Applebee’s restau-rant in Jacksonville, Florida. Eight years later, he had advanced to gen-eral manager of another Applebee’s location near Jacksonville. He spent nine years shuttling to different Ap-plebee sites across the U.S., working both as a corporate manager and franchise manager, eventually getting transferred to Richmond. His extensive traveling enabled him to sample craft brews from different regions of the country and sowed the seeds for the birth of Capital Ale House.

Soon after arriving in Richmond, Sim-mons started frequenting Legend Brew-ery, overlooking the James River in Rich-mond. He got a growler imprinted with his name—a rite of passage for members of the “mug club.” Although Applebee’s was fertile ground for learning the restaurant business, Simmons sensed a kindling de-sire to run his own operation – one fo-cused on finding and promoting obscure but high-quality small-batch brews.

In 1997, he left Applebee’s behind and went from patron to employee at Legend Brewery where he was hired as general manager. That’s where he met Holder, a former manager at Ukrop’s Grocery Stores Inc. who then, was working at Legend as a part-time bartender. Becoming the hub of their business connections, Legend is also where Simmons and Holder met Mike and Linda Jones, who’d eventually become pri-vate investors in Capital Ale.

The quartet bonded over their mutual enthusiasm for great-tasting beer, es-pecially batches from small regional producers. They vowed they would one day try their hand at running their own restaurant, oriented around a reasonably priced upscale menu and highlighting top notch microbrews.

That formula has enabled Capital Ale House to distinguish itself and win a base of loyal customers across Virginia. But one would be remiss to focus only on the beer and overlook the painstaking atten-tion given to its menu items, staff train-ing and customer service. This attention to detail shows up in how the restaurant presents itself.

Rather than jeans, t-shirts or flip flops, servers wear a standard uniform com-prised of black slacks and a black oxford shirt emblazoned with the Capital Ale House logo. They have enthusiasm and knowledge of the craft beers on tap and are trained to suggest appropriate menu pairings to customers. This aptitude is em-phasized when recruiting new employees and special training is used to reinforce it.

Many restaurants let beer distributors place “table tents” hawking their ware, not Capital Ale House. Likewise, you won’t see beer banners draped on the restaurant walls. And it may seem trivi-al to some, but only real dinnerware and silverware are used—nothing plastic or disposable. Subtleties perhaps, but these understated touches are designed to connect the restaurant to a higher stan-dard of quality.

That’s why most people associate Capi-tal Ale House with craft beer and giving start-up breweries a chance to shine. As Simmons notes, “Every day is a beer festi-val at Capital Ale House.”

Chris holder and Matt siMMons after doing soMe deMo work and the bar in ConstruCtion—suMMer 2002

“Hey Brad, I’m going to order a pitcher of beer, do you want to split it with me?” Brandon asked me.

“No thanks,” I replied, “I really don’t like beer that much.”

“Just try it; this beer is different.”

It was mid-August 2007, and the Old Corps had just returned to the VMI bar-racks in Lexington. I was a junior, and before the rigors of cadet life began at 0700 the next morning, some friends and I had decided to go out to our favor-ite bar, The Palms.

I didn't like beer very much, but my friend Brandon Page had bought a pitcher of Samuel Adams Boston Lager. Prior to this I’d only had lite beer from the big three, and couldn’t quite understand the ‘hype’. However, as soon as I had a taste of the Sam Adams, I began to understand what Brandon meant. This beer was different. It was like walking around with earplugs in my whole life, and then suddenly tak-ing them out.

“Oh,” I said. “Now this is a beer I can drink.” From there, my journey into the amazing world of craft beer began. We soon found another restaurant near-by that had about twelve rotating taps. That became our new Saturday night hangout spot, as that was the only time underclassmen were allowed uptown.

Fast forward a few months to the an-nual Butler Cave Conservation Society (BCCS) Spring digging weekend - the club owns a 19th century log cabin, and over 150 acres of land in the mountains, full of caves. Every Spring, members and friends from all over the country descend on this tiny spot of God’s country to try and find the next ‘big one.’

Many of the members also home-brew beer and that is where I had my first taste

(pun intended) of this fascinating hobby. I also discovered the existence of sour beer here with a Russian River Consecra-tion that really caught me off guard. My friend Nate Walter, brewer at Mckenzie’s in Pennsylvania, handed me a glass and said, “This one’s a little different.” It was.

