FLYING DOG BREWERY GIVING CONSUMERS CHANCE TO WIN TRIP TO 2007 GABF

Flying Dog Brewery is giving away a “dream weekend” for Craft Beer Drinkers everywhere – a trip to the 2007 Great American Beer Festival in the brewery’s hometown of Denver, Colorado. Flying Dog’s “Great American Beer Festival Sweepstakes” will be held through the end of August and the Grand Prize Winner will receive airfare to Denver and hotel accommodations for two, two (2) three-day passes to the festival, and invitations to exclusive Flying Dog activities during GABF weekend.

In all, over 500 prizes in all will be awarded, including sets of Flying Dog Ales pint glasses, Flying Dog T-shirts and key chains — all sporting the fabled graphics of famed Gonzo Artist, Ralph Steadman. Contest entries for The Great American Beer Festival Sweepstakes can be found on Flying Dog Beer displays at liquor and grocery stores and at www.flyingdgoales.com.

About the Great American Beer Festival
Flying Dog Brewery is a 2007 Featured Brewery Sponsor of the Great American Beer Festival.  The GABF, to be held October 11-13, 2007, is deemed the ultimate event for tasting the beers of the globe’s greatest brewing nation. GABF visitors enjoy one-ounce beer samples from the fest’s 400+ breweries. These breweries are arranged on the festival floor by regions of the country, giving beer lovers a walking tour of the nation’s beer-blessed landscape. Many of the booths are staffed by the brewers themselves. Over 40,000 beer enthusiasts from Colorado, the US and around the world attended the 2006 GABF.

The GABF also hosts one of the world’s largest and most prestigious tasting competitions. Over 100 professional beer judges from the United States and abroad evaluate over 2,300 beers entered by more than 450 domestic breweries. Gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded in 69 beer-style categories. (For 2007 the number of styles will be higher.)In addition to sampling beers, attendees can sit in on some of the GABF’s popular food & beer pairing seminars that feature an A-list of America’s brewers, along with local and national celebrity chefs for demonstrations on how to cook with beer and pair different styles of beer with various dishes. For more information, see: http://www.beertown.org/events/GABF/index.htm

FLYING DOG BREWERY TO LAUNCH AN “OPEN SOURCE BEER”

 

Denver Brewery will Collaborate with Consumers to Create Recipe for next Wild Dog Release

Denver’s Flying Dog Brewery today announced plans to release what is believed to be the first “open source” beer to hit the market in the U.S.  “Open source” is a term most commonly used in the software industry and refers to any program whose source code is made available for use or modification as users or other developers see fit.  In this case, Flying Dog’s Open Source Beer Project will allow beer drinkers and homebrewers to create or recommend modifications to the recipe.

The Open Source Beer Project will start as a Dopplebock but the style may evolve as participants offer ideas and tweak the recipe.  “We are encouraging input on every part of the recipe, down to how what variety of hops we should use, how much we should use and when we should add them,” said Flying Dog’s Head Brewer, Matt Brophy.

Flying Dog’s Director of Marketing, Neal Stewart says that this is a unique way for consumers to participate in the creation of a new beer. “The Open Source Beer is a truly collaborative project and gives our loyal fans the opportunity to buy a beer that they actually played a major role in creating.”

The Open Source Beer will be Flying Dog’s latest “Wild Dog” release and will hit stores in October.  Wild Dogs are extremely limited edition beers that come exclusively in hand filled, corked and labeled 750ml bottles.  Only 5000 bottles of the Open Source Wild Dogs will be available to the public.  Flying Dog’s current Wild Dog is a whiskey barrel-aged version of their popular Gonzo Imperial Porter.

For more information on the Open Source Beer Project, please visit www.opensourcebeerproject.com .

“WOODY CREEK WHITE” SELECTED FROM OVER 1500 ENTRIES AS FLYING DOG’S NEW SUMMER SEASONAL NAME

New Belgian-Style Wit Beer to be Released in June

The People’s Republic of Flying Dog responded in a big way when given the chance to play a role in Flying Dog Brewery’s fascinating, yet irreverent history.  Over 1500 names were submitted by consumers from around the country for Flying Dog’s “Name our Summer Seasonal Contest.” 

