The Brewers Blog

Let's reach into the Brewers'  mailbox for a question from a reader.  Jim from Chandler writes, "I think it's cool that you guys don't force some "personality"  down people's throats.  You let the beer and food speak for itself.  Is that why you write the Brewers Blog in plural?"

Well, yes Jim, that's exactly why we do it, thanks for noticing.  If you've read past Blogs you'll have noticed that it's our philosophy that there aren't any stars here.  We've always wanted to be a beer and food driven company.  What that means to us is that quality is the star, freshness is the star, not us. 

We like to think of ourselves as stewards of a very old and noble profession, one where ego and self-promotion never had a place.  If you were singled out as a good brewer then you singled out those who helped you make that good beer; the barley farmer, the maltster, the hop farmer, and so on.  If you won medals then you went to the podium as a team and you gave credit to those who actually toiled in making the beer.  You didn't take it for yourself.  We realize that any schlep can produce beer, but great beer is the product of many people.

We always wondered why the restaurant industry has not taken this stance.  We've mentioned celebrity chefs here before, and now there are celebrity brewers to go along with them.  It's why we don't have an Executive Chef here; we've got The Kitchen. 

We tend to look sideways at a brewer that likes to encourage photographers and reporters to chronicle their every step.  There's just something off-putting about the "look at me" crowd.  So, who's to blame?  MTV?  American Idol?  Why is there a need for everyone to be famous?

Here's some advice for those folks; it's not about you.

Have we given interviews?  Yes, but we don't have publicists to seek them out.  Is there a Face to our company?  No, there are lots of faces; from our great sales team, to the server at your table, we're all Four Peaks.  You included.  Any good brewery is only as good as its patrons, so, thanks. 

Hey, we guess you're famous now!  Actually, you deserve it.

The day of reckoning is currently at hand folks, pitchers and catchers have officially begun to report to camp thus heralding the beginning of the 2010 Spring Training Season!  There is something magical about this time of year in the Valley regardless of your feelings towards Major League Baseball.  Be it the increasingly delightful weather, the rash of smiling faces, or the inevitable sunburned Cubbies fan following the conclusion of the very first game, this time of year cannot be beat.

Let us continue to profile different Spring Training facilities in regards to great places in their periphery to get a tasty Four Peaks brew.  Last week we covered Scottsdale Stadium, home of the San Francisco Giants (if you missed it click HERE).  This week, lets keep it even more local by tackling Tempe Diablo Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (sidebar: Really?!? When translated from Spanish they are called "The Angels" Angels of Anaheim.  Can we go back to calling them the California Angels or just the Anaheim Angels, puh-leese!).  Located at 2200 West Alameda Drive on the Tempe/Phoenix border, it has been home to the Angels since 1993, but where can you get a pint of Four Peaks in and around the area?  Let's find out together (once again, click on any blue highlighted text to get more information)!

The closest location in which you can get a tasty Kilt Lifter would be the George & Dragon II.  Nothing says Spring Training fever more than catching a quality Euro-league soccer match on Setanta while sipping a Kilt Lifter and eating some Bangers and Mash, let me tell ya!  But seriously it is only a 1/4 mile down the road and great place to have a pint while waiting for the traffic to thin out.

Have you been to Boulders On Broadway?  Perhaps you remember it as The Old Chicago in a previous incarnation, but it's still there and better than ever.  With 26 beers on tap (including our Kilt Lifter), and another 75 bottles from around the world, they have a beer for even the most discriminating of tastes.

How about the Palo Verde just down the road.  A Tempe institution for years and more than just a dive bar (alright maybe not more than a dive bar), it's got cheap beer, pickled eggs, beef jerky and a jukebox.  They also have the greatest website EVER (HERE)!

Robert Johnson had the Crossroads and The Ramones had 53rd and 3rd, but denizens of Tempe have "The Four Corners of Destiny" at Mill and Southern.  The origin of this phrase is clouded in the type of mystique (all I know is that the legendary Derek Pelton referred to it as this for years) that can only attributed to someone trying to apply a mysique where previously there wasn't any. 

Anyway, let's start on the southeast corner...

As I mentioned in a previous Brewsletter, the reinvented and expanded Yucca Tap Room is always a "go to" destination for live music lovers, shuffle board enthusiasts and can beer lovers; with the addition of their new craft beer and whiskey lounge that now offers Hefeweizen and Hop Knot, how could you stay away!  Just catty corner (or kitty corner, caddy corner, or catercorner ... screw it, you know what I mean) is the establishment known as Monkey Pants home of Wig Wednesdays, fish races, and the greatest poster involving a Teddy Bear in a jogging outfit running through a daisy field I've ever set eyes upon, it is also known as a second home to some of our Management staff.  On the other end of the very same complex is the Time Out Lounge, a wonderfully low lit establishment with inexpensive prices that also still sports a poster of Spuds McKenzie (the original Party Animal), like you'd need more motivation...

Sure, most of these joints aren't down the street from Tempe Diablo, but they really don't allow you to put up too many bar/restaurants in and around the Tempe cemetery proper.  At any rate, the first game is still over a week away allowing you plenty of time to check out each of these fine establishments.  Make it your Four Peaks weekly mission!  Timmy OUT!