Founders and Cavalier Distributing Day at Gravity Head: Friday, March 11.

Tonight we welcome a visiting delegation of revelers from Cavalier Distributing, the official Indiana wholesaler for Founders Brewing Company. The genial John Host from Founders is coming along for the ride. The group's coming down to Bank Street Brewhouse first, and then will ride to the Pizzeria & Public House, hopefully by 7:00 p.m.

Accordingly, Eric and Ben have filled the taps with six Founders ales originally listed for Gravity Head, and four others -- just because they're there.

Remember: It's Black Friday at the Pizzeria & Public House. wear your 2011 "Gravity's Rainbow" t-shirt and receive a free NABC sticker as well as a chance to win a $20 gift card.

Here's the tap scene as of the start of business on Friday, March 11, and an overall view of how Gravity Head's gone so far. "Gone" is a good way of describing it, because only a handful of beers remain to go on line.

ON TAP NOW

Note: In addition to the Founders listed below, another unlisted Gravity Head qualifier is on tap:

Founders Imperial Stout (13F Russian Imperial Stout; 10.5%)

Also, three more Founders ales are pouring, just for the hell of it:

Founders Centennial IPA (14B American IPA; 7.2%)
Founders Newaygo County Cherry (22C Wood-Aged Beer; 7%)
Founders Red's Rye (23 Specialty; 6.6%)

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Founders Breakfast Stout (2009) 8.3%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA 12%
Founders Double Trouble IPA 9.4%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
NABC Jaxon 11%
Rogue XS Old Crustacean Barley Wine (2009) Circa 11%

21B. CHRISTMAS/WINTER SPECIALTY SPICED BEER
Barley Island Humbugger Christmas Ale 9.3%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Barley Island Barrel Aged Muscles From Brussels 10.3%
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Bourbon Barrel Wee Heavy 9.8%
Founders Backwoods Bastard 9.2%
Founders Black Biscuit 10.5%
Founders KBS Kentucky Breakfast Stout 2010 11.2%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
Shmaltz He’Brew Jewbelation Bar Mitzvah (13) 13%
Stone Double Bastard Ale (2009) 10%

---

WHAT'S LEFT TO RE-TAP?

These were removed to make room for the Founders Day wave, but there's still beer in them, and they will be tapped again when space permits:

13F Rogue XS Imperial Stout 11%
19C BBC (Main & Clay) Bearded Pat’s Barley Wine (2009) 11%
22C Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%
22C Left Hand Oak-Aged Widdershins (2009) 8.8%
22C Sun King Russian Timmie Oak-Aged Imperial Stout 10%

---

WHAT'S LEFT TO TAP?

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Great Crescent Bourbon’s Barrel Stout 8%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary “Our Brewers Reserve” 9.2%

On St. Patrick’s Day, on Thursday, March 17:
23 BBC (Shelbyville Road) Sam’s 'n' Adam's Bustin’ Lager 8.2%
13F Stone Imperial Russian Stout (2009) 10.8%
23 Upland Ard Ri Imperial Red 9.3%

---

RANKS OF THE DEPARTED ... LISTED SELECTIONS

00. THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELF
Three Floyds Barrel Aged Moloko 2009 (Bourbon Barrel Baltic Milk Stout) 9.5%
Three Floyds Behemoth 2010 (American Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Owd Engwish Bawley Whine (English Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Dreadnaught (Imperial IPA) 9.5%
Three Floyds Mikkeller Ruggoop (Rye Wine) 9.5%
Three Floyds Moloko (Baltic Milk Stout) 8%
Three Floyds The Creeper (Doppelbock) 9%

5C. DOPPELBOCK
Sun King Dominator Doppelbock 8.1%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout 18%
Left Hand Imperial Stout 10.4%
NABC Thunderfoot (2010) 10%
Upland Teddy Bear Kisses 10.2%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Bell’s HopSlam 10%
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA 18%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Brugge Brasserie Quadripple 12%
Stone 10.10.10 Vertical Epic Ale 9.5%

18C. BELGIAN TRIPEL
NABC Le Diable Blonde (2010) 10.7%

18E. BELGIAN DARK STRONG ALE
Brooklyn Cuvee Noire 8.7%

19B ENGLISH BARLEYWINE
Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine 10%
Brooklyn Monster Ale 10.3%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine (2001) 9.6%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Dogfish Head Burton Baton 10+%
Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Chocolate Wheatwine 10.6%
Bell’s Batch 9000 12.5%
Clipper City Heavy Seas Prosit 9%
NABC/O'Fallon/Schlafly C2 Collaboration Ale 10.7%
Two Brothers Bare Tree (2009) 10%

DEPARTED BONUS UNLISTED SELECTIONS
14C Sierra Nevada Hoptimum 10.4%
22C Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout 9.4%
22C. NABC Willett Bourbon Barrel Chocolate Stout 8%+
22C Upland Bourbon Barrel Winter Warmer 9%+

---

SCRATCHES -- WE TRY, BUT EVERY YEAR ...
13F Great Crescent Diabolicale/ReplicAle 8%
14C Ram “In Hops We Trust” 8.5%
18D Barley Island Damien Strong Belgian Golden 8.9%
23 Wilbur Brewhause Country Mellow 8%

No green shades for a Gravity Head St. Patrick's Day at the Pizzeria & Public House.

