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The 17th Annual Mammoth Festival of Beers and Bluesapalooza, held Aug. 2-5, hit some very high notes. According to Mammoth Brewing Company owner Sean Turner, the Beers portion attracted a record turnout of 71 small, traditional craft breweries, all independently owned. That, Turner said, “is a huge distinction,” compared to other festivals, some of which include corporate-brewed beers. “We advertise 60, but brewers kept calling up and asking if it was too late and we said no, come on over.” Bluesapalooza’s debut Thursday show pulled in 1,000 people, while Friday had 4,200. Saturday sold out at 5,000 and Sunday improved over last year with 2,500. Saturday’s show was cut short by rain, but only by about 15 minutes. Several fans thought the weather added ambiance.

Sean and Joyce Turner, Charlie Papazian, Karl Anderson and Jason Senior (Photo courtesy MBC)

If you’ve had the occasion recently to drink some of Mammoth Brewing Company’s Double Nut Brown Porter, congratulations … you sipped some liquid gold.

The locally brewed craft concoction was one of two MBC entries that brought home medals in the 9th Biannual World Brewing Cup competition, which handed out top brewing honors on May 5 in San Diego, Calif. MBC’s Double Nut won the Gold medal in the Brown Porter category, and the company’s Real McCoy Amber Ale was awarded a Bronze medal in the German Style Brown/Dusseldorf-Style Altbier category. This was MBC’s first year entering in this contest.

“It’s called ‘The Olympics of Beer Competition’ for good reason,” said Charlie Papazian, president of the Brewers Association, the U.S.-based trade association that has put on the competition every two years since 1996. “The awards are highly regarded. A brewer who wins a World Beer Cup gold award knows that their winning beer represents the best of that beer style in the world.”

On hand from MBC to accept their accolades were Jason Senior, head brewer, Karl Anderson, brewer, and MBC owners Sean and Joyce Turner. As Sean put it, winning one World Cup medal gets you accolades, but winning two earns you a certain respect. “It really speaks to the consistency and quality of our beers,” Turner said.

This year’s World Beer Cup competition featured the strongest field of entrants on record: 799 breweries from 54 countries and 45 U.S. states, and more than 2,400 attendees. Brewers from around the world received 284 awards in 95 categories from an elite international panel of judges. Each category had an average of 41 entries, and overall the contest noted an 18 percent increase in entrants from two years ago.

Both the Double Nut Brown and Real McCoy Amber beers have earned many gold medals over several years from the California State Fair, but the Turners say that the World Cup medal put MBC’s work firmly “on par with other world-recognized breweries,” such as Sierra Nevada and Firestone Walker. “It’s not just that we’re okay to run with the big dogs,” Sean pointed out, “but that we’re recognized as ONE of the big dogs!”

As Sean described, the WB Cup is held in conjunction with the Craft Brewers Conference, which Turner has been attending since 1994. He credits Papazian with getting him hooked on brewing. “Charlie wrote a classic book, ‘The Joy of Home Brewing,’ which got me into home brew,” Sean recalled. “In the 1990s, I decided to turn a hobby into a career.”

Many MBC devotees might not realize that this is Sean’s fourth brewing project as an owner or operator. “Sam Walker recruited me from within the industry,” he explained. “I interviewed him as well. [MBC] had good beer and strong brand recognition, but one attractive thing was that it had no distribution baggage attached to it.”

He and wife Joyce are in this situation for the long run. “We’ve put down roots with this one,” he said. “I’m happy with what Joyce and I have here.”

The World Brewing Cup honor, however, is ultimately a recognition of the brewers, he added. “Joyce and I are happy to take credit for our part in the awards as the owners, but Jason and all our brewers are the ones who really deserve credit.”

There is a beer industry saying: “Brewers don’t make beer. Yeast makes beer.” It’s the brewers who are responsible for creating the right environment for the yeast. “They have to keep it clean and consistent,” Sean noted. “Happy yeast makes happy beer.”

The 2012 judging panel was the most international in the history of the World Beer Cup. Judges from 27 countries, with roughly 67 percent from outside the U.S., conducted blind tasting evaluations of the beers to determine the winners. Sean said he thinks that Europe is taking some of its brew cues from the U.S. craft industry, which in his opinion has spurred a “craft resurgence” there.

He doesn’t have anything against the big corporate companies, which he calls one component of the beer industry at large. For many years, many foreign countries disparaged American beer as being inferior. Turner pointed out that the U.S. beer industry has been based largely on rice and corn since WWII.

