Get Lily the Great Imperial Stout today at The Pig

Until Feb. 18, New South Brewing's foray into high-gravity beer will only be available at the growler station at Piggly Wiggly in The Market Common, Myrtle Beach.

Read about it in the latest Beerman column.

See other beer-related news on Technorati: beer

Big news: Upcoming Brews-a-Palooza at House of Blues in North Myrtle Beach!

Mike Shank has done it again: the guy behind the annual Myrtle Beach Beer Fest has planned another beer festival for our near future. This time, the beer fest will be called Brews-a-Palooza, playing off the famous Lollapalooza music festival. ●When? 5-11:30 p.m. on July 20 ●Where? On The Deck at House of Blues in Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach. ●Beers? More than 50 craft brews ●Food? A free buffet 5-6 p.m. to prep your stomach for some drinkin’ ●Live music? Long Reef, a band from Australia ●Cost? $5 includes admission and a free tasting glass; tickets for beers will be $1 each, with different beers costing different numbers of tickets Among those 50-plus craft beers will be some highly coveted libations: Founders Devil Dancer, Founders Frangelic Mountain Brown, New Belgium La Folie, Terrapin Easy Rider, He’Brew Funky Jewbilation, and Jolly Pumpkin La Roja. From this week's Beerman column. Read the rest here: http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2012/06/26/2907500/brews-a-palooza.html#storylink=cpy

Big announcement in my next Beerman column -- a summer beer fest in Myrtle Beach

That's right, folks. You'll hear it first on the Weekly Surge's Beerman page. It's not the Atlanta-brewed beer story, so if you see that, the new column hasn't been posted yet.

Beer related gifts for Fathers Day

My three girls will be at camp on Father's Day -- or is it Fathers Day -- but they know me well enough that they probably would get me a beer related gift.

Proper beer related Father's Day gifts come in three categories:

1. Good craft beer or imported beer gifts: For Fathers Day, a gift beer should be one of those that comes a big, champagne-style bottle, or in a "growler" (64-ounce jug) from a microbrewery or brewpub. If your dad likes beer, he'll get a big smile on his face with this one on Fathers Day.

2. Beer merchandise gifts: You know, the neon sign with a beer logo. Or old signage. Or maybe one of those 3D-style displays we used to see at bars (a friend of mine has an old Pabst Blue Ribbon sign that lights up, and a beer delivery car slowly bounces up and down like its heading down the road). Maybe a t-shirt from a good brewery or brewpub. Click here for some other fun and funny ideas.

3. Beer for foodies: These Fathers Day gifts could be guide books or cook books related to beer. These could be books like The Naked Pint, Extreme Brewing, Great Beer Guide, and, if he's ready for a new hobby, The Complete Joy of Homebrewing (click the link for quick access to those books). This is the ideal Fathers Day gift for those dads who love cooking, or love learning more about the brewing process, or love beer and food pairings, or love the history of the brewing art form.

To all the dads out there, Happy Fathers Day!

Today's Foote Daily

Big big big words on winter beers

First, let us direct our attention to Paste Magazine, where Josh Jackson has blogged a review of 10 winter ales, which you can read right here. Second, allow me to talk about some of the new and winter brews we'll be able to find in the Myrtle Beach area -- and I talk about them in my latest column. Enjoy!

I accidentally became a judge for Battle of the Bands at Abuelo's on Cinco de Mayo

I was walking about of Coastal Grand Mall around 5 p.m. after a quick visit to GNC when I got a call from Hunter Jordan, who was at Abuelo's for a fundraiser for the youth at Trinity.

Hunter said Chris Mowder of Listen Up Myrtle Beach needed another judge for Battle of the Bands at Abuelo's -- could I do it?

As a matter of fact, my wife and kids are still out of town.

So of course I went over.

Tonight I heard from these bands, all of which made for a great party:

Bitterseed

Coman Sproles & Celtic Bluze

Treehouse

Eddie Ate Dynamite

Prowler

Below the Bassline

And the winners were:

3rd place: Coman Sproles & Celtic Bluze

2nd place: Prowler

1st place: Eddie Ate Dynamite

Hey -- each of these bands deserves a listen! Check out their music by clicking their names above. Cheers!

Upcoming in the Weekly Surge

My next column in the Weekly Surge describes another beer dinner -- this one with Highland Brewing of Asheville, N.C.

Plus, I offer a sneak preview of the Myrtle Beach Gordon Biersch's gluten-free beer.

Look for the next edition of the Weekly Surge on Thursday!

Beer sales versus craft-beer sales -- the backdrop of Anheuser-Busch's purchase of Goose Island

Beer sales are down 1 percent, but the craft-beer portion is up 11 percent, according to American Public Media's Marketplace.

Marketplace reported that statistic during this report on Anheuser-Busch's purchase of Goose Island, a craft brewery in Chicago.

Myrtle Beach Beer Fest continues today; here's what you should try

The 3rd annual Myrtle Beach Beer Fest continues today.

If you go, you must try these beers:

Highland Little Hump Spring Ale -- Light with citrus tones, almost minty

Dogfish Head Bitches Brew -- Dark, medium-bodied, chocolaty and smooth

Thomas Creek Conduplico -- Brown twist on a Belgian ale

Follow my tweets from the Beer Fest here.

10 Great Winter Beers

Check out Paste's 10 Great Winter Beers.