In recent years, we've managed to work St. Patrick's Day into the Gravity Head schedule, and 2011 is no exception. On Thursday, March 17, the Pizzeria & Public House will again offer “St. Patrick’s Gravity Day.”

First, a necessary disclaimer.

Lest there be any misunderstandings, which is a quaint way of strongly implying there has been at least one in the past 24 hours, wearing of the green is a good thing, but ingesting green-tinted swill is tantamount to wearing a badge that reads, “I’m neither Irish nor particularly bright – scoff at me.”

The internationally recognized colors of Irish beer are gold, red and black, and on the 17th, in our traditionally understated, minimalist fashion, we’ll be tapping one Gravity-listed keg of beer for each color: BBC Sam and Adam's Bustin' Lager, Upland Ard-Ri, and Stone Imperial Stout. Other, more inauthentic forms of Hibernian revelry will be shunned.

While I have your attention: Don’t forget the third annual Celts on the River concert at the New Albany Riverfront on Saturday, June 18.

The Founders wave this Friday keeps getting bigger.

Eric and Ben, our cellarmen and beer managers, have upped the ante for Friday's wave of Founders at the NABC Pizzeria & Public House. For Founders brewery rep John Host's visit and the kickoff of Gravity Head's "second half," we'll have ten draft lines for Founders, including six Gravity Head listed selections. Pours begin when we open at 11:00 a.m.: Founders Brewing's John Host is coming to Gravity Head on Friday, March 11.

Listed: Founders for Gravity Head
22C Founders Backwoods Bastard 9.2%
22C Founders Black Biscuit 10.5%
13F Founders Breakfast Stout (2009) 8.3%
14C Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA 12%
14C Founders Double Trouble IPA 9.4%
22C Founders KBS Kentucky Breakfast Stout 2010 11.2%

Unlisted: Another Founders Gravity Head Ale
13F Founders Imperial Stout (10.5%)

Three More Founders: For Good Measure
14B Founders Centennial Pale Ale (7.2%)
22C Founders Newaygo County Cherry (Barrel Aged; 7%)
23 Founders Red's Rye (6.6%)

Note that the numbers denote BJCP style categories.

And: In honor of these and many more, we've declared Friday, March 11th to be Black Friday at the Pizzeria & Public House. Customers wearing their 2011 Gravity Head t-shirts will get a full color NABC sticker and an entry ticket for a chance to win a $20 gift card. Gravity Head shirts are in limited supply this year, but still available for $17.50. Men's sizes are from small to 5X, and ladies' shirts from small to 2X.

Gravity Head lineupdate for Tuesday, March 8.

Edited for the start of business on Tuesday, March 8.

ON TAP NOW

5C. DOPPELBOCK
Sun King Dominator Doppelbock 8.1%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Rogue XS Imperial Stout 11%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Stone 10.10.10 Vertical Epic Ale 9.5%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
BBC (Main & Clay) Bearded Pat’s Barley Wine (2009) 11%
NABC Jaxon 11%
Rogue XS Old Crustacean Barley Wine (2009) Circa 11%

21B. CHRISTMAS/WINTER SPECIALTY SPICED BEER
Barley Island Humbugger Christmas Ale 9.3%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Barley Island Barrel Aged Muscles From Brussels 10.3%
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Bourbon Barrel Wee Heavy 9.8%
Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%
Sun King Russian Timmie Oak-Aged Imperial Stout 10%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
Shmaltz He’Brew Jewbelation Bar Mitzvah (13) 13%
Stone Double Bastard Ale (2009) 10%
Two Brothers Bare Tree (2009) 10%

---

RANKS OF THE DEPARTED ... LISTED SELECTIONS

00. THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELF
Three Floyds Barrel Aged Moloko 2009 (Bourbon Barrel Baltic Milk Stout) 9.5%
Three Floyds Behemoth 2010 (American Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Owd Engwish Bawley Whine (English Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Dreadnaught (Imperial IPA) 9.5%
Three Floyds Mikkeller Ruggoop (Rye Wine) 9.5%
Three Floyds Moloko (Baltic Milk Stout) 8%
Three Floyds The Creeper (Doppelbock) 9%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout 18%
Left Hand Imperial Stout 10.4%
NABC Thunderfoot (2010) 10%
Upland Teddy Bear Kisses 10.2%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Bell’s HopSlam 10%
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA 18%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Brugge Brasserie Quadripple 12%

18C. BELGIAN TRIPEL
NABC Le Diable Blonde (2010) 10.7%

18E. BELGIAN DARK STRONG ALE
Brooklyn Cuvee Noire 8.7%

19B ENGLISH BARLEYWINE
Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine 10%
Brooklyn Monster Ale 10.3%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine (2001) 9.6%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Dogfish Head Burton Baton 10+%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Chocolate Wheatwine 10.6%
Bell’s Batch 9000 12.5%
Clipper City Heavy Seas Prosit 9%
NABC/O'Fallon/Schlafly C2 Collaboration Ale 10.7%

DEPARTED BONUS UNLISTED SELECTIONS
14C Sierra Nevada Hoptimum 10.4%
22C Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout 9.4%
22C. NABC Willett Bourbon Barrel Chocolate Stout 8%+
22C Upland Bourbon Barrel Winter Warmer 9%+

Founders Brewing's John Host is coming to Gravity Head on Friday, March 11.

