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This Monday, the largest ever gathering of the CBW family convened at Santasiero’s. Five owners, three wives, four sons and one daughter managed to take up the entire back room, and we supped on spaghetti, eggplant parmesan, pasta fagioli and other Italian delights.

It looks so... empty.

To what purpose? Monday, September 19, 2011 the construction on our brewery started.

It doesn’t look much different yet. CBW’s resident architect, Greg, made sure we realized that Rome wasn’t built in a day. Seriously, he used that phrase. But the process has started. Soon it will be in full swing, and the empty space guarded by a motion activated frog that I’ve known for the past year will become nigh-unrecognizable.

While we’re looking to the future, it’s also time to wrap up a loose thread from the past. CBW’s Words With Friends Invitational is finally done! Congratulations to Josh (JoshTheBrute) for unseating the then-undefeated Elizabeth (econley) and becoming the champion! (for reference, pronounce that “champ-een”).

(direct link)

It started January 13. Yeah, so eight months is a bit long. But it was fun, right? I hope so. If we do this again — more on that in a minute — it will be faster, I assure you. Although, to be fair, this was not some high octane sporting event: it was online Scrabble. I don’t think it necessarily needed to be thrilling. But that’s just me: participants, what did you think? Did you enjoy yourself?

More importantly, would you be interested in doing it again?

Words With Friends is now available on iOS and Android, which it wasn’t when we started. Were we to do another WWF tournament, the too-cool-for-Apple crowd could participate as well. On the other hand, we’ve done one of those already. There’s also that I’ve been sick of “n With Friends” recently. That’s also true.

Of course, I’d prefer we play iOS Carcassonne or (dare I dream) Ascension: Chronicle of the Godslayer. Those are both pricey and iOS only, however. Maybe Disc Drivin’? Tournament participants Alex and Eric have had games of that going with me for a while now, and it’s fun and free. Still iOS only, but, y’know… Just buy an iPhone /troll

No matter what, if we do this again — and that is contingent mostly on you all saying you’re interested, right now — there will be time limits on games. Nothing strict; I mean, this is for fun after all. But I promise to do a better job of keeping it moving.

Next week: more excitement!

Happy new year, everyone.

‘Twas two nights before Christmas
10:15, at least.
Not a creature was stirring
(except for the yeast)
Lafayette Ave heard quite a ‘Hooray!’
As Community Beer Works moved in today.
Dave had gone home; so had Greg, Matt and Chris.
Ethan and Dan had given their wives a kiss.
Rudy remained, sipping a geuze
And loaded up Youtubes guaranteed to amuse.
When quietly he heard some knocks at the door:
Two, then a pause, and then three more.
CBW, by and large, is a heathenous gang;
Less Moses and Simon; more Cthulhu fhtagn.
Not much inclined to believe in Saint Nick,
Yet the knocking went on, so Rudy sprung up right quick.
He opened the door, saw a man all in red,
A shadowy figure, hood over his head.
‘Ho ho, erm, ho,’ half guffaw, half cough,
He produced some hops, and he listed them off.
‘On Cascade, on Centennial, Zeus and Chinook!
‘On Sorachi Ace, I’ve written a book!’
The man handed a tome, bound all in leather.
Rudy flipped through it, finding recipes quite clever.
Saisons with dry hops, sours with cherry.
The mention of brett made Rudy get merry.
Ales with smoked malt, porters with oak,
Beer after beer from the man in the cloak.
Turning the pages, things soon got weird.
Peppermint cream ale? He scratched at his beard.
‘Uh, thanks, I guess,’ Rudy said. ‘But why?’
‘Never you mind,’ came the strange man’s cryptic reply.
”Tis the season of giving, a great time to share.
‘So I’m doing my part, to show that I care.
‘No thanks needed,’ the man said with a grin.
‘Just read that book, and use the recipes withing.’
The whole situation was really quite odd.
‘Right! Well, I’m off,’ the man said with a nod.
Though plenty mysterious, he was really quite nice
And bestowed upon Rudy more parting advice.
As a slogan he suggested ‘Novus Ordo Seclorum’
But it’s already in use; we’ll likely ignore him.
Alone once again, Rudy considered his fate.
Paid to brew beer, and to work with his mates.
To make these strange beers? He thought that he might.
And with that, Rudy thought he would call it a night.
He locked the front door and started to go
Then stopped: for there were no tracks in the snow.
Had he dreamed it? Was the man ever there?
That at once pine and spruce were all through the air.
And a deep, booming voice rang clear through the night:
‘Merry Christmas to all, and to all a full pint!’

Screw a hula hoop; I'll take this

Do you know what we at CBW really want for Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus and the like? A building. Our building. The one we can brew in, and have meetings in. A place to call home.

Well guess what? Santa delivered. As of today, 15 Lafayette Avenue is ours, all ours. Dave and Ethan are, as I type this, moving our stuff in. Tomorrow we should hopefully have a cool picture or two for you. This is a big step, and is just the latest in a line of many to come.

What a way to end the year!

Historically accurate!

Last week I said that the next big step would be yesterday’s zoning board meeting. It’s the one where they decide if we can brew beer at the awesome location we have. We were optimistic, and had our ducks in a row, as well as a few extra rows of ducks, all spaced evenly and accounted for in a ledger, just to be sure.

Even so, we had our doubts. We thought it would go through eventually, but that there might be an issue or two we hadn’t covered, something to make them say ‘fix this and come back next month.’ Cautious optimism would be an appropriate way to describe our feelings. I couldn’t go, but those who could said that it went well and that we would find out the next day.

An hour or two later my email buzzed, with Google Alerts notifying me of the Buffalo News announcing the variance had been granted.

We did it. The building is ours. Well, after closing, but that’s just a waiting game. Our march towards pouring beer continues unabated, progressing steadily, inexorably. It is our destiny.

What now? We may have been in the News three times in the past week and a half (!), and so we have quite a few peoples’ attention. Despite that, and despite the inevitability and excitement of the above paragraph, it will still be quite a while before a glass of CBW is in your hands. Before that happens we need to file with the State Liquor Authority, and before that with the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB).

Once we file with the TTB, though, we can’t brew on-site, and so we’d like to get in a test run or two before we’re legally forbidden from doing so. As such, all of those are farther off than anyone would like, but the time will not be spend twiddling thumbs. It is, as they say, on. Some people have asked about shirts. We’ll be performing the magic of brewing in public. All of these will have details come to light as they’re finalized, and even as we speak our equipment is being hammered into being in a hot dwarven forge. Or, y’know, Oregon.

It’s an exciting time to be here, let me tell you, and please accept our sincere thanks. We do not doubt that the ZBA’s quick approval of our appeal was due in large part to the hearty cheers of the community standing behind us, and we’re doing everything we can to live up to and surpass what’s expected of us.

And also, to make you all some beer!