JailHouse Brewing

Jailhouse Brewing Midnight Special

Jailhouse Brewing (Hampton, GA) is adding a 4th beer, to their lineup  – Midnight Special.  An American black ale, or black IPA for those that still like that better.

The name is inspired by Creedence Clearwater Revival’s cleassic song “Midnight Special.” The song is linked to jails and jailhouses.  The brewery mentions:

“Midnight Special is about a train that shone its ever lovin’ light in the cells of the prison. The light represented a light of salvation and escape from the walls that held them. There are many historical versions of the song and it is part of what made making this beer so interesting and special to us.”

Jailhouse brewer Glen Golden decided on a black IPA for this new beer hoping to showcase some new malt from Jailhouse’s malt supplier.  JH really wanted a big ABV beer, in the neighborhood of 12%, but the bar was set a little too high on that one.  Midnight Special should weigh in around 10%.  It’s a long boil on this one – 2 hours. The hops are warrior (bitter) and centennial (until the end of the boil).  Dry hopped with more centennial.

Midnight Special joins the “Solitary Confinement” series at Jailhouse.  Specialty and one time brews will find their way to lockdown here.

Arrival: March 2011

Click on for the press release


Jailhouse Brewing Adds Bottles

Jailhouse Brewing (Hampton, GA) is no long draft only. 22oz Bombers of brewery’s beers are hitting shelves.

The Beers:
Slammer Wheat – American Wheat, 5% ABV. An American wheat beer perfect for the “General Population,” Slammer Wheat is Continue Reading →

Local Tap Takeover @ Cypress Street

This weeks Beer Geek Tuesday is big one at Cypress Street.  Wes Anderson has gone out of his way to make a night featuring local beers.   Expect representation from every brewery (or future brewery, I mean you Monday Night Brewing)   on hand for the event.  In case you don’t know everyone I’m talking about – Sweetwater Brewing, Red Brick Brewing, Terrapin Brewing, Wild Heaven Craft Beer, Twains, and Jailhouse Brewing.  As if the beer isn’t enough, enjoy conversations with some of the brewers themselves, brewery representatives, distributors, even members of local craft beer stores.  Continue on for the tap and guest list!

MEET THE BREWER: Jailhouse Brewing

A new brewer is up & coming in the Atlanta area.  The name? Jailhouse Brewing.  Location? Hampton, GA.

Jailhouse Brewing got it’s start in 2008 and is actually located IN an old jailhouse in Hampton.  You may have seen them make appearances recently at Atlanta beer fests.   Interestingly enough, Jailhouse started their distributorship to distribute their beers.  (As every beer sold in Georgia must come from before retail.)  There’s a lot to learn about Georgia’s newest brewery.  If you haven’t made the trip down to Hampton, don’t worry.  Today you have a chance to meet the brewers in person at Taco Mac Metropolis.  All 3 Jailhouse beers will be on tap. Be sure to read on to learn about Jailhouse’s short but interesting history.

Jailhouse Brewing
Taco Mac Metropolis – 8/25, 6-8 pm
933 Peachtree Street Northeast
Atlanta, GA 30309

Posted in Coming Soon, JailHouse Brewing

Jailhouse Brewing Midnight Special

Jailhouse Brewing (Hampton, GA) is adding a 4th beer, to their lineup  – Midnight Special.  An American black ale, or black IPA for those that still like that better.

The name is inspired by Creedence Clearwater Revival’s cleassic song “Midnight Special.” The song is linked to jails and jailhouses.  The brewery mentions:

“Midnight Special is about a train that shone its ever lovin’ light in the cells of the prison. The light represented a light of salvation and escape from the walls that held them. There are many historical versions of the song and it is part of what made making this beer so interesting and special to us.”

Jailhouse brewer Glen Golden decided on a black IPA for this new beer hoping to showcase some new malt from Jailhouse’s malt supplier.  JH really wanted a big ABV beer, in the neighborhood of 12%, but the bar was set a little too high on that one.  Midnight Special should weigh in around 10%.  It’s a long boil on this one – 2 hours. The hops are warrior (bitter) and centennial (until the end of the boil).  Dry hopped with more centennial.

Midnight Special joins the “Solitary Confinement” series at Jailhouse.  Specialty and one time brews will find their way to lockdown here.

Arrival: March 2011

 

So, for weeks now we’ve been trying to brew our new Solitary Confinement release, Midnight Special. It’s the first in a series of one-off beers we are planning to brew this year, and from what we can tell so far it promises to not only test the limits of the brewery but also your taste buds.

The idea for this beer came from an old prison song called “Midnight Special” Popularized by Credence Clearwater Revival, “Midnight Special” is about a train that shone its ever lovin’ light in the cells of the prison. The light represented a light of salvation and escape from the walls that held them. There are many historical versions of the song and it is part of what made making this beer so interesting and special to us.

