bars in the news; Best Bars: Escobar

From WCFN 49/ Illinois Homepage.net

Best Bars: Escobar

Jen takes a few bites our of Escobar. This weeks Best Bar.

Escobar is located at 6 East Columbia Avenue, Champaign.

Bars in the News; New Nightspot to open in a few weeks in Champaign

From the News-Gazette.

It's Your Business: New nightspot to open in a few weeks in Champaign

A mid-July opening is anticipated for the new Champaign nightspot Emerald City Lounge.

Previously home to the Jackson's Ribs and Tips restaurant, the building at 116 N. First St. has undergone an extensive remodeling, with a new bar, new flooring, paint, furniture and art, said co-owners Keith Cameron Smith and Tim Denoyer.

...

Smith and Denoyer, who were married in California, said they want the lounge to be an inclusive place, where gay clientele feel comfortable and where their friends and family are comfortable.

...

The space is about 6,000 square feet, plus there's a 1,200-square-foot outdoor patio. They raised a portion of the floor to create a stage and will feature local performers there. Couches were recently moved in, and televisions and art are also planned for the walls.

The drink offerings will include a selection of beers, microbrews, wines and "classic top-shelf drinks," Denoyer said. Four or five drinks that play on the "Wizard of Oz" theme will be available, but Smith and Denoyer said they don't plan to "go overboard" with the Oz theme.

I'll check it out, but I don't think it'll become one of my new favorite bars.

Urbana Blues, Brews, and BBQ

The 2010 Urbana Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival runs this weekend. It starts tomorrow (Friday, June 25) from 5 pm to 2 am. The second day is Saturday from noon to 2am.

According to Weather.com, this weekend should be mostly sunny, and kind of hot. Highs on Friday are expected around 87 and on Saturday to get up to 93. It doesn't seem like much chance of rain (odd).

If you are going out to the festival, make sure you wear sunblock. Most of downtown Urbana will be closed off, so you'll probably be on the streets. Streets reflect sunlight really well. So be sure to wear sun block. Also, a big comfy hat that blocks the sun will keep it off your nose. With the high temperatures, ensure you drink enough water. I recommend one water for every beer you drink. If you stop sweating, seek water immediately. If you get dizzy, seek medical help immediately.

Even though it's late June, this may be one of your first times outside for an extended period. Be careful. But have fun. Heat and sunlight are very dangerous. Drink water. If your urine isn't clear, you need fluids.

Ok, enough with the safety briefing.

At the festival this year, there are to be 24 different beers on tap. There is no list provided yet of what they are.

According to the Buzz article "More brews, same blues" by Elizabeth Carroll, there will be a beer garden, as opposed to just the beer trailers.

Even for the traditional beer-drinkers, there is much to be excited about. There will be around 24 different types on tap inside Lincoln Square, as well as a wide variety of bottled beer from around the country available in the beer garden.

Jeff Grant, the event manager at Fluid Events, feels that the beer garden is a better setup than the previous year’s beer trailers. There will be more room for different types. “Visitors will be able to fill their mugs and walk outside to watch the show and enjoy the food”, said Grant.

Additionally, someone will be available inside Lincoln Square to talk about beer, and recommend pairings. I don't know who that will be.

Another Buzz article, "Learn from the masters with cooking demonstrations at Blues, Brews, and BBQ," by Brittany Staszak, mentions that there will be cooking demonstrations inside Lincoln Square Mall Food Court.

In an idea cooked up by Fluid Events,the Blues, Brews, and BBQ festival invited several local chefs to do cooking demonstrations from Friday, 9a.m.-5p.m., and Saturday, noon-5p.m., creating delicious and nutritious attraction for hungry festival-goers.

The Buzz has another article, "Urbana Blues, Brews and BBQ Festival", by Jeanine Russell, that discusses the history of the event.

Other news outlets haven't spent much time on the festival yet. It seems the weather has taken over most of the news.

As to the music, there's a lot of "son of" playing.