The newest addition to Flying Dog’s “litter of ales” will be a “Belgian-style Wit” (White) beer and will be called “Woody Creek White.”  The winning name was submitted by Tom Havey of Wilsonville, OR.  For his efforts, Havey wins a trip to Flying Dog’s hometown of Denver, CO for a VIP Brewery Tour and three-day pass to the 2007 Great American Beer Festival.

“Woody Creek White was the perfect name because it reinforces Flying Dog’s remarkable story and the collection of social misfits that created the brand,” said Neal Stewart, Flying Dog Brewery’s director of marketing.  “Woody Creek, CO is a small, yet unconventional mountain community that many people consider to be “Gonzo Ground Zero” and it is also home to our founder, George Stranahan.”

White beers get their name from their naturally cloudy or “white” appearance due to the suspended wheat proteins and unfiltered yeast.  Woody Creek White is brewed with unique ingredients such as orange peel and coriander resulting in a refreshing and slightly citrus flavor that is extremely smooth and makes for a great beer to enjoy during the “dog days” of summer.

Woody Creek White Belgian-style Wit Beer will be available in grocery and liquors stores in 6-packs and on draft in pubs and bars from June through August.

FLYING DOG BREWERY CELEBRATES AMERICAN CRAFT BEER WEEK WITH SPECIAL BREWERY TOURS AND PRIZES

Denver’s Flying Dog Brewery will celebrate American Craft Beer Week, May 14-20, with week of special brewery tours and contests. The week recognizes America’s small, independent and traditional brewers and contributions the craft beer community makes to our economy.

Flying Dog always offers FREE tours on weekdays at 4 P.M. and Saturdays at 1 P.M. and 3 P.M, but brewery visitors will be treated to special tours during American Craft Beer Week. All tour-goers will be registered to win a variety of Flying Dog prizes, including pint glasses, and one Grand Prize Winner will receive a three-day pass to the Great American Beer Festival in October. All week, tours will be given by Flying Dog’s brewers, culminating with German-trained Brewmeister and CEO Eric Warner giving the brewery tour on Friday, May 18. For a complete schedule of brewery tours and who will be giving them, log on to www.flyingdogales.com.

“It’s rare that the brewers have a chance to get away from the Brewhouse to give a tour, so we think it will be a special treat for visitors to get an extremely inside look at our brewing process,” said Flying Dog’s Director of Marketing, Neal Stewart.  “And Eric probably only gives four or five tours a year, so this is an excellent opportunity for Flying Dog fans to interact with one of the country’s most knowledgeable brewers.” 

The theme of this year’s American Craft Beer Week is “Visit your local brewery” in an effort to highlight America’s 1,300 craft breweries (there are 99 in Colorado). With at least one in every state, the average American lives within 10 miles of a brewery. To further encourage brewery visits, the Brewers Association will conduct the Great American Beer Tour from May 14-20th. The program awards points to participants for each brewery visit, allowing them to earn premiums such as beer mugs and logo shirts. The beer tour traveler who accumulates the greatest number of points will receive an all-expenses paid trip for two to the 26th Great American Beer Festival held in Denver, Colorado October 11-13, 2007. More than 850 Brewers Association member breweries will have passports for validation. Details of the program are available at www.GreatAmericanBeerTour.org.

“America’s small brewers are part of a movement, a shift in consciousness, and the trading up of what beer people drink,” stated Julia Herz, a spokesperson for the Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade association for America’s small brewers.  “American Craft Beer Week will highlight craft brewers and the beer drinkers that support this grassroots effort.”

Over the past three years, craft beer has grown 31.5%, and for 2006 the segment had sales of $4.6 billion. According to scan data from Information Resources Inc. (IRI), the craft beer segment is the fastest growing segment of alcohol, surpassing other beer, wine, and spirits with a 17.8% increase in the US Food channel (dollar sales) from 2005.