As soon as I returned home for the sum-mer, I found out about the Weekend Brewer in Chester and paid them a visit. After talking with Bob and Jean about the process, I purchased the starter kit and two cans of “Continental Pilsner” malt extract. A few agonizingly slow weekends later, I had a drinkable beer! Pretty soon, it seemed as if my friends and I were brewing something nearly ev-ery weekend.

One evening at the monthly meeting of the James River Homebrewers, Eric and Patrick, the founders of Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, stopped by to promote their new brewery opening. They asked for volunteers, and like any red-blooded American man, I signed up. Volunteer work continued throughout the fall and winter, until finally, in the Spring I was hired as a part time employee. I quickly fell in love with the industry and the people.

After about a year of part time work, I earned a promotion at my full-time job that began to demand more and more of my time. Reluctantly, I left Hardywood, but with renewed vigor to one day return to the beer industry.

Since leaving Hardywood, whenever I vis-it a brewery, I look around at all the shiny stainless steel… everyone having fun over a glass of beer… I smell the sweet aromas of boiling wort and fermenting beer… and I think to myself, “One day.”

The next day I return to work, I sit in my office at my computer, jump in my truck and head out to the mine and watch all the heavy equipment roll by. I drive all

THE BaLL IS rOLLIngby Brad Cooper

over the state meeting with different cus-tomers to try and solve their problems… and I think to myself, “One day.”

I mostly kept my dreams to myself for fear that I wouldn’t be taken seriously. I was afraid that if I tried and failed, people would only remember me for my failure.

A few weeks back, I was at Sergio’s Pizza in Midlothian for their new bar opening. I was having a beer with my friend Blaine Hess. As I looked around the bar, I said to him, “That day is now.” I gave him my vision of my own brewery, and to my sur-prise he replied, “Hmmm… sounds great! Let’s grab a beer sometime soon and dis-cuss this.”

Since then, I have had meetings with him, brewery owners, the editor of this publi-cation, and various other people in the industry. I have had many conversations with people that have expressed interest in investing. The ball is rolling.

I will be writing an ongoing column for this publication detailing my progress to-ward my ultimate goal of owning my own brewery. I am still in the very early stages of research and planning. I am goal set-ting, and hope to have the following tasks accomplished by the next publication:

Secure a business partnerSecure a business lawyer and CPADefine my marketing strategyBegin looking at real estate

For further progress updates or addition-al information, please visit my website at www.homebrew-inc.com, or contact me by email at brad@cooper-enterprises.net.

Politics aside, people like good beer. And the craft brewing industry is growing in Vir-ginia. More than 80 craft breweries have opened up shop in the commonwealth and many more are in the works. This burgeon-ing, dynamic, artisanal industry has created about 51,830 industry related jobs in the state. However, for many young people looking to start craft breweries and become a part of the beer world, navigating the reg-ulatory maze is a significant barrier to entry.

Regulations in the craft beer world are no new phenomenon. Many laws from the pro-hibition era—laws that should have disap-peared in 1933 when the 18th Amendment was repealed—still linger. They regulate the production, distribution and consumption of beer, and consequently, keep many young beer brewing hopefuls out of the game due to exorbitant start-up and compliance costs.

According to a recent paper released by the Mercatus Center, a brewer in Virginia completes about twelve regulatory steps before they are able to produce and sell their product. These regulatory procedures are expensive and time-consuming. Each regulatory step can take up to 100 days to process and can cost up to more than $2,000, depending on the license, serving as a substantial obstacle to entry in the industry. These burdens hurt brewers and consumers alike: by making competition harder, consumer choices are limited only to those companies large and rich enough to play the government regulatory shell game.

In 2012, Governor McDonnell signed Sen-ate Bill 604 into law—allowing breweries to sell pints of their product onsite. This fact alone is staggering: a law was needed to al-low producers to sell their products to con-sumers. What industry has such burdens? Before SB 604 was enacted, a brewery was

as crafT BEEr gains PoPulariTyin Virginia, siMPlify rEgulaTions By Jeff Scully

o P/ E D

required to serve food, forcing brewers to own and operate two businesses—a brew-ery and a restaurant. That’s like requiring Virginia car dealers to sell sweaters.

But even though SB 604 has eased some of the licensing burdens on start-up brewer-ies, regulatory hurdles remain. To obtain a license to open a brewery, the entrepreneur must meet arbitrary standards like having “good moral character,” for instance. Like-wise, a brewer can be denied a license for equally arbitrary reasons.