After a few conversations about what type of beer it would be, we finally settled on the idea of a Black IPA. Black IPA’s are becoming more prevalent these days and it seemed this would make the perfect match for our “Midnight Special.” I also wanted to try out a new malt from my supplier that would impart dark color without roast flavor and bitterness. It was perfect for this beer.

At this point I envisioned a decently hopped IPA with a respectable amount of alcohol and body when our resident hop head, John Carden, mentioned we should go big or go home. His first thought was to make it a 12%’er. It was a brilliant idea given the name. I’m on record that 8% is about where my limits for balance and enjoyability fall but I do love a good challenge. After a little calculating and research I realized that 12% would not be attainable with our setup and house yeast so we had to settle for closer to 10% ABV.  We had a new target. On to the hops.

We scoured the freezer for the hop profile in this beer. Since we would brew this for the first time full throttle (no pilot batch) we felt it best to keep it simple. But, once again we’d go big or go home. This beer is bittered with Warrior hops and then gives way to all Centennial hops every 20 minutes for the last hour of boiling. To achieve the proper bittering and level of alcohol we were shooting for, we had to boil this beer for two hours. We also intend to dry hop with a very generous amount of Centennial hops until we feel it is right. How’s that for creative freedom?

When Midnight Special is ready, we expect it to have a nice malt backbone to support 90+ IBU’s of bitterness and around 10% alcohol by volume. It will have a subtle roast character with a very citrus hop aroma and flavor. Oh yea, it will be black as Midnight!

Solitary Confinement beers from JailHouse will be in very limited quantities each year. Be sure to keep track of what we’re doing so you won’t miss out on each release. http://www.jailhousebrewing.com/pages/newsletter_FORM


by Reid Ramsay
Posted in JailHouse Brewing, New Releases

Jailhouse Brewing Adds Bottles

Jailhouse Brewing (Hampton, GA) is no long draft only. 22oz Bombers of brewery’s beers are hitting shelves.

The Beers:
Slammer Wheat – American Wheat, 5% ABV. An American wheat beer perfect for the “General Population,” Slammer Wheat is characterized by inviting citrus aromas and delicate malt flavors that finish clean and crisp.

Malt – U.S. malted pilsen and wheat varieties.
Hops – U.S. Sterling

Mugshot IPA – American IPA, 6.7% ABV Chinook, cascade and sterling hops and a balanced blend of malt flavors that finish nice and dry. Forward hop bitterness lingers on without a overwhelming the palate.

Malt – U.S. malted 2-row barley; munich, caramel, and special roast; demerera sugar
Hops- Chinook, Cascade and Sterling

Breakout Stout – American Stout, 7.8% ABV.  Break out of your routine with our robust blend of dark roasted malts. Breakout Stout is a bold American Stout with a sturdy hop bitterness, hint of chocolate from chocolate malt and a pleasing finish. Breakout Stout compliments desserts and lends a surprising depth when paired with savory dishes.

Malts – U.S. malted 2-row barley; caramel malt; chocolate malt; roasted barley
Hops – Chinook and cascade

Availability: 22oz Bombers, Draft. Year round offerings

Looking for these? 12/8 – Available at Hop City, Greens, Tower, Macs, Ale Yeah, Mink’s Package

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in JailHouse Brewing, Monday Night Brewing, Now Tapping, Rare Opportunity, Red Brick, SweetWater Brewing, Wild Heaven Craft Beers

Local Tap Takeover @ Cypress Street

This weeks Beer Geek Tuesday is big one at Cypress Street.  Wes Anderson has gone out of his way to make a night featuring local beers.   Expect representation from every brewery (or future brewery, I mean you Monday Night Brewing)   on hand for the event.  In case you don’t know everyone I’m talking about – Sweetwater Brewing, Red Brick Brewing, Terrapin Brewing, Wild Heaven Craft Beer, Twains, and Jailhouse Brewing.  As if the beer isn’t enough, enjoy conversations with some of the brewers themselves, brewery representatives, distributors, even members of local craft beer stores.  Continue on for the tap and guest list!