FLYING DOG TAKES BIGGER BITE OF FESTIVAL SPONSORSHIPS AND LEVERAGES INTO RETAIL PROMOTIONS

Flying Dog Brewery announced today that, based on the success of last year’s sponsorships, it is again sponsoring the Great American Beer Festival© as well as the Telluride Blues & Brews Festival©.  To further leverage these sponsorships, Flying Dog is launching two retail/internet sweepstakes tie-in promotions that give consumers a chance to win a trip to the events.

           

“Both the Telluride Blues and Brews and Great American Beer Festivals are extremely aspirational events for the craft beer consumer,” said Flying Dog Brewery’s Director of Marketing Neal Stewart.  “Plus, each of these festivals are in our home state of Colorado and really personify the Flying Dog brand’s ‘Gonzo Spirit’ so it’s a natural fit,” said Stewart.

           

Stewart said the sponsorships of the two festivals present a large-scale and live opportunity to stoke the growth of Flying Dog with compelling communication.  Flying Dog chose these festivals to sponsor due to the high profile of the events and the large number of men aged 21-34 in the audience. “These promotions are integrated with our sponsorships and demonstrate our ability to “take it” to retail.”

           

The Telluride Blues & Brews Sweepstakes will run on the Flying Dog website, www.FlyingDogAles.com, and at retail accounts across the country from April 1st through May 31st, 2007.  The sweeps offers the consumer the chance to win a trip for two to the Festival as VIB (Very Important Brew-Taster) guests of Flying Dog. 

           

The trip includes airfare, accommodations and two three-day passes to the event plus invitations to the exclusive Flying Dog activities held in conjunction with the Festival.  The Telluride Blues and Brews Festival© will include beer tasting and beer judging. 

           

The Great American Beer Festival Sweepstakes will run on the Flying Dog website and at retail from July through August, 2007.  The sweeps offers the consumer the chance to win a trip for two to the Festival as VIB guests of Flying Dog.  The GABF trip includes airfare, accommodations at the Adam’s Mark hotel, and two three-day passes to the GABF event plus invitations to the exclusive Flying Dog activities held in conjunction with the Festival. 

           

Over 500 prizes in all will be awarded per sweepstakes, including sets of Flying Dog Ales pint glasses and Flying Dog T-shirts — both sporting the fabled graphics of famed Gonzo Artist, Ralph Steadman.  The Flying Dog-tag keychain bottle openers round out the prize structure.

           

Perpetual Promotion, an integrated marketing agency based in Seattle, handles the sweepstakes promotions which include edgy point-of-sale (POS) and promotion web page graphics done in conjunction with the design and marketing communications firm Object 9, with offices in Baton Rouge, LA and Atlanta, GA.  POS features the brand new primary packaging for select flavors of Flying Dog Ales.

           

This promotion is a reunion of co-workers at Pabst Brewing Company who helped lead the spectacular turn-around for Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer.  Bruce Bieber, President of Perpetual Promotion, was the National Promotion Director for Pabst while Neal Stewart, Director of Marketing for Flying Dog Brewery, was the Brand Manager/Marketing Director for PBR from 2001 to 2006. 

 

About Flying Dog Brewery

 

Flying Dog is Denver’s largest brewery and the second largest craft brewery in the state of Colorado. The Flying Dog Brewery with its award-winning “litter of ales” is available in 45 states with the goal of leaving a national paw print across the U.S. The Brewery is located at 2401 Blake Street, just 2 blocks north of the baseball stadium.  Flying Dog’s core values of “purposeful, provocative and irreverent” flows through the veins of the brewery’s founding owners, George Stranahan and Richard McIntyre.  George and Richard were friends with the “Gonzo Journalist,” Hunter S. Thompson, who coined the brand’s tagline “Good People Drink Good Beer” and with the “Gonzo Artist,” Ralph Steadman, who illustrates the brand’s packaging.  For more information, log on to www.FlyingDogAles.com.