Mark your calendars, because John Host of Founders Brewing Company will be in the house on Friday evening, March 11, and a wave of Founders ales for Gravity Head will be here to greet him. John will be accompanying the merry crew from Cavalier Distributing, and we're looking forward to a fun and educational drinking evening.

The following listed Gravity Head selections from Founders will be on tap for the occasion. Recalling that nine beers from Three Floyds opened Gravity Head on February 25, it seems appropriate that eight from Founders will kick off the symbolic "second half." Note that the numbers denote BJCP style categories.

22C Founders Backwoods Bastard 9.2%
22C Founders Black Biscuit 10.5%
13F Founders Breakfast Stout (2009) 8.3%
14C Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA 12%
14C Founders Double Trouble IPA 9.4%
22C Founders KBS Kentucky Breakfast Stout 2010 11.2%

Also:
13F Founders Imperial Stout (10.5%), a bonus unlisted Gravity Head selection, and 22C Founders Newaygo County Cherry (7%), a barrel-aged version of Founders Cerise, which normally would land at 20 (Fruit Beer).

03/02/11 Gravity Head lineupdate.

Edited for the start of business on Thursday, March 3. 16 on, 14 gone and 23 to go.

ON TAP NOW

5C. DOPPELBOCK
Sun King Dominator Doppelbock 8.1%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout 18%
Left Hand Imperial Stout 10.4%
NABC Thunderfoot (2010) 10%
Upland Teddy Bear Kisses 10.2%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Stone 10.10.10 Vertical Epic Ale 9.5%

19B ENGLISH BARLEYWINE
Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine 10%
Brooklyn Monster Ale 10.3%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
BBC (Main & Clay) Bearded Pat’s Barley Wine (2009) 11%
NABC Jaxon 11%
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine (2001) 9.6%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Chocolate Wheatwine 10.6%
NABC/O'Fallon/Schlafly C2 Collaboration Ale 10.7%
Stone Double Bastard Ale (2009) 10%
Two Brothers Bare Tree (2009) 10%

BONUS UNLISTED SELECTIONS
14C. Sierra Nevada Hoptimum 10.4%
22C. Upland Bourbon Barrel Winter Warmer 9%+

---

RANKS OF THE DEPARTED ... LISTED SELECTIONS

00. THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELF
Three Floyds Barrel Aged Moloko 2009 (Bourbon Barrel Baltic Milk Stout) 9.5% Three Floyds Behemoth 2010 (American Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Owd Engwish Bawley Whine (English Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Dreadnaught (Imperial IPA) 9.5%
Three Floyds Mikkeller Ruggoop (Rye Wine) 9.5%
Three Floyds Moloko (Baltic Milk Stout) 8%
Three Floyds The Creeper (Doppelbock) 9%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Bell’s HopSlam 10%
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA 18%

18C. BELGIAN TRIPEL
NABC Le Diable Blonde (2010) 10.7%

18E. BELGIAN DARK STRONG ALE
Brooklyn Cuvee Noire 8.7%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Dogfish Head Burton Baton 10+%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
Bell’s Batch 9000 12.5%
Clipper City Heavy Seas Prosit 9%

DEPARTED BONUS UNLISTED SELECTIONS
22C Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout 9.4%
22C. NABC Willett Bourbon Barrel Chocolate Stout 8%+

Resting today.

First, a very fast Gravity Head XIII.5 lineupdate: 3F Behemoth and Dogfish 120 Minute gone, special bonus Sierra Nevada Hoptimum and listed BBC Chocolate Wheatwine on.

Yesterday NABC bottled its first round of Elector. Thanks to everyone who came and helped. The case total for the first day was 74 (12 x 22 oz), which David Pierce says isn't bad for a bunch of first-timers. My knees and back agree with this assessment. Office Hours Barleywines last night helped ease the pain.

I'm announcing this first bottling run because I'm proud to get the ball rolling. Please do NOT ask me when they'll be appearing on store shelves. Just give us a few days to formulate a strategy.

Thanks for your patience!

Tonight: Office Hours (Strong Ales) & Gravity Head lineupdate.

Here's a quick Gravity Head lineupdate as we go into Monday, February 28. Note that tonight's Office Hours with the Publican at 6:30 p.m. will begin an exploration of BJCP style category 19, which includes Old Ale and both English and American Barleywines.

If time permits, we'll root through the cellar and see if a few examples of aged styles can be found, perhaps for vertical comparison against fresher examples, or perhaps not. This might take a Monday or two, either way. The public is invited, and the price is $5 per person.