Prior to Prohibition in 1919, there were some 2,000 breweries in the U.S. With the passage of the Volstead Act, that number plummeted to virtually zero, and during WWII, rationing left rice and corn as the most plentiful sources of grain for beer companies, such as Budweiser, Miller and Coors. Home brew wasn’t legalized until 1976. The delay was a result of a clerical error that kept it out of the legalizing process put in place with the repeal of the Volstead Act in 1933. Since 1976, the U.S. quickly established itself as the world leader in craft brewing for much of the last 30 plus years.

Since winning the award, Sean said MBC has been getting calls from distributors as far away as China wanting to carry their beer. “My standard response, for now at least, is give me about a year,” he quipped.

“We want our beers in California and Nevada soon, and in the seven western-most states within about five years,” Sean said. “My goal is solid regional brewing. From there, some of the seasonal and more unique, specialty beers can be marketed anywhere around the world. IPA 395 could be sold in China.”

Sean said recognition from his peers means more to him personally than the medals. “At the awards dinner, even with 2,400 people there, I was surrounded by friends, some of whom I’ve known for almost 20 years.”

That camaraderie, he added, means a lot when it comes to having so many of his compatriots in town for each summer’s Mammoth Festival of Beers, which he promotes as heavily as the Bluesapalooza music festival it’s paired with. “Like Mammoth, the craft industry has a ‘small town’ feel to it.

“The town could take a lesson from the craft industry in how we cooperatively compete with each other,” he suggested. “We promote the industry as a whole, and it helps all of us. It’s the same with tourism. If one succeeds, everyone succeeds.”

Mammoth Liquor’s Spike Todd is still in the hospital in Reno.

Some local folks are stepping up to help defray some of the medical expenses.

Mammoth Brewing’s Sean Turner says that before Spike fell ill, he ordered 10 cases, or 240, pint glasses. They have a Mammoth Liquor logo on one side and a Mammoth Brewing Company logo on the other.

Normally, Spike sold the glasses for $5 out the door.

Mammoth Brewing is waiving its charge to Spike for the glasses and pricing them at $20. All proceeds will go to Spike Todd.

Get your pint glass at Mammoth Brewing’s Tasting Room or at Mammoth Liquor. The glasses are supposed to arrive next week.

You can follow Spike’s progress at www.caringbridge.org/visit/spiketodd. You’ll need to register first. It takes just a minute.

In the most recent update by Spike’s brother Bob on Dec. 13, Bob wrote:

Hello Spike’s family and friends -

As one nurse said tonight, “He took a step forward last night, and two steps back today.”

Spike suffered a punctured lung today, which was somewhat inevitable given his condition and the ventilator that’s been pumping him since this all began.

By this evening, some of his numbers were back to acceptable levels and things were better. Spike is very sick and fighting hard, with many tough days ahead. It’s a long haul but we remain confident in his recovery.

Thank you all so very much for your continued love and concern.

Bobbo

In honor of Devils Postpile’s Centennial, Mammoth Brewing Company decided to create a commemorative beverage to celebrate the occasion. Employees got so excited they threw rocks in the beer. Not just any rocks, however, but basalt – the same type of rock that makes up the Devils Postpile monument. MBC’s head brewer Jason Senior grabbed some of these rocks from alongside 395 (not from the Postpile itself!) and put them in buckets on a large barbecue. He fed the barbecue’s fire with almond wood to make the rocks super hot and smoky. After reaching a temperature over 600 degrees, the rocks were placed in the brewery’s kettle, which was then filled with wort (the liquid extracted from the mashing process during the brewing of beer). Senior likened the process to the caramelization of sugar, but with rocks. The beer was then boiled with the rocks and the normal fermentation process took place.

Only 240 cases and 12 kegs of “Devils Post Pale Ale” will be sold. One case is only 12 bottles because each bottle is 22 ounces, and the cost is $7/bottle. In other words, you (according to Lunch) could buy a gallon of Boone’s Farm for the cost of a bottle of this beer, but that’s because the brew required doubled the hops (Centennial Hops, coincidentally), double the man-hours and 50% more hops than a typical Mammoth Brewing Co. beer. The end product is 7.5% alcohol by volume.

Visit MBC’s Tasting Room and Retail Store at 94 Berner Street or call 760.934.7141.

