Brew Scoops 11-20-19
By Gail Kearney, gailekearney@gmail.com
Photo credit: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
MILTON, DE: To celebrate their ‘long strange trip’ together, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and the Grateful Dead release a third iteration of American Beauty, American Beauty Hazy Ripple IPA, brought together by Warner Music Artist Services. American Beauty Hazy Ripple IPA is an unfiltered IPA brewed with spelt, an ancient heirloom grain that contributes earthy notes and a natural haze, and dosed with a special yeast variety designed to liberate hop aromatics. The result is a psychedelic, 7.0% ale that is bursting with notes of tropical fruit and juicy citrus. Available year-round in 6-packs of 12-oz cans throughout Dogfish Head’s 45-state network starting in mid-November. dogfish.com
PATCHOGUE, NY: Fall is in full swing which means the onslaught of the holiday season is just beginning! But no stress, Blue Point Brewing has all the beer you need to prep for gatherings with friends and family. Heavier Things Winter Ale – a limited release Double Oatmeal Milk Stout perfect for the Winter months! This 7.3% beer pours a deep, dark brown with a full yet soft mouthfeel. Robust notes of chocolate, cherry and caramel are complemented by roast and port aromas. This 7.7% brew is made using pale, Vienna, crystal and chocolate malts to create a balanced character of malt and hops with just the right amount of heat to warm you up during the colder months. bluepointbrewing.com/
OJAI, CA: Organic hard kombucha brand Flying Embers just announced the recent appointment of beverage industry veteran, Ty Gilmore, as company President. With 24-years of experience at Diageo, Ty most recently served as the Vice President of National Accounts, Category Development, and Commercial Innovation for the brands’ beer unit. He has also played a significant role in the successful launches of other alcohol beverage brands such as Smirnoff Ice, Smirnoff Ice Red, White and Berry, Guinness Blonde, and Guinness Draught in a Bottle. Over the years, he worked closely with both distributors and retailers, establishing a high level of trust and driving performance. Flying Embers is a hand-crafted, organic hard kombucha beverage brand. Flying Embers Hard Kombucha (4.5%) uses the ancient alchemy of fermentation to create an organic, gluten-free, sparkling tea made with an adaptogen root blend and containing zero sugar. Flying Embers’ current line of flavors includes Ancient Berry, Grapefruit Thyme, Lemon Orchard, Pineapple Chili, Ginger & Oak. FlyingEmbers.com
NARRAGANSETT, RI: Narragansett Beer’s signature Rhode Island mash-up with the region’s most beloved coffee company is back for the season! Autocrat Coffee Milk Stout, a custom blend of Narragansett’s bittersweet milk stout with dark, delicious Autocrat coffee makes for a delightful 5.3% collaboration. Smooth, robust and delicious, the beer has an alluring coffee aroma and hints of chocolate malt, midnight wheat malt and crystal malt that deliver a rich and robust taste. Notes of roasted barley, dark chocolate and toffee are complemented by milk sugar that give it a creamy and delectable body. narragansettbeer.com/
BALTIMORE, MD: Heavy Seas Beer is excited to announce the release of 24 Anniversary Ale, a quadruple IPA to celebrate the brewery’s 24th year of brewing craft beer in Baltimore. This 14% Hazy quadrupel IPA brewed with oats, wheat and hopped to absurd levels with over four pounds per barrel of Citra, Galaxy, Enigma, and Simcoe. Bursting with notes of grapefruit, orange and ripe stone fruit, it brings a juiciness to every celebration. Heavy Seas will be hosting a 24th Anniversary Party Dec. 6 in the Taproom at the brewery in Halethorpe, MD to release the beer. This limited release will be available in December in the following states within its distribution footprint: CT, DE, FL, GA, IN, MA, MD, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, VA, DC, and WV.
