SweetWater Brewing
Atlanta, Georgia
Foudre aged SweetWater Cherry Pit & The Pendulum debuts in Woodlands Series
Atlanta’s SweetWater Brewing Company’s first full production foray in to American wild ales happened a few years before their new Woodlands Facility. In 2015 to be precise, with the release of a Brettanomyces yeast heavy Pit & The Pendulum. That beer, brewed with fresh peach puree from South Carolina was so well received that it was made intermittently year-round. This year, a new Pit is coming – SweetWater Cherry Pit & The Pendulum.
RELATED: Sweetwater The Woodlands (PICS)
Arising from the brewery’snew foudres is SweetWater Cherry Pit & The Pendulum, that has been sitting for over six months on a blend of Montmorency & Balaton cherries. Chris Meadows and Nick Burgoyne, brewers overseeing the Woodlands, started fermentation on Rainy Day Acid Trip (the unofficial name for the base) in stainless steel in July, 016. It was transferred to oak foudres in December, where a blend of Montmorency & Balaton cherries were added to the oak.
The result is a delicate, tart wild ale that almost glows a pinkish-red. While The Woodlands program may be young, after tasting Through the Brambles, Cambium (foudre beer) and Cherry Pit – the word maturity comes to mind. SweetWater, being the biggest craft brewery in the state, doesn’t get the beer geek cred they deserve sometimes. For the past 5+ years, the brewery has put in some serious time internally developing a wild ale program.
Ultimately when comfortable, the brewery pulled the trigger on the wooden palace that is The Woodlands. The brewing team didn’t use their fans as guinea pigs in development. They left much of the triumphs and failures behind closed doors leaving to the public some of the best sour and wild ales the southeast has to offer. This truly is a new era for SweetWater.
A golden ale soured with lactobacillus and fermented with three brettanomyces strains, then aged for 6 months in American and French oak with 3,000 pounds of Montmorency & Balaton cherries. Freshly harvested house brettanomyces was added for bottle conditioning, ensuring evolution in the cellar.
SweetWater Cherry Pit & The Pendulum is a 16.9-ounce corked & caged bottle release.
Style: American Wild Ale (w/ Cherries. Oak Aged.)
Availability: 16.9oz Bottles
Debut: 9/9/17
6.1% ABV
PIC: Beer Street Journal
SweetWater TripleTail goes year-round tropical
“Tropical” is very much in style right now. Tropical hops like Mosaic, Galaxy, and Citra. Tropical flavors like mango, papaya, and pineapple. You get the idea. Atlanta’s largest craft brewery bolsters their flagship IPA with pineapple forward Goin’ Coastal, and joining the duo year-round will is SweetWater TripleTail.
“TripelT” debut in June as a summer seasonal release. Its popularity was instant. Mosaic and Waimea hops slam your palate with passion fruit and papaya flavors. Despite all the fruit mentions, you won’t find fruit in this India pale ale. The hops are the star here.
A tropical approach to the IPA style – TripleTail weaves juicy and bodacious hops with notes of papaya, pineapple and passionfruit into this lush hop-forward IPA, creating a mouthwatering vacation for your senses. At 5.5% ABV, you can lean back assured it will refresh you from sun up to sun down.
SweetWater TripleTail is available in 12-ounce bottles, cans, and draft year-round.
Style: IPA
Hops: Bravo, Mosaic, Denali
Dry Hops: Mosaic, Denali, Waimea
Malts: 2-Row, Wheat, Pilsner, Carapils
Availability: 12oz Bottles, Draft.
Debut: Mid-June 2017
5.5% ABV
3 years & fresh blackberries. SweetWater Belgian Rose debuts
Atlanta's SweetWater Brewing took their time (and a few million dollars to do it right) building out their sour and wild ale program. You can see the result of that effort at the newest addition to their brewery – The Woodlands. On August 5th, the second release from The Woodlands debuts – SweetWater Belgian Rose.
This beer actually got its start three years ago, before The Woodlands was even built. Cabernet and Merlot barrels full of bacteria and yeast – Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, Brettanomyces Bruxellensis, and Brettanomyces Claussenii have been "funking" and souring a Belgian-style ale since 2014
See Inside SweetWater's New Sour Facility
In the months prior to the release, the brewery blended 1 pound per gallon of fresh Georgia grown blackberries to the base beer.
Flavor.
The wine touched oak, fresh blackberries, and sour tartness from the barrels are fighting for your attention, and that's a good thing. SweetWater Belgian Rose is a labor of love and the culmination of patience. Through the Brambles was a beautiful introductory lesson into what SweetWater can do on the wild side. Belgian Rose is like skipping a few grades and jumping right into the more advanced courses. Consider yourself lucky.
SweetWater Belgian Rose is now available at The Woodlands, part of the SweetWater facility in Atlanta.
Style:American Wild/Sour Ale (w/ Blackberries)
Availability: 750ml Bottles
Debut: 8/5/17
7% ABV
SweetWater Mexican Style Lager debuts on Cinco de Mayo
For the first time in SweetWater’s 20 year history, the brewery finally has a pilot system. In keeping with the fishing and rivers theme, the 5 barrel brewhouse is lovingly called “The Hatchery”. The little brewhouse pales in comparison to the 400 barrel brewhouse just a few hundred feet away. This month a second release from the pilot system emerges – SweetWater Mexican Style Lager.
