Southern Tier Brewing Company doubles their production capacity

Southern Tier Brewing Company, located near Jamestown about an hour and a half from the city of Buffalo, has just added a 110-barrel Steinecker brew house. This new brew house more than doubles their previous beer production capacity, allowing the brewery to pump out new brews like this year’s spring beer, Live, a 5.5 percent alcohol pale ale with a citrusy, sparkling finish. The new facility will be open for tours this spring but in the meantime the brewery does regular tours of their facility on Saturdays at 1pm, 2:30pm, and 4pm. “We have a lot of people from Buffalo who come down,” says Nathan Arnone, head of marketing for Southern Tier. “Tours take place right in the midst of the bottle line and our fermentation cellar.”

- cory perla

Kegworks opens Buffalo outlet

If you like to drink, there’s undoubtedly something at KegWorks for you. Since 1998 they’ve been the leading online retailer for beer and draft beer accessories. Now you can visit them in person at their first physical location at 1460 Military Road; just look for the giant neon tap.

KegWorks specializes in the quirky aspects of drinking. They have a wall covered in about 60,000 bottle caps stuck on individually to their magnetized wall—the two-week process can be seen on Youtube. If you search the web you can catch videos of their staff having Nerf-Gun wars in the office. They even have chalkboard paint tables in their store for kids to doodle on while their parents shop; they really don’t leave anyone out.

KegWorks sells a variety of item,s from stainless steel ice cubes to avoid dreaded water-diluted beers, to high quality commercial items for bar owners. It might be a good idea to stop in before this weekend’s parades, they have an entire section of their website dedicated to St. Patrick’s Day supplies. Where else in Buffalo are you going to find leprechaun beer tap handles or green shamrock cocktails stirrers? Whether you’re looking for unique gifts or trying to start a home bar, KegWorks is a fun place worth checking out. You can visit their online store at www.kegworks.com.

- sarah jane barry

Trivia Nights

Quick, what is Jerry Seinfeld’s favorite drink on Seinfeld? Hint, he regularly offers it to people. Here’s another: On the TV show Sex in the City, Charlotte stumbles upon her future husband Trey in an unusual way. How do they meet? If you think you know the answers to these questions, then you might be ready for Seinfeld or Sex in the City Trivia Nights, presented by the S. Thomas Group at venues all around the city, including the Pan American Grill and Acropolis. Local event promoter Sean Thomas Heidinger has been throwing local trivia nights for months now, where guests can try their hand at TV and movie trivia while enjoying themed custom cocktails, like the Carrie Cocktail at Sex in the City Trivia Night, or the Boiler Maker at Dumb and Dumber Trivia Night. Heidinger’s biggest (and favorite) event to date was Seinfeld Festivus Trivia Night at the Pan American Grill, where more than 300 people signed up to try and guess Kramer’s first name and recall what the little problem with Elaine’s Christmas card was.

“As the night goes on and people drink more,” Heidinger says, “I think that when we get down to reading the answers, the excitement really picks up and the room can get really loud.”

More than 100 people have already signed the next event, Harry Potter Night, March 24 at the Pan American Grill, but it’s not too late to sign up. Search for S. Thomas Group Events on Facebook to keep an eye out for future events like Game of Thrones, Fresh Prince, and Will Ferrell trivia nights.

- cory perla