Bottoms Up! It’s Beer Fest Time

Craft beer demand is surging, in some cases beyond capacity

(NEWSER) - Chicago-based brewing company Goose Island will be taken over by Anheuser-Busch, the companies announced today. Goose Island beers are "the hometown pride of Chicagoans,” says Anheuser-Busch's president in a statement; in particular, the company is known for its 312 Urban Wheat Ale. Anheuser-Busch will buy a 58% stake in Goose Island for $22.5 million, plus it will acquire the Craft Brewers Alliance's 42% stake for $16.3 million, Chicago Breaking Business reports. More»

As decided by the brew experts at RateBeer.com

(NEWSER) - It seems there's good reason why Natty Light is just one letter away from Nasty Light: The beer (officially called Natural Light) is No. 3 on RateBeer.com's list of the 50 worst beers on the planet. The beer experts write, "We provide this list in the name of beer education. We aren't picking on the fat kid as much as we're making a few big brewers accountable for their products that are more about beer hype and marketing than substance." The worst offenders:

1. Olde English 800 3.2
2. Natural Ice

National Bohemian tops list of cheap crowd pleasers

(NEWSER) - It's no small task to find a robust, canned American beer for less than $1, but these six passed the bar—albeit just barely—in a blind taste test conducted by the Washington Post:

• Baltimore's National Bohemian tops the list with its secret strategy: "Actually tastes like beer."
• Miller High Life has a refreshing fizz, but drink too many and expect to be bloated.

(NEWSER) - The ever-adventurous US microbrewing community has embraced a new flavor, the Los Angeles Times reports, and it’s sour. Brewers are taking a page from the Belgian playbook and turning out tart lambics and gueuzes aged in oak barrels. “Sour beers are our connection to the ancient history of beer,” one aficionado says. “Someone was drinking a similar beverage dating back to the 6th millennium BC.” More»

Recession spurs Americans to make their own beer

(NEWSER) - Home brewing has grown in popularity as Americans with increasingly sophisticated taste in beer look to cut costs, Time reports. Despite layoffs and bankruptcies nationwide, a couple in Connecticut just opened Maltose Express, a beer-brewing supply shop, and are already doing brisk business. Home brewers also gather there to share their wares and socialize. More»