With Amendment 64, the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act having recently won approval from a majority of Colorado voters, it appear s that the state’s populace is ready to move beyond marijuana prohibition, as they did eighty years ago when they voted to approve the repeal of alcohol prohibition. And whatever your position is on the subject, there is no denying that there is a growing trend (at least at the state level) suggesting that many Americans are increasing open to repealing what they see as marijuana prohibition.

When Ron Jeffries began brewing the original test batches for Jolly Pumpkin Brewery in Dexter, MI, a pale ale was considered “really crazy” in the craft beer industry. But Jeffries took crazy to a new level when he turned his evolving business plan into a craft brewery focused on sours. “We saw a spot in the market for French and Belgian beers. No one in the US had an emphasis on sours,” explains Jeffries – so he and his wife Laurie opened the sour-focused Jolly Pumpkin Brewery in 2004. As it stands today, Jolly Pumpkin is known as the only brewery that ages all of its beers in oak barrels and is the only US brewery to make its name brewing only sours.

So many craft beers, so little time...With so many craft breweries, releasing so many beers, we thought it might help to provide a weekly update on all the new beers that are hitting the streets...So welcome to this week’s edition of Newbies - your guide to great new craft beer releases!

Zach Mack, our NYC correspondent, also runs the Alphabet City Beer Co. His place is down on Avenue C in lower Manhattan, and he, like so many of the region's small businesses, was hit hard by Sandy. He's not complaining (it's not his style) and explained that so many people took it worse than he, but he did worry that the region's devastation is now an afterthought for many and that the national media's attention may have moved on.

Hey it’s Friday and we’re heading into our first December weekend. Work had to be brutal coming off a long Thanksgiving break and you’re ready to get away and have some fun. That’s where we come in. If you’re up for some suggestions - we’ve got them. We’re all about it and have got you covered. Plus we’ve got a massive weekend holiday beer pick for you too! So Welcome to a Holiday Edition of Our Weekend Picks!

The Nation’s Capital will be hosting the 2013 Craft Brewers Conference and registration begins next week. This year’s conference runs from Tuesday, March 26^th through Friday, March 29^th and promises to be one of the best ever!

Say what you will about Cleveland, but amidst a Chirstmas light-strewn plaza, an Ohio State victory excitement, and craft breweries bursting at the seams to share their latest creations, there’s nothing to dislike (unless you’re a Michigan fan, of course.) The Winter Wine & Ale Fest that took place downtown last Saturday consisted of 13 breweries from the Cleveland area as well as several wineries and restaurants. The brewers were well-represented at this festival, as were their newly released winter ales.

Craft beer as we know it today has been an evolution. Back in the day, brewing was just a hobby - friends enjoying themselves and experimenting with age-old traditions. But what began in places like the garages of Chico, caught fire in a way that no one saw coming and a great new American tradition was born.

It’s not often that a brewery takes such strong action against the selling of its beers on the Black Beer Market, but that is what the Cantillon Brewery of Brussels, Belgium did in response to the sale of its annual release of Zwanze. In 2010, the release of this traditional lambic saw the bottles of delicious brew have an Ebay mark-up of over 1300% (Retail price – $6, Ebay Price – $80)...