Dan Blatt, the brewer at the small, seasonal J.F. Walleye’s Microbrewery on Middle Bass Island in Lake Erie, announced plans last month to start his own brewpub. Details -- including the name and location -- were a little hush-hush at the time. But no longer.

Good River Brewing Co. has launched a website and Blatt said today that the brewpub will be located outside downtown Amherst in Lorain County, a few miles from Oberlin College. Good River also will launch a fundraising effort through Kickstarter next week.

The fifth annual Cask AleFest -- which claims to offer "the finest selection of cask ales ever assembled in Ohio" -- will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday at 

Tickets are $40. For more details or to get tickets, click here.

Anheuser-Busch InBev, which has a brewery in Columbus, is coming out with several "sweet" beers to satisfy customer demand, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

The beers include Bud Light Lime-a-Rita, Michelob Ultra 19th Hole Light Tea & Lemonade and Shock Top Lemon Shandy.

Pete Coors and his son David will visit downtown Cleveland on Friday as part of a cross-country road trip promoting the Coors Banquet brand.

They will be outside Progressive Field in a special Coors recreational vehicle before the Cleveland Indians-Los Angeles Angels game. They also are throwing out the first pitch.

Northwest Ohio is getting another nanobrewery. Flatrock Brewing Co. hopes to open this summer in Holgate, a small farming community about 45 minutes southwest from Toledo.

“We would like people to know that we are a grassroots brewery and our ultimate goal is to employ a large local workforce and, of course, make world-class beer,” owner and brewer Lawrence Pritchard III said.

Drink Up Columbus, the website devoted to imbibing in the state capital, reports that Born Brewing, a new brewery venture in Columbus, is no longer going by the name Born Brewing.

Thanks to a potential conflict with Anheuser-Busch, which owns the trademark Born Small Town, the folks behind Born opted to rename their venture Seventh Son Brewing.

Zauber Brewing Co. in Grandview is hopping aboard the food truck craze. The production brewery will host food truck pods starting Thursday (April 26).

What's a food truck pod? It's when a gaggle of food trucks park near each other, offering folks several eating options. Local food trucks will be at the brewery from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. A list of which trucks is available at www.zbeers.com.

Valley Vineyards/Cellar Dweller Brewery in Morrow is interested in adding a distillery to the winery-brewery, Dayton Daily News writer Mark Fisher reports.

It apparently would be the first estate winery-brewery-distillery in Ohio.

Cellar Rats Brewery/Debonne Vinyards in Madison will hold its Beer on the Vine beer festival from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday (April 27).

The featured breweries are: Cellar Rats, Cornerstone Brewing, Fat Head's Brewery, The Brew Kettle and Thirsty Dog Brewing. The cost is $20 at the door or $17 in advance.

Blank Slate Brewing Co. in Cincinnati has been given the final approval from the city to open its production brewery.

"Once the final inspector left, everything suddenly became very REAL," brewer and owner Scott LaFollette wrote on his blog. "See, for me, the nuts and bolts of putting the brewery together were the 'easy' (relatively speaking) part.  Now I have to deal with marketing and sales and invoices and inventory control and on and on and on."

Greg Hardman is Cincinnati’s newest beer baron. He runs not only the Christian Moerlein brand and the new Moerlein Lager House brewpub in downtown Cincinnati, but also controls some of the community’s most treasured brands: Hudepohl, Burger and Little Kings.

Question: One of your first jobs was as a beer distributor for Burger Classic. You’ve also served as president of the North American operation for Warsteiner Brauerie. How did you first get into the beer business?

Cleveland's Ohio City neighborhood already has been written up in national publications as one of the best spots in the nation to have a beer. There's Great Lakes Brewing Co., Market Garden Brewery, the Bier Markt and many other beer-related options.

