For the past few months, homebrew shop Bitter & Esters (700 Washington Ave., at Prospect Pl., Prospect Heights) has been hosting a clever series of homebrew classes that net very exciting results. Rather than brew some old standard, boring pale ale recipe, the shop has instead chosen to teach through much more familiar brews: commercial clones.

Through their “Brew Like a Pro” series, the shop has already brewed clones of beers from Victory, Ballast Point, and Oscar Blues. For this weekend, though, they’re going overseas.

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It’s Tuesday, March 6th. Here’s our list of recommended beer-related events in and around New York after work tonight:

• Founders takes over the taps at The Pony Bar (637 10th Ave. at 45th St., Hell’s Kitchen) tonight starting at 6pm. It’s their first Founders Night at The Pony, and it’ll be quite a good one. Expect Kentucky Breakfast Stout, the Nemesis Barleywine, the potent Devil Dancer Triple IPA. Get there early, the good stuff is gonna go fast!
• It’s the battle of the brothers tonight at Bar Great Harry (280 Smith St., at Sackett St., Carroll Gardens) as they host Mikkeller and Evil Twin from 6-10pm. Among the beers in Mikkel Borg Bjergsø’s corner, Monk’s Elixir and I Beat yoU… and in brother Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø’s corner, Monk Suffers Serious Sugar Rush on Barbados, Södermalm Hipster Ale, and more! Plus, they’re all quite reasonably priced at $5!
• Goose Island pours samples of Sophie, Pierre Jacques, and Matilda tonight at Growler Station (26 W. 8th St., at MacDougal St., Greenwich Village) from 6-9pm. Sample the brews and take home a growler or bottle.
• Straight outta Scotland, Dougal Sharp of Innis & Gunn pours samples of his beer at On Tap at Whole Foods Columbus Circle (10 Columbus Circle, at 59th St., Upper West Side) tonight from 4-7pm.

Follow us on Twitter for ongoing updates, like us on Facebook to spread the word, and check us out on Foursquare for great lists of beer bars, stores, and breweries!

Sometimes, the best source for information about a brewery’s beers is its website. And sometimes, it’s not. Sixpoint fell into the latter category for a long time, but it unveiled its new web site this week, chock full of new information, descriptions of its beers, events, and some fun interactive features.

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It’s Monday, March 5th. Here’s our list of recommended beer-related events in and around New York after work tonight:

• Meet the brewer of Japan’s Hitachino Nest beer tonight at Jimmy’s No. 43 (43 E. 7th St., at 2nd Ave., East Village). At 6pm, Mr. Toshiyuki Kiuchi from Kiuchi Brewery will be on hand, along with several beers from his brewery on draft and in bottles, and the tasty Brooklyn Sorachi Ace, brewed with Japanese hops. It’s all a thank you for the support he received after the tsunami last year at Brewers For Brewers.
• It’s VSK (Very Special Keg) Monday at Blind Tiger Ale House (281 Bleecker St., at Jones St., West Village). At 5pm, they’ll tap a rare or unique keg of the bar’s choosing. This week, it’s the ever-popular, ever-potent Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA.
• The Iron Monkey (97 Greene St., at York St., Jersey City, NJ) hosts their version of speed dating: beer dating! Tonight at 7pm, join some rounds of speed dating with craft beer and appetizers included. It’s $10 for women and $25 for men, and you can register on their site or by calling the bar at (201) 435-5758.

Follow us on Twitter for ongoing updates, like us on Facebook to spread the word, and check us out on Foursquare for great lists of beer bars, stores, and breweries!

Well, the weekend of the NYC American Craft Beer Festival has arrived. Tickets are still available for the VIP and Connoisseur sessions (more beer drinking!), so if you totally forgot about it until now, you’re in luck… and you’re actually sort of rewarded for it. Anyway, we’ve got a few beer events lined up for the weekend, so check ‘em out, after the jump:

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Spring has nearly sprung! It’s the beginning of March, but given this mild winter, we’ve already got the itch for the opening of new beer spots in the five boroughs that will usher in the new season. Okay, we may have just jinxed the city into a March full of snowstorms, but it’ll also be full of new beer bar and beer shop openings.

We’ll summarize the next wave for you, and you’ll notice a theme: spinoffs of other bars. Let’s hope these sequels are more Godfather: Part II and less Caddyshack II. Check them out after the jump:

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