We'll get back to wine soon enough, but the hot beverage around town for the next week and a half is something sudsier.
That's right, we're talking about ever-beloved beer, and plenty of it will flow as Sacramento Beer Week kicks off Friday at pubs, breweries and other spots around the area.
This third annual celebration will play host to 300 events – you can get a rundown of my event picks in Friday's Ticket section. But how about some real-time information once Sacramento Beer Week kicks in and you're looking to see who's pouring which beers?
Well, there's an app for that.
Go to iTunes or the Android Market and download the Sacramento Beer Week app. It's the brainchild of BeerHapps, a local app development company, with design from Roseville's AppMatrix Inc.
Click away and you'll find listings for 150 breweries participating in Sacramento Beer Week, an "on tap" key that lists beers being poured at participating pubs, and other bells and whistles including a blood-alcohol calculator and links to taxi services.
"We've been chugging away at this for the last six months," said Ryan Tubbs, a co-founder of BeerHapps. "We're really excited and barely sleeping, and can't wait for it to happen."
The app is free, with BeerHapps trying to recoup its investment by charging a small fee for companies to be listed on the app. More prominent advertising could come later.
"There's no huge Lagunitas or Sierra Nevada banner," Tubbs said. "We'd love to have that, but the sole goal for launching is to get this in the hands of people who like craft beer, and (have them) tell us what works and what doesn't.
The app will stay live after Sacramento Beer Week wraps up March 4, with continually updated information about which beers are being poured around town and other events.
"Our goal is to provide a service for the beer lover to access information, check in with local businesses and support the craft beer market," said Tubbs.
Free tasting tickets!
That's right, if you'd like to win a pair of tickets for Tuesday's "Riedel Wine Glass Seminar" – which includes food, wine tasting and glasses to take home – visit The Bee's "Appetizers" blog Thursday for more information and a chance to win (www.sacbee.com/ appetizers). Good luck!
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