If you made it out to the Duff’s Autumn Beer Dinner in November 2007 or a couple of events when she last visited in 2009, then you had a chance to meet New Belgium Brewer Lauren Salazar.

Well if you didn’t have a chance to meet her, she’s coming back into town this week to kick off the New Belgium’s newest year-round selection, the Ranger IPA.  Here’s a list of events she’ll be attending this week:

Tuesday, Feb. 9th

• STL Hops/New Belgium Party at Mattingly Brewing Co.

Wednesday, Feb. 10th

• Pi Restaurant (Delmar) Ranger IPA/Lips of Faith Tasting with Lauren Salazar 7-8:30 pm
• Ranger IPA/Lips of Faith Tasting at Dressel’s Pub with Lauren Salazar 9-11 pm

Thursday, Feb. 11th

• Ranger IPA/Lips of Faith Tasting at The Stable with Lauren Salazar 6-8 pm
• Ranger IPA/Lips of Faith Tasting at The Bridge 9-11 pm

Lauren is a great brewer and provides plenty of information about New Belgium beers, so make the time to go out and visit one of these events. Here’s Lauren’s bio from NB:

Lauren Salazar, New Belgium Brewing Company

Lauren is the Sensory Specialist and a Quality team member at New Belgium Brewing Company, where she has been employed for over eleven years and sensory-focused for over ten. She developed the sensory program from a basic production check to its present program and is responsible for all facets from design to implementation to re-engineering. Other areas of interest and fun at the brewery include brewery-wide flavor training, new product development, small/esoteric beer production and wood barrel project blender. Lauren is a judge at the World Beer Cup and Great American Beer Festival, has presented and taught short courses for the CBC, WBC, AHA, ASBC, MBAA and many others.

Salazar received her BSW from the University of Georgia a lifetime ago and holds a Certificate from UC Davis for Applied Sensory Science and Consumer Testing.

The Mattingly Brewing Company may now be producing full scale productions of beer, but that doesn’t stop them from showing off what’s yet to come. Tonight, Head Brewer Drew Huerter and Assistant Brewer Jerid Saffell will be offering their Anniversary Ale I: Spiced Belgian Dark Strong Ale .

Here’s Drew giving a little information about the beer:

It has been a year already since our first production batch has come on tap at Mattingly Brewing Company. Well, over a year, actually, about 13 months, but that is beside the point. The point is that means it is time to celebrate the best way we know how. With a new beer!

Enter: Anniversary Ale I: Spiced Belgian Strong Ale. An amber elixir concocted from six malts, four spices, three hops, two sugars and our Belgian yeast culture, it is an aromatic and complex beer fit for savoring. 8% ABV *served by the snifter

Here’s a look at what to expect over the next couple of weeks:

2/10 – Oak Aged Old Harbinger American Barleywine
2/17 – Learn to Fly IPA – English Imperial IPA
2/24 – Pinball Blizzard Rye IPA
3/3 – Wheatwine
3/10 – Elderberry Irish Ale

Be sure to head out tonight and taste some of Drew and Jerid’s excellent beer.

Lauren Salazar from the New Belgium Brewing Company is coming back into town and NB Beer Ranger Joel Winn has set up an exclusive meet and greet for STL Hops members!

This event is being held at Mattingly Brewing Company on Tuesday, February 9th from 6-8PM.  Joel and Lauren will be on hand to discuss New Belgium’s newest year-round beer Ranger IPA as well as giving out some swag.

If you have not had a chance to meet Lauren, this is the perfect opportunity to meet one of the nicest people I’ve met in the brewing industry.  As Lauren is responsible for the La Folie series, this is you chance to ask her all of the questions you’d ever want to about sour beers.

Joel is providing me with a whole list of events Lauren is particiapting in next week, so stay tuned for that.

Note: If you’re reading this post, then you’re a member of STL Hops. You don’t have to sign up or do anything special to attend this event. Just come on out.

Let’s face it, February sucks.  It’s too cold, too dark and pretty boring.  But, one of the best parts about Winter is that it’s the perfect time of year to drink some big, dark stouts.

Luckily Mattingly Brewing Company’s head brewer Drew Huerter agrees with that notion and has decided to celebrate the dark and cold by giving us a bunch of dark and cold beer.  Drew has deemed his event the Big Black Beer Bash.