Now, Sam McNulty, owner of the Bier Markt, Bar Cento and Market Garden, has purchased the former Garage bar and wants to turn it into Ohio City Nano Brew, a small-batch brewery, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Rivertown Brewing Co. in suburban Cincinnati will hold a grand opening for its tasting room next Friday. (April 27)

The Rivertown Tasting Room will be open from 5 to 10 p.m. Fridays; noon to 10 p.m. Saturdays; and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.

The Samuel Adams 2012 LongShot Variety Six-Pack is hitting store shelves this month. The six-pack features three beers that won the 2011 Samuel Adams LongShot American Hombrew Contest. More than 1,000 homebrewers entered the annual competition.

The winners were Texas resident Corey Martin's A Dark Night in Munich and Illinois resident Joe Formanek's Five Crown Imperial Stout. The variety pack, which retails for $9.99, also includes Samuel Adams employee Fred Hessler's Derf's Secret Alt.

Joel Sandrey was shocked.

Cellar Rats Brewery was searching for a new name for its popular pilsner and he thought it’d be cool to name the beer P.O.C. – a special tribute to the once popular Cleveland brand.

Here are several items worth noting on the Ohio beer front today:

-- The I-X Center in Cleveland has posted the starting list of breweries and beers coming for the second annual International Beer Fest on May 11-12. The list will be updated as the event draws closer, a spokeswoman said. The event promises about 800 beers from more than 200 breweries around the world. To view the list, click here.

The Brewers Association, a Boulder, Colo.-based trade group, released its annual list of the top 50 U.S. craft breweries.

Boston Beer Co., which has a Samuel Adams brewery in Cincinnati, topped the list, which is based on 2011 sales volume. The rest of the top five were: Sierra Nevada, New Belgium, The Gambrinus Co. and Deschutes.

Pete Hilgeman can trace his love affair with craft beer to a retail job and a trip abroad.

While studying at the University of Cincinnati, he worked at the Party Source, a giant party store with a great beer selection in Kentucky just across the Ohio River from Cincinnati. Hilgeman was exposed to hundreds of different craft brews every day.

Chuck’s Fine Wines in Chagrin Falls – rated as one of the best beer stores in the world by Ratebeer.com -- will hold a special beer tasting from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday (April 20).

The tasting, which costs $10, will include beer from The Brew Kettle, Indigo Imp, Great Lakes, Crooked River, Hoppin’ Frog and Thirsty Dog. The beer will be paired with pulled pork sliders and other food featuring local seasoning and spices from Mom’s Gourmet.

Hoppin' Frog Turbo Shandy Citrus Ale returns today. The summer beer from Hoppin' Frog Brewery in Akron will be available starting today (April 16) at the brewery.

Sandy Reda runs the annual Big Tap In beer festival, which bills itself as the largest craft beer festival between Cleveland and Pittsburgh. The event is Saturday at the Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown. Reda also helps run Vintage Estate Wine and Beer, rated as one of the best beer stores in Ohio.

Question: Behind the scenes, what’s the biggest challenge in organizing a beer festival?

Columbus Underground has a story about yet another brewery planning to open in Columbus. The Actual Brewing Co. wants to be making beer this summer and also has plans to launch a brewpub downtown.

Actual joins an ever-growing list of breweries that have opened or plan to open this year in central Ohio. (Four String, Zauber, Born, Oval, Hoof-Hearted, Buckeye Lake ....)

Drink Up Columbus, the great website about imbibing in the state capital, has a write-up and review on the new Buckeye Lake Brewery in Buckeye Lake.

Buckeye Lake is located along Interstate 70 about halfway between Columbus and Zanesville. This is one of the few Ohio breweries I haven't visited yet since it's so new. To read the review, click here.

The Hudson Library & Historical Society will hold its annual Ohio Author Day and Book Fair on Saturday. The event includes a children's book writing and publishing panel discussion from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

More than 30 Ohio authors will be there from 1 to 4 p.m. to sign books and chat with folks. I will be there hawking my book Ohio Breweries and will be more than happy to chat about the Ohio beer scene. The big draw -- at least in my mind -- is Tom Batiuk, who writes the comic strip Funky Winkerbean.