Are County public works employees just board? (Photo: Kirkner)

During its Dec. 7 meeting, Mono County’s Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to extend the termination date on the existing Sheriff’s Substation lease until May 31, 2011. Public Works has more work to do in its evaluation of the site, and the extension was also thought to give Jim Ouimet and his Mammoth Dog Teams crew sufficient time to close out his winter season. The building won’t be demolished for now, but was recently boarded up, much to Ouimet’s chagrin.

A hot water heater being used by Ouimet has to be relocated, in addition to water, power and other work that has yet to be planned out. The water heater, located in the building in what used to be the morgue, is an authorized use of the building as previously defined by the County. Such a use could be rescinded without leading to eviction, though it’s not an option the County is pursuing.

“I was under the impression there was a specific plan in place, and after nine months, I’m not seeing [any kind of temporary structure] put up in order to get him out of the building once and for all,” Supervisor Hap Hazard remarked. “It brings me back to [my earlier position of] let’s plough it under and be done with it.” Hazard added he wasn’t looking for a way to extend the termination date, but a way to “chop it off.”

County Administrative Officer Dave Wilbrecht said it’s a matter of setting priorities. Ouimet still needs to come back to Public Works and submit a final plan for the site. He said the current solution (including boarding up the building) isn’t the best one, but the best one at the moment, given the season and other problems hindering work on the site.

Mammoth Brewing Company, which is the other bidder for a lease on the site (in addition to Ouimet), said its footprint could be a large one. Ouimet has reportedly said he can work within a smaller area, and in the meantime, Joyce Turner said she’s still trying to get the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to the table to hash out water issues, and MBC indicated it still hasn’t ruled out another location for its new brewery.

Public Works Assistant Director Kelly Garcia said that until there is a new lease on the property, at present, even if they wanted to, neither MBC nor Ouimet could begin any sort of development.

Chair Byng Hunt corralled the Board into extending the date until May, on the grounds that it would give everyone involved the most breathing room to figure out and execute their next moves.

Last week at its Sept. 14 meeting, Mono County Supervisors threw Mammoth Dog Teams (MDT) another bone. Jim Ouimet’s business, which has its high season in winter, was one of two companies that turned in bids for a new lease on the Sheriff’s Substation property off of U.S. 395 and Hwy 203. Mammoth Brewing Company (MBC) was the other company that is interested in relocating its brewing facility to the site in anticipation of a flurry of future growth.

MBC has already maxed out its current Whiskey Creek location. Mammoth Dog Teams, meanwhile, has after much searching been unable to find another suitable site for its operation, calling the Substation property the best location the company has used in the past 10 years.

The County extended the lease to allow more time to resolve technical issues on the property and a potential co-tenant arrangement. Chair Byng Hunt asked about the ramifications of extending the new lease for at least six months, concerned that a short extension imposes a deadline too close to MDT’s winter season. Deputy County Counsel Stacey Simon replied that in 90 days they may enter into a new lease with MDT, or new leases with both parties, but in any case leaving the County’s options open doesn’t mean that MDT will be on the streets in December. Quite the contrary … much due diligence on the site has yet to be finalized and in all probability another extension in 90 days is a real possibility.

Public Works’ Kelly Garcia reported that MBC has indicated they are willing to work within the property’s size constraints; the main issue is water, the rights to which are currently held by Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP). A separate deal with LADWP would have to be worked out. Another larger issue is whether zoning allows operation of a brewery on the site, which has yet to be determined. So far, no conflicts between MBC and MDT have been observed, and Simon added that no conclusiveness has been reached as to the viability of MBC’s business plan, which is still being ironed out. The Board approved the extension 5-0.

The already financially challenged Eastern Sierra Transit Authority (ESTA) felt the ripple from the recent layoffs by Town Council of several key positions in Mammoth government. An accounting clerk for ESTA was also eliminated in the recent round of layoffs. ESTA had been paying $55,000 against $110,000 in accounting services through former Finance Director Brad Koehn’s office. On Sept. 2, along with the other Town staffers that were cut, so was the clerk’s position. ESTA Director John Helm and the advisory board and staff are working on a solution to the problem that will hopefully be ready for discussion by ESTA’s next regular meeting later in October.

