Texas Adds Another Brewery
November 30, 2007
One of the great things about our huge beer selection at Beaver’s is our devotion to local beers. I think we will have 75 different beers when we finally get everything in stock, and of these beers, I think around 15 will be Texas beers. Texas has made some monumental strides in brewing beer since I left the state, and the number of microbreweries is set to grow even further. I have been talking all week with my bar guests about the upcoming debut of Southern Star Brewing after reading about it on Barley Vine. According to the brewery’s website, Southern Star’s “production target remains Mid-December”. They have plans to release a Dortmunder-style lager, available on tap at selected locations, and an American Pale Ale called, Pine Belt Ale. Interestingly, Southern Star has plans to package all of their beers in cans. This is definitely going to get the new brewery a lot of needed attention and, hopefully, help to jump start another small brewery in Texas.
The Texas brews we have chosen at our bar really help to contrast the rest of our beer collection which currently is seasonal and, consequently, rather heavy and bold at the moment. Currently, we have 5 barley vines for example. Texas beers are generally lighter in style to compliment the warmer weather. Perhaps, this new brewery can help to fill this Texas void at some point. One intriguing exception to this stereotype of Texas beers is the Real Ale Coffer Porter, which we carry on tap. It is actually brewed with a local artisan coffee called Katz Coffee and makes for an nice seasonal beer.
Texas currently has 5, or 6 depending on your perspective, craft breweries:
-Independence
-Live Oak
-Rahr & Sons
-Real Ale
-Shiner (Debatable Craft Status)
-St. Arnold’s
The addition of Southern Star Brewing is really exciting, especially since it will be based out of nearby Conroe, and their unique twist has really intrigued me. I plan to do a review and ranking of Texas Breweries in the upcoming weeks, so please make sure to check back for my thoughts on Texas’ microbrewery industry. For more information on Texas’ beers or just beer in general, check out Barley Vine, where I was tipped off about Southern Star Brewing. I always read this blog to keep up with local beers and get what is obviously an experienced opinion on beer.
Sounds good. BTW, what’s the controversy over Shiner Bock? Here in California it’s well regarded, and personally I love it, esp. with BBQ (to the extent what we get out here can be so labeled).
Thanks!
In regards to Shiner, I and many others wouldn’t qualify it as a craft brewery. They just produce too much beer without a focus on creativity or quality to be considered craft in my opinion. However, in recent years, because of the growing influence of microbreweries, Shiner has started to produce beers outside of its decade old bottling to gain acceptance as a craft beer. Yes, they are independent, but they haven’t produced anything unique until recently, so I don’t know if they fit into the category referred to in the post. That’s kind of why i would say that their craft status is debatable. Still good beer at the right time though.
I live in Austin and it is one of my goals to go visit the Live Oak brewery one day. I thoroughly enjoy their beer.
Real Ale is nearby too; you should head out there as well.
[…] several years have produced several breweries and, most recently, a few new micro-distilleries. Texas beer and spirits are finally becoming […]