Archives for March 2018

KIHEI, Hawaii — Maui Brewing Company debuts its third limited release of 2018 beginning today. Originally brewed in May of 2017, Waimea Red Ale is now available in cans for the first time.

Brewing Supervisor Jon DuPont describes the beer, “We are proud to be releasing our Waimea Red in cans for the first time! This tasty American-style Red Ale tips the scales at 6.5% ABV, and a solid 50 IBU to balance the malt profile. Waimea is a hop variety from New Zealand which boasts a great aromatic profile of tangelo, citrus, and pine. Waimea is also the Hawaiian word for the reddish water of rivers running through the red dirt of the islands, so the name is a bit of a double entendre as well. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!”

Although Waimea Red Ale has been available on draft in taprooms and restaurants across the country, the opportunity to enjoy it at home, among friends, or for backyard barbeques begins with this launch. It will be available in 6-pack cans and draft in all markets that carry Maui Brewing Company beer.

Maui Brewing Company is a fiercely local company and has remained steadfast regarding local production. The MBC team are stewards of their communities and the ‘aina, and curators of the craft beer way of life. Their beers have been recognized worldwide for quality and innovation.

For more information, visit MauiBrewing.com.

About Maui Brewing Company
Founded in 2005, Maui Brewing Company is Hawaii’s largest craft brewery, operating 100% in Hawaii. MBC is based on Maui, with its production brewery, full-service restaurant and tasting room in Kihei, as well as pubs in Lahaina (Maui) and Waikiki (Oahu). Maui Brewing Company is available in 23 states and 10 international countries with more areas to follow.

Plymouth, Massachusetts – Mayflower Brewing Company is pleased to release 398, a new Double IPA at 8% ABV. Why is it called 398? Mayflower is counting up as you count down to the 400th Anniversary of America’s Hometown. 398 will be brewed throughout 2018, and over the next two years Mayflower will brew new beers called 399 and 400. These annual releases will not only satisfy consumer demand for new and innovative beers, but will also recognize the historical events that so define the Plymouth community.

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for us to recognize the history of the region and produce some unique, limited edition beers for our customers. The 400th Anniversary is going to be a big deal around here, and we’re excited to help spread the word to folks throughout New England,” said Drew Brosseau, owner of Mayflower Brewing Company.

398 is an American Double IPA. Pale malt provides a solid base for a heavy dose of both Mosaic and Simcoe hops. Because Mosaic is a direct descendant of Simcoe, often called “The Daughter of Simcoe,” these aromas compliment and compound each other’s intensity. Specific aroma descriptors include pine, tangerine, grass, and passion fruit.

398 was initially released draft only several weeks ago. Now 4 packs of 16 ounce cans are available and heading out into the market. “We are excited to brew 398 regularly after it had such great feedback in the tasting room. The beer has a hefty dose of oats and wheat that gave it a silky, soft mouthfeel. Add to that the beautiful aromatics of Mosaic and Simcoe and you have a beer that will stand up to any Double IPA,” says brewer Jay Southwood. Mayflower will brew the beer throughout the year in limited batches and distribute it throughout the six New England states.

About Mayflower Brewing Company
Mayflower Brewing Company is a craft beer microbrewery located in historic Plymouth, Massachusetts. Founded in 2007 by a tenth great grandson of John Alden, beer barrel cooper on board the Mayflower, Mayflower is dedicated to celebrating the history and legacy of the Pilgrims by creating unique, high-quality ales for the New England market. The team brews and packages all of their beer at their 12,000 square foot production facility in Plymouth and uses only traditional brewing methods and ingredients. Their product line includes a set of year-round beers that honor traditional English ales, seasonal beers that celebrate the New England weather, and small batch releases that give them a chance to try out new ideas. The tasting room is open to the public and is family (and pet) friendly, offering a variety of branded apparel, growler fills, free samples, full tasting flights, pints and packaged beer. Retail and tasting hours are Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 8pm and Sunday, noon to 6pm. Tours of the Brewery are offered throughout the day on Saturday and Sunday.