The Casey Malone Show, which is broadcast on WFMJ and WBCB in Youngstown, recently stopped by the Cellar Rats Brewery and Debonne Vineyards in Madison for a segment. Phill Reda, co-owner of Vintage Estate Wine & Beer, accompanied Malone on the tour and wine/beer tasting. Check out the video below:

The Cleveland Plain Dealer has a pretty lengthy story on the Spillway project in Chagrin Falls. The effort, which has been talked about for years, will include a brewery and restaurant.

The newspaper story focuses on the history of the former paper mill and the effort to get the building on the National Register of Historic Places. There isn't any information about the proposed brewery. Spillway partner Darren Wyeville told the Plain Dealer that construction could begin by year's end.

Budweiser will donate $5,000 for every walk-off win during the Major League Baseball regular season this year to the Folds of Honor Foundation as part of the "Walk off a Hero" program.

The foundation provides post-secondary educational scholarships for families of U.S. military personnel killed or disabled while serving their country. Budweiser also will contribute a portion of all sales from May 20 to July 7 to help to raise as much as $2.5 million for the group.

The Ohio Craft Brewers Association is behind the times when it comes to promoting craft beer and its members here. Groups in other states have dedicated websites and brewery travel maps.

Here's another example of the progressive marketing happening elsewhere: the Washington Beer Commission has launched a dedicated YouTube channel to promote Washington brewers. The channel features videos introducing people to various Washington breweries. To check it out, click here.

American craft beer is making inroads outside the U.S. The Brewers Association, the Boulder, Colo.-based trade group, reported that exports rose 86 percent by volume last year and now have increased for the ninth consecutive year.

Samuel Adams is releasing a new session beer for summer: Belgian Session.

It clocks in at a low 4.3 percent alcohol. The brewery describes the beer as "a crisp, bright version of a traditional Belgian beer with fruity, slightly spicy flavors from the Belgian yeast."

The BottleHouse Brewery, a new brew-on-premise operation in Cleveland Heights, will hold its grand opening May 1.

“Barring a tree falling on the building or something, we’re opening,” co-owner Brian Benchek joked.

Think starting your own brewery would be loads of fun? Well, it can be. But, there are plenty of headaches along the way, too.

Just ask Scott LaFollette. He's the owner and brewer at the soon-to-open Blank Slate Brewing Co., a small production brewery in Cincinnati. He has been chronicling his effort in an honest, educational and entertaining blog that's a must-read for anyone toying with the idea of owning your own brewery.

Speakeasy, an online magazine run by students at Ohio University, has profiled Jackie O's Pub & Brewery brewer Brad Clark, who just so happens to be an OU graduate with a degree in creative writing.

He also is one of the most creative and prolific brewers in the state. (Remember Hogwash? It's the beer that smells and tastes like breakfast sausage.)

Andy Tveekrem is the co-owner and brewer at the Market Garden Brewery in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood. The brewpub – which also is a micro-distillery -- is across the street from the highly regarded Bier Markt and around the corner from Great Lakes Brewing Co. The neighborhood has been cited by several national publications as one of the best in the country where to have a beer. Tveekrem’s pedigree includes brewing stints at Great Lakes and Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales.

Question: Why did you become a brewer?

About two weeks ago, I wrote a story for the Akron Beacon Journal questioning why there isn't a television program devoted to beer. For that story (click here to revisit it), I reached out to Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales to get his take on the issue because he headed the short-lived show Brew Masters on the Discovery Channel.

Who would know better why there isn't a regular show about beer than a guy who had a show about beer? Unfortunately, my email to Calagione seeking comment apparently fell through the cracks and he missed it until after the story ran. But in a classy move, he emailed me a response Friday.

Drink Up Columbus, the great website devoted to imbibing in the state capital, has an updated story about Hoof Hearted Brewing Co., the area's newest brewery.

Mt. Carmel Brewing Co. outside Cincinnati held a "soft" opening for its new tap room last weekend and the place was packed, assistant brewer Patrick Clark said. He provided some photos (see below).

