ESCONDIDO, Calif. — This year marks a full decade of Stone Brewing’s partnership with the American Homebrewers Association hosting the duo’s acclaimed Membership Rally and Homebrew Competition. The winner of this coveted competition is awarded national distribution of their beer within Stone’s nationwide network. Most recently a juicy, unfiltered IPA reigned supreme, and the anticipated Corey Magers & Elizabeth Bakas / Burgeon Beer Company / Stone Mojay IPA makes its debut beginning now in 22oz bottles nationwide.
“New England-style” unfiltered IPAs and pale ales are prized for their intensely juicy hop flavor and aroma coupled with a low bitterness and smooth mouthfeel, but Stone does things bigger and bitter-er. This recipe’s respectable bitterness level of 70 IBUs made it a perfect fit for the Stone treatment. However, Stone isn’t the only professional brewer involved in helping take these home-made recipes to the next level. Another aspect of this Stone and AHA tradition is the winner’s selection of an additional Collaborator – an opportunity to lift up smaller craft brewers with exposure via Stone’s widespread distribution network. This year, the homebrewing couple-turned-fiancees tapped Burgeon Beer Company of Carlsbad, known for their prolific offering of hazy hop bombs.
Corey Magers & Elizabeth Bakas / Burgeon Beer Company / Stone Mojay IPA combines the bitterness level and crisp finish of a West Coast IPA with the semi-opaque appearance and intense fruity hop flavor of a New England IPA. It pours a slightly hazy golden hue, offering aromas of orange marmalade and peach. The mouthfeel is full and smooth with a balanced sweetness.
“Ten years of this event has brought about some truly incredible beers, thanks to the talent and ingenuity of our local homebrewing community,” said Jeremy Moynier, senior manager of brewing & innovation. “We didn’t let trends cloud our judgement on this one. We chose this beer because it was juicy and refreshing while still pleasantly bitter and well-balanced with very clean hop flavors, something that can be a challenge for hazy IPAs. This recipe utilizes flaked wheat for appearance and mouthfeel, as well as a heavy dose of Amarillo, Citra and Mosaic hops for a huge citrus character that has a very fresh-squeezed OJ quality to it, hence the name. Mosaic + OJ = Mojay.”
“We were ecstatic when we won, because it was a chance for our friends and family from all over the country to try our beer,” shared Corey Magers. “It’s not easy scaling up a homebrew recipe but Stone nailed it. The people we worked with at Stone made it an unforgettable experience and we’re proud to see our names up next to Stone Brewing and Burgeon Beer Company. We hope everyone enjoys this beer, which we designed to be the ultimate drinkable IPA.”
Since 2008, the Stone Homebrew Competition & AHA Rally has been held in San Diego County. The competition allows association members to vote on their peers’ beers and places the most highly ranked beers in front of Stone’s co-founders and brewers to select the best of the bunch. After rounding off a decade of this tradition, Stone takes this event east, holding the Rally at Stone Brewing – Richmond for the first time ever on November 17. This year, the 20 entrants and additional guest brewer will be local to Virginia. The event will alternate coasts each year from now on, ushering in a new era of celebrating the noble pursuit of homebrewing. QUICK FACTS
- Name: Corey Magers & Elizabeth Bakas / Burgeon Beer Company / Stone Mojay IPA
- Web: stonebrewing.com/mojay
- Stats: 7.6% ABV, 70 IBUs
- Featured Hops: Amarillo, Citra & Mosaic
- Packaging: 22oz bottles & draft
- Distribution: Nationwide
- Find Beer:find.stonebrewing.com
- Competition Details:stonebrewing.com/events
TASTING NOTES
- Appearance: Golden with white head and some haze
- Aroma: Big peach, dankness, mixed berries, marmalade and orange cream
- Taste: Peach and strawberry with citrus flavors of orange, lime and lemon. Just the right dankness.
- Palate: Full mouthfeel and ultra-smooth. Intense perceived sweetness and smooth mid-palate leading to medium bitterness at the tail-end.
- Overall: Our annual American Homebrewers Association Rally Competition has produced some amazing beers over the years, including: Ken Schmidt / Maui / Stone Kona Coffee, Macadamia, Coconut Porter; Robert Masterson & Ryan Reschan / Rip Current / Stone R&R Coconut IPA; and Chris Banker / Stone / Insurgente Xocoveza Mocha Stout (just to name a few!). This series pairs the talented homebrew winners with another like-minded brewery and of course our awesome team at Stone Brewing. This year’s innovative duo consists of brewing couple Corey Magers and Elizabeth “Ashley” Bakas (they got engaged during the time we were working on the scale-up of this recipe!). Their winning recipe takes the finer points of the East Coast Haze craze and combines them with classic West Coast IPA aesthetics. Finding a like-minded collaborating brewery was easy as we immediately thought of our old friend and former Stone Brewer Anthony Tallman who now has his own brewery. Burgeon Beer Company is known for some amazing IPAs including several hazy versions. This beer truly celebrates the spirit of brewing: innovation, collaboration, passion, new friends and old, and of course amazing craft beer.
PAIRING NOTES
Starters: Arrogant Bastard Ribs – Fried Tofu, Beef Empanada, Crab Cakes
Soups and Salads: Pad Thai + Green Papaya Salad – Greek Salad, Hot & Sour Soup, Lentil & Bacon Soup
Main Courses: Pork Belly Adobo*, Kurobuta Pork Pasta – Chili Verde, Vegetarian Pho
Desserts: Mango with Sticky Rice, Key Lime Pie, Strawberry Ice Cream with Hot Marshmallow Sauce, Crepes Suzette
About Stone Brewing
Founded by Greg Koch and Steve Wagner in 1996, the groundbreaking San Diego-based Stone Brewing is the 8th largest craft brewer in the United States. Recognized as an award-winning industry leader, Stone has been listed on the Inc. 500 | 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies list 12 times and has been called the “All-time Top Brewery on Planet Earth” by BeerAdvocate magazine twice. The multifaceted company was the first American craft brewer to build, own and operate its own brewery in Europe (Berlin, Germany), and also opened a production brewery in Richmond, Virginia in 2016. In 2018, Stone opened Stone Brewing – Napa in the heart of California’s wine country. Known for its bold, flavorful and largely hop-centric beers, Stone has earned a reputation for brewing outstanding, unique beers while maintaining an unwavering commitment to sustainability, business ethics, philanthropy and the art of brewing… and pledging to never, ever, sell out to the man. For more information on Stone Brewing, please visit stonebrewing.com or @StoneBrewing on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.