Summer at the beach. Grilling poolside with friends and family. Resting after a long hike. Now enjoy all these moments with Kick Back IPA, exclusively in 12 oz. cans, or on draft, year-round from Drake’s Brewing. The release is Drake’s first beer packaged in cans. It will also boost the financial impact of Drake’s Kick Back Program, which donates a portion of the beer’s six pack sales revenue to the Regional Parks Foundation.

Originally released in bottles as a summer seasonal in 2016, Kick Back IPA is the perfect all-occasion, all-day drinking beer. It’s loaded with citrus, floral, tropical, and stone fruit flavors, from a blend of Cascade, Chinook, Mosaic, Simcoe, El Dorado and Pekko hops. The malt bill is primarily Two-Row and Pale Ale malt, with small additions of Golden Naked Oats and Hulled Barley Flakes. Kick Back IPA contains 51 IBUs and is 4.3% alcohol by volume.

Drake’s Brewmaster, John Gillooly, is excited to see Kick Back IPA go into cans, “Because there are a lot of advantages to cans over bottles, especially for a beer like this. Kick Back IPA drinks easy enough for hauling on a hike, or relaxing at the beach. Cans are easy to carry, lighter than bottles, and are crushable for easy cleanup. Beyond the can, Kick Back IPA is a great beer, and we’re excited to make it available year-round.”

The release of Kick Back IPA in cans year-round will also increase Drake’s fundraising partnership with the Regional Parks Foundation, a non-profit that supports the East Bay Regional Parks District. Part of Drake’s mission is to help build and support the local community, and the Kick Back Program has already been successful. Proceeds from the sale of Kick Back IPA six-packs over the last two years has generated nearly $20,000 for cleanup and restoration projects at over a dozen East Bay parks.

According to Juliana Schirmer, Development Director at the Regional Parks Foundation, “The money has been a huge plus. The Kick Back Program has also helped us branch out and engage the community in a new way. We’re attracting a younger demographic, a demographic we know love and use our parks, and many of them are beer enthusiasts! We even started the ‘What’s Brewin in the Parks?’ event series as a way to carry this success through the full year.”

Starting today, six-packs of Kick Back IPA are being shipped throughout Drake’s distribution territory. The arrival is just in time for spring, and a long beautiful summer. Next time you’re at the store, grab a six pack of Kick Back, and unwind at the end of your next adventure.

Hood River, Oregon – Excitement is mounting for the new Spring releases from pFriem Family Brewers on the heels of the brewery’s big wins at the Oregon Beer Awards. The brewery took top honors including “Brewery of the Year” in the large brewery category and “Best Brewpub Experience” for the fourth year-in-a-row. pFriem’s Spring seasonals are complex, light, and super flavorful: perfect for after mountain bike rides, hikes, gardening, and barbecuing. Cheers to the Spring season!

While pFriem will produce over 100 artisan beers in 2018, and release 15 beers in Spring, here are descriptions of some of this season’s highlighted releases: Bright Pale, Helles Lager and Saison.

Bright Pale – Building on an already great tradition of American Pale Ales, Bright Pale is bursting with fruity, tropical brightness. It has notes of white grapes, pineapple, and pine and tropical aromas of honeydew melon and passion fruit that lead you to a crisp, fruity, and clean finish. With Warrior, Simcoe, Calista and Hallertau Blanc hops, and Rahr Pale Malt, Gambrinus Pilsner and Carapils malts, this one comes in at 5% ABV and 33 IBUs. One sip will brighten anyone’s day!

Helles Lager – In 19th century Germany, pilsners were all the rage so Munchen brewers created a malty hoppy beer of their own called Helles. pFriem Helles Lager builds on that history with a toasty lager that’s savory and smooth with aromas of fresh bread and a hint of honey. So let’s toast this beer’s storied and delicious history with a hearty, “Helles Yeah!” With 4.8% ABV and 25 IBUs, this special brew features Weyermann Pilsner, Weyermann Barke Pilsner and Acidulated malts and Perle and Tettnang hops.

Saison- Back in the early 20th century, farmhouses in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium, would brew this beer in the winter, only to be consumed in the summer by their farm hands called Saisoners. These beers are known for being tart, lite on the palate, dry, fruity and complex. pFriem Saison is a fragrant ale ready to warm any palate with tropical notes of guava and kumquats. Featuring Gambrinus Canadian Pilsner and Gambrinus Wheat malts and German Tettnang, Sorchi Ace and Motueka hops, Saison has an ABV of 6.5% and 32 IBUs.

