Topic Archives: Wine Aged
New Series, New Beer: Great Divide Wood Werks Belgian-Style Sour debuts
Great Divide Wood Werks Belgian-Style Sour will kick off a new barrel-aged series for the brewery on February 1st.
Denver, Colorado-based Great Divide’s most well-known barrel-aged releases Hibernation, Old Ruffian, & their Yeti Imperial Stout. Thanks to extra oak barrel purchases, more of these treats are available nationwide.
Even with more oak, Great Divide still has some small batch love to give – in the form of the new Wood Werks Barrel Series set to debut in February. 2018 marks the 10th anniversary of the brewery’s original Barrel-Aged Series. At the time, nearly every barrel they had came from Colorado local, Stranahan’s Whiskey. Brewery founder Brian Dunn thought it was time to upgrade the program taking what he characterizes as “a more modern approach” to barrel-aged beers.
Great Divide Wood Werks Belgian-Style Sour has the honor of being the first release of this new era. A Belgian-style tripel ale has been souring for 15 months in red wine barrels on plums.
“This Belgian-Style Sour showcases our creativity and thoughtful approach to a Belgian-Style Tripel. It really is a labor of love and patience.” -Brandon Jacobs, brewing manager
Great Divide Wood Werks Belgian-Style Sour will be a 12-ounce bottle release, available nationwide starting in February. Look for a Flemish Sour Brown Ale to join the series in May, and a Barrel Aged Brown Rye Ale in August.
Style: American Wild Ale (w/ Plums. Wine Barrel-Aged.)
Availability: 12oz Bottles
Debut: 2/1/18
9.3% ABV
A brooding, dark sour? Burial The River to Hell Runs Red
If this is Burial Beer Co.’s idea of what the rivers in hell taste like, count us in.
The Asheville, North Carolina based brewery’s Solera program has yielded another release, and it indeed runs deep red. Burial The River to Hell Runs Red is Oud Bruin ale (Flanders Brown Ale) that spent 6 months in Brunello foeders, only to be re-fermented in Sanctuary Vineyards Tempranillo barrels for 9 months. Hold on, not done. 75% of this sour ale was aged on raspberries, while the remaining 25% on blueberries.
The release is truly a dark, brooding, sour ale. As it warms the depth of this beer is revealed – a wash of bold Spanish black grapes and a subtle hint of dry Italian wine barrel, finishing with just the tiniest hint of vinegar and raspberry. Fans of sours like The Bruery Tart of Darkness or Jolly Pumpkin Noel De Calabaza will find a new love in hell here.
Burial The River to Hell Runs Red is a brewery only release, in 16.9-ounce bottles.
Style: American Wild/Sour Ale (w/ Blueberries. Raspberries. Foudre Aged. Wine Barrel Aged.)
Availability: 16.9oz Bottles
Debut: 1/13/18
7.5% ABV
PIC: Beer Street Journal
Far from evil & damn tasty: Schlafly The Devil’s Farmhouse
Schlafly The Devil’s Farmhouse joins the Rare Ibex Series on December 22nd.
Schlafly Brewery is one of the biggest names in Saint Louis, Missouri brewing. The 26-year-old brewery is known for a great many beers, but none so hard to come by as the Ibex Rare Series. Don’t feel bad if you aren’t too familiar with Schlafly Ibex. They are truly limited to just a few thousand bottles, whenever a beer decides that it’s ready.
For the second time this year, the Ibex Rare Series has born another unique fruit – The Devil’s Farmhouse. The name doesn’t conjure up thoughts of Christmas, but the design and rarity are indeed perfect for the season. Something truly special, worth sipping with loved ones.
A plethora of malts, including rye, wheat, and dark malt is what the Brettanomyces has been feasting on for over a year. This is no ordinary farmhouse ale. It’s every bit as dark, brooding and complex as the devil himself, hardened by 18 months of aging in wine barrels with sweet red cherries and black currants. Every sip is a wave of farmhouse Bretty funk, tart, and fruity flavors, with the slightest hint of oak. You are sipping little nuances of oaky time, captured in a sexy 750-milliliter bottle.
No this isn’t a beer for mass consumption. Nor is it something easily replicated. It’s beer and brewer passion, elevated. In this case, the devil is truly in the details.
Schlafly The Devil’s Farmhouse will be available starting December 21st in the brewery’s tap room, plus limited distribution, $30 dollars each.
Style: American Wild Ale (w/ Black Currants. Cherries. Wine Barrel Aged.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles. Limited release.
Debut: 12/22/17
7.5% ABV
Carolina Bauernhaus July Prince, with South Carolina peaches
Carolina Bauernhaus July Prince returns to the Anderson, South Carolina taproom for a second time on October 19th.
A follow up to the first bottle release in June – June Princess, Carolina Bauernhaus July Prince is an American wild ale fermented with peaches.
