Bars & Breweries

Since the weather is idyllic around here, let’s ditch the winter drinks and pull out something bright and summery…

Last Week, Colorado’s New Belgium Brewing Co. held what it dubbed the “Sour Symposium. Hosted at The Yard in Tempe, the $50 session included presentations from Eric Salazar, New Belgium’s cellar master, and Lauren Salazar, the brewery’s sensory specialist and beer-blender; a sampling of fancy meats and cheeses; and a…

The Spot: The Upton 7216 East Shoeman Lane, Scottsdale 480-991-6887 www.theuptonaz.com The Hours: Happy Hour is Tuesday through Saturday from 4 to 6 p.m. Perfect for: Happy Hour for one — you know, if people actually did that. Interior: Sitting on The Upton’s beautifully renovated, shady patio feels nothing like…

Here’s the good news: At this year’s Arizona Strong Beer Festival, a record number of breweries (140-plus) will be pouring more than 400 different beers, the widest variety that’s ever been available at the 15-year-old beer fest. The bad news: a general admission ticket only gets you 40 two-ounce tastings,…

For some reason, people keep coming to me for advice in romantic matters at least tangentially related to booze. Since I’m behind the stick, I am apparently a relationship expert by default. Never mind that I’ve been single for years. I’m thankful that most people have figured out I’m not…

The Spot: Bitter & Twisted Cocktail Parlour 1 West Jefferson 602-340-1924 www.bitterandtwsitedaz.com The Hours: Happy Hour Tuesday through Saturday 4 to 7 p.m. Perfect for: Showing both locals and out-of-towners that downtown Phoenix is worth a look. Interior:From the lofted ceilings, stained concrete floor, exposed brick walls, dark wood finishes,…

If you missed it last week, we created a new month: Febrewery. Don’t let the delightful syntax fool you — Febrewery is a serious time, made for sincere and open-hearted visitation of the Valley’s newest purveyors of beer. For week two, we’re taking a quick drive up to the Northeast…

The Spot: The Beverly 7018 East Main Street, Scottsdale 480-889-5580 www.thebeverly.us The Hours: Happy Hour Monday through Friday 4 to 7 p.m. Perfect for: A quiet happy hour with someone who’s really hungry but doesn’t have much knowledge of craft cocktails Interior: If you’re familiar with the space that used…

Beer: Orange Bomb Brewery: Blasted Barley Beer Co. Style: Dry Stout ABV: 6.45 percent At least a half-dozen new breweries have opened up in the Valley in the past six months, and it’s time to catch up. This month is no longer February; henceforward, it shall be known as Febrewery:…

Since I write about cocktails, I see all manner of ludicrous pitches for new things in cocktails. Usually they’re some silly novelty product, e.g. the eye-catching but vile tasting Viniq liqueur. It gets a quick once-over, sometimes a little snicker at the ridiculousness, and then promptly forgotten. Then, deep in…

We have entered the age of beer acquisitions — craft breweries are now buying other craft breweries. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as businesses purchasing or joining forces with competitors is actually a sign of a healthy marketplace. The problem is in perception: When a craft brewery like Portland’s…

A rather old-timey flavor that I’ve seen pop up here and there lately is Rock & Rye. I’ve occasionally seen bottles of it collecting dust on a liquor rack bottom shelf. If you’re from Detroit, or a Juggalo (you know who you are), then your more common association is with…

One of the little luxuries of living in the Phoenix area is that come winter, we get to brag about the mild climate to our friends who are snowed in somewhere back east. One of my favorite ways to do this is by mentioning that while they’re stuck salting roads,…

We’ve been reading up on lists of new trends that are predicted to become popular in the coming year, and there was one in particular that seemed to come up again and again. No, not the one that suggests that bartenders begin garnishing their drinks with literal pine and juniper…

Beer: Raison D’Extra Brewery: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Style: Belgian Dark Strong Ale ABV: 18 percent Dogfish Head Craft Brewery — The Only Thing You Know About Delaware™ — is perhaps best-known for its incredibly boozy imperial IPA/barleywine, 120 Minute IPA. The strong, celebrated ale is based on the brewery’s…

Can I take a moment to say I’m secretly a little glad that holiday madness has wound to a close? It’s fun to go to gatherings with friends and family, and to host gatherings of my own. But now, it’s nice to kick back and not do much of anything…

The average American experience with sake begins and ends at a Benihana or similar teppanyaki-style Japanese restaurant. It’s usually served warm, in little ceramic carafe with matching shot glasses or it’s set on top of chopsticks over a glass of some nameless Asian lager and shaken by an earthquake of…

You can’t get Pliny the Elder in Phoenix. Let’s just begin with that truism, since it’ll be far easier to explain why not if you aren’t spending this whole article wondering about the local availability of the country’s most sought-after beer. Ditto The Alchemist and their double IPA, Heady Topper…

There are certain people who just know exactly what to get someone for Christmas. I’m very fortunate to know someone just like that. A very good friend picked up a copy of a very fascinating new cocktail book, Liquid Intelligence. Author Dave Arnold has penned one hell of a book,…

Winter in Arizona means more than people wearing heavy down parkas in 50 degree weather, it also means citrus season. In yards all over town and in groves outside the city limits, grapefruit are nearing their peak size and weighing down branches. Lots of people have their own thing that…

In revisiting all the beers I drank and reviewed in this space over the past year, I realized something: we live in a golden age of beer. In 2014, the number of breweries operating in the U.S. topped 3,000 — a threshold that hasn’t been reached since the 1870s. Some…

I’m somewhat reluctant to admit that I love grapefruit and don’t have any citrus trees. I know all too well how this story goes this time of year. Friends get word of the two facts above. Then, they offer to bring me a couple of grapefruit. I graciously accept. Some…