Brewery & Beer Name References

If i like it I don't care what they call it. I have noticed over a period of years a pretty girl on the label attracts more attention than a musical theme.

 

How is it pronounced if one is not native?

 

Generally, I grow tired of names with more than three words. Other than that, it's nice to know the names have some reasonable relation to history or the locale.

 

Adroit Theory's Ortolan Bunting refers not just to the bird of the same name, but more specifically the controversial and I believe currently illegal cooking practice of throwing the delicate bird, alive, into a cognac like liquid which acts as executioner and marinade, effectively killing two birds with one stone. After marinating, the bird is cooked rather quickly and then popped into one's mouth all at once so every inch of the bird can be consumed.

 

Yup, that is the far more detailed, precise, and interesting description!

 

I've always liked beers and breweries with references to natural places, such as Deschutes Black Butte, Sierra Nevada, Wasatch, Uinta, Pateros Creek Cache le Porter (a reference to the Cache le Poudre River), Left Hand, and more.

 

I think Sierra Nevada is actually named after Ken Grossman's daughter. Someone can check me on this.

 

'“The name Sierra Nevada came from my love of hiking the Sierra Nevada Mountains,” Grossman said. His daughter, who was born before he created the company, is also named Sierra.'

http://www.statepress.com/article/2011/02/sierra-nevada-founder-talks-beer-with-students/

 

That is close. What happened was our head brewer's wife had been hurt earlier that day and was on pain killers. A bunch of us were out for dinner together and she was a bit loopy and started trying to convince everyone that her husband had the most beautiful eye lashes. He has been known as Lashes ever since.

 

Bell's has a couple. Two Hearted Ale is named after the Two Hearted River in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Third Coast (both the old ale and the pale ale) is named after the nickname for the Great Lakes coastline surrounding Michigan.

 

Don't forget, the traditional embroidered cloth must have been embroidered by a female virgin sibling.

 

Mitten Brewing in Grand Rapids is a "double play" on words. Mitten refers to both the shape of Michigan's Lower Peninsula and a baseball mitt. Many of their beers have a baseball-themed name, and the brewery has a bunch of Detroit Tigers memorabilia, including some seats from Tiger Stadium just inside the entrance. Even their pizzas have baseball-themed names.

Some examples:
84 Double IPA (84 IBU & 8.4% ABV) - 1984, the last year the Tigers won the World Series
Country Strong IPA - Tigers broadcaster Rod Allen's nickname for former Tiger Marcus Thames
Label Up Brown - Refers to the traditional orientation of the bat when batting
Triple Crown Brown
Peanuts and Cracker Jack Porter

 

For most of 3 Floyds' metal band collaboration beers the Beer Advocate description says which band they worked with (See Permanent Funeral, In The Name of Suffering, and a few others). However, not all of their beers are metal themed... They are also comic fans, which I believe inspires the artwork for beers like Zombie Dust, Alpha King, and Dark Lord. The beer "$600 Lizard Shoes" is from a classic Ric Flair interview. I'm sure I'm missing many other references in their beers, though.

 

Long Trail Brewing Co.'s name and hiking themed logo and beer names comes from The Long Trail, which is a popular 272-mile backpacking trail crossing Vermont from the Massachusetts border to Canada hitting all of the major peaks of Vermont's Green Mountain range. The Long Trail is the oldest backpacking trail in the United States, completed in 1930.

 

I was going to mention Natty Greene's and Gibbs 100. I am from and live in Greensboro and you beat me to the keys! Major General Nathanael Greene was a Rhode Island Quaker- obviously not a pacifist- and Greensboro has a rich Quaker heritage and history. Gibbs 100 Greensboro Pale Ale is outstanding. Natty Greene's was a pioneer in the recent "craft" boom.

 

Ha, I was going to post the same this morning, got busy, and then forgot. Also, the last (or first) 100 miles of the Long Trail is coincident with the Appalachian Trail and the place where the two become one is about 13 miles west of the Long Trail Brewery on US-4.