ON TAP NOW

00. THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELF
Three Floyds Behemoth 2010 (American Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Owd Engwish Bawley Whine (English Barleywine) 10.5%

5C. DOPPELBOCK
Sun King Dominator Doppelbock 8.1%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout 18%
NABC Thunderfoot (2010) 10%
Upland Teddy Bear Kisses 10.2%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Bell’s HopSlam 10%
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA 18%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Stone 10.10.10 Vertical Epic Ale 9.5%

19B ENGLISH BARLEYWINE
Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine 10%
Brooklyn Monster Ale 10.3%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
NABC Jaxon 11%
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine (2001) 9.6%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
Clipper City Heavy Seas Prosit 9%
NABC/O'Fallon/Schlafly C2 Collaboration Ale 10.7%
Stone Double Bastard Ale (2009) 10%

BONUS UNLISTED SELECTIONS
22C. Upland Bourbon Barrel Winter Warmer 9%+
22C. NABC Willett Bourbon Barrel Chocolate Stout 8%+

---

RANKS OF THE DEPARTED ... LISTED SELECTIONS

00. THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELF
Three Floyds Barrel Aged Moloko 2009 (Bourbon Barrel Baltic Milk Stout) 9.5%
Three Floyds Dreadnaught (Imperial IPA) 9.5%
Three Floyds Mikkeller Ruggoop (Rye Wine) 9.5%
Three Floyds Moloko (Baltic Milk Stout) 8%
Three Floyds The Creeper (Doppelbock) 9%

18C. BELGIAN TRIPEL
NABC Le Diable Blonde (2010) 10.7%

18E. BELGIAN DARK STRONG ALE
Brooklyn Cuvee Noire 8.7%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Dogfish Head Burton Baton 10+%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
Bell’s Batch 9000 12.5%

DEPARTED BONUS UNLISTED SELECTIONS
22C Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout 9.4%

A day of rest, or perhaps not. Either way, BSB is open for business.

In the Gravity Head schedule of events, I refer to today (Sunday, February 27) as a time for "Optional R & R."

After two days of mayhem, NABC's Pizzeria & Public House is closed today. America's finest pub service team, including each and every NABC staff member who worked to make Gravity Head possible, has kicked major league ass this year ... as always, but they've advanced the perimeter another notch in 2011. Thanks go out to them, and they are fully worthy of a break.

Of course, many thanks to the patrons. This is a marathon, not a sprint, and you've only just begun. Listen to your body. Drink liquids, rest, and avoid heavy lifting and the operation of heavy machinery.

But ... if you insist on living like a rock star, know that our Bank Street Brewhouse is open from Noon until 8:00 p.m. today. The trend-setting and locally famous Build-Your-Own Bloody Mary Bar will be ready and willing to assist in your recovery from opening until 3:00 p.m. There’s also beer, carry-out growlers and Chef Josh Lehman’s stellar cuisine. If you are reading this from afar, or for whatever reason still haven't come to understand what Josh has accomplished at Bank Street Brewhouse, do some reading and bone up on current culinary reality.

That is all. It's only 363 days until NABC's Mayan-themed "Gravity Head 2012: It's the End of the World As We Know It."

First Dayton Pat, and then later in the week, Bearded Pat.

Gravity tailgate breakfast revelers, mid-morning Friday.

120 Minute it is ... all systems go.

The fan voting has concluded, and Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA edged out Brugge Brasserie Quadripple to occupy the 17th starting slot.

As an added bonus, we'll be tapping a 1/6 barrel of Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout for tomorrow morning's 7:00 a.m. Public House opening and the annual "tailgate" breakfast. Here's a reprise of the links compendium:

Try to understand:
Wednesday Weekly: "What Tyrone Slothrop has to do with Gravity's Head."

Download the program:
Here's the .pdf link to the Daily Gravity Form!

Vote for the final starter:
16 Gravity Head starters named -- vote now for the 17th and final opening day selection.

Know the starting lineup:
Starting lineup for Gravity Head 2011: "A Stacked Deck is Gravity’s Rainbow."

Read the fixed schedule:
Gravity Head 2011: Schedule of Events.

Get a ride home on the 25th:
Enjoy Gravity Head 2011 and help Matt and Amy jump into the river to benefit the Special Olympics.

View the whole 2011 listed roster:
Will the 55 chosen Gravity Head participants please roll forward?

See the 2011 artwork:
Tony's logo for Gravity Head Thirteen: A Stacked Deck is Gravity's Rainbow.

Three Floyds rocks:
Gravity Head 2011 takes on a decidedly 3 Floydsian feel.

Wednesday Weekly: "What Tyrone Slothrop has to do with Gravity's Head."

The 13th edition of Gravity Head begins on Friday morning. This year’s theme is “A Stacked Deck is Gravity’s Rainbow,” and I’ve been asked to explain what it means.

This will not be easy. After undertaking an explanation last evening at the Bank Street Brewhouse bar, I was told that my tale is a fiesta of non sequiturs, a description that is quite flattering.