Meanwhile, in all seriousness (not just an advertising plug), my in-laws gave the below to my daughter for Christmas, and she likes it:

London Calling -- Happy New Year!

Hi everyone -- a very Happy New Year from London! I stood for 5 hours on Waterloo Bridge to get these shots, so I hope you enjoy them!

American beer earns a promo in front of a London pub

Hi folks -- I'm back in London. I exited a bus the other day in front of The Hop Exchange in the Southwark area. The Hop Exchange was supposed to be used for exactly what it says -- the exchange of hops -- but oddly enough, it never was.

Anyway, a few doors away I passed The Wheatsheaf pub. On the sidewalk in front of the store was a sandwich-board type of sign screaming to the world that Anchor Steam beer, made in San Francisco, was available inside.

Price check: Sierra Nevada Celebration

The Lowes on S.C. 544, the Piggly Wiggly at The Market Common, and the Food Lion on Forestbrook Road each were selling Sierra Nevada Celebration for $8.99 per six-pack of bottles. So it's a buck-fifty per bottle. Not the most affordable beer around, to be sure, but less expensive than Avery Brewing Co.'s Old Jubilation Ale. Just how much is Old Jubilation? Find out here.

Changes for S.C.'s alcohol licensing for special events

From Adrienne R. Fairwell, public relations officer for the S.C. Department of Revenue: 

Change in Law - Special Event Permits to Sell Beer, Wine, Liquor Amended

Changes to issuance of alcoholic beverage special events licenses effective January 1, 2011

Individuals and organizations will soon see changes in the way they apply for special event licenses and permits due to legislation passed during the 2010 legislative session.

In order to obtain a temporary beer and wine and/or liquor license, the applicant must be a nonprofit organization and must follow the below mentioned guidelines:

• The non-profit must be exempt from federal income tax pursuant to certain subsections of section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code

• A criminal records check is required and must be conducted within 90 days prior to the date of the application

For purposes of this law change, non-profit organizations are those that are organized exclusively for social, benevolent, patriotic, recreational or fraternal purposes, and which are exempt from federal income taxes.

*Note: The new legislation applies to applications beginning on or after January 1, 2011. Therefore, New Year’s Eve events starting December 31, 2010 and ending January 1, 2011 will not be affected.

For a complete listing of ABL legislative changes please visit www.sctax.org and click on the Alcohol Beverage Licensing link.

Blog exclusive: New South's sales of canned White Ale

Here's something that didn't fit into my new column on New South Brewing's upcoming brewery tours:

New South now sells six packs of its canned White Ale in 50 places around the Grand Strand, owner Dave Epstein said.

The brewery is pushing out 60 to 70 cases per week of the White Ale, which was already New South's most popular beer before they started canning it last year.

For now, White Ale is the brewery's only canned beer. Their other beers are sold in kegs to bars and restaurants.

Did you know New South uses a canning machine that was once used to package Dale's Pale Ale?

Visit New South online.

Christmas in ... August

NEW YORK - AUGUST 12: The Radio City Rockettes perform during the 2010 Radio City Christmas Spectacular Kick-Off at Radio City Music Hall on August 12, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images) Content © 2010 Getty Images All rights reserved.

Jeff Goldblum -- on screen and on stage

What a bummer to hear that Jeff Goldblum is quitting Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

I recently saw him on stage in London as Mel in The Prisoner of Second Avenue, a comedy by Neil Simon.

In the first half of the play, Goldblum made Mel into a comic crazy guy; later, he made Mel into a compelling, quirky, renewed man.

Goldblum is a great talent, which might explain why the current London production of Simon's play has been extended by two weeks.

I'm surprised that Law & Order: Criminal Intent hasn't received better ratings with Goldblum in a lead role.

Croissants' GM & executive chef do 'Fat-Off 2010'

Press release:

Croissants Bistro & Bakery announced this week that their General Manager, Will Gravely and their Executive Chef, Bradley Daniels will be competing in what they have named the “Fat-Off 2010”.  In an attempt to better their personal health while bringing the staff together, they created the 18 week contest.  

The “Fat-Off 2010” began July 26th and will end November 29th.  To begin the challenge, the men each weighed in and then set a goal weight to be reached by the end of the contest. There will also be weekly goals, including “Push It Week” where the boys must do as many push-ups as possible and “Customer’s Week” where the customers will set that week’s goal via email. Suggestions should be sent to Lyndsay@Croissants.net. At the end of the 18 weeks, the winner will be determined by total pounds lost (measured in a percentage), the number of bonus points achieved by reaching each weekly goal, and by whoever is closest to reaching their goal weight. Says Executive Chef, Bradley Daniels, “I am excited to participate in this contest and am thrilled to have the support of our amazing staff. I am looking forward to continuing this healthy lifestyle and reaching my goal.” For more information on Croissants Bistro and Bakery’s “Fat-Off 2010” call 843.448.2253 or visit www.Croissants.net.

About Croissants Bistro & Bakery

Croissants Bistro & Bakery began fifteen years ago as a life-long dream of owner, Heidi Vukov.  Throughout the years, the restaurant has continued to grow. A SC Certified, Fresh on the Menu restaurant, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday, Croissants is proud to be Myrtle Beach’s only low-country bistro.

Contact Information:

Croissants Bistro & Bakery

3751 Robert Grissom Pkwy.

Myrtle Beach, SC 29577

843.448.2253

Beer thief arrested, for the 154th time!

Read it all in this Asylum magazine blog post.

Heh heh heh . . . .