Spring 2018 Bottle Releases
Annual
IPA
Pilsner

Semi-Annual
Belgian Strong Blonde
Spring Classic
Bright Pale
Down Under IPA
Helles Lager

Select Spring
Saison (Mar-Apr)
Lemon Zest Farmhouse Ale (May-Jun)NOTE: Limited will come available throughout the season April-June

Classic Limited
Kolsch
Wit

Barrel Aged Limited
Abrikoos
Peche
Bosbessen
Flanders Red Kriek
Fraise
Barrel Aged Saison II
Sauv Blanc Barrel Aged Golden Ale

About pFriem Family Brewers
pFriem Family Brewers (pronounced “freem”) is a Northwest and Belgian inspired 15-barrel brewery and tasting room in Hood River, OR. Founded in 2012 by Josh pFriem, Ken Whiteman and Rudy Kellner, pFriem has experienced incredible growth in its short five years and has earned prestigious awards, including multiple medals in national and international brewing competitions. Best known for artisanal beers influenced by the great brewers of Belgium while staying true to homegrown roots in the Pacific Northwest, pFriem craft brews are unmistakably unique in both flavor and balance. Visit pFriem online at www.pfriembeer.com, or onsite daily at 707 Portway Ave., Suite 101, Hood River, OR 97031.

BOULDER, Colorado – Boulder Beer Company, Colorado’s First Craft Brewery, is excited to announce the upcoming refresh of their company logo and packaging set to roll out this June, partnering with Boulder-based design and advertising agency Moxie Sozo for the redesign.

The company refresh brings more focus to Boulder Beer Company and Boulder, Colorado, while continuing to allow the individual brand identities to shine. The first wave of newly designed can labels as well as the company logo will launch this June. With this rollout of core beers, they’ll release a brand new beer called Due East, a New England-style IPA, which is a recipe that came out of their new small batch R&D brewery – Boulder Beer on Walnut — in downtown Boulder.

“In today’s competitive beer scene it’s more important than ever to be relevant, to stay fresh,” said Jeff Brown, President of Boulder Beer Company. “As we launched into this refresh project it was critical to us that our brand maintained its Colorado roots while giving us a more creative canvas to connect with our consumers. We’ve been crafting beer and fun longer than just about any craft brewer, and our new graphics along with new styles represent that continuing evolution.”

Approaching their 40-year milestone next year, Boulder Beer Company credits a large part of their staying power in an ever-changing industry to their focus on innovation and changing with the times.

“We’ve retired a few legacy beers throughout the years, and have reworked our logo and label designs multiple times,” said Tess McFadden, Director of Marketing at Boulder Beer Company. “People’s palates change and evolve, as do design styles and trends. This isn’t the first time we’ve come out with a fresh new look, but it’s the one I’m most excited about, working with the highly creative team at Moxie Sozo right here in our hometown.”

Boulder Beer Company met with several design firms to seek out the perfect fit for them and chose Moxie Sozo for their energy, creativity, and proven success designing packaging for several other area craft brewers.

“Boulder Beer is an iconic Boulder brand,” said Leif Steiner, Creative Director for Moxie Sozo. “Back when houses were 50K and everyone still knew each other, Boulder Beer was serving the locals. The downtown was sleepy, incense permeated the air, and the tech boom was still in the distant future. As one of the oldest design and advertising agencies in Colorado, it was an honor to work on this hallowed brand.”

“Working with Moxie Sozo has been a perfect match,” said Brown. “Two fun, energetic, passionate and talented Boulder homegrown businesses doing what they love for beer fans everywhere.”

About Boulder Beer Company
Founded in 1979, Boulder Beer Company has been a pioneer in the craft brewing industry for 39 years. Their passion for innovation keeps their brand mix diverse, offering a taste for every palate. They currently package six year-round beers along with numerous limited releases offered throughout the year.

Boulder Beer’s second location – Boulder Beer on Walnut – opened downtown Boulder in July 2017, allowing the brewery to further develop its experimental offerings brewing on what’s now their 7-barrel pilot system.