For one thing, coming up with graphic designs and accompanying wordplay is getting harder as the years pass by. Late in 2010, as what passes for a brain trust at NABC convened to brainstorm, our brainlessness became evident. The initial thought was to look for ideas connected to the number 13, semi-universally regarded as unlucky.

Web searches yielded the first clue: Tarot cards; specifically the card for 13, marked DEATH, and featuring a medieval-looking robed skeleton atop a horse. In fact, the archaic appearance of these commonly accepted images is a ruse of sorts. Those tarot cards in widest circulation, which most of us have seen, actually were designed around 1900 by a woman in England; oddly, the original plates are said to have been destroyed in the Blitz during WW II.

I suggested substituting the word “GRAVITY” for “DEATH,” and NABC’s graphics wizard Tony Beard said he’d get to work on it. Calendar pages commenced turning, the usual pre-Gravity Head preparations continued, but we were without a coherent, overarching theme.

At some point therein, I was asked by my bride if I really ever understood the concepts of Tarot, or the meanings of the cards, and I had no response save for an admission of negligence. In fact, the only aspects of Tarot that appealed to me were the images. In this instance, I like to watch. She graciously referred me to a handful of sources, one of which resonated.

"(It) does not mean physical death. Rather, the Death card portrays symbolic death-a change or transformation. Often, it heralds the end of a familiar or more comfortable mode. It conveys a release which is necessary for growth and expansion. Perhaps it even brings a whole new set of principles which will guide you spiritually, emotionally, psychologically or financially."

Now, there’s a genuine coincidence. For months, I’ve been boring the cast and crew with recitations of epiphanies pertaining to the beer program at the Public House & Pizzeria, and imagining this great upheaval, a profound leap forward, the future of American craft beer … and here are perfect visual and philosophical metaphors, as embodied by a genre I’d always ignored.

Meanwhile, Tony was thinking about Slim Pickens – not the late character actor’s memorable scene in Blazing Saddles, in which he sent riders back to get a shitload of dimes for the desert toll booth, but Pickens’ single greatest achievement: Riding the atom bomb to oblivion near the conclusion of Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove.

Hence, the Gravity Head rider atop the barrel, apocalyptic imagery grafted onto a Tarot card, toasting the existence of the earth’s inexorable law, and following on the heels of our claim last year that while Newton discovered gravity, NABC perfected it. Tony added the mysterious mixed touch of XIII.5, because if there can be no 13th floor, there can’t be a 13th Gravity Head, either.

But what about a tag phrase?

Most card-playing clichés are applicable to games of chance, as opposed to the ritual of Tarot. You can deal from the bottom of the deck, misdeal, re-deal, mark the cards … or you can stack the deck. Indeed, as it pertains to the vicissitudes of life – the chosen domain of Tarot – we often say that the deck is stacked against us, so “stacked deck” seemed appropriate for the Gravity Head symbolism in 2011.

Now we come full circle to the Blitz.

Huh?

Having originated the quest for Gravity Head identity with a deathly Tarot card image that perished with Al Bowly in the Blitz, Tony duly incorporated cinematic history spiced with common numerical superstition, and I saw the design for the first time. My first reaction upon glimpsing this gumbo of influences was two words: Thomas Pynchon.

His infamous novel, Gravity’s Rainbow, cannot be briefly described. Some would say it barely can be read, although I’ve managed to do it with a little help from my friends and a reader's guide, of which many exist. Following is one fan's view of Gravity’s Rainbow.

It is a Jeremiad, an encyclopaedia of cultural minutiae, an historical novel, a catalogue of operas, an anatomy of illicit perversions and mindless pleasures, a book in which you are as likely to read an equation describing the gyroscopic stabilizers of a V-2 rocket as you are to find a Porky Pig cartoon. Coprophilia and rooftop Banana gardens exist in a singularly bizarre harmony, repelling and enticing in equal measure.
Suffice to say that among these elements (and non sequiturs) are matters of content vaguely reminiscent of the lunacy prefacing the concept of Gravity Head’s XIII.5th edition. Oddly, it all makes sense to me. It may make even more sense to you midway through Friday’s opening day festivities.

See you at breakfast.

Each will have his personal Gravity Head: A 2011 links compendium.

It's a one stop shopping for Gravity Head information.

Download the program:
Here's the .pdf link to the Daily Gravity Form!

Vote for the final starter:
16 Gravity Head starters named -- vote now for the 17th and final opening day selection.

Know the starting lineup:
Starting lineup for Gravity Head 2011: "A Stacked Deck is Gravity’s Rainbow."

Read the fixed schedule:
Gravity Head 2011: Schedule of Events.

Get a ride home on the 25th:
Enjoy Gravity Head 2011 and help Matt and Amy jump into the river to benefit the Special Olympics.

View the whole 2011 listed roster:
Will the 55 chosen Gravity Head participants please roll forward?

See the 2011 artwork:
Tony's logo for Gravity Head Thirteen: A Stacked Deck is Gravity's Rainbow.

Three Floyds rocks:
Gravity Head 2011 takes on a decidedly 3 Floydsian feel.

