40 Years in Beer (Book II) Part 48: F.O.S.S.I.L.S. newsletter antics, Typo’s Brewpub, and True Beer Freedom
Previously: 40 Years in Beer (Book II) Part 47: A “special vacation” with Kölsch, Altbier and Roggenbier (1993). During the decade of the 1990s, the F.O.S.S.I.L.S. homebrewing and beer appreciation club was inseparable from Rich O’s. Primarily this was because I intended it to be this way. The club doubled as the establishment’s propaganda arm and fan club aside from its own beermaking and educational activities. The pub hosted most club meetings and provided a place for members to socialize, and they were among our most loyal regulars. I’ll always be grateful for that, because word of mouth is always the best advertising. As the beer and brewing revolution expanded and numerous new beers became available in Indiana, I would invite brewery and importing company sales representatives to introduce themselves and make their pitch at F.O.S.S.I.L.S. meetings – with samples, of course, from diverse entities like Spaten (Munich), Celis (Texas) and Jack Daniels 1866; who even remembers that? It was brewed by John Barrett, former brewmaster at Evansville Brewing Company. One Sunday the club held a blind taste test of the short-lived Miller Reserve line of mockrobrews, an event that came about after a Miller employee contacted me out of the blue and volunteered to provide...Read more