Standing Stone Brewing Company (SSBC) and Rogue Creamery are a common pairing. The award-winning creamery makes a Standing Stone Stout Cheddar and the acclaimed craft brewery/restaurant features Rogue Creamery cheeses on its menu.

The two have taken their collaboration a step further to advance their common mission around sustainable business. Standing Stone has inspired Rogue Creamery to give free commuter bikes to employees who have worked at least 1,000 hours and who agree to bike commute 45 times in a year, replicating a program SSBC recently launched.

It all started with a wager made over a few pints of ale. Rogue Creamery co-owner David Gremmels stopped by for a beer and asked SSBC co-owner Alex Amarotico about the new commuter bike program, mentioning that his team members expressed interest in it. “I casually offered to buy a commuter bike for cheesemaker and plant manager Craig Nelson if he committed to bike to work at least 45 times, and if David and co-owner Cary Bryant agreed to buy bikes for their team members making the same pledge,” says Amarotico. “I was pleasantly surprised when David told me Craig and the Creamery were in.”

Amarotico will present Nelson with a Standing Stone Kona commuter bike at 12:30 PM on Friday, Oct. 16 at the historic Rogue Creamery, 311 North Front Street, Central Point, OR.
Rogue Creamery will launch its bike commuter “Nellie Green Pedal Power Program” later this year. The business has established a sustainable program called the Nellie Green program committed to the community, environment, recycling and conservation. Its bikes will have the same green hue as the Creamery’s iconic milk truck, also signifying their commitment to environmental and social responsibility. The company has earned the Food Alliance’s “Certified Sustainable” seal, sources local sustainable and organic milk from pasture-fed cows, and strives to reduce resource use and waste.

Gremmels and Bryant are geared up to begin the program, “When we heard what Standing Stone was doing, we thought it would be great to do ourselves. We’re excited to find ways to improve our environmental impact, benefit our team members and enjoy the community while biking to work.”

Like the Creamery, SSBC is committed to cutting-edge efforts that reduce its environmental footprint and benefit employees and the community, such as using local and organic food, reducing energy use, installing solar, diverting almost 80% of waste materials from landfills and supporting diverse community causes. Amarotico is glad his efforts have inspired others. “It would be great to see even more businesses get rolling in this direction.”

Posted under beer news

To be a beer geek and to not eat cheese is a sacrilege to some.  But what if you are lactose intolerant?  That’s nearly as bad as being gluten intolerant…well, sort of.  If you can not eat cheese or your vegan conscience won’t allow for it, there’s a magnificent Scottish faux-cheese product called Sheese made by Bute Island Foods.

Sheese is a delicious alternative to dairy-based cheese. Sheese is acceptable for vegans as well as other consumers who are lactose intolerant or allergic to dairy products There are no hydrogenated oils, no artificial colors, no preservatives, and no animal-based ingredients in Sheese.

Finally, with Sheese individuals who choose not to eat dairy products for ethical reasons or who cannot eat them for medical reasons have a real alternative to dairy cheese. Sheese tastes great, melts great and is even easy to grate. Dust off all those recipes that you had to put away because they called for cheese and get back to enjoying some classic comfort food.

Here’s some of our favorite Sheese varieties:

Cheddar and Chives- Forget the sour cream and chives on your baked potato – replace it with this delicious flavor.

Hickory Smoked Cheddar- If you miss cheese and crackers…well, now all you need are the crackers. A fantastic, smoky flavor that’s always a hit.

Strong Cheddar- Everybody’s favorite flavor that will bite you back. The ideal complement to your favorite veggie burger, or melted and drizzled over veggies.

Many of these Sheese products as well as a large assortment of other vegan delectables are available in Portland, Oregon at Food Fight! Vegan Grocery and Thrive in Seattle, Washington.

Okay, if you think faux cheese is disgusting still, then, here’s something for the lovers of the real deal from the udder from the folks at Whole Foods of Washington and Oregon:

Whole Foods Market is pleased to announce the arrival of two new artisanal cheeses from Het Hinkelspel Cheese Co?op in Gent, Belgium. The Pas de Rouge washed rind cow’s milk cheese and Pas de Bleu, blue cow’s milk cheese are now available in all Washington and Oregon stores.

Accompanying these cheese selections is Lousberg Belgian Ale. Lousberg was designed by De Proef Brewery of Lochristi, Belgium specifically to complement the Het Hinkelspel cheeses.

“We are always looking to expand our selection of exceptional cheeses,” noted regional specialty coordinator
Frank Schuck. “We are particularly excited to offer our customers this unique beer and cheese combination.”

Het Hinkelspel Cooperative was created in 1982 by renowned Cheesemaker Alexander Claeys. It is located on Lousberg Street in the beautiful and historic city of Gent, Belgium. All Het Hinkelspel cheeses are produced
only with highest quality natural ingredients and with the utmost care for its environment. They are imported by Peterson Cheese in Auburn, WA.

Lousberg Belgian ale was created for Het Hinkelspel by De Proef owner & brewmaster Dirk Naudts. It is a bright golden ale with a beautiful floral nose with hints of tropical fruit and honey. It is refined and elegant on the palate, reminiscent of brut champagne. It will be feature-priced at $8.99 per 750ml cork-finished bottle. 8% alcohol by volume. Lousberg is imported to the U.S. by SBS Imports of Seattle, Washington.

Posted under beer and food