While SB 604 is a definite step in the right direction for Virginia craft beer, there are many other proposals that are nothing more than a perpetuation of the prohibition-style status quo. As the industry grows, lawmak-ers have a tendency to propose tax exemp-tions and subsidies for new craft brewers. This is the craft brew equivalent of covering a cut with duct tape and calling it stiches.

In order to actually help craft brewers, the regulatory process needs simplification and clarification.

Any producer should succeed or fail be-cause his or her product either meets consumer demand or it doesn’t. In the fair marketplace brewers should be treated no differently than other industries. The regula-tory maze of bygone laws from the puritan-ical past should have no bearing on the in-dustry’s overall success. Brewing good beer, on the other hand, should. People like good beer. Virginia laws should not make that a political issue.

Jeff Scully, 26, is the Virginia State Director for Generation Opportunity, a youth advocacy organization.

If there was ever an aptly named establishment in the Capital City, it is Legend Brewing Company. The story of this microbrewery is epic, from its humble beginning as a small tasting room/pub on a gravel road in Richmond’s Manchester District to becoming a full scale restaurant and pub that can now seat almost 400. With a small beer garden and a deck with a singularly amazing view of the James River and downtown Richmond, a menu that boasts some very delicious options and incredibly tasty brews and an operation that services three states and produces tens of thousands of bottles of beer every week, Legend has come a long way to its realization as one of the area’s premier gathering places for good food, great times and exemplary craft beer.

Legend recently celebrated twenty years of operation in Richmond. That is quite an accomplishment for any business, and it certainly says a lot about Legend’s loyal following in central Virginia and the quality product they provide to their customers. To coincide with Legend’s twentieth anniversary, Matt Goodwyn and I decided to sit down with a long time employee of Legend, P. J. Seay (PJ), and ask him to tell us some things about himself and his profession. PJ is a Cellarman who has been at Legend for fourteen years. Looking like he just walked off the set of Vikings or Game of Thrones with his long hair and beard, PJ is as amiable and easygoing as he is large and intimidating. He was more than glad to tell us some of his story and some of Legend’s as well.

PJ says that he was not too interested in beer before being hired at Legend. His “German mother” gave him a Mr. Beer home brewing kit for his 21st or 22nd birthday when he “discovered Legend

Cerebral Knievel by Jeff O’Donnell photo by Aaron Sanders

(he) discovered beer itself.” Having previous jobs as diverse as a disc jockey to an apprenticeship at his father’s engineering firm, PJ had just been laid off when he was introduced to Legend. He was sitting at the bar talking to the current head brewer when he was told they needed bottlers. At that point, PJ was unemployed no longer; he started as a full time bottler, the “entry level job,” immediately. He has since performed most every job or task concerning brewing Legend beers and ales, and he is now a Cellerman, the title he prefers to go by. Explaining the difference between Brew Masters and Head Brewers, PJ told us that “we don’t put on airs here. We make beer here.” He has seen Legend go from producing 22 ounce bottles to 12 ounce bottles; he has witnessed the evolution and modernization of their production process and the use of new technology to continue to brew, as PJ describes, “an everyday, drinkable beer.” PJ told us that the goal of Legend is to “make every single batch taste exactly the same” and they have an extensive quality-control initiative to make certain that happens.

He states Legend is expanding their production to meet the needs of their customers and to serve those who have discovered Legend’s quality craft beers.

PJ obviously takes great pride in making the best craft beer he can make, but he does not like the word “artisanal.” He states that term appears to “put the burden of quality on the consumer and not on the producer,” which should not be the way it works, so he prefers “craft beer” when referring to what Legend does best. He says that “everyone at Legend is a salesperson” in that every employee has the responsibility of getting the word out, in their own way, that Legend is doing something very special. PJ says there is no favorite part of his job; he likes “all of it,” arriving at 6:30 or 7:00 am every day. After 14 years, he still does the 1:00 pm tour every Saturday, showing the brewery to people from as far away as Australia and Germany.

When he is not crafting great beer for Legend, PJ builds model remote control boats and spends time with the

Richmond Model Yacht Club. PJ builds his boats from scratch, but he also makes cigar box guitars and ukuleles. He also enjoys gardening and playing with his dog, Auger. As far as his personal beer tastes, PJ likes German style beers, “big lagers,” especially in mug #204 from the Legend Mug Club that bears the name “Cerebral Knievel.” When asked why his mug was named that, his reply was “for the intellectual stunt show.” PJ likes many different kinds of music, especially electronic and industrial, but has lately been into the Me First and the Gimme Gimmes. Fatboy Slim and Daft Punk are also favorites.