Also from Heavy Seas is Froot Joose IPA, the second beer in its Joose Cannon series. Another exciting twist on their flagship IPA Loose Cannon, Joose Cannon is its hazier, juicer counterpart. This 7.25% brew utilizes Citra, Galaxy and Enigma for insane tropical juiciness along with guava, apricot, mango, apple, pineapple, orange and cherry juices. This beer will be exclusively available in the Heavy Seas Taproom at the brewery on Friday, November 22nd in 4-packs of 16-oz cans and on draft. hsbeer.com
SAN FRANCISCO, CA: Anchor Brewing Co. announces the release of its 2019 Christmas Ale. Now in its 45th annual rendition, the 6.9% ale presents a smooth and velvety spiced flavor profile this holiday season. It is rich with robust malt flavor, yet balanced and drinkable. “Slightly darker than last year’s Christmas Ale, the 2019 edition is layered with toasted caramel and coffee flavors with subtle hints of Mexican chocolate, rounded out with herbaceous spices. Crack open a bottle for a spiced whiff of western evergreens, roasted malts and coastal flowers,” shared Anchor Brewmaster, Scott Ungermann. Available from early November to mid-January in 6-packs and gold-foiled 50.7-oz magnum bottles, as well as on draught in select stores, bars, and restaurants including Anchor Public Taps and the Anchor Brewing Taproom in San Francisco.
Anchor Brewing and local nonprofit San Francisco Baykeeper announce their limited-edition collaboration brew, Baykeeper IPA, in cans for the very first time. A San Francisco-style IPA, Baykeeper IPA is a crisp and refreshing 7% brew that brims with fruit-forward hop layers. Calypso, El Dorado, Cascade and Amarillo Cryo hops were dry hopped to amplify the fruity and piney hop aromatics in this slightly hazy brew. Anchor used Alameda-based Admiral Gallagher’s Best malt. This pale ale style of malt has a bright aroma with a mildly sweet, honey flavor. In addition, they used 2-row pale, acidulated malt, golden naked oats and toasted rice, combined to create an exceptional malt profile. The beer pours a deep golden color with a creamy, fluffy head. The brew is now available in f6-packs of 12-oz. cans and on draught at select bars, restaurants and stores as well as at Anchor Public Taps and the Anchor Brewing Taproom. (photos: Erin Conger) anchorbrewing.com
CLIFTON PARK, NY: L’Chaim! from Schmaltz brewing Co. Candles won’t be the only thing getting lit this year, with this 8% chocolate bomb! Rounded out by a heady, earthy hop profile and vanilla notes, this triple brown ale, Chanukah, Hanukkah: Pass The Beer®, beautifully balances complex caramel roasted malts with a citrusy puckering all tied together for the perfect before or after dinner beer. In 4-packs of 12-oz cans. shmaltzbrewing.com
ELMSFORD, NY: This limited release from Alphabet City Brewing Co. – Sugar Plum Fairy® is an 8% Belgian inspired dark ale brewed with real plum puree and Belgian candi syrup. Contributing to the flavor are 2-Row, Briess Extra Special, Vienna, Caramel Munich 60, Chocolate and Flaked Oat malts and Zeus, Hallertau and Czech Saaz hops. Available in 4-packs of 16-oz cans and on draft. acbcnyc.com
PORTLAND, OR: Cascade Brewing, best known for its Northwest sour style ales, has announced the release of its first-ever lager in cans. The Devil Wears Lager is now available in 16-oz cans at Cascade’s two Portland pubs. This dry-hopped lager is made in collaboration with Roy Farms of Moxee, WA. The beer is hopped with generous portions of experimental Pacific Northwest hops from the ADHA breeding program. The hop variety ADHA-1940 is front and center in this brew, lending an American noble hop quality with aromatic, spicy, floral and resinous characteristics. The brewery plans to make draft available in the coming weeks. CascadeBrewing.com
BRECKENRIDGE, CO: Breckenridge Brewery heard of the struggles that New Yorkers face during the holiday season when it comes to lugging a Christmas tree down the snowy streets (especially since only 22% of Manhattan residents own a car!) and up to their NYC apartment. Not to mention the struggle of a Christmas tree on the subway! Each year, Colorado-based Breckenridge Brewery helps fans celebrate the season with their famous Christmas Ale, so they’re excited to continue the tradition of delivering holiday cheer in a whole new way this season. Breckenridge Brewery is treating 100 Manhattan residents to a Christmas tree PLUS delivery on the house. See details below and more info HERE. For a chance to win a free Christmas tree and delivery, Manhattan residents must follow @BreckBrew and share a photo on Instagram with the hashtag #BreckSharestheSeason and #sweepstakes, showing how they are preparing for the holidays, whether decorating with loved ones or enjoying Christmas Ale in good company. Fans can enter to win throughout the month of November, and Breck will deliver the trees to the winners during the first two weeks of December.
