Kegs of beer are not noted for their bounce, but they might be in Campustown this fall.

A rubber sidewalk will be installed next week by the city on Chamberlain Street along the side of Fire Station No. 2, which has been a traditional drop-off and delivery point for the mainstay of area bars - keg beer. 

Always a handy excuse, blame it on too much beer. Due to the lack of docking and unloading space in the Campustown area, beer distributors unload hundreds of kegs each year at that spot next to the firehouse. Read more...

Creating a wine plan for a big bold Syrah...

Michael Brill and Mike Z are working with Tom Leykis to create a Big Bad Syrah from the Premier Coastal Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley. Tom wants a big Syrah -- one that you'll remember as the main event, rather than a wine to play a supporting role... So how do you craft a wine plan that results in this style of wine?

Watch the video here.

The half-dozen visitors gathered in Ballast Point Brewing's tasting room bar are sipping Wahoo Wheat and Black Marlin Porter and dunking pretzels into a crock of bubbling house-made beer cheese.

Jack White, the 41-year-old owner of the San Diego brewery, refills the pretzel bowl and nods toward a large rectangular window behind the bar. He smiles like a proud father and offers a closer look at the new 600-square-foot distillery tucked inside the brewery. Read more...

The Anheuser-Busch-led "Here's To Beer" campaign was launched to help consumers develop a deeper appreciation for beer while providing tools for retailers and distributors to grow their beer business.

Nothing says summer in California more than a margarita. But if you asked 15 bartenders in this town how to make one, they'd each tell you something different.

At San Francisco's Tres Agaves Mexican Kitchen and Tequila Lounge, they don't use the orange liqueur Cointreau or even Triple Sec.

"Well, that's fine," says Matt Burbach of Fonda restaurant and bar in Albany. "But it's not a margarita. It's a Tequila gimlet." Read more...

On May 26, millions of Americans celebrated Memorial Day with backyard barbecues. While most of our grills were filled with the usual Grade-A meat from local butchers and supermarkets, dozens of restaurants across the country served Kobe-beef burgers topped not with ketchup and mustard, but truffles and foie gras. The price tags on these wallet-busting burgers can reach $175.

According to Adam Kuban of Seriouseats.com, the appeal of the luxury hamburger is that it democratizes status symbol foods. “Most people don't get to say they've tried the best or most expensive truffles, caviar or wine,” he says. “But a $40 burger is arguably within reach of mere mortals. It's a chance to try the ‘ultimate’ example of something edible, and because it's a burger — well, who doesn't want to eat the ultimate burger?” Read more...

Next time you need to celebrate, pop open the Champagne--or perhaps, don't. The bubbly might provide a much more valuable experience if you keep the cork in the bottle and sell it at auction.

Why? While global equity markets have been tanking in the wake of the subprime crisis, the price of a case of high-end bubbly is surging. Read more... 

Left Hand Milk Stout

Believe it or not, the most versatile beer for the barbecue is stout, in all its roasty, smoky glory. This sweeter version of the style, fortified with lactic sugars for richness and body, is particularly food-friendly and has a natural roasted-malt character mellowed somewhat by a mildly fruity, coffee-ish sweetness. Pair it with almost anything off the grill. Read more...

You enjoy a fine whisky - especially a nice, aged single-malt Scotch. It goes down so smooth and makes for a great post-work soother.

But until now, you've never thought to lather up with it.

Enter the Bruichladdich Laddie Bar, one of nine "distillery soaps" created by a pharmaceutical research chemist-turned-soap-maker from Islay, Scotland. Read more...

DUBLIN, IRELAND -- The two men drink standing near the back of the long bar at Davy Byrnes, one of the many watering holes in this city that, in the words of writer Samuel Beckett, who once lived upstairs, have been known to house "broken glass and indiscretion."

In the back, because that's well away from the "whippets" and "blow-ins" who tend to wander in, armed with neither intellect nor wit, if one distinguishes between the two, settle on the first available stool and ask for a "Boodweiser" from the barman. Read more...