Everyone wants a piece of the craft beer industry, from big beer brands to major league ball clubs. But these days, it's getting harder and harder to tell a true craft brew from ones just made to look the part. 

The most recent faux-craft siting occured at Yankee Stadium, where a vendor operating as "Craft Brew Destination" was in fact selling "craft" beers made by MillerCoors. Blogger Amanda Rykoff sounded off about the misinformation, noting MillerCoors beers (whether they're labeled craft or not) don't exactly fit into the Brewers Association’s definition of a craft brewer, which limits production to six million barrels or less and demands independent ownership. As NPR notes, the Yankees have been shamed into renaming the stand Beer Mixology Destination, a collection of words that mean pretty much nothing other than “Beer Here!”Continue reading...

Forget that the artist's name is "Playboy Tre," the new video for the song Ready Go takes the trend of alcohol product placement in music videos by the throat and throttles it to death (above). Warning, NSFW language.

Move over Four Loko anthem, "Ready Go" is drunk on brands.Continue reading...

In the most obvious beer brand launch ever, Discovery Channel's new series, Brew Masters, looks at a craft beer inspired by Miles Davis. As in Miles "Bitches Brew" Davis. Sundays at 10, folks! BYOB.

Yes, the popularity of cooking shows on TV never seems to wane, so it’s somewhat surprising that there haven’t been more shows dedicated to beverages. Brew Masters features the quest of Dogfish Head Brewery founder Sam Calagione to explore the world of beer, looking for inspiration for brews ranging from one to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the iconic Bitches Brew album, to a beer based on an ancient Egyptian recipe.

It’s billed as a reality show, but it's more of a docudrama — though the drama will not unfold through personal meltdowns but via the search for the perfect beer, and the suspense of whether a tomato-based beer, for example, will come out drinkable.

Sounds like the perfect opportunity for the backseat brewer to unwind on the couch with a cold one. Join us for more beer (news, that is), after the jump.Continue reading...