Here's the .pdf link to the Daily Gravity Form!

The Daily Gravity Form, official program of Gravity Head 2011, is available here as a .pdf:

http://www.newalbanian.com/downloads/GravityHead2011Program.pdf

Also here for unzipping:
http://www.newalbanian.com/downloads/GravityHead2011Program.zip

Seek, find, print and begin planning. Don't forget to vote, too: 16 Gravity Head starters named -- vote now for the 17th and final opening day selection.

16 Gravity Head starters named -- vote now for the 17th and final opening day selection.

Once again, as we prepare for the 13th edition of Gravity Head ("A Stacked Deck Is Gravity's Rainbow") we’re allowing the fans to vote on the beer that will occupy the 17th tap.

The starting lineup is here: Starting lineup for Gravity Head 2011: "A Stacked Deck Is Gravity’s Rainbow."

When making your choice, please remember that the beers listed below are the only ones eligible for selection. The list here has been edited to remove the beers already selected to start, ones already designated to appear on specific dates, and those that remain in transit.

Vote just once, and for just one beer, and submit to your choice to me at this e-mail address: istanbul85(at)yahoo.com. Noon on Thursday, February 24, 2011 is the deadline for voting. I personally comprise the voting commission, and my decisions are final!

Fan Vote Eligible List for Gravity Head 2011

5C. DOPPELBOCK
Sun King Dominator Doppelbock 8.1%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout 18%
Left Hand Imperial Stout 10.4%
Rogue XS Imperial Stout 11%
Upland Teddy Bear Kisses Russian Imperial Stout 10.2%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Bell’s HopSlam 10%
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA 18%
Founders Double Trouble IPA 9.4%
Ram “In Hops We Trust” 8.5%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Brugge Brasserie Quadripple 12%
Stone 10.10.10 Vertical Epic Ale 9.5%

19B ENGLISH BARLEYWINE
Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine 10%
Brooklyn Monster Ale 10.3%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
BBC (Main & Clay) Bearded Pat’s Barley Wine (2009) 11%
Rogue XS Old Crustacean Barley Wine (2009) Circa 11%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Bourbon Barrel Wee Heavy 9.8%
Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%
Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%
Left Hand Oak-Aged Widdershins (2009) 8.8%
Sun King Russian Timmie Oak-Aged Imperial Stout 10%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Chocolate Wheatwine 10.6%
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Sam’s 'n' Adam's Bustin’ Lager 8.2%
Shmaltz He’Brew Jewbelation Bar Mitzvah (13) 13%
Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary “Our Brewers Reserve” 9.2%
Stone Double Bastard Ale (2009) 10%
Two Brothers Bare Tree (2009) 10%
Wilbur Brewhause Country Mellow 8%

Gravity Head 2011: Schedule of Events.

Special events and appearances that will occur on fixed dates during gravity’s annual amok time.

Friday, February 25
“Gravity Tailgate Breakfast”
In 2008, we convened early for gravity breakfast with Terry Meiners of WHAS television in Louisville. In 2009 and 2010, we tweaked the concept, and so breakfast starts at 7:00 a.m., when it’s actually legal to drink beer in Hoosierland. There’ll be doughnuts, breakfast snacks, Ed Needham's home-roasted coffee, the marvelous Sarah and Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout. What’s that? You didn't see it in the 2011 listing? That’s because we’ve been holding out on you.

Founders Canadian Breakfast
Founders Brewing Company
Grand Rapids MI
Alcohol by volume: 9.4%
www.foundersbrewing.com
Gravity Head Twist: What happens if Founders Breakfast Stout is aged in barrels that formerly held maple syrup? Well, you’re about to find out. Could there be a better choice to accompany Gravity Head Tailgate Breakfast?

No, there probably could not be, so stop by and get into the spirit before you go to work. C’mon, it’s Gravity Head: Why even go to work?

Friday, February 25
“Opening Ceremonies”
Regular hours and menu begin at 11:00 a.m. Members of the FOSSILS and LAGERS homebrewing/beer appreciation clubs enjoy preferred seating in the entire Prost room, beginning at 3:00 p.m. We’re expecting Lincoln Anderson of Three Floyds to join us later, and also Upland Brewing’s Cari Crowe, who’s bringing some Bourbon Barrel Winter Warmer. Stay tuned.


Saturday, February 26
“The Annual Patty & Larry Buckeye Contingent Visitation”
In the past, the Saturday afternoon arrival of these hardy perennial Buckeyes called for the tapping of a special wooden pin of cask-conditioned, barrel-aged JW Lees Vintage Harvest Ale, but this year, the tradition is being updated. In keeping with the All-American theme being observed and perpetuated:

NABC Willett Bourbon Barrel Chocolate Stout
New Albanian Brewing Company
New Albany IN
Alcohol by volume: 8++%
www.newalbanian.com
Gravity Head Twist: FOSSILS 20th Anniversary Chocolate Stout with chocolate three ways (malt, nibs and cocoa) and some raisins to round it out. Aged for six months in a freshly dumped wooden barrel from Willett bourbon (a.k.a., Kentucky Bourbon Distillers).