The County also inked a contract for Energy Efficiency professional services with Eastern Sierra Energy Initiative. Kelly Garcia in Public Works said that since ESEI’s inception about one year ago, staff had several meetings with ESEI partnership members, including the Town of Mammoth Lakes, Southern California Edison and the High Sierra Energy Foundation. Mono County Finance Director Brian Muir recommended that the previous contribution of $10,000 be converted to a $25,000 contract for fiscal year 2010-2011 that would yield a potential savings of more than $117,000 over the next five years. ESEI Director Rick Phelps said the future contract amounts would in all likelihood be considerably less, as the general work is completed, and the emphasis shifts more toward maintenance and specific needs. “It will be much easier to justify expenses going forward,” he estimated. The contract, he said, takes the burden of providing services off of the County, which Phelps said is woefully understaffed for such an undertaking and allows them to focus on ongoing work.

Could Mammoth Brewing be Mammoth Dog Teams new best friend?

Mammoth Brewing Company (MBC) has a beer called “Hair of the Dog,” but if negotiations go well, the company could have the real thing, in the form some 40 dogs that will cohabitate with the brewery as new leaseholders of the Old Sheriff’s Substation property less than one mile south of the Hwy 203 interchange off U.S. 395.

Mammoth Dog Teams (MDT) owner Jim Ouimet and MBC’s Joyce Turner both turned in proposals by the July 16 bid deadline. On Tuesday, both parties went before Mono County’s Board of Supervisors to discuss their proposals, possibly as joint tenants, in the future of the 3-acre/25,000 square foot parcel.

“I want to support the dog teams, but I am concerned about the size of the property,” commented Supervisor Hap Hazard, who added he’d like to explore how to fit both proposals on the same property. “Both need to have water down there. What kind of filtration system are we talking about? How solid is this location for the brewery and what would its footprint look like?” Hazard also queried.

Joyce Turner, who is also a licensed civil engineer, said the company learned of the opportunity on short notice and has more homework to do to come up to speed on the site, but added MBC has no intent to displace Ouimet and his dogs.

Joyce and Sean Turner purchased MBC from Sam Walker in 2007. MBC has quickly grown to produce products for Reno, Nev., as well as Lake Tahoe and Truckee, Calif. It has also seen a tremendous demand in the Yosemite Valley and has plans to make a big move into Southern California. With 52 percent, 25 percent and 33 percent growth respectively over past three years, Joyce said the brewery has already maxed out its present Whiskey Creek location.

Payroll has gone up from 8 to 20 employees, she said, and that number could easily double in the next few years. MBC turns out 5,000 barrels per year, but anticipates boosting that output to 75,000-100,000 barrels in the next 5 to 10 years.

“Nothing in the industrial park can support the size of the facility needed,” she said. “Location makes the site attractive.” Turner said MBC is looking to use 2 of the site’s 3 acres.

MBC would retain a retail store/tasting room and/or pub facility presence in Mammoth, but may open the brewery to tours.

U.S. 395’s Scenic Byway status may present issues in terms of setbacks, water and any buildings there, said Community Development’s Scott Burns. But County Finance Director Brian Muir and County Administrative Officer Dave Wilbrecht pointed out that in terms of economic development, the more employees MBC has working there, the more “forgiveness of rent” becomes a factor as economic stimulus goes up. And that rent is pretty reasonable.

“At [a rent of] $650 per month, an Environmental Impact Report will cost a lot more than the lease,” Supervisor Vikki Bauer observed.

Ouimet indicated he has investors waiting in the wings, but is waiting for a go ahead before setting up financing deals. He added that of the five locations he’s been at during the past 20 years, this current location is by far the most successful of the lot. “The dogs are so much happier, they can play … I can socialize with them, which is very important for working dogs,” Ouimet told the Board.

Ouimet and Turner agreed there are issues to be evaluated, including how much of the actual acreage is usable (a stream cuts part of the back part of the property). New infrastructure, including buildings will need agreements with the County. Apart from the obvious brewing facility that will need to be erected by MBC, Mammoth Dog Teams has been planning to put up a new covered housing structure for the dogs. (The County has previously put plans in place to demolish the current substation building.)

Turner said those are details she hasn’t had a chance to ponder fully, but indicated that, in light of not owning the property on which the brewery would be operating, a long-term 40-year lease with a 10-year option (which she said is the longest allowed by law) would mitigate the property ownership issue.

Staff was directed to work with both parties and set up a timeline as to how soon all this can happen, since time is of the essence for both.

In the hallway after their agenda item, Turner met briefly with Ouimet and told him she’s looking forward to getting together and talking about how this can be worked out. “Alright. Let’s see how this goes,” Ouimet said.