BOSTON, April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- After a snow- and ice-filled winter with record-breaking low temperatures and months' worth of snow piled up in many parts of the country, the brewers at Samuel Adams have kicked off their snow boots to help the nation's hardest-hit cities thaw out. Samuel Adams will help these cities defrost by offering a "Summer Ale Special Delivery" to the town halls of the 10 snowiest cities. The town deemed the worst hit this year will enjoy the first-ever "Summer in a Bottle" party hosted by Samuel Adams brewer Dean Gianocostas. Dean has been a brewer with Samuel Adams for more than 20 years and is the longest running employee after Founder and Brewer Jim Koch.  

Samuel Adams tapped AccuWeather, the world's leading multimedia weather information source, to analyze data from winter 2010-2011* to determine which 10 U.S. cities were hit the hardest this season. The data shows that the following cities caught the brunt of this season's inclement weather, based on snowfall totals in comparison to each location's average annual amount. Together, these 10 towns were pounded with more than 600 inches of snow; the majority of these cities accumulating more than twice as much as usual.

"This has been one of the worst winters in a while, and I'm definitely ready for summer and sun," said Samuel Adams Founder and Brewer Jim Koch. "So we thought, 'Why not take Samuel Adams Summer Ale on the road and treat our drinkers who suffered through countless hours of shoveling with an early sip of summer?' We tapped AccuWeather to determine which towns were hit hardest this winter, and we're happy to help people in Columbia, Mo. thaw out and kick back with Summer Ale. It might not entirely make up for a frigid winter, but we hope it gives them something to look forward to.  Summer is on the way!"

The event will provide an opportunity for drinkers to put the wicked winter weather behind them and toast to the summer months ahead. To officially treat Columbia to an early sip of summer, Samuel Adams brewer Dean Gianocostas will take the city by storm and host the first-ever "Summer in a Bottle" party on May 3, 2011, complete with warm-weather activities including a beach-themed photo backdrop, summer-inspired music and grilling for drinkers thirsting for summer. Tickets to the party will be given away to Columbia residents through local promotions.  In addition, Samuel Adams will offer the town halls of each of the 10 cities cases of Samuel Adams Summer Ale to help them usher in the warmer weather to come.

"This winter has been one of the toughest in a while for many cities across the country.  In fact, after a particularly brutal string of snowstorms, 49 of the 50 states had snow on the ground all at once, including Hawaii," said Alex Sosnowski, Expert Senior Meteorologist at AccuWeather.  "We are happy to help the Samuel Adams brewers bring a bit of fun and relief to these winter-weary citizens!"

After spending much of the winter snowed-in at the Boston brewery, Jim, Dean and the rest of the brewing team have had summer on their minds and have been counting the inches of snow while perfecting their recipe for Samuel Adams Summer Ale, dreaming of the day they could toss beach balls instead of snowballs.  Brewed with lemon zest and grains of paradise, a centuries-old exotic African pepper, Samuel Adams Summer Ale captures bright summer weather in a bottle.  Samuel Adams Summer Ale is available nationwide from April through August for a suggested retail price of $7.99 per six-pack.

For more information on Summer Ale and Dean's trip to Columbia, Mo., visit www.SamuelAdams.com.

*AccuWeather evaluated winter weather data from the 2010-2011 season (October 1, 2010 – March 20, 2011)

THE BOSTON BEER COMPANY BACKGROUND:

The Boston Beer Company began in 1984 with a generations-old family recipe that Founder and Brewer Jim Koch uncovered in his father's attic. After bringing the recipe to life in his kitchen, Jim brought it to bars in Boston with the belief that drinkers would appreciate a complex, full-flavored beer, brewed fresh in America. That beer was Samuel Adams Boston Lager®, and it helped catalyze what became known as the American craft beer revolution.

Today, the Company brews more than 30 styles of beer.  The Company uses the traditional four vessel brewing process and often takes extra steps like dry-hopping, barrel-aging and a secondary fermentation known as krausening. It passionately pursues the development of new styles and the perfection of its classic beers by constantly searching for the world's finest ingredients. While resurrecting traditional brewing methods, the Company has earned a reputation as a pioneer in another revolution, the "extreme beer" movement, where it seeks to challenge drinkers' perceptions of what beer can be. The Boston Beer Company strives to elevate the image of American craft beer by entering festivals and competitions the world over, and in the past five years it has won more awards in international beer competitions than any other brewery in the world. The Company remains independent, and brewing quality beer remains its single focus. While Samuel Adams is the country's largest-selling craft beer, it accounts for just under one percent of the U.S. beer market. For more information, please visit www.samueladams.com.

ABOUT ACCUWEATHER, INC. AND ACCUWEATHER.COM:

AccuWeather, Empowering You to Be the Best™, presents accurate, localized, branded forecasts and severe weather bulletins each day to one quarter of a billion persons worldwide via the free AccuWeather.com website, mobile devices and IPTV, through the airwaves, and in print. The 116 meteorologists at AccuWeather also deliver a portfolio of customized enterprise solutions to media, business, government, and institutions, as well as providing content for more than 50,000 third-party Internet sites, including the wallstreetjournal.com, CBS News Mobile, and WABC-TV New York. Visit www.accuweather.com for more information.

SOURCE Samuel Adams