Dave Engbers, Co-Founder and President of Founders Brewing Co., spoke to our Managing Editor about his famed company’s 25th anniversary.

Did you envision Founders being a pillar of beer and brewing 25 years on from when it was founded?

No way. The catalyst to opening the brewery was mainly driven by a desire to bring people together. Our dream of starting a brewery was driven by our spirit for creating a better beer for our local community and providing a space that would give beer enthusiasts a place to hang out, listen to music and meet others who demanded better beer. When we realized that the craft beer audience was extremely limited back in the 90s, we had to be intentional on bringing people into the conversation. Ultimately, we realized that beer could be the conduit to bring people together while introducing a new audience to craft beer.

Do you have a favorite beer that you've brewed over the years?

Our beers are like our children. We don’t have favorites. We love and respect them all for their unique nuances and characteristics. That’s one of the great things about beer. There is no right or wrong. All of us are intrinsically unique and taste and experience everything differently. It’s also situational. There is a time and place for different styles, but most of the time you will find me with some type of IPA. 

Science is an amazing thing, isn’t it? It can explore the furthest reaches of our galaxy and delve into the smallest microscopic particles known to humanity.

But I know what you’re thinking: “What have scientists done for beer lately?*” Well, according to Belgian investigators, they’ve identified and engineered a gene that is responsible for much of the flavor of beer and other alcoholic drinks – meaning that if they were to isolate this gene and make it readily available – all beer could taste better.

With flavors as good as they are in the craft beer world, how is this possible? Let’s delve into the science.

When gazing upon a lovely pour of a terrific beer, what elements are most important?

A lovely color – certainly.

A terrific aroma and flavor profile – well, obviously.

And those lovely little bubbles due to carbonation – indeed… well, that might be an issue.

According to experts, the craft beer and brewing industry might be hit by a shortage of those bubbles due to a lack of CO2. Just how did this happen? And is this a long-term problem?

Tim Kraft, Associate Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management at NC State University believes there are myriad underlying reasons behind the industry’s CO2 shortage.

“There are a number of factors putting pressure on the supply of carbon dioxide and causing prices to spike,” Kraft said. 

“CO2 is produced as a byproduct of processes such as ethanol and ammonia production, and many of these facilities are going through scheduled maintenance this fall, limiting their output of CO2.”

Every month, our judges review a bevy of brews from breweries around the world. Though we post each review and highlight them in our Official Review article in each issue, and we detail the highest-scoring beers in our year-end Beer in Review winter edition at the start of each new year, we usually let the reviews do the talking.

Beginning with our Summer Issue #61, we will be highlighting some of the most interesting and high-scoring beers our judges reviewed recently. Read on to explore our selections for our Holiday 2022, Issue 63!

BUY ON DRIZLY

Sunburst IPA – Rated 92

Wild Heaven Beer
Decatur, GA

Wild Heaven Beer in Decatur, Georgia is known for a bevy of interesting brews across a plethora of styles, but this is the brewery’s flagship IPA and it overflows with lush, tropical notes with a minor bite of bitterness at the end of the sip that keeps drinkers coming back for more.

Chef Elissa Oliver, a culinary arts instructor for an Atlanta-area high school, says that her rich, chocolate stout cupcakes are a perfect addition to a holiday table.

“They’ve got a rich mocha taste, but aren't too sweet,” says Oliver.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes
Yields 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch fine salt
• 1 12 oz. Three Stouts to The Wind coffee stout from Mutation Brewing
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 
• 3 large eggs
• ¾ cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease 24 muffin tins.
2. Whisk cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda and salt together in a large mixing bowl
3. Combine stout, melted butter and vanilla in another bowl. Beat in eggs one at a time. Mix in sour cream until smooth.
4. Gradually mix the wet mixture into the dry mixture.
5. Divide batter equally between muffin tins. Fill each spot ¾ full. Bake for 12 minutes.
6. Rotate the pans. Bake for another 12 minutes. Cupcakes should be nicely domed and set in the middle.
7. Cool cupcakes.

Cream cheese frosting ingredients:

Atlanta-based craft beer entrepreneur Kraig Torres graduated high school in 1986 and fancied himself a "beer expert" because he drank Moosehead. A stint in the Coast Guard took this New Jersey kid to England, Ireland, Germany and Australia, where he marveled at the extraordinary diversity of world beer styles and pub cultures. Long before Untappd, Torres hauled around a notebook where he recorded the name of each new beer he drank. 