Consumption is open to all, not just the Ohioans. Look for all-day barroom duty,
Sunday, February 27
"Optional R & R"
The Pizzeria & Public House is closed. We’ve only just begun, so listen to your body. Drink liquids, rest, and avoid both lifting and the operation of heavy machinery. But, if you insist on living like a rock star: The Bank Street Brewery is open from Noon until 8:00 p.m., and the locally famous Build-Your-Own Bloody Mary Bar will be ready and willing to assist in your recovery from opening until 3:00 p.m. There’s also beer, carry-out growlers and Chef Josh Lehman’s stellar cuisine.


Monday, February 28 (and on into March)
“Office Hours w/the Publican”
Join the Publican for 6:30 p.m. Monday skull sessions. During Gravity Head, topics may have to do with gravity in the sense beers, not pure science. BJCP style definitions may apply. Cost is $5 or $10, depending on the topic.

Friday, March 11
“Cavalier & Founders”
John Host of Founders joins the gang from Cavalier Distributing (Indianapolis) for an evening of mannered sipping. We’ll save choice kegs of listed Founders to keep them happy.

Thursday, March 17
“St. Patrick’s Day”
Wearing of the green is one thing, but ingesting green-tinted swill is tantamount to wearing a badge that reads, “I’m neither Irish nor particularly bright – scoff at me.” The accepted colors of Irish beer are black, red and gold, and in our traditionally minimalist fashion, we’ll be offering one keg of beer that roughly approximates each (Stone Imperial Stout, Upland Ard-Ri) while shunning other, more inauthentic forms of Hibernian revelry. Don’t forget: The third annual Celts on the River concert is at the New Albany Riverfront on Saturday, June 18.

Also:

March 15-16
First and second rounds
of the 2010 NCAA basketball tournament

March 17-20
Second and third rounds
of the 2010 NCAA basketball tournament

March 24-27
Regionals of the
NCAA basketball tournament

Saturday, April 2 & Monday, April 4
Final Four and Championship
of NCAA basketball

Starting lineup for Gravity Head 2011: "A Stacked Deck is Gravity’s Rainbow."

Following are 16 of the 17 Gravity Head 2011 starters, to be tapped on Friday, February 25. The 17th will be chosen by fan vote, which begins on Monday, February 21. Information will be posted on Monday morning.


00. THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELFThree Floyds Barrel Aged Moloko 2009 (Bourbon Barrel Baltic Milk Stout) 9.5% Three Floyds Behemoth 2010 (American Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Dreadnaught (Imperial India Pale Ale) 9.5%
Three Floyds Mikkeller Ruggoop (Rye Wine) 9.5%
Three Floyds Moloko (Baltic Milk Stout) 8%
Three Floyds Owd Engwish Bawley Whine (English Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds The Creeper (Doppelbock) 9%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUTNABC Thunderfoot (2010) 10%

18C. BELGIAN TRIPELNABC Le Diable Blonde (2010) 10.7%

18E. BELGIAN DARK STRONG ALEBrooklyn Cuvee Noire 8.7%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINENABC Jaxon 11%
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine (2001) 9.6%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEERDogfish Head Burton Baton 10+%

23 SPECIALTY BEERBell’s Batch 9000 12.5%
Clipper City Heavy Seas Prosit 9%
NABC/O'Fallon/Schlafly C2 Collaboration Ale 10.7%

Now, read the fine print.

WINNER OF THE ANNUAL FAN VOTE:The annual vote to determine the final Gravity Head starter will begin on Monday, February 21. Choices will be drawn from remaining kegs in stock, with some of these excluded from the fan vote because they’re being saved for pouring at a later date during Gravity Head 2011.

SPECIAL NOTE: UNANNOUNCED BUT POURING ANYWAYAlso on tap at 7:00 a.m. on the 25th will be Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout, not listed among the official 2011 entries, but meant to serve as a pleasant surprise.

In addition to the Three Floyds contingent listed above, two non-gravity Three Floyds will be on tap on the 25th: Alpha King and a 1/6 barrel of Hell’s Black Intelligencer, an Oatmeal Stout infused with coffee.

Later in the evening on Friday, February 25, an unlisted keg of Upland Bourbon Barrel Winter Warmer will be tapped.

On Saturday afternoon, February 26, an unlisted keg of NABC Willett Bourbon Barrel Chocolate Stout will be tapped in honor of the visiting Daytonians, but is not restricted to them by any means.

On tap when Cavalier and John Host from Founders visit on Friday, March 11:Founders Backwoods Bastard 9.2%
Founders Black Biscuit 10.5%
Founders Breakfast Stout (2009) 8.3%
Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA 12%
Founders KBS Kentucky Breakfast Stout 2010 11.2%

On tap for St. Patrick’s Day on Thursday, March 17:Stone Imperial Russian Stout (2009) 10.8%
Upland Ard Ri Imperial Red 9.3%

Barley Island's Muscles from Brussels, Humbugger and Damien temproarily are reserved pending a decision by the owner and brewers on which date they'll visit.

