That’s an event title I just made up, so don’t hold it against anybody, but me. Anyway, here’s something real: if you drop in for dinner and a couple of beers at Fratellos tonight (Wednesday, December 10), they’ll donate 15% of your total bill to the Oshkosh Area Humane Society. The deal works from 4 p.m. until closing. All you need do is mention the Human Society to your server and that 15% will go to help the animals at OAHS. It’s a good excuse to have a couple/three extra beers with your meal. As if you need an excuse. You can peruse the Fratellos menu HERE and eyeball their current beer list is HERE.
Bago Brew Abounds
Back in June I wrote about Fox River Brewing’s plan to begin distributing their beer locally again. Well, that’s now well underway. Fox River is distributing three of their beers and if you’ve been to Fratellos recently you’ve seen the rebranding that has gone along with that. Caber Tossing Scottish Ale has been renamed Marble Eye. BLÜ, their blueberry fruit beer, is now BLÜ Bobber. Rounding out the trio of distro beers is 2 Dams, an unfiltered blonde ale that was introduced this past summer
If you take a look at where the beers are being distributed, you’ll see that the emphasis is clearly on places outside of town. I suppose that makes sense considering Fratellos remains the hub of their beer sales here. That distro list is interesting, though. It bears a distinct resemblance to the distribution pattern for Chief Oshkosh Beer in the late 1940s, early 1950s. It’s fascinating to see how these things tend to repeat themselves.
The South-Side Billboard
This went up this past fall near the corner of 14th and South Main streets. That’s right on the edge of the old brewing district where Peoples Brewing and the Oshkosh Brewing Company were once pounding out around 100,000 barrels of beer annually. Last year, Fox River Brewing produced 646 barrels of beer in Oshkosh and another 672 in Appleton. Needless to say, there’s plenty of room for growth around here.
Bowen Talks Brewing
Here’s a video interview from the Craft Conscious podcast with Fox River brewmaster Kevin Bowen where he talks about the intersection of beer and coffee. Beer isn’t the only thing Bowen has been brewing.
Anniversary Deal on Pumpernickel Rye
Back in October, I posted about the brew day the Society of Oshkosh Brewers had at Fox River Brewing. The beer is now out and Fratellos in Oshkosh is serving up a good deal on it. If you do that Facebook thing, check THIS out to get the deal. If you don’t do Facebook, just go to the bar, wish them a happy 20th birthday and they’ll hand you a free 10 oz. glass of Buffalo Mike's Pumpernickel Rye. They’ll also sell you a growler of Pumpernickel Rye for $5. Just say the words. The thing is, Fox River Brewing's 20th Anniversary isn't until next December. Hey, this isn't the first time an Oshkosh brewery got its launch date mixed up. These breweries are always in such a hurry to grow old.
I certainly love a lot of what Kevin is brewing. In some ways marketing outside of the Oshkosh area makes some sense;that whole prophet in his own land thing. They have hurdles to get over with the Oshkosh crowd, but the beer is better than ever. Obviously I am a fan.
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