Music Line-Up

Friday June 25th

Miller Main Stage:

5:30 - 6:30 Candy Foster
7:00 - 8:30 Big Bill Morganfield (son of Muddy Waters)
9:00 - 10:30 Bernard Allison (son of Luther Allison)

Late Night Show @ 88 Broadway/Lincoln Square:

10:30 - 11:30 The Sugar Prophets
12:00 - 1:30 Devon Allman's Honey Tribe (son of Greg Allman)

** Please enter Lincoln Square south of the Family Stage on Broadway Ave.**

Saturday June 26th

Miller Main Stage:

12:00 - 1:00 The Blues Decons
1:30 - 2:45 Bruiser and the Virtues
3:15 - 4:30 Eddie Taylor Jr. (son of Eddie Taylor)
5:00 - 6:30 Eddie Van Shaw Jr. (son of Eddie Shaw)
7:00 - 8:30 Wayne Baker Brooks (son of Lonnie Brooks)
9:00 - 10:30 John Lee Hooker Jr. (son of John Lee Hooker)

Late Night Show @88 Broadway/Lincoln Square:

10:30 - 11:30 Kilborn Alley Blues Band
12:00 - 1:30 Juke Joint Duo Featuring Cedric Burnside (grandson of R.L. burnside) and Lightning Malcom

** Please enter Lincoln Square south of the Family Stage on Broadway Ave.**

They should put together a band of the Super Blues Juniors.

For more information on the festival, there will probably be lots of stories on it on the early morning features shows.

Turnout for the weekend should be pretty good, as the Taste of CU got mostly rained out.

So, go have a beer, or 24, and drink water while applying sunscreen.

*if anyone has the tap list, let me know; or post it in the comments*

Alcohol in the news; Jaboulet Parallele 45

From WCIA 3 CBS, Morning Show, Illinoishomepage.net

Jaboulet Parallele 45

Nick Bland from the Corkscrew drinks Jaboulet Parallele 45, with the Morning Show people.

Big Ten Road Trips, part 5, Penn State

So, you are taking the trip from Champaign to Beaver Stadium. You apparently have some vacation time saved up, and a lot of money for gas. It's 615 to get there and about 11 hours. Drive safely. On the way, you'll go through Indianapolis, Dayton, and Columbus.

Once you go past Columbus, you are about half way there. The first stop you can make on the way is in Zanesville at Weaselboy Brewing Company. They are open Tuesday through Friday from 4pm to midnight, and on Saturday from 3 pm to midnight. They are closed Sunday and Monday, so if you want to stop, you should do it on your way there, not the way back (if you spent the night in Pennsylvania.

If you aren't making any side trips, and are just driving straight to State College and don't want to get too far off the interstate, the next place that makes beer is Marzoni's Brick Oven & Brewing Co. They are open Sun-Wed from 11 am to 10 pm, and Thu-Sat from 11 am to 11 pm. They seem to have 7 house beers on tap. They are located in Duncansville, just before you get to Altoona.

Once you get to State College, your local beer option is Otto's Pub and Brewery. Otto's is about 9 minutes away from the stadium. They've got 9 or 10 beers on tap, and may have more. They also have some of their beer for sale in 22 ounce bombers, so if you go, bring me something back.

Since you are probably the adventurous soul, you aren't just going to go straight there. So take the slight diversion on the route and go up to Pittsburgh. If you go to Pittsburgh, go to The Church Brew Works. It's out of the way on the trip to State College, but it's really cool. Seriously, you should go to church.

Also in Pittsburgh are 3 (sort of large) breweries; Iron City, Pennsylvania Brewing, and East End Brewing. East End is the smallest of the three. Iron City is kind of famous in that town, and PennBrew makes some pretty good beers.

There's also a Rock Bottom, and out by the airport is Rivertowne Pour House.

