All good things must come to an end, and such is the case with the bartending career of Angelo Cammarata. At 95 years young, he's the world's oldest bartender, but he plans to finally throw in the bar towel some time in the next couple of weeks. As an interesting AP story points out, Cammarata served his first drink - a bottle of Fort Pitt beer - at his father's grocery store just moments after Prohibition was repealed in 1933. He's been slinging the sauce ever since and only rarely indulges in alcohol himself, one of those secrets to a long life that we'd rather not hear on a Saturday. ]]> Victor Ozols 2009-08-29T14:24:24-05:00 40.4412091 -79.985628 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/17/92957/0535

Bastille Day may be behind us, but that doesn’t mean we’re ready to stop celebrating other countries’ independence. Fortunately, the next independence day on the agenda is for a country that loves beer and food just as much as the French (and Americans): Belgium. Tuesday, July 21 is the anniversary of the date when Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld took the oath as the first king of the Belgians in 1831. And yes, we’re using that as an excuse to party.

For reasons that remain unclear, DC seems to be the stateside locale most excited to get down for this holiday. First, acclaimed high-end resto Brasserie Beck is going buffet-style, celebrating with chef Robert Wiedmaier’s favorite selection of Belgian food and brew—both in unlimited quantities!

Meanwhile, chef Bart Vandaele of Capitol Hill’s Belga Café is hosting a beer dinner of his own Tuesday night at the Belgian Ambassador’s Residence. But that’s just the culmination of Belga’s week-long independence blow-out, which starts tonight with a “Blonds Have More Fun” party celebrating Belgium’s blond brews, kicks up with a street-side waffle cart Saturday afternoon, and ends with a DJ party and fireworks display at 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

Viva Belgium!

Related Stories:
· Brasserie Beck [Official Site]
· Belga Cafe [Official Site]
· Where to Celebrate Bastille Day in New York [Jaunted]

[Photo: Kalense Kid] ]]> BS 2009-07-17T14:48:11-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/14/7517/10321

New Jersey is famous for many things, especially wonderful foodstuffs like Taylor ham. The state also is well known, if not infamous, for its network of highways, turnpikes, tollbooths, and whatever those jughandle things are. That’s why it's no surprise that a brewery in Cherry Hill, Flying Fish Brewing Company, has named its new line of specialty craft beverages after exits on the NJ Turnpike.

The brewery has been around for a while and they’ve mastered English, Belgian, and American style ales, but it seems they’ve hit the big time with their “Exit Series.” Each 750 mL brew named after an exit tries to celebrate the spirit of the off-ramp. The Exit 11 Hoppy American Wheat evokes the crossroads of New Jersey by mixing a few different styles of beer. ]]> kjb 2009-07-14T13:09:18-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/8/9129/61014

Remember back in the boom years, when you went out to drink and could spend good money on things like bottle service, private entertainment, and cover charges?

Well new NYC watering hole Superdive is the antithesis of all that—an over-the-top party spot for the recession era. The East Village tavern replaces bottle service with keg service—place an order in advance for a high-end beer like Chimay, or just ask them to roll a standard kegerator up to the table when you get there. If that’s not your style, you can jump behind the bar and mix up your own cocktails.

Everything else is pretty much DIY at this no-frills East Village bar—you can hook your own iPod up to the DJ station, or get a live show going by sitting down at the piano or grabbing any of the instruments just lying around, and while there are no private lounges, for ladies who don’t want to be bothered by pick-up artists, there is a secluded row tactfully named “the “f*ck off” seats.”

Related Stories:
· Superdive [Official Site]
· Dive Bar Travel: Boozing with Bourdain in NYC [Jaunted]
· San Fracisco Shuffleboard Bar [Jaunted]

[Photo: Superdive] ]]> BS 2009-07-08T14:09:18-05:00 40.7292360 -73.980837 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/6/19/9145/18107

Economic crisis time has brought us plenty, really: cheap airline tickets or staycations, just to name a couple. A surprising bonus out of the global recession is the fact that you can now abuse bar staff in a pub in Spain and get a free beer out of it.

The Casa Pocho bar in Cullera, near Valencia, offers free drinks for "original or hilarious abuse". The owner Bernard Mariusz figured that in these difficult times, people need an outlet for their frustrations and his bar was as good a place as any for it.

Mariusz also says that the Spanish language is full of fantastic abusive phrases, so the challenge to come up with drink-worthy slander shouldn't be too hard. Our limited Spanish doesn't yet extend to too much abuse, but for a free drink, we'll learn anything.

Related Stories:
· Gimme A Beer, Imbecile [Reuters]
· Beer Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: IanKershaw] ]]> amandak 2009-06-19T12:53:47-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/6/13/15419/2441

The tolerance of Amsterdam residents is legendary, but the beer bike may have stretched it to the breaking point. For those who don't know, the beer bike is a self-propelled, ten- to twenty-person contraption that pedals around town while all but its driver quaff beers. Popular with stag and hen parties (what we Yanks call bachelor and bachelorette parties), the bikes are a fixture in the city center, with revelers howling and singing as they enjoy the booze-soaked ride. But according to Reuters, two accidents involving the bikes since April have caused the city councilor responsible for transport to reconsider how many beer bikes ought to be allowed in the city at any one time, and what measures can be taken to ensure their safety. Could this spell the end of the beer bike? ]]> Victor Ozols 2009-06-13T15:41:09-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/6/10/73031/9451

Seattle is famous for their weather and their coffee, but they've slowly been making their way onto the beer scene as well. After all, they aren't too far away from Portland, a city that has more breweries than anywhere else in the country. To celebrate this new beer fame, they’re welcoming one and all to the Seattle International Beer Festival.

On July 3-5, hop heads and beer bellies from around the country will gather at the Seattle Center Mural Amphitheatre to test out the latest and greatest from the world of beer. There will be over 150 varieties on tap and in bottles just waiting for you to sample them. We just hope there aren’t too many coffee-flavored porters hanging around, because those are less than tasty.

Tickets are $20, a price that includes admission, tasting glass, live music and ten beer tickets. Unfortunately unlimited samples aren’t available here, so you’ll need to buy more tickets for $1 each if you’re still thirsty. Also, depending on the “swank factor”—their words not ours—your sample can cost between one and four tickets. For those early risers, there’s a Happy Hour between noon and 1:00 pm where you’ll get five extra beer tickets.

Once you’ve paid for your ticket, you are welcome to visit all three days of the festival; there’s no re-entry fees. So feel free to bring your dog the next day—they’re welcome inside— so you have someone to gripe to about your hangover.

Related Stories:
· Seattle International Beerfest [Official Site]
· Trips We Love: The Year in Beer [Jaunted]
· Beer coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Official Site] ]]> kjb 2009-06-10T12:22:09-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/