 

About the Great American Beer Festival

 

Flying Dog Brewery is a 2007 Featured Brewery Sponsor.   The GABF, to be held October 11-13, 2007, is deemed the ultimate event for tasting the beers of the globe’s greatest brewing nation. GABF visitors enjoy one-ounce beer samples from the fest’s 400+ breweries. These breweries are arranged on the festival floor by regions of the country, giving beer lovers a walking tour of the nation’s beer-blessed landscape. Many of the booths are staffed by the brewers themselves. Over 40,000 beer enthusiasts from Colorado, the US and around the world attended the 2006 GABF.

 

The GABF also hosts one of the world’s largest and most prestigious tasting competitions. Over 100 professional beer judges from the United States and abroad evaluate over 2,300 beers entered by more than 450 domestic breweries. Gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded in 69 beer-style categories. (For 2007 the number of styles will be higher.)

 

In addition to sampling beers, attendees can sit in on some of the GABF’s popular food & beer pairing seminars that feature an A-list of America’s brewers, along with local and national celebrity chefs for demonstrations on how to cook with beer and pair different styles of beer with various dishes.  For more information, see:  http://www.beertown.org/events/GABF/index.htm 

 

About The Telluride Blues & Brews Festival

 

The 14th Annual Telluride Blues & Brews Festival, September 14-16, 2007, held in Telluride, CO.  One of the most scenic music festivals in the country, the Telluride Blues & Brews Festival takes place in Telluride, CO, a world-famous resort town in the heart of the Rocky Mountains.  The festival is a three-day celebration of music and microbrews, held in Telluride Town Park, an outdoor music venue with breathtaking mountains for a backdrop.  By day, experience live blues, rock, gospel and soul performances, the best microbrews in Colorado, a wide variety of food and craft vendors, children’s activities, and more – all on festival grounds.  By night, follow the festival as it flows into the town of Telluride, with late night juke joints and after-hours jams. www.tellurideblues.com 

About Object 9

Object 9 enables clients to improve their business performance by working with them to overcome specific marketing challenges with compelling, cost-effective solutions backed by sound strategic plans. For more information regarding Object 9 services and expertise, please visit www.object9.com.

About Perpetual Promotion

 

Perpetual Promotion is an integrated marketing agency and an international award winner for integrated campaigns.  Bruce Bieber, President of Perpetual Promotion, can be reached at 206-691-3883 or via the website: www.perpetualpromo.biz.

 

FLYING DOG BREWERY TO RELEASE NEW WHISKEY BARREL-AGED BEER

Brewery Uses a Neighboring Distillery’s Barrels to Put a New Twist on the Popular Gonzo Imperial Porter

Flying Dog Brewery, Denver’s largest craft brewer has announced the upcoming release of their Whiskey Barrel-Aged Gonzo Imperial Porter.  The new beer is the latest addition to the brewery’s “Wild Dog” Series, their portfolio of high-gravity experimental beers, exclusively available in 750ml champagne bottles.  It is scheduled to be available at retail this April.

This unique version of Flying Dog’s popular Gonzo Imperial Porter was brewed and transferred into charred White American Oak whiskey barrels that the neighboring Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey had aged their product in for two years.  After aging in the wood barrels for three months, the Imperial Porter was hand bottled, corked, labeled and conditioned for another six weeks before being shipped.  According to Head Brewer Matt Brophy, the resulting taste will “remind you of sweet chocolate, dry oak and smooth whiskey.  The barrel’s distinctive characteristics will compliment the Imperial Porter’s already robust, full-bodied flavor.”

Availability of this beer is extremely limited – only 5000 bottles of the Barrel-Aged Gonzo Imperial Porter will be packaged.  Of the 5000 bottles available, Flying Dog is also offering 500 Limited Edition Wild Dog Gift Box Sets.  Each Gift Box will contain a 750ml bottle of the Whiskey Barrel-Aged Gonzo, a Wild Dog glass, collector’s button and an authentic piece of the wood barrel used in the aging process.  “Barrel-aged beer enthusiasts in particular will enjoy the authentic piece of the barrel included in each Wild Dog Gift Box.  The wood will still hold the great aromas from the whiskey and beer that aged in it,” said Flying Dog Director of Marketing, Neal Stewart.