Tap List:

Sweetwater Crank Tank
Sweetwater Sch’Wheat
Terrapin Reunion
2010 Terrapin Big Hoppy Monste
Redbrick Octoberfest
Redbrick Pale Ale
Wild Heaven Ode to Mercy
Wild Heaven Invocation
Jail House Breakout Stout
Jail House Mugshot IPA
Odempsey’s Big Red
Odempsey’s IPA

Confirmed Special Guests-

Randy O’Dempsey (President, Brewmaster, O’Dempsey’s)
Nick Purdy (President, Sales, Wild Heaven)
Brian O’Connell (Beer Pimp, SweetWater)
Chris Caban (Sales, Redbrick) – Other Redbrick staff
Chad Baker (Sales, Jailhouse)
Glen Golden (Brewmaster, Jailhouse)
Steve Hayes (Sales, Terrapin)
Jordan Fleetwood (Brewmaster, Twains)

Potential Guests:

Matt Wells (Savannah Distributing)
Bobby Marek (United Distributing)
Carla Jan (United Distributing)
Jim Brooks (GA Crown) –
Michael Vandura (General Distributing)

Really Special Awesome Guests

Me! – AtlantaBeerMaster.com (LOL)

The Local Beer Tap Takeover for Beer Geek Tuesday kicks off @ 7pm!

Cypress Street
817 West Peachtree Street
Atlanta, GA 30308
Twitter: @CypressStreet


by Reid Ramsay
Posted in JailHouse Brewing, Meet the Brewer

MEET THE BREWER: Jailhouse Brewing

From Jailhouse Brewing’s website, here’s their history.  Should give you some conversation fodder at Taco Mac Metropolis tonight –

In August of 2008, an aspiring young brewer with big dreams and neophyte confidence plunged head first into an adventure wrought with stories of mountainous challenges, perilous doubt and the occasional ghost story (more on that in a minute) determined to brew the beer he loved and wanted to share with fellow beer-loving brothers and sisters. If it weren’t for the challenges posed, one might speculate whether JailHouse Brewing Company would have ever made it from paper and pen dreams to concrete and stainless steel reality. You see, it’s not the fear of failure or loss that drives us, it’s the fear of not trying.
JAILBIRD BOUND:

The first step to becoming a jailbird is simple: Work next to an old, rundown city jail that happens to be for sale and buy the darn thing. That, or you could go out and get arrested, but I prefer my way. Now, since you are financially bound to said jail consider yourself a jailbird.

The second step to becoming a jailbird, in the JailHouse Brewing sense, involves learning a little science, chemistry, and engineering (I like to think of it as MacGyver-like engineering). Luckily there are schools that will happily teach you these things–even ones that are strictly about beer. My school of choice was the American Brewer’s Guild and a good choice it was.

The third and final step is securing the necessary instruments and equipment to brew good beer, preferably equipment that is close by and won’t require a loan from August A. Busch IV to purchase.

All of these elements will not only make you a jailbird but will also send you on your way to becoming part of a community that loves its beer and is passionate about bringing people together over a pint. You see, I know first hand. This is how I became a JailHouse Brewing Jailbird!


THE JAILHOUSE

Some often tell me that the old Hampton Jailhouse was the overnight home to many a drunken guest through the years. It seems only fitting that beer is being brewed in this quaint little two-story brick structure built in the 1920’s. It’s had its history as the jail, fire station, courthouse, mason lodge, and last but not least a sandwich shop that made those little sandwiches you can buy in gas stations. You know the triangle packaged ones that have mystery meat in them? Don’t lie, you’ve had one. Today it is home to JailHouse Brewing Company and we are brewing hand-crafted beer not punching out license plates.

Renovation of the building began in August 2008. The building was in major disrepair and needed to be, for lack of a better term, gutted. There wasn’t a window worth saving and the top floor had to be removed and rebuilt. Once the walls were stripped back to the original brick they were sealed and left to show off their rustic beauty.

There is speculation of a ghost living in the building. The story goes his name is Old John and he is friendly. It was even told that he had been locked up here a time or two for, you guessed it, public drinking. I’ll know who is responsible if things start moving themselves or when a filtering session poses some problems. Of course we can’t blame that on the operator can we?

THE EQUIPMENT

After some negotiating and finagling, I was able to acquire the old brewing equipment from the now defunct Buckhead Brewery. It just so happened their 15 barrel brewery was a short distance from Hampton and moving the equipment would be a challenge but doable. Nervous is not the word for what you feel when you see a large and just-paid-for stainless steel tank precariously dangling from a forklift by a strap. I’ll never forget that uneasiness.

It took some time and ingenuity but eventually all eleven tanks were moved to their new home and set in place. Once all the mechanical pieces of the puzzle were hooked up brewing could begin. Or so I thought.
THE LICENSE

Georgia is not the friendliest state when it comes to alcohol production or sales. I knew this fact but figured if three other breweries could make it work then so could I. Obtaining a license to brew beer in the State of Georgia is nothing short of a nightmare. Now, If you don’t mind spending money while speculating on whether or not the state will give you the license then Georgia is your state. After much anticipation and quite a few more gray hairs, the license arrived on October 23rd, 2009. The first batch of beer was in the fermenter by midnight of that same day.

JailHouse Brewing Company began selling beer on November 23rd, 2009