Most can claim to have seen quite a lot in 14 years, and PJ is no exception. He told us of the time he saw two local weathermen get into a fight at the bar. But he also told us that he sees, every day, both blue collar workers and millionaires sitting side by side at the bar, all enjoying good camaraderie and refreshment together. Beer, according to PJ, is an “egalitarian” drink that “binds all of society together.” Does that sound legendary? You bet it does.

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The Demon Days Red Ale from Triple Crossing Brewing Company in Richmond is a blood red beer with malty and hoppy notes that provides great balance and offers hints of coffee, toffee and smoke. It’s not as bitter as some other reds on the market, which makes it perfect for a sweet and savory dish like waffles. The yeast in beer makes it a perfect, albeit unexpected, ingredient in baked goods, and these waffles have a little brown sugar to play up the hints of molasses and a touch of cinnamon to play off the subtle spice. For an impressive brunch, serve the waffles with berries, whipped cream and the nicest syrup you can afford. For a savory feast, top the waffles with fried chicken thighs and a mix of sambal oelek, local honey and light maple syrup. (The latter elicited four letter words of delight when I served it for dinner, so you know it’s good.) Yield: 4-6 waffles

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ingrEdiEnTs:2 cups all purpose flour1 Tablespoon sugar1 Tablespoon light brown sugar½ teaspoon cinnamon3 teaspoons baking powder1 ½ teaspoons baking soda¾ teaspoon table salt½ cup milk1 teaspoon vanilla extract2 eggs4 Tablespoons butter, melted12 ounces Demon Days Red Ale12 ounces thick-cut smoked bacon4 tablespoons real maple syrup, plus more for serving

dirEcTions:1. Preheat oven to 375˚F. In a large bowl, add the dry ingredients and whisk them until they are combined.2. In a medium bowl, combine the milk, vanilla extract and eggs. Slowly add the melted butter, whisking constantly. 3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Then, add the ale and stir gently until incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the batter sit for 30-60 minutes on the counter.4. Meanwhile, prepare the bacon by laying it on a foil-lined baking sheet and brushing it with maple syrup on the top side. Bake at 350˚F on the middle rack until the top side is browned, about 15-20 minutes. Flip the bacon, brush it with syrup and return to the oven until crispy, about 10 minutes more. 5. Transfer bacon to wire rack and cool for 5-7 minutes. Preheat waffle iron. Chop half the bacon slices into¼”-½”pieces; add to the batter and stir to combine. 6. Add ½ to 1 cup of batter to waffle iron, depending on manufacturer instructions, and cook for approximately 4 minutes, or until toasted and golden brown. Serve with the remaining bacon and any other desired toppings.

Demon Days Waffles WiTH Bacon by Kristel Poole

drinkin’ with trinkin: the tap list You’ve been waiting forrob Martin

Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Ben from the Trinkin team. He asked to meet at a pizza place just next to Brandermill. The recently renovated Sergio’s now has an impressive beer bar in the back section of the restaurant, with a pretty exciting selection.

Places like Sergio’s have a tap selection that rotates pretty frequently. We’re all familiar with the taps at our favorite spots around Richmond. We’re also probably all familiar with the feeling of letdown when we hope to see a beer on, only to find out the keg kicked the day before. In the better and brighter future, we can hope to avoid that disappointment by using Trinkin.

Trinkin, for those of you who are not familiar, is a mobile site and website that allows restaurants to publish their draft lists. Joey at Sergio’s was sure to mention to me that he updates his list at least once or twice a day. He’s not the only one; there are more than 60 subscribers that update tap lists more than once a week. The people have noticed and clearly want to know what’s on tap. In April, Sergio’s had more than 16,000 impressions from people looking at their taps. In May, that number reached 22,000 and is set to pass that for June.

Ben frequently travels for work and noticed it was hard to find consistently accurate tap lists. He and a friend were discussing possible ways to tap into local beer scenes and what they came up with was “eBarmony.” With a quick survey of dining and drinking preferences, the ‘eBarmony’ section of Trinkin connects you to bars that match your taste in the area. But even better, is it provides a running tap list, and even lists it’s happy hour. The idea started as the brainchild of Ben and one of his friends. But a few years later, he and the small handful of people who make up the Trinkin team, have come a long way.