The first release from The Hatchery was SweetWater Mosaic IPA, a single hopped spin on their venerable year-round IPA. Side note – that beer is fantastic. Many fans hope that beer gets full-scale brewhouse treatment.
This Mexican-style lager is actually a Vienna lager, brewed a little lighter and sweeter than its American cousin. SweetWater’s Travis Stone wanted an easy drinking beer to chug as the weather gets warmers, and by the looks of it, he’s done it.
Slightly sweet, malty, and tropical fruit aromas.
SweetWater Mexican Style Lager will be available in 12 ounce bottles (in the brewery’s variety pack) and draft, starting Friday May 5th.
Style: Mexican Lager
Availability: 12oz Bottles, Draft.=
Debut: 5/5/17
4.8% ABV
SweetWater Cool Breeze Cucumber Saison, two firsts for the brewery
SweetWater Cool Breeze has been bottled, right on time for spring in the south. The brewery has been busy this week bottling the new release.
Never has the Atlanta, Georgia based brewery canned a saison, nor brewed with cucumber. Two firsts with this new release. The brewery has seen great success with subtle additions of fruit to their seasonal offerings, and is looking to continue the trend with this refreshing cucumber saison.
RELATED: SweetWater’s new sour facility in pictures
A fresh and refreshing way to find that chill spot this summer. This cucumber flavored Belgian-style saison is light in body and laid back in spirit. Notes of fresh cucumber and lime flavors come through in this hazy golden summer crusher.
SweetWater Cool Breeze will be a 12 ounce can, bottle and draft offering. Look for your first taste of Cool Breeze at SweetWater 420 Fest, and on shelves shortly after.
Style: Saison (w/ Cucumbers)
Availability: 12oz Cans, 12oz Bottles, Draft. (Tentative)
Debut: April, 2017
4.9% ABV
SweetWater brews with wasabi in future ‘Torikumi’ release
SweetWater Torikumi, a collaboration with Colorado based Telluride Brewing,
This release is where the brewery’s side project series known as “Dank Tank” is going to a get a little weird. SweetWater Torikumi is a blonde ale, infused with wasabi.
Wasabi, which shares its family with the likes of mustard and horseradish, is pungent. The vapors alone will wake you out of a coma. According to SweetWater, a lighter style was chosen to accentuate the flavor of wasabi, while still being crisp and drinkable. The idea is NOT to destroy your senses with each sip.
RELATED: SweetWater Wookie Down, because 420 Fest
This isn’t wasabi’s first rodeo in brewing. Back in 2014, Dogfish Head created Rosabi, an imperial pale ale brewed with the aromatic plant. Foodies were instantly in love the ale.
Sumo Danko vs King Dragon Fish: Two men enter, one man leaves. Sumo Danko hails from the back hills of Georgia, is feared and revered for his fists of fury, oversized sack of hops, low-grade narcolepsy, and a penchant for buggery.
King Dragon Fish is a mountain dweller from TaHellYaRide, with an insane ability to break trees with his ankles, occasional bouts with gout and high altitude Tommy boy foolishness; usually found face down….
SweetWater Torikumi will be availalble in 16 ounce cans and draft. The brewery has not yet announced this beer.
Style: Blonde Ale (w/ Wasabi)
Hops:
Malts: 2 Row Wheat, Carapils, Oat Flakes, Rye
Availability: 16oz Cans, Draft
Debut: TBA
7.5% ABV
SweetWater Wookie Down emerges from the Dank Tank this week
SweetWater Wookie Down joins the brewery’s Dank Tank Series starting this week.
Recently the Atlanta-based brewery re-brewed Pulled Porter from the Dank series. This was the first time the brewery canned a Dank Tank release. Now apart of the same series is SweetWater Wookie Down, an imperial red ale.
RELATED: SweetWater Dank Tank Series
This forthcoming release is brewed in celebration of the brewery’s annual 420 Fest, held every April in downtown Atlanta. You might recall 420 Fest Double IPA from 2015.
This edition is an imperial red ale, big on tropical citrus flavors and a sweet malt body.
Dressed to get pressed at the fest, El Dank took one whiff of his stash of Simcoe, Mosaic and Waimea hops and dove straight in. Feeling no pain with lots to gain, El D saddled up next to a big bodied mahogany/red beauty of an ale looking to mingle a blast of his stash of tropical citrus aromas with her big bodacious sweet maltified booty. Overindulging as always, Danko peaked at 7.6% ABV, causing him to spin with the spinners ’til he spun out and was left face up in the field. Eyes open but case closed.
The 2017 fest lineup includes Widespread Panic, Ween, and Slightly Stoopid.
SweetWater Wookie Down is a draft and 16 ounce can release, starting in mid-March.
Style: Imperial Red Ale
Availability: 16oz cans, Draft.
Debut: Mid-March, 2017
7.6% ABV, 82 IBUs