The Wild Dog Barrel-Aged Gonzo Imperial Porter is the latest addition to Flying Dog’s “litter of ales” which currently includes nine everyday brands and four seasonals.   The Wild Dog Series started in 2004 with the release of a Double Pale Ale then continued with a Weisenbock in 2005 and last year’s Colorado Saison.  Flying Dog is planning to release another Wild Dog this coming October.

FLYING DOG BREWERY TO CELEBRATE BREW YEAR’S EVE WITH SPECIAL MIDNIGHT BREWERY TOUR

On April 7, America’s craft brewers will host ‘Brew Year’s Eve’ celebrations recognizing the repeal of prohibition for beer.  Flying Dog Brewery will add to the festivities with a special Midnight Tour of their brewery in Denver’s Ballpark Neighborhood on the night of April 6th.  Flying Dog’s neighboring bar, the Blake Street Tavern, will also be taking part in the celebration by offering pints of Flying Dog’s “Litter of Ales” for a special price of $2.00.

April 7th was chosen as the date to celebrate ‘Brew Year’s Eve’ because it was on this date in 1933 that newly elected President Roosevelt spurred Congress to modify the Volstead Act, thus allowing the legal consumption of beer of a specific alcohol strength.  This was eight months before the December 5 repeal of prohibition for other liquors.  Thus ‘Brew Year’s Eve’ celebrates a time when beer was the lone legal libation.

Flying Dog’s Director of Marketing, Neal Stewart, says that a brewery tour is a great way to celebrate beer’s rich history.  “Our brewery tours are unique in that we allow consumers to have a very up-close, personal and educational experience and our tours on ‘Brew Year’s Eve will place a special emphasis on the history of brewing,” said Stewart.

“This date is a chance to say that enjoying beer is a legal privilege.  On April 7, America’s communities of craft brewers plan to celebrate this and the history of beer in our culture,” said Julia Herz, spokesperson for the Brewer’s Association, the not-for-profit trade association for
America’s small brewers.

Both the Flying Dog Brewery and Blake Street Tavern are located at the corner of 24th and Blake, two blocks north of Coors Field in Downtown Denver, CO.  Brewery tours will be offered on April 6th at 10:00 p.m., 11:00 p.m., and 12:00 Midnight on April 7th.  Space is limited to the first 30 participants and reservations can be made by emailing devon@flyingdogales.com.   For more information, call Flying Dog at 303.292.5027 or log on to www.flyingdogales.com and click on the “events” section.

Flying Dog Brewery’s Heller Hound is the First Sign of Spring

It’s been a long winter in Colorado, but the folks at the Denver-based Flying Dog Brewery are trying to make it easier to think about warmer weather with the upcoming release of their Spring Seasonal, Heller Hound. Flying Dog’s second seasonal of the year is a traditional-style Maibock brewed with a combination of Vienna and Munich malts. With a rich mouthfeel and subtle hop finish, Heller Hound is the perfect brew for toasting the sun’s return.

Flying Dog’s Head Brewer, Matt Brophy says that Heller Hound will provide consumers a unique drinking experience. “Much like spring’s budding warmth, Heller Hound’s sweet, complex malt flavors develop into a clean, crisp finish, perfect for any climate,” said Brophy.

According to Flying Dog’s Director of Marketing, Neal Stewart, seasonally released beers are gaining in popularity. “Consumers are continually looking for new and intriguing beers to sample and seasonals give those drinkers even more access to a variety of styles,” said Stewart. “Our portfolio of seasonal brands has continued to grow and we plan on introducing our fourth in the summer of 2007.”

Heller Hound is available April through May and is offered in 6-packs and on draft. Heller Hound is part of Flying Dog’s “litter of ales” which currently includes nine brands and three additional seasonal selections.

