First and foremost, my big pointy Gnome-hat goes off to Taft’s Ale House…it’s hard to believe that this new crop of breweries in town is already turning one, and even harder when you start to think about all they’ve done in their first year.  It’s humbling to be even a small part of this growing beer scene.  If you’re looking for something to do on Opening Day this year… Taft’s may very well be your answer.

If you remember from last year, Opening Day is the big day for Taft’s as well, and they’ve got all kinds of stuff going on to help celebrate the event, we’ll start with the best… new beers!

SecondBaseLagerSecond Base

The winner of this last years ‘Beer and Sweat’ competition won the chance to have their beer brewed on the big system at Taft’s Ale House, and after winner Jack Smith turned out this American Lager, head brewer of Taft’s Kevin Moreland knew it would be perfect for their anniversary event.

The beer is brewed as an even better, more “craft” version of a classic American ballpark beer, and the brewery is putting a lot behind it this year, with a full campaign that features a video and ads featuring Hall of Fame second baseman Bid McPhee.

Also…if you do end up making your way down to the tap room that day, the first 100 people who order a pint of the beer will receive a free t-shirt bearing the Second Base logo.

OldWoodenToothOld Wooden Tooth

The second release, and the big one is called Old Wooden Tooth, and there’s a lot to get excited about with this beer.  Not only is the beer itself sounding like it’s going to be pretty incredible, it’s got some pretty sweet packaging that it comes in.

The beer is a massive Russian Imperial Stout that’s been toiling away in bourbon barrels since Taft’s opened their doors last year.  I can’t wait to get my hands on this beast and let you know what it’s like…but if it’s anywhere close to the beers that have been coming out of the taps at Taft’s already, I know we’ll all be in for quite the treat.

But the packaging deserves a big mention as well… when pictures of Old Wooden Tooth’s cherrywood label covered bottle, with a matching cherrywood flag on the neck and custom wooden box first started getting published it made some big “news” nationally in the design world.  People are getting excited about this beer for lots of different reasons, myself included.

This sucker is extremely limited, though.  Members of their “secret” club get first crack at 8:30, with general public getting their chance to buy bottles at 9am.  It’s not going to last long, so if you want a chance to snag a bottle, you’d better get there early!

The Rest Of The Event

If you’re heading down, make sure you stick around for a while.  We all know that the food at Taft’s is phenomenal, and to make the day a little more fun they’re going to have a photo booth that’s printing out some old fashioned baseball cards for fans as well… for free!

They’ll also have some giveaways throughout the day to keep things exciting…so like I said…be sure to stick around!

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