Boulder Beer Company’s 39th Anniversary Celebration will take place at the brewery on Wilderness Place in Boulder on Saturday, June 23rd, 2018.

About Moxie Sozo
Moxie Sozo is a Boulder-based design and advertising agency. Working with clients in 13 countries, the company is known for their unique, original and highly-creative solutions.

 

ATLANTA, Georgia — Atlanta-based craft brewery Monday Night Brewing is bringing back one of its favorite brews of 2017, but with a twist.

Tears of My Enemies is a 9.3% ABV Imperial Milk Stout loaded with locally made milk chocolate, Ugandan vanilla beans and coffee from locally-roasted Batdorf & Bronson. The result is a roasty, chocolaty, silky smooth drink that is, in the words of co-founder Jonathan Baker, “like the tears of your enemies, the most delicious thing you’ve ever tasted.”

This year, Tears of My Enemies was split into three batches. One was placed in Scotch barrels (like the 2017 version), another in Bourbon barrels, and a very limited amount in ASW Distillery apple brandy barrels.

“We wanted to see how the base beer played with the different barrels,” Brewmaster and Barrel Program Manager Peter Kiley said. “It’s really interesting to taste how the additions in Tears Of My Enemies enhance the scotch and bourbon characteristics in different ways.”

Tears of My Enemies, winner of a bronze medal at the 2017 Great American Beer Festival, was also named one of Porchdrinking.com’s “20 Favorite Beer Names at GABF.” It will make its debut at the Monday Night Garage on Saturday, March 24. Look for it in select bottle shops and taprooms in the upcoming weeks.

About Monday Night Brewing:
Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Monday Night Brewing grew out of a Bible study. Founded by Jonathan Baker, Joel Iverson and Jeff Heck, Monday Night Brewing exists to deepen human relationships over some of the best beer of country. Brewmaster Peter Kiley oversees barrel-aging and souring at their brand new facility, the Garage, in Atlanta’s Lee + White project on the southwest side of Atlanta. More details can be found here.

SAN DIEGO, California — By using a newly developed Belgian yeast strain in an award-winning IPA, Ballast Point continues to showcase its innovative spirit with Aloha Sculpin, the latest addition to the Sculpin IPA family – now available nationwide.

Aloha Sculpin IPA features a distinct yeast strain known as Saccharomyces “Bruxellensis” Trois, or Brux Trois, turning the flagship IPA into a tropical oasis with aromas and flavors of guava, mango, and pineapple without any fruit additions. While Belgian yeast strains are known for their clove and banana-like aroma, this strain bears exotic fruit aromas. It also adds a slight haze to the beer, creating a smooth mouthfeel to round out its juicy character.

Not only does this yeast strain add a unique flavor profile to the brew, but its use in Aloha Sculpin marks the first time an IPA brewed with Saccharomyces brux Trois is being packaged and made available nationwide.

“We’re always experimenting with new ingredients and methods,” said James Murray, vice president of brewing at Ballast Point. “Most brewers tend to experiment with hops for flavor and aroma. But when we tasted the guava, mango and pineapple notes from this yeast in other R&D recipes we brewed, we knew it would really enhance the bright, tropical fruit characteristics already present in Sculpin IPA.”

Innovation is a part of Ballast Point’s DNA and has been a critical part of the brewery’s success dating back to the days of Home Brew Mart. As a pioneer in the San Diego craft beer movement, the brewery currently makes over 50 styles of beer, each with innovation and quality in mind. Experimenting with Brux Trois yeast is a testament to this focus.

“This strain is a bit finicky,” said Lauren Zeidler, director of quality at Ballast Point. “It’s very particular about what it likes and doesn’t, so we had to get to know its preferences and adjust accordingly. It was a unique challenge, but it made the brewing and batch scaling even more of a satisfying accomplishment.”

The original Sculpin IPA launched in 2005 and has since become the hallmark of the west coast-style IPA, winning gold medals at the World Beer Cup (2010, 2014) and European Beer Star (2010, 2011). Years later, the Sculpin family has expanded to include Grapefruit, Pineapple, Habanero, Unfiltered – and now Aloha Sculpin.