What makes Trinkin work well? A huge factor is that restaurants actively choose to take part. For a small monthly fee, Trinkin features your tap list, along with your hours and any specials. Often times, they also give free publicity for places doing any sort of special events or tap takeovers. But one thing to note is that consistency is key. Bars and restaurants that don’t update their list at least once a week get bumped down the list of popular places or sometimes taken off completely, if they stop updating.

At the launch of Trinkin, it was initially only advertising patios and happy hour specials. It only took about 90 days before people started calling them and wanting to be a part of the action. They pretty quickly they hit a snag, as all great startups do. Since it was (at the time) illegal to advertise happy hour specials in the state of Virginia, they had to be careful how they put information out. Luckily, that snag didn’t last long, since new legislation overturned that restriction.

Now, with the way things are going for Trinkin, growth looks to be inevitable. In fact, they’re in the process of expanding to Harrisonburg and Charlottesville. It’s worth noting that Ben and the rest of the team are not taking a profit from the business. All the money that has been made with Trinkin is either rolled back into the business or spent on the merchandise that they give away.

It’s pretty amazing that Virginia has people like the Trinkin team who just want to connect the community with the beers that they love. Trinkin is about community, not competition, and it shows. As Sergio’s started to fill up for dinner, several people overheard us at the bar at least three or four people asked Ben “You’re the Trinkin guy? That’s awesome!” And it is, truly awesome.

DRINKIN’ WITH TRINKIN: The Tap List You’ve Been Waiting Forby rob Martin

Local Music Review

by Sounds of RVA—Sarah Moore Lindseywww.soundsofrva.org

Red Light Rodeo's new release, Nothing But the Nuts, will hog tie you into loving their sound, whether or not you're already a fan of acoustic string band music. The three piece hints at bluegrass, old-time, and newgrass in the five songs on the al-bum, and the sound is fresh and clean while at the same time rugged and familiar. The roots trio involves three virtuosos on their instruments. zachary Hudgins plucks his heart out on the double (upright) bass, and he tames the beast of an instrument into heady walking bass-lines and jaunty country riffs. zack Miller plays the mandolin with his life and even works the fiddle with aplomb on "White Dog." The two also pro-vide heavenly vocal harmonies that blend super-well with lead vocalist and guitarist Wes Canter's tobacco croon.

The EP, recorded by Ben Townsend (Hack-ensaw Boys) contains three originals and two traditionals, and you have to be familiar with Appalachian public domain tunes to spot the difference. The album begins with "Aces & Eights," an upbeat thrash-country tune. This first tune is where the listener might notice that there isn't a drummer or

percussionist, but the lacking of a fourth member would only encumber the three string wizards. Hudgin's ever-present low-end provides a great sense of rhythm, and the string strumming itself sets the tempo and adds a little texture.

"White Dog" comes next, and the subject matter might seem apparent at first - this white dog likes to run away from home all the time and piss off his owner. But if you consider that "chasing the white dog" is a reference to moonshine and corn whiskey, the song makes sense in a couple of ways. "Caused me to weep and to moan. . . well I'm blue all here alone."

The alcohol blues return in "Cork," which opens with the line, "Why do I put the cork back in the bottle?" Forgetting women and drinking seem to go well together, and while he realizes drinking's destructiveness, he knows he's powerless to the pain he feels. The mid-tempo tune is line-danceable, clog-gable, and straight noddable, and if you aren't singing the refrain with Canter by the end of the tune, you're not ready to put that cork back yet.

The two traditional tunes, "Cuckoo" and "Lay My Burden," exude that certain mojo that the band has proven with the first three tunes. While the former begins on a slow, dark note (with fiddle by Townsend), it quick-ly turns into another clog-hopper that begs a singalong. "Lay My Burden" has a similar effect, and while the lyrics might feel repet-itive, you'll notice an inertia that the repeat-ing of lines creates. It becomes something spiritual and extra-human, for sure.

The physical CD is a work of art in itself, as it was printed up at Triple Stamp Press here in Richmond with green-friendly ink. The golden words and etching makes the album feel like a document from a forgot-ten era, and like it's a treasure to find and behold. And after listening to these tunes at least once, you'll think the whole pack-age is the treat.

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