Greetings, beer lovers! Happy (…) Friday, and once (or not) again, ‘tis chingchongchinaman as your semi-friendly guest FNBB blogger, giving esquimaux another well-earned breather from blogging duties tonight. This FNBB is a follow-up to self the loser’s March FNBB on the Brew for Ukraine movement, where, just to recap:
* The Pravda Brewery in Lviv, Ukraine opened up its recipes to the world, for other breweries to brew their own versions of Pravda Brewery’s beers.
* Each such brewery is asked to donate the proceeds from sales of these Pravda Brewery-inspired beers to charities related to Ukraine relief.
A quick look at the map at the Brew for Ukraine page indicates that 7 breweries in the St. Louis, MO region have produced new Pravda Brewery-inspired craft beers. The honor roll is as follows, with the breweries listed in alphabetical order:
* Ferguson Brewing Company (Ferguson, MO)
* Heavy Riff Brewing (STL, MO)
* Modern Brewery (STL, MO)
* Perennial Artisan Ales (STL, MO)
* Schlafly Beer (STL, MO)
* 2nd Shift Brewing (STL, MO)
* Third Wheel Brewing (St. Peters, MO)
Curiously, one local craft brewery that recently made a Brew for Ukraine beer is missing from this list, for whatever reason (probably just haven’t gotten around to contacting the Brew for Ukraine organizers yet). This is Rockwell Beer Company, who has brewed a Ukrainian Imperial Stout, “From San to Don”, as you can see from pictures here. The label includes part of the text of the Ukrainian national anthem, the words by Pavlo Chubynsky:
“Душу й тіло ми положим
за нашу свободу,
І покажем, що ми, браття,
козацького роду.
Станем браття,
в бій кривавий,
від Сяну до Дону
В ріднім краю панувати
не дамо нікому.”
“We’ll lay down our souls and
bodies to attain freedom
And we’ll show that we, brothers,
are of the Kozak nation.
We’ll stand together for freedom,
from the San to the Don,
We will not allow others to rule
in our motherland.”
At least one of the 7 listed STL region breweries featured RBC’s “From San to Don” on tap at their restaurant and brewery, Heavy Riff Brewing. Heavy Riff Brewing has their own Pravda Brewery-inspired selection, their dry-hopped golden ale “Putin Huylo” (“Putin Is A D-ckhe-d”, for those who might not remember the translation). On the label, Heavy Riff Brewing provides some explanatory text (light elisions c/o 3CM the loser):
“Putin Huilo has become a worldwide nickname for the President of Russia. Unlike H-lt-r, and other world leaders whose imperial ambitions lead to the deaths of innocent people, Huilo is not just a fanatic – he’s a Russian billionaire, not a tzar. In early 2014, Russia annexed Crimea, and several other parts of Ukraine. This action violated world orders established after World War II, and set off the expansion of Russian terrorism throughout Europe.
“’Putin Huilo’ is an international chant first performed during a common match between FC ‘Metalist’ and FC ‘Shakhtar’ on March 30, 2014. ‘Huilo’ – like ‘d-ckhe-d’ in English, but much ruder – comes from ‘huy’, which is Russian for ‘d-ck’.”
Given that my beer palate isn’t all that sophisticated, both beers tasted very good to me Obviously it’s a tiny gesture to buy these beers to support Ukrainian relief efforts. Certainly it’s not as though it’s as simple as doing a James Bond on Putin and his thugs – would that it so simple (and none of us are exactly lining up for that mission). 3CM the loser will certainly keep his eye out for other STL breweries that make their own Brew for Ukraine beers, so some future FNBB’s may keep this theme going. We shall see. For this evening’s dinner beer, I went with Rockwell Beer Company’s “From San to Don”. It packs a wallop at 9.8% ABV, and is certainly a hearty stout
With that, time to turn the floor over to you folks. What are you sipping tonight? Anyone brewing their own? Anyone found Brew for Ukraine-inspired beers in your own neighborhood? That’s a question for the poll, of course : ) .