The Stone Blog

Taking place from May 13 to 19, American Craft Beer Week (ACBW) will provide quality beer fans and first-timers across the country a chance to celebrate the growing craft brewing industry and its members’ delicious wares. Dubbed by the Brewer’s Association as “the mother of all beer weeks,” this seven-day span is comprised of thousands of pint nights, tap takeovers, beer dinners and meet-the-brewer events put on by the nation’s 2,200-plus breweries. We’ve created a listing of more than 50 events we’re holding throughout the country for your itinerary-building pleasure, but don’t feel compelled to limit your activities exclusively to Stone happenings (though if you did, we’d be flattered). This is about every craft brewing company in America. (more…)

A beautifully sunny day, 400 people, 30 unique beers on tap and unlimited pours—what might sound like the foundation for a ruckus affair of over-indulgence and belligerence was anything but. In fact, it was one of the tamest event days in the history of Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens. That’s what happens when you pack the joint with homebrewers and genuine craft beer connoisseurs united in their noble mission to not only taste, but evaluate the merits of each beer for the purpose of selecting a champion to grace store shelves nationwide. Enter Stone’s fifth annual AHA Rally and Homebrew Competition.

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During last year’s San Diego Beer Week, we conducted an experiment in the name of creativity and good taste, enlisting a dozen of our brewers to craft cask versions of Stone beers, dry-hopping and infusing them with highly flavorful ingredients. Those 12 casks and the brewers were assembled at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens along with a dozen personally monogramed mallets. Then, at the stroke of four post-meridian, the brewers tapped their casks and served them to hordes of thirsty Stone fans.

A dozen casks await their simultaneous ceremonial tapping at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens' 12 Brewers, 12 Casks, 12 Mallets event.

It was an expanded take on the Stone Brewer’s Cask events we hold each Thursday afternoon at the Bistro and, in addition to being a wildly good time, the event provided a stunning and varied taste of the ingenuity and skill our talented brewers bring to the table. It was far too magnificent to do just once, so we’re turning it into a series of events. The exact frequency has yet to be determined, but we know for sure that the next edition of 12 Brewers, 12 Casks, 12 Mallets will take place 5 p.m. on Wednesday, February 6 at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens.

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It took just a few short hours after the big keg drop at the Stone New Year’s Celebration for us to get to work planning another big year at our Southern California digs. After a few weeks of scheming, tweaking, revising and fine-tuning, we’re ready to share our entire schedule of momentous events that will come to pass at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens* in 2013! Get out your calendar and prepare to “X” out a great many dates. See you soon!

Stone fans raise a glassful of barrel-aged goodness in support of our annual Oakquinox festival

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It seems like we say this every twelve months (probably because we do), but this has been a huge year for us at Stone. Perhaps the biggest yet. Things never slow down here, and that’s the way we like it. Truth be told, we wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves if we had a spare moment! So a heartfelt thank you goes out to each and every one of our fans for ensuring we maintain the breakneck pace we’ve become so accustomed to.

Despite our infatuation with constant rapid progress, we feel compelled to take a moment, be it ever so brief, to reflect on the year gone by. A lot happened in our brewhouse, at our restaurant, in our community and beyond. This was a very good year, one that should be fully remembered for years to come. In that spirit, we submit to you, our valued fans, a retrospective of 2012 at Stone.

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In preparation for our Epic Eve Dinner and the Stone Epic Festival: The Final Chapter, our all-out festival celebrating all 11 vintages in our Vertical Epic Ale series, Chef Alex Carballo and “Dr.” Bill Sysak teamed up to develop nearly two-dozen recipes for dishes that pair with each of the beers.

Realizing not all of our fans will be able to make it out for these events, but are as amped up as we are to uncap their bottles of Vertical Epic Ale at their own tastings, we wanted to provide the means by which to prepare food that will fall perfectly in sync with those beers. The following are recipes for four dishes that, when put together, make up a comprehensive meal.

It’s our hope that this will excel what will likely already be one of the most heightened and interesting beer tasting sessions of your life. Bon apetit!

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Do I attend a grandiose meet-the-brewer dinner, an outrageous vertical tasting, a one-time only beer release or a massive total tap takeover? From November 2 through 11, this will be the sort of daily dilemma plaguing beer enthusiasts as San Diego Beer Week saturates America’s Finest City. With hundreds of events and 10 days to take it all in, we realize advanced scheduling is a must. Submitted for your calendaring pleasure is the full slate of SDBW events taking place at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens.