FLYING DOG ANNOUNCES NEW COLORADO DISTRIBUTION NETWORK

Denver, CO – March 5, 2007 – Flying Dog Brewery announced today that it has aligned with a new network of distributors to cover its home state of Colorado. Effective immediately, the entire Flying Dog Brewery collection of craft beer brands will be sold to Colorado retailers by a network of world-class distributors including Coors Distributing Company Denver, Coors Distributing Company Glenwood Springs, B & K Distributing Inc., Rocky Mountain Coors Distributing Company, High Country Beverage Corporation, A & L Coors, Inc. and Colorado Beverage Distributing, Inc.

According to Flying Dog’s Lead Dog (President), Eric Warner, the decision was made in an effort to work with beer-only distributors in Colorado who have a strong presence in their local communities. “The adult beverage business landscape in Colorado is extremely competitive and we felt that aligning with beer-exclusive distributors gave us the best chance to maximize our local marketing efforts and grow our business,” said Warner. “We’re extremely proud of the beer we brew and aligning with strong distributors who can focus on a defined segment of the market allows us to spread distribution and make our product available to more consumers.”

Chairman of the Colorado Beer Wholesalers Association and President of High Country Beverage in Loveland, CO, Dave Nichols shares Warner’s excitement. “Flying Dog is known across the country for being one Colorado’s best brewers and we look forward to representing these great people and adding their award-winning beers to our portfolio,” said Nichols. 

This announcement comes two months after a similar re-alignment in Florida that has already yielded positive results. “Our association with our new distribution network across the state of Florida has provided us with the opportunity to significantly build distribution on and off-premise,” said Pete Hargita, national director of sales.

Contact and Photos:
Neal Stewart, Director of Marketing – Flying Dog Brewery 720.272.8325

Flying Dog “VSS” Home Brewer Recipe

The brewers at Flying Dog Brewery are excited to partner with Wyeast and introduce our house strain (Flying Dog 1737) as the next edition of the “Very Special Strain” series and now available to home brewers everywhere.

First, a little background on our proprietary, award-winning, Flying Dog 1737 yeast strain. This yeast has been our primary ale strain since Flying Dog Brewery started production over thirteen years ago in Aspen, CO. We are now based in Denver, CO and use it our Doggie-Style Classic Pale Ale, Snake Dog IPA, Road Dog Porter, K-9 Cruiser Winter Ale and our Gonzo Imperial Porter. The Flying Dog 1737 yeast strain has produced several Great American Beer Festival medal winners.

For all of the home brewers, here are some of the specifics you will want to know when working with this strain. This ale yeast is a vigorous fermentor, producing ales with a complex, malty profile. This yeast will give an attenuation of approximately 68% to 71%, has good flocculation, and ferments in the 65F to 72F temperature range. A typical primary fermentation should be complete within 4 to 7 days and total fermentation time can be as little as 16 days. We recommend ensuring proper wort aeration to allow for complete attenuation.

To enhance your home brewing experience with this yeast, we would like to give you a chance to brew your own version of our award-winning Doggie-Style Classic Pale Ale with a scaled down recipe to accommodate a smaller brew system:

Volume is not specified to allow brewers to tailor amounts to meet their desired results.

Specifics:
OG: 13.0
FG: 3.5
IBU: 45
SRM: 20

Grist:
90% 2-Row Pale Malt
9% Crystal 90L
1% Chocolate

Hops:
N Brewer (7.5%) Bittering
Cascade (6.8%) Aroma
Cascade Dry Hop

Mash grains at 152F for 45 minutes
90 Minute boil N Brewer at beginning of boil targeting 40-45 IBU
Add Cascades at end of boil
Dry hop with Cascades after primary

Ferment with Wyeast 1737 Flying Dog Ale Yeast 68F
Aerate wort well primary fermentation should be complete within 5 to 7 days

Good luck with our VSS 1737 yeast and your future brewing endeavors and thanks again for you interest and support of the Flying Dog Brewery! Cheers!