The base beer is the brewery’s golden rye ale, femented in Chardonnay barrels with SouthYeast Labs strong ale yeast for seven months. Then the brewery added 200 pounds of peaches and aged it another two months. Finally, July Prince was dry-hopped With Hull Melon and Aramis hops.
The finished beer has a subtle acidity, juicy peach notes, and a light hop note balanced by a dry oak barrel character.
Carolina Bauernhaus July Prince is a 750-milliliter bottle offering. Limited distribution to local area and Atlanta.
Style: American Wild Ale (w/ Peaches. Wine Barrel Aged.)
Hops: Hull Melon, Aramis
Availability: 750ml Bottles, Draft.
Debut: 10/29/16
Latest Return: 10/19/17
8% ABV
Birdsong Weasels on Woodpeckers joins the brewery’s “Take Flight” Series
Birdsong Weasels on Woodpeckers, a new barrel-aged beer debuts on September 28th.
The Charlotte, North Carolina brewery brewed at Belgian-style saison, added fresh peaches and aged it in white wine barrels. Weasels on Woodpeckers joins the brewery’s on-going “Take Flight” Series, home to other releases – Turtles on Pterodactyls, Squirrels on Geese and Mongeese on Monkeys.
The Belgian yeast is complimented with upfront aromas of Chardonnay oakiness and finishes with a slightly tart, slightly sweet peach finish! Kind of tastes like a peach bellini. Who doesn’t like those?
Birdsong Weasels on Woodpeckers will be available when the brewery opens on September 28th, in 22-ounce bottles. $10 each.
Style: Saison (w/ Peaches. White Wine Barrel Aged)
Availability: 22oz Bottles
Debut: 9/28/17
7.8% ABV
Image: Bird Song Brewing
Three different barrels & a little crazy: Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale
Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale is all over the flavor map. That’s a good thing. There’s a lot going on in this beer.
As fall creeps in, Asheville, North Carolina based Hi-Wire Brewing has released Sour Pumpkin Ale. Put the pumpkin spiced latte down because things are about to get a little weird.
After spending time wandering around local Rayburn Farm, Hi-Wire was struck with the idea of sourcing a beer from a single farm source. Sure, this is a pumpkin ale so you’re probably thinking something with pumpkins, cinnamon, and cloves. Make it taste like pie and ship it, right? Wrong.
Let’s talk pre-barrel. The base beer spent time in stainless steel tanks, with roasted delicata pumpkins, cinnamon basil, and blue ginger. Blue ginger is a Hawaiian variety known for its superior flavor. Cinnamon basil is also called Mexican spice basil. Methyl cinnamate found in the cultivar gives off flavors of the cinnamon spice when the leaves are crushed.
If this beer is already sounding unique, Hi-Wire isn’t done yet. After three months in stainless steel, the beer was split into rum, whiskey, and red wine barrels for six months, then blended back again. There’s nothing “basic” about this creation.
At this point, it is downright impossible to use something as simple as “pie” to describe Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale. It just doesn’t fit. Sour Pumpkin is aggressively sour as you dive in, melding into a light wash of ginger and cinnamon. As the beer warms, the blend of barrels are fighting for palate domination. Honestly, we think the rum won. This is no simple wild ale, with typical flavors. Everything about this beer is unpredictable in the best of ways. Speaking in the spirit of Hi-Wire’s hometown of Asheville, “Keep Fall Weird.”
Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale is a limited, 375-milliliter bottle release. Not for the faint of heart (or palate).
Style: American Wild/Sour Alehttps://beerstreetjournal.com/tag/american-wild-ales/ (w/ Pumpkin. Blue Ginger. Cinnamon Basil. Barrel Aged. Whiskey. Red Wine. Rum.)
Availability: 375ml Bottles
Debut: 9/2/17
8.6% ABV
PIC: Beer Street Journal
A year in the making. Three Taverns Brettannicus debuts July 15th
Three Taverns Brettannicus debuts Saturday, July 15th.
Following in the footsteps of Fortunatus is Three Taverns Brettannicus, a 100% Brettanomyces fermented farmhouse ale. The brewery used their saison malt base of pilsner, spelt, and wheat, then fermented in stainless steel tanks with Brett.
After primary fermentation, the beer was transferred to red wine barrels to mature. It has been bottle conditioning since late 2016. All in all, Brettannicus has been a year in the making.
…This newest release from our Funk Yard makes no apologies for in your face funk.
Three Taverns Brettannicus will be available in 375 milliliter, corked & caged bottles at the Decatur, Georgia brewery on Saturday. $12 dollars each.
Style: American Wild Ale (Red Wine Aged)
Availability: 375ml Bottles, Corked & Caged.
Debut: 7/15/17
?? ABV
