BREWMASTER'S WEEKEND

Gardiner, NY

James and Michelle Walsh combined their excitement for the restaurant business and opened Mudd Puddle Café in New Paltz, NY. Fresh roasted coffee, hand crafted food, and a warm community space has been the focus since day one. In 2012, they expanded their passion for fine crafted beverages and food by opening Yard Owl Brewery in Gardiner, NY. Here, the team comes together to brew and serve expressive Belgian inspired ales paired with house-made pickled vegetables and eggs, and beer mustards that are served with cheese, charcuterie, and pretzels. This venue has enabled them to create a second community space and expand their creativity into another area of the food and craft beverage world.

Hutch Kugeman is head brewer for the brewery at the CIA. Hutch is responsible for producing four kinds of beer in the microbrewery for the CIA’s public restaurants and student dining facility. He also assists in teaching, as the CIA’s brewery is a classroom where students learn about the ingredients, equipment, and techniques required to produce ales and lagers in a course titled The Art and Science of Brewing. Hutch’s beers have won numerous awards, including at the Great American Beer Festival, World Beer Cup, North American Beer Awards, and TAP New York Festival. While at Crossroads in 2011, he won the Matthew Vassar Brewers’ Cup as the Best Craft Beer Brewery in the Hudson Valley and the inaugural John Calen Memorial Award for Best Pale Ale in New York State.

Karl Allweier is a Hudson Valley, NY based blues rock guitarist who has been performing and recording in the area for the past 30 years. He has composed music that has appeared on A&E Channel’s Biography series, The Travel Channel Road Trip and Man Vs. Food series, The History Channel’s Da Vinci Code and Big Texas documentaries, among many others. He has performed and toured with the likes of Augie Meyers (Texas Tornados), George Kooymans (Golden Earring), Ron Thal (Guns N Roses), and Albert Cummings. Performing a mix of traditional and modern electric blues, Karl Allweier and Company includes some the area’s finest musicians: Doug Abramson on bass, Roger LaRochelle on drums, and Ron Knittle on saxophone.

Nite Train has been entertaining Capital District crowds since its inception in March of 2003. This 7-piece band is currently celebrating their 20th anniversary tour and recently released record “Cat on a Mission”. Night train is taking music to new heights with their signature big band sound, gritty vocals, and high energy performances. Come hear why critics are saying this band “continues to keep the blues alive and well in the North Country.”