OAKLAND PARK, FL: Funky Buddha Brewery pledges to hold the release of Undefeated Saison until after the loss of the last undefeated team each football season, and now that all the pro football teams have fallen from the ranks of the undefeated, this beer will finally be available! This 7.7% crisp and refreshing french countryside ale is brewed with grape must and champagne yeast. The saison yeast creates a dry, crisp character while the grape must adds a touch of wine-like fruitiness. The beer is then aged in French Oak wine barrels to further the dry, oaky character before it’s ready to be released. It is packaged in a 750-ml wine bottle and conditioned naturally with additional champagne yeast which produces a spritzy body and dry finish. Available in the Funky Buddha tap room and select retail locations in South Florida. funkybuddhabrewery.com
GRAND RAPIDS, MI: Founders Brewing Co. has announced KBS Espresso, the first-ever variant of KBS, their esteemed bourbon barrel-aged chocolate coffee stout. While KBS is already brewed with coffee, 12% KBS Espresso gets some extra oomph, namely more aging on espresso beans after barrel removal. The result is a fresh and extra-snappy coffee twist on the brewery’s classic barrel-aged beer. This stout also kicks off the brewery’s 2020 Barrel-Aged Series, which will feature a line-up of seven different beers set to release throughout the year, including KBS and the year-round Backwoods Bastard. Available in 4-packs of 12-oz bottles, 750-ml bottles and draft in the Grand Rapids taproom. It will ship to the brewery’s distribution network later this month and will be available through February 2020. Please note that KBS Espresso will not be available on draft in UT or in any format in MS. foundersbrewing.com
NEW YORK CITY: Heartland Brewery’s cask conditioned Smiling Pumpkin Ale is made from the perfect combination of NY State honey-roasted pumpkins, simmered with cinnamon, fresh ginger, a pinch of cloves, nutmeg and spiced-rum. On tap now through Thanksgiving while supplies last. heartlandbrewery.com
JACKSON HOLE, WY: Just in time for the holidays, Jackson Hole’s beloved Roadhouse Brewing Co. releases its newest seasonal brew: Outcasty Sweet Potato Porter, a rich and robust 8.0% porter brewed with roasted sweet potatoes, featuring notes of caramel, chocolate and coffee. Beginning as a pumpkin beer, Outcasty was reimaged as a sweet potato porter after an early winter freeze created a pumpkin shortage. Utilizing one ton of house-roasted sweet potatoes in the brewing process, Roadhouse enlisted CES (Community Entry Services) to help with peeling the innumerable potatoes. A long-term partner of Roadhouse, CES is dedicated to empowering those with disabilities to live productive and satisfying lives in the community. While previous iterations of this seasonal favorite have been available on tap, this marks the first time the beer has been canned and distributed beyond the Roadhouse Tap Room, in hopes of finding its way to a holiday table or tap room near you. roadhousebrewery.com
LONGMONT, CO: November is Nitrovember at Left Hand Brewing Co! First in nitro technology, first in nitro experience, first to Nitro 8-packs! These new Nitro Mixers are hitting more and more shelves across the country. There’s no better way to immerse yourself in all things Nitro than to pick up four flavors at once. With our core lineup of Milk Stout Nitro, Flamingo Dreams Nitro and Sawtooth Nitro, also included is the seasonal Chai Milk Stout Nitro in this first of its kind pack. Pick up your Nitro party now!
Looking to go even deeper and darker into the Nitro world? Unleash this Russian Imperial beast – Wake Up Dead Nitro. Hints of raisins, black licorice, coffee and dark chocolate are followed by earthy, herbal hop notes, all in a 10.2% stout. lefthandbrewing.com
