NABC on the Road: Victorian Vineyard (Jeffersonville IN; 10/5/12).

It's a samples-only event, which I worked solo in 2011 and probably will do again this year. In 2012, the fundraiser moves down the street to the ACL's terrace.

The Howard Steamboat Museum is proud to present, “A VICTORIAN VINEYARD”, the 20th year celebration of the annual wine tasting, cocktail buffet and auction. This event is a major fundraiser to benefit the daily operating expenses of the museum, which receives no regular funding from any government agencies.

The festive event will be held on Friday, October 5th from 6:30 until 9:30 at the American Commercial Lines building, overlooking the Ohio River, at 1701 East Market Street in Jeffersonville. Musical entertainment (weather permitting) will be out on the terrace with John Gage.

Reservations are available by calling the museum at 812.283.3728. Cost is $40 per person or $300 for a table for eight, cash, check, Visa/MasterCard/Discover

Further information is available by visiting the museum website at www.steamboatmuseum.org.

Whole lotta steamboats goin' on, this weekend and next.

On Friday evening, I took a respite from Harvest Homecoming to pour beer samples in Jeffersonville at the Howard Steamboat Museum's annual fundraiser.

Next weekend, it will be steamboats yet again, this time upriver in Madison as the town hosts a celebration commemorating the bicentennial of the first steamboat journey up the Ohio River and back by Nicholas Roosevelt in 1811. Hanover College’s River Institute is coordinating a series of steamboat bicentennial events.

At the Soup, Stew, Chili and Brew in Madison next Saturday (October 15), NABC will unveil a "Steamboat Common" beer brewed collaboratively with our fellow Hoosier brewers at Great Crescent (Aurora) and Main Street (Evansville). The eating and drinking runs from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., with festivities including tasting and judging soup, stew and chili, and live music. The Steamboat Common formulation likely will be the model for NABC's New Albany bicentennial beer, coming in 2013.

Lastly, keep this book in mind: “Full Steam Ahead: Reflections on the Impact of the First Steamboat on the Ohio River 1811-2011” from the Indiana Historical Society Press. It is a book of essays edited by Rita Kohn, the Hoosier state’s First Lady of craft beer appreciation, who to the surprise of no one was the motive force behind NABC's commemorative brewing of Steamboat Common. As always, we'll drink a toast to Rita with the tapping of the very first keg.