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They say all good things come to an end. And as much as it pains me to admit it, I think they’re right. Unfair? Absolutely! Especially while some of the most awful atrocities refuse to go away. (Can you believe that Kenny G is still churning out new CDs?)

But enough about the bad. Let’s focus on the good… the REALLY good. I’m talkin bout Stone Vertical Epic Ale. Travel back in time with me to February 2nd, 2002, before someone inexplicably thought to give Dr. Phil his own show when the groundbreaking Stone 02.02.02 Vertical Epic Ale came to be. The premise was visionary, and hadn’t ever been tried with beer before. Eleven beers in total—each one with its own unique twist and turn in the saga—were to be released one year, one month, and one day after the previous edition (i.e. 03.03.03, 04.04.04, etc.), with the intention of aging them all until at least December 12, 2012, when the series would officially draw to an end with its final delicious release: Stone 12.12.12 Vertical Epic Ale.

Did a little light go off in your brain to make you look at your calendar just now? You’re right, that is, like, two months away! So, what are we planning to do? Go gentle into that good night? Hell naw! We’re Stone! And as usual, we’ve got BIG plans…

The end of an era

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A few weeks ago we took a walk down memory lane, recounting for you the many accolades and accomplishments Stone achieved over the course of 2011.  We are not content, however, to rest on our laurels.  We’ve now turned our sights to the future and all the amazing things we have in store for you in 2012.  Dates have been set for our annual special releases as well as all of our epic beer fests.  So read on and prepare yourself for a whole year of beer-tastic-ness.  Ale-mazement?  You get the idea… (more…)

Ah, New Year’s Eve. For most people it’s a night filled with promise that typically ends in bleary disappointment. That tingle of excitement — born of a bold sense that this year will be the year of magical change — dies an early death as they sit on the couch at a friend of a friend’s, plastic red cup filled with…something, anything…TV excitedly blaring a tired staged celebration from somewhere cold.

That's an actual red carpet. So posh.

But you’re not most people. And fortunately for you, we’ve got the cure for the common party: the Stone 2011 New Year’s Eve Celebration. Let’s examine exactly how & why this will be an absolutely splendid event:

* Lively Music. San Diego’s premier funk and R&B band, The Styletones, will be playing live on the Restaurant Dance Floor. In the brewhouse, we’ll have 3 DJs spinning for a jumpin’ dance party.

* Fantastic Food. Two Sushi and Seafood Lounges featuring swanky tunes, sushi rolls, nigiri, crab claws, oysters and more; lavish Buffet Stations throughout the party; a Mac ‘n Beer Cheese bar; generous carving station; amazing desserts, including Cherries Jubilee, housemade chocolate truffles, cheesecakes, and the list goes on.

* Awesome Drinks. A fantastic selection of complimentary craft beer, wine, cider, and sodas pouring all night long. Plus three special pours of rare and vintage Stone beers (Stone 12th Anniversary Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout aged in Bourbon Barrels anyone?) You also get a commemorative Stone Brewing New Year’s glass to keep.

* Select Cigars. Enjoy the beautiful evening with a cigar in hand on our Patio Cigar Bar (bring your own, or choose from cigars available for purchase; everywhere else is smoke-free.)

* Beautiful You! Since you’re above average, both in personality and taste (and looks too, but then we think everyone with exceptional personality and taste is beautiful), you are critical to this party. Luckily, since like attracts like, you’ll find an evening filled with exceptional people like you. The dullards stayed home. Thankfully.

Lights, bands, DJs, the whole sha-bang

Sound pretty sweet, huh? Well it is. We know this because we did it last year, and it was spectacular. But we’ve made it even better by ironing out all the kinks and adding a bunch of great new features.

Our last New Year’s Eve Celebration sold out, so if you want to enjoy this outstandingly awesome party, it behooves you to make your plans sooner rather than later. Remember, for it to be the best time possible, you’re required!

See you there.

* Wanna go over the top? Get your own private table for the evening, personal hand and foot beverage server, and a bottle of champagne for $250. For details and reservations, send an e-mail to “chuck dot samuelson at stonebrew dot com”.