If you have the time, don't go directly back to Champaign (or if you are going to State College from one of the northern Big Ten schools) take a ride through Cleveland. Cleveland has some damn fine breweries. Great Lakes produces some awesome beer. I'm a huge fan of the Blackout Stout. If you can time it correctly to get some of the Blackout Stout that's been aged in various barrels, you are a lucky person.

Also around the Cleveland area is Thirsty Dog. I'm a fan of their Siberian Night and their Hoppus Maximus. There are other breweries and brewpubs in Cleveland, if you have a favorite that isn't listed here, feel free to leave a comment.

If you want to take a quick jaunt down to Akron from Cleveland, you can hit Hoppin Frog. Some of their beers are really good, like BORIS and DORIS.

Since you went to Penn State for a football game, you probably need to get a beer. It won't take long for you to get a headache from hearing that lion in the stadium all day. Seriously, every first down?

alcohol in the news; the world's game brings bars business

From WICD 15 ABC

The World's Game Brings Bars Business

SAVOY -- Bars across Champaign-Urbana were packed by 9:00 Friday morning. It's neither "Unofficial" nor an Illini pigskin Saturday. Instead, it was the world's version of football that brought big bucks to local businesses.

The Buffalo Wild Wings in Savoy opened at 9. Some places on campus started serving at 8:30. Normally, summer is a slow time for these businesses because so many students are gone. But Friday, patriotism kept many bars packed.

Some people call soccer an equalizer, a sport the world has in common. But for local bars and restaurants it's a money-maker.

"Last Saturday when USA and England played, it was like an Illini game in here," said Joseph Evans, G.M. of the Buffalo Wild Wings, "Looking over the crowd, I was like 'oh the Illini's playing today?"

And just like an Illini tailgate, some fans went right for the beer.

"We're doing good alcohol sales," said Evans, "But at 9:00 in the morning, they get one beer and sit with that one beer for a couple hours and that's fine."

Most of the fans we saw stayed away from the booze altogether.

"No, I just had breakfast and a Diet Coke," said Jach Hutchens, who watched the game at Firehaus, "It's a little too early for me to drink."

And the fans who are having a drink or two have yet to cause any problems for police.

"To my knowledge and I've talked to the district commander as well, we've not had any calls or problems related to gatherings at the bars, even with the early opens," said Sgt. Scott Friedlein of the Champaign Police.

With a 10 -15% sales boos and no arrests, Evans says he would change only one thing.

"If they had the games at night, I think it'd be a little bit better," he said, "But it's night in South Africa and daytime here so it all works out."

The World Cup continues what's been a great month for local bars. Even though the students left, big crowds gathered to watch the Blackhawks march to a Stanley Cup championship. Now, bar owners are hoping the U.S. soccer team can make a run of its own.

The U.S. next plays on Wednesday. All the bar owners we talked to plan on opening early for that match.

Reported by A.J. Bayatpour
Posted: June 18, 2010

Alcohol in the news; Blues Brews and BBQ

From WCIA 3 CBS, Illinoishomepage.net

Blues, Brews, and BBQ

The 2010 Urbana Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival

June 25th, 2010- 5pm - 2am
June 26th, 2010- noon - 2am

from the Urbana Blues, Brews and BBQ site.

The Blues, Brews and BBQ festival would not be complete without an extensive beer fest. The newest addition to the festival will allow you to come sample 24 different beers on tap and numerous bottled beers from all over the world. There will also be seminars on how to brew your own beers at home, as well as information on different types and styles of beers. Cheers!

So, it might be worth going to. (Although Radio Maria and Blind Pig have more taps)

The Miller Main Stage will showcase our feature Blues bands and singers. This year's performers include: Bernard Allison, John Lee Hooker Jr., and Wayne Baker Brooks. Located at the intersection of Vine and Main, this stage will entertain you all day with our Next Generation Blues lineup.

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Once the day turns into night, head into 88 Broadway for our late night concert series. Devon Allmon, Cedric Burnside and Lightning Malcolm are all slated to perform. Keep the excitement going long into the night at 88 Broadway.