Enjoy Gravity Head 2011 and help Matt and Amy jump into the river to benefit the Special Olympics.

Submitted and fully endorsed by NABC management. If you have questions, send them to me and I will redirect to Matt and Amy.

---

FREEZIN’ FOR A REASON

Don’t drive into the river … help Matt Nash and Amy Weatherford jump into the river.

Support Special Olympics & Polar Plunge 2011.

Matt Nash will be providing rides home from the NABC Pizzeria & Public House on opening night of Gravity Head 2011 between 8:00 p.m. and ?, with donations going to the Special Olympics.

*By special arrangement, Matt will taxi the visiting Daytonians on Saturday, February 26th!

THIS IS THE THIRD YEAR FOR DRIVING GH PARTICIPANTS! IT IS AN AMAZING OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO RAISE MONEY FOR SPECIAL OLYMPICS AND TO INSURE YOUR SAFETY.

The car has room for up to 4 people … (3 fit snug in back).

Will the 55 chosen Gravity Head participants please roll forward?

Updated at 10:44 a.m.

The total number of kegs expected for Gravity Head (which begins February 25) is 55, down from a peak of 70-something two years ago. We think 50's about right. Roughly 18 will be pouring when the doors open, and the rest will be thrown into the fray as the days pass.

This year is the first ever All-American gravity celebration. The beers are arranged by BJCP style category, except of course the 3F Contingent -- this year's headliner. With any luck at all, the Gravity Forms will be ready for downloading in about a week.

THREE FLOYDS - STYLE UNTO ITSELF
Three Floyds Barrel Aged Moloko 2009 (Bourbon Barrel Baltic Milk Stout) 9.5%
Three Floyds Behemoth 2010 (American Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds Dreadnaught (Imperial India Pale Ale) 9.5%
Three Floyds Mikkeller Ruggoop (Rye Wine) 9.5%
Three Floyds Moloko (Baltic Milk Stout) 8%
Three Floyds Owd Engwish Bawley Whine (English Barleywine) 10.5%
Three Floyds The Creeper (Doppelbock) 9%

5C. DOPPELBOCK
Sun King Dominator Doppelbock 8.1%

13F RUSSIAN IMPERIAL STOUT
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout 18%
Founders Breakfast Stout (2009) 8.3%
Great Crescent Diabolicale/ReplicAle 8%
Left Hand Imperial Stout 10.4%
NABC Thunderfoot (2010) 10%
Rogue XS Imperial Stout 11%
Stone Imperial Russian Stout (2009) 10.8%
Upland Teddy Bear Kisses Russian Imperial Stout 10.2%

14C IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE
Bell’s HopSlam 10%
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA 18%
Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA 12%
Founders Double Trouble IPA 9.4%
Ram “In Hops We Trust” 8.5%

16E. BELGIAN SPECIALTY ALE
Brugge Brasserie Quadripple 12%
Stone 10.10.10 Vertical Epic Ale 9.5%

18C. BELGIAN TRIPEL
NABC Le Diable Blonde (2010) 10.7%

18D. BELGIAN GOLDEN STRONG ALE
Barley Island Damien Strong Belgian Golden 8.9%

18E. BELGIAN DARK STRONG ALE
Brooklyn Cuvee Noire 8.7%

19B ENGLISH BARLEYWINE
Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine 10%
Brooklyn Monster Ale 10.3%

19C AMERICAN BARLEYWINE
BBC (Main & Clay) Bearded Pat’s Barley Wine (2009) 11%
NABC Jaxon 11%
Rogue XS Old Crustacean Barley Wine (2009) Circa 11%
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine (2001) 9.6%

21B. CHRISTMAS/WINTER SPECIALTY SPICED BEER
Barley Island Humbugger Christmas Ale 9.3%

22C. WOOD-AGED BEER
Barley Island Barrel Aged Muscles From Brussels 10.3%
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Bourbon Barrel Wee Heavy 9.8%
Dogfish Head Burton Baton 10+%
Founders Backwoods Bastard 9.2%
Founders Black Biscuit 10.5%
Founders KBS Kentucky Breakfast Stout 2010 11.2%
Great Crescent Bourbon’s Barrel Stout 8%
Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%
Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout 9.5%
Left Hand Oak-Aged Widdershins (2009) 8.8%
Sun King Russian Timmie Oak-Aged Imperial Stout 10%

23 SPECIALTY BEER
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Chocolate Wheatwine 10.6%
BBC (Shelbyville Road) Sam’s 'n' Adam's Bustin’ Lager 8.2%
Bell’s Batch 9000 12.5%
Clipper City Heavy Seas Prosit 9%
NABC/O'Fallon/Schlafly C2 Collaboration Ale 10.7%
Shmaltz He’Brew Jewbelation Bar Mitzvah (13) 13%
Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary “Our Brewers Reserve” 9.2%
Stone Double Bastard Ale (2009) 10%
Two Brothers Bare Tree (2009) 10%
Upland Ard Ri Imperial Red 9.3%
Wilbur Brewhause Country Mellow 8%