Torres' travels sparked a passion for craft beer that motivated him to open four impressive craft beer-focused outlets in Georgia and one in Alabama. In his Coast Guard days, Torres never imagined that craft beer would provide him with a new career. 

After moving to Atlanta in 1994 for brief stints in the insurance and stock brokerage fields, Torres longed to start his own business. A visit to a craft beer store in Asheville, North Carolina, motivated him to formulate a business plan for his own Atlanta craft beer outlet that would also sell bottled wines and homebrewing supplies. In 2009, Hop City Beer & Wine opened its doors on Marietta Street near downtown Atlanta. It took a couple of years to build recognition and make the retail shop successful, but Torres learned much from the process.

Atlanta, Georgia’s Monday Night Brewing has expanded beyond its original West Midtown taproom to include its Monday Night Garage in Atlanta’s historic West End, a Birmingham, Alabama location, as well as the Monday Night Preservation Co. in Nashville’s burgeoning Neuhoff development.

The ATL stalwart was named The Beer Connoisseur’s second runner-up for two straight years in 2019 and 2020, and its highest-scoring beer those years, Stranger Danger in 2019 and Situational Ethics Apple Brandy Barrel-Aged in 2020, were both named the #3 beers of the year.

Another of its famed barrel-aged creations, Last Will & Testament, received an exceptional score of 94 when we first reviewed it in 2018.

We spoke with Monday Night’s brewmaster, Peter Kiley, about this rich and rewarding barrel-aged ale.

BC: Who came up with this beer’s recipe?
This one was my idea.

BC: What’s your favorite aspect of this beer (flavor, aroma, etc.)?
The mouthfeel. It has an elegant presence that feels incredibly luscious and balanced.  

With so many breweries in Georgia now, it can be hard to keep up. We like to highlight one notable brewery in each issue of the magazine to showcase the incredible array of beer styles and the rich, fascinating beer scene that Georgia has grown into over the past several years. Read on to discover the world of beer in your backyard!

Steady Hand Beer Co. in Atlanta’s upper Westside opened in March 2019 and hasn’t looked back. The brewery is a mere stone’s throw from fellow Atlanta breweries Fire Maker Brewing Co., Bold Monk Brewing Co., Second Self Beer Co. and Round Trip Brewing Co.

With such talented company, Steady Hand sets itself apart from its neighbors with an inviting “outdoors-brought-indoors” taproom that makes you feel like you might not ever want to leave. Good tunes are blasting from the stereo, warm vibes are emanating from all that are present, or one of the brewery’s many live music performances will transport you to a world beyond your own – all with terrific beers in hand.

November and December are a time for celebrating all manner of holidays and enjoying the company of wonderful family members and dear friends at home or out and about at local watering holes or any number of seasonal events.

Sporting events pick up steam in the fall and winter, and our selection of November/December sports events are sure to engage and amaze fans of any of the sports featured.

NOVEMBER

November 12
Georgia Tech vs. Georgia State University
GSU Convocation Center

November usually marks the start of the NCAA college basketball season, and two Atlanta-based colleges will square off in a grudge match to start the year. The Georgia State Panthers are coming off an appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a 16-seed, in which they played quite capably against the top-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs before ultimately falling in the second half.

While music festivals and concerts often wind down during the holiday season in favor of more wintry events, there are still plenty of tremendously fun and entertaining music and arts events occurring in the Atlanta area during November and December.

From a band’s farewell tour to a famed comedy master, with November music festivals and notable ballets sprinkled in, this edition’s music and arts events are sure to keep you and the whole family entertained when not going holiday shopping or heading to a family gathering in the wintry weather.

So read on to explore some of the most interesting and fun music, arts and entertainment events going on in the Atlanta area during the holidays. Happy holidays!

November 7
Joe Satriani: Earth Tour 2022-2023

Guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani “surfs with the blue alien” down to Atlanta Symphony Hall at the start of November for his Earth Tour 2022-2023. The guitar stylings of Mr. Satriani are sure to keep any music fans enthralled in what will likely be a wildly entertaining stage shows featuring some of the best instrumental guitar playing you’re likely to see.