FORT COLLINS, Colo./NEW DELHI, India— Bira 91 – India’s leading craft beer company, and one of the fastest growing beer brands globally, and New Belgium Brewing – one of the largest craft brewers in the United States, today announced the release of “Chutney Sour”, a collab beer that brings together vibrant flavors of Indian street food and the legendary craft brewing heritage of Colorado.
Brewed with Tamarind – a puckering sour fruit used in Indian chutneys and curries – the beer is based on the classic Dubbel, a Belgian-style ale perfected by the New Belgium Brewery.
The beer was simultaneously released in the companies’ respective taprooms – Bengaluru & Delhi-NCR, in India for Bira 91, and Fort Collins, Colorado for New Belgium Brewery. The release was timed to coincide with the Indian Spring festival of Holi – a joyful celebration of color, flavors and renewal.
Holi has crossed over into the mainstream and several cities across the world have a variety of celebrations including music festivals, outdoor block parties, color runs and culinary events.
Commenting on the collaboration, Ankur Jain, Founder and CEO, Bira 91, said, “We couldn’t be more excited to collaborate with New Belgium Brewing. Colorado is at the center of beer innovation in the world, and New Belgium is the most well-respected beer company in the United States. Our Limited Release beers are brewed with a two-word MO for our brewers – Go Crazy! Right from the word Go, our respective brewers started jamming and vibing, and came up with this crazy, but in hindsight, such an obvious idea – making a Belgian Sour Ale with Tamarind –a “Chutney Sour”. The result is a brilliant surprise, and I am sure consumers who get their hands on this Limited Release will love it!”
“India is known for its exciting culinary flavors, and we’re excited to partner with Bira 91 on a beer that brings these flavors to life for our Fort Collins craft enthusiasts,” said New Belgium CEO Shaun Belongie. “Collaborations like this allow us to play with new and unexpected flavor combinations and invest in our best-in-class beer innovation.”
The beers will be brewed only once and will be sold in the taprooms till stocks last.
Bira 91 x New Belgium Chutney Sour
Tasting Notes: Our chutney-inspired beer is an intense flavor bomb, blended from two parts – a rich, malty and spicy Belgian Ale, with the addition of tamarind, giving this beer a tangy-sour flavor. The aroma is filled with notes of toast, fig, raisin, and dark fruit, complemented by a pleasant tartness from the tamarind.
Style: Belgian Ale brewed with Tamarind
Ingredients: Specialty Malts, Tamarind, Saaz Hops, Belgian Yeast
Color: Copper Amber
ABV: 7%
About B9 Beverages
A refreshingly modern beer brand, imagined in India, Bira 91 aspires to bring flavorful beers to the new world. As one of the fastest-growing brands in the world, Bira 91 has built a diverse portfolio of award-winning beers, one for every occasion, and aims to drive a global shift in beer towards more color and flavor. Bira 91 is now enjoyed in over 1000 towns and cities spread across 25 countries and brews its beers across six manufacturing units in India. In 2023, B9 Beverages entered the Beyond Beer category and launched Hill Station Ciders – its portfolio of alcoholic ciders and Grizly Seltzers – its line of hard seltzers inspired by cocktails. Bira 91 operates four taprooms in Bengaluru and Delhi NCR, where it releases one new experimental beer every week, paired with its curry-shop menu. It has also recently acquired The Beer Café, India’s leading Alco-Beverage chain to strengthen its play in pubs and taprooms and build India’s first large-scale direct-to-consumer platform focused on beer and innovation. Bira 91 also offers branded merchandise across categories such as glassware, barware, apparel, and gifts, to make every day a lot more playful.
Established in 2015, Bira 91 is driven by a dynamic team of over 1600 passionate beer lovers and is backed by leading investors from across the world – including Japan’s leading beer company, Kirin Holdings, Japan’s largest bank, MUFG Bank, Tiger Pacific Capital from New York, Sofina of Belgium, and Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia India).
About New Belgium
New Belgium Brewing was founded in 1991 in Fort Collins, Colo., by Kim Jordan, a social worker, who built her company the only way a social worker would: People first. Over the past three decades, New Belgium has turned that ethos into a unique Human-Powered Business model through practices that were and still are rare in the business world: fully paid healthcare premiums for coworkers who need the support, living wage compensation, open-book management, renewable energy sourcing, a free onsite medical clinic and physician, a deep commitment to philanthropy and advocacy, and much more.
New Belgium expanded to Asheville, N.C., in 2016 and Daleville, Va.,in 2023, and in 2021 acquired Bell’s Brewery, based in Kalamazoo, Mich. The business’ people-centric model has led New Belgium to become the most popular and fastest-growing American craft brewer today. New Belgium is famous for Fat Tire Ale and Voodoo Ranger IPA (America’s #1 IPA brand), along with year-round favorites like Dominga Mimosa Sour, La Folie Sour Brown Ale, an award-winning wood-aged sour program, and the addition of Bell’s iconic brands including Two Hearted IPA and Oberon Ale.
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