Aloha Sculpin IPA is a spring/summer seasonal release under Ballast Point’s flagship tier and is now rolling out nationwide in both draft and six-pack bottles.

For more information, visit www.BallastPoint.com.

About Ballast Point Brewing Company
Started in 1996 by a small group of homebrewers in San Diego, Ballast Point has a 20-plus-year history of supporting the art of home brewing and developing high-quality, innovative and award-winning beer. Ballast Point has become one of the nation’s leading craft breweries by exploring new tastes and techniques to create the perfect balance of taste and aroma. At Ballast Point, a culture of quality persists from selection of raw materials to the brewing process to the finished product and beyond. From developing a proprietary yeast for our amber ale to creating a breakthrough gold medal-winning IPA, Ballast Point is dedicated to the craft of brewing beers for all to enjoy.

DURANGO, Colorado — Mexican Logger will be available at Ska Brewing’s World Headquarters in Durango on Wednesday, April 4, where you can catch Buster’s Ghost live at 5 pm and pick up the season’s first 6-packs of this beloved craft lager.

Ska brewed this beer for the first time long before Mexican lager was a hot craft beer style, back in 1999. Mexican Logger was Ska’s first session beer back then, long before session beers were a thing. The beer first hit cans more than ten years later in 2011, and then won back-to-back Great American Beer Festival® awards in the International Style Pilsner category in 2015 and 2016.

Ska Mexican Logger is crisp, clean, and refreshing — made for hot afternoons with a side of lime. The beer is a crushable 5 percent ABV, and brewed with a lager yeast strain from Mexico City. That same yeast strain now ferments Ska’s Rue B. Soho Grapefruit Lager as well.

Mexican Logger will be available in 12 oz. cans and on-draft in Colorado, Arizona, Southern California, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah the first week of April.

About Ska Brewing
Based in Durango, Colorado, Ska Brewing was founded in 1995 and produces over a dozen award-winning beers. Pioneers in the canned craft beer movement, Ska Brewing is known for an array of styles in 12 oz cans including Modus Hoperandi, Mexican Logger, Euphoria and Pinstripe. For information (a lot of it), music, and a good time visit skabrewing.com.

NANTUCKET, Massachusetts– Cisco Brewers is bringing Gripah IPA, a citrusy IPA bursting with ruby red grapefruit, to beer drinkers across the Northeast in six-pack bottles and 12-pack cans. The beer was first brewed in 2015 to celebrate Cisco’s 20th anniversary and was a big hit on Nantucket. This release marks the first time Gripah IPA will be available off Island and the first new year-round addition to Cisco’s portfolio since 2014.

Gripah IPA, at 5.5 percent alcohol by volume and 50 IBUs, has a light body and a bright, citrusy nose that compliments the Citra, Amarillo, Galaxy and El Dorado hops, making it an ideal beer for spring and summer drinking. The addition of real grapefruit zest at the end of fermentation delivers an impressive burst of pithy citrus flavor and aroma that leaves you longing for another sip. Gripah’s bright-yellow packaging and logo treatment were designed to mimic a grapefruit peel to showcase the prominence of the citrusy fruit in this juicy IPA.

“We wanted to make a grapefruit IPA that remained true to Cisco’s classic lineup of Island-inspired beers,” said Jay Harman of Cisco Brewers. “Gripah celebrates the historic role of citrus fruit in protecting ancient mariners. When we first brewed Gripah as a limited-edition, Island-only beer for our 20th anniversary, visitors loved it and wanted to be able to find it back at home. We’re really excited to bring the beer beyond the island, with beer drinkers throughout the northeast.”

A popular destination on storied Nantucket Island, Cisco Brewers has been brewing classic and approachable craft beers since 1995—and its latest take on a grapefruit IPA is no different. Indeed, Gripah’s release on the mainland reflects the creative process at Cisco, which accelerates when the tourist season ends on Nantucket Island and the brewing team has time to catch their breath and toy around with new ingredients and recipes with local islanders. Gripah’s original recipe was a product of this down-time, and its current release in the broader Northeast reflects a version that has been perfected over the years. Cisco’s line of classic brews focuses on seafarer names, while Gripah does things a bit differently – highlighting citrus, long used to buoy seamen on the open waters.