This Saturday, February 6th beginning at 4pm, Mattingly will have Black Forest Maple Imperial Stout and Bourbon Oak American Stout on tap as well as some selections from Drew and Jerid’s personal cellars to share.  Like what from their personal cellars?

• GI BCS ‘07, ‘08
• Terrapin/Left Hand Midnight Project Brew Two 2009 Depth Charge Espresso Milk Stout
• 3F Dark Lord ‘09
• Deschutes The Abyss ‘08
• Lost Abbey Serpents Stout
• Stone Imperial Russian Stout ‘09
• Pisgah Cosmos
• Samuel Smith RIS
• Bell’s Expedition Stout Batches: 8729, 8728, 7251
• Arcadia Shipwreck Porter
• Brew Dog Rip Tide Stout
• Left Hand Smokejumper
• Avery Mephistopheles Stout 11/06, 11/08
• Schlafly Irish Extra Stout 3/07
• Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter 05G, 07L
• Bell’s Cherry Stout Batch 7674
• ODell Imperial Stout 2008
• Arcadia Imperial Stout 2006
• Olfabrikken Porter
• Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout
• Schlafly Imperial Stout ‘06, ‘07, ‘08, ‘09
• Old Rasputin XII

If you’re looking to warm up, this selection of beer is about the best way to do it.

The Mattingly Brewing Company may now be producing full scale productions of beer, but that doesn’t stop them from showing off what’s yet to come. Tonight, Head Brewer Drew Huerter and Assistant Brewer Jerid Saffell will be offering the Dry Hopped Old Harbinger American Barleywine.

Here’s Drew giving a little information about the beer:

Old Harbinger American Barleywine is our entry into the venerable style pioneered by Anchor’s Old Foghorn, Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot, Great Divide’s Old Ruffian, Rogue Old Crustacean and many others.

Old Harbinger is hopped at a rate of 4.1 lbs/bbl to 90 IBUs with Magnum, Summit and fresh ‘09 crop Cascade, Willamette and Chinook, and weighing in at at hefty 25.6 degrees Plato (1.109 for you specific gravity types) it is one of the biggest and hoppiest brews yet from the cellars at Mattingly Brewing Company. At 11.8% ABV this is winter warmer of the highest order. *served by the snifter

Here’s a look at what to expect over the next couple of weeks:

1/27 – Dry Hopped Old Harbinger
2/3 – Oak Aged Old Harbinger

Be sure to head out tonight and taste some of Drew and Jerid’s excellent beer.

The Mattingly Brewing Company may now be producing full scale productions of beer, but that doesn’t stop them from showing off what’s yet to come. Tonight, Head Brewer Drew Huerter and Assistant Brewer Jerid Saffell will be offering the Old Harbinger American Barleywine.

Here’s Drew giving a little information about the beer:

Old Harbinger American Barleywine is our entry into the venerable style pioneered by Anchor’s Old Foghorn, Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot, Great Divide’s Old Ruffian, Rogue Old Crustacean and many others.

Old Harbinger is hopped at a rate of 4.1 lbs/bbl to 90 IBUs with Magnum, Summit and fresh ‘09 crop Cascade, Willamette and Chinook, and weighing in at at hefty 25.6 degrees Plato (1.109 for you specific gravity types) it is one of the biggest and hoppiest brews yet from the cellars at Mattingly Brewing Company. At 11.8% ABV this is winter warmer of the highest order. *served by the snifter

Here’s a look at what to expect over the next couple of weeks:

1/27 – Dry Hopped Old Harbinger
2/3 – Black Forest Maple Imperial Stout

Be sure to head out tonight and taste some of Drew and Jerid’s excellent beer.

The Mattingly Brewing Company may now be producing full scale productions of beer, but that doesn’t stop them from showing off what’s yet to come. Tonight, Head Brewer Drew Huerter and Assistant Brewer Jerid Saffell will be offering the Afterburner Chipotle Smoked Imperial Brown Ale.

Here’s a look at what to expect over the next few weeks:

1/20 – Old Harbinger American Barleywine
1/27 – Oak Aged Old Harbinger
2/3 – Maple Imperial Stout

Be sure to head out tonight and taste some of Drew and Jerid’s excellent beer.