The hours for the tap room are noon to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, with a brewery tour beginning at 1 p.m. The brewery encourages folks to call (513-240-BREW) or email (beer@mtcarmelbrewingcompany.com) ahead to reserve a spot in the tour.

c.2012 Bloomberg News

By Clementine Fletcher

Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant in Columbus has released its seasonal Maibock, described as "a strong-bronzed bounty of warming caramel malt balanced to perfection with noble Hersbrucker hops"

I will be on the Lanigan and Malone radio program in Cleveland just after 7 a.m. Friday chatting about the Ohio beer industry and my book Ohio Breweries.

For those unfamiliar with the station, it's WMJI Majic 105.7 FM and one of the hosts is Cleveland radio legend John Lanigan.

This beer review has nothing to do with Ohio. But I found Todd Haefer's description of Lazy Mutt Farmhouse Ale so scathing and entertaining at the same time that I thought I'd post a link here. Haefer reviewed the beer from Minhas Brewing Co. in Monroe, Wisc., for the Appleton Post-Crescent newspaper.

"I first noticed an unpleasant, heavy yeast aroma, almost sewerish, before I even took my first sip," he wrote. "Thoughtfully, however, it was accompanied by an equally sewerish yeast flavor. Then the first traces of a sharp popcorn-like taste kicked in, enhanced by a thin, watery body."

Hoppin' Frog Brewery owner and brewer Fred Karm was fascinated when he started seeing black India pale ales. The new style features really hoppy black beers.

But Karm, known for making bold and flavorful brews in 22-ounce bottles, wasn't quite satisfied with some that he sampled. "We wanted more hops," Karm said. "That's what Hoppin' Frog is."

Craft brewers are toasting a new milestone — and healthy sales. For the first time last year, craft beer captured more than 5 percent of the overall U.S. beer market.

Tony Packo's, the venerable Toledo institution, will celebrate its 80th anniversary this year with an exclusive beer made by Great Black Swamp Brewing Co.

Tony Packo's 80th Anniversary Ale -- a rye pale ale -- will be available on draft starting Wednesday at Packo's at the Park, the original Front Street location and the Sylvania restaurant. The beer also will be sold in 22-ounce bottles starting Friday at the restaurants.

Drink Up Columbus, a website devoted to imbibing in the state capital, reports that Oval Brewing Co. has secured enough donations through Kickstarter to launch its brewery.

Owner Adam Benner tells the website that he's still searching the Columbus area for a location. He hopes to open late this year or early next year. To read the full story, click here.

Great Lakes Brewing Co. will release a new baseball-inspired beer Tuesday, just in time for the Cleveland Indians home opener. Rally Drum Red Ale will be available on draft starting Tuesday exclusively at the brewpub in Cleveland.

It was made in honor of local baseball fan John Adams, who for years has beat a rally drum in the outfield stands at Municipal Stadium and now Progressive Field to urge on the Indians.

Doug Muranyi is the brewmaster at Kelleys Island Brewery. He and his wife Patti Johnson-Muranyi also own the brewpub, one of four brewpubs on the Lake Erie Islands and the only one on Kelleys Island. Because of its location, the brewpub is a seasonal operation and relies on island tourism for business. It’s also one of the most difficult breweries to visit in Ohio since you have to take a ferry to get to it. Kelleys Island Brewery has one of the most beautiful brewery settings in the state. A stone patio overlooks the lake and mainland, giving visitors a gorgeous view while enjoying a beer. Kelleys Island Brewery is set to open for the season April 27.

Question: Why did you become a brewer?

Answer: I became a brewer with my brother in the late 80's and early 90's because we were looking for a better product.  All the beers were watered down.  It was so far from tasty.  Back then Coors was the cat's meow.  Now look at our beer shelves.

Q: Since Kelleys Island Brewery is on a Lake Erie island, it relies on tourism and is closed during the winter. Are there special challenges operating a seasonal brewery?