Cisco Brewers will host a Gripah launch party at its brewery on Nantucket during the 2018 Daffodil Festival – an Island-wide celebration of the coming of spring taking place April 27-29.

Cisco is the only brewery on the Nantucket Island, and boasts an array of approachable classic brews including Whale’s Tale Pale Ale, Grey Lade Ale, Indie Pale Ale, Sankaty Light Lager, and Shark Tracker Light Lager.

Gripah IPA
Gripah IPA gets its tropical fruit flavors from the zest of the ruby red grapefruit along with additions of Citra, Amarillo, Galaxy and El Dorado hops. This Cisco brew strikes the perfect balance between sweet and tart and at 5.5 percent ABV is the perfect beach IPA.

Malts: Pilsner and Vienna
Hops: Citra, Amarillo, Galaxy, El Dorado.
ABV: 5.5%
IBU: 50

About Cisco Brewers
Located near Cisco Beach on the island of Nantucket, Cisco Brewers is Nantucket’s first craft brewery. Founded by hard-working, entrepreneurial islanders who started selling beer from their outdoor brewery in 1995, Cisco has carved out its own special place where they tough out winters to celebrate summers. Over the years, Cisco has attracted a cult following among visitors and opens its doors to anyone making the trek. Named a top travel destination by Time Magazine, The Huffington Post, and Travel & Leisure, Cisco’s brewery is a common ground where people from all walks of life connect over classic and approachable craft beers like Whale’s Tale Pale Ale, Grey Lady, Indie IPA and Sankaty Light Lager. For more information about Cisco Brewers, visit http://www.ciscobrewers.com/.

San Diego, California – In a market that just can’t get enough new experimental IPAs to quench their thirst for flavor variety, Karl Strauss delivers another home run hit with their new single hop IPA. Isomerizer IPA, the company’s latest small batch success story, has just been released as a year-round brew and added to their core lineup.

KARL brewers were inspired by their love of the Mosaic hop and the success of their Mosaic Session IPA, which exploded in popularity during its commercial release in 2015, and decided to further their experimentation with the versatile hop. R&D Brewmaster Paul Segura took on the project as a challenge, aiming for an IPA with a more pronounced hop profile and just enough body to supplement the vibrant aromas and flavors of the hop. The result is an outrageously flavorful, well-balanced IPA bursting with notes of grapefruit and tropical fruit with a subtle malt backbone and a dry, hoppy finish.

“Mosaic is such a beautiful hop—the best one I’ve seen come along in a while,” says Segura, “so we wanted to make an IPA that really showcased its full spectrum of flavors. We kept the malt profile subtle which allowed Mosaic to shine through the beer with its flavors of grapefruit, passion fruit, mango, blueberry, and all of that tropical goodness.”

Isomerizer IPA is named after the chemical process that occurs when the alpha acids in hops are converted to iso-alpha acids, which provide the bitter flavor to the beer. It was one of the standout favorites at the company’s 29th Anniversary Changing of the Barrels event amongst a stacked lineup of special releases, small batch, and unique barrel-aged brews.

“While fleeting trends in craft beer come and go, IPAs remain a sought-after staple of the industry, along with the constant desire for variety and exploration. As craft beer enthusiasts themselves, our brewers share these passions and use our small batch program as a platform to get creative and innovate, and in this case, demonstrate their expertise in the art of hop experimentation.” –Matt Rattner, President, Karl Strauss Brewing Company

Isomerizer is now available on draft and in cans at all Karl Strauss brewpubs, the company’s Tasting Room in Pacific Beach, and select stores and craft beer bars throughout California.

To learn more about KARL’s Isomerizer IPA, visit www.karlstrauss.com.

About Karl Strauss Brewing Company
Karl Strauss Brewing Company has been proudly independent since 1989, pioneering the craft beer scene with innovative beer releases like Aurora Hoppyalis IPA, Queen of Tarts Dark Sour, and Wreck Alley Imperial Stout. The brewery has won 105 medals since 2009 and was recently honored with “Mid-Size Brewing Company of the Year” award at the Great American Beer Festival in 2016. For more information, visit www.karlstrauss.com or call the brewery at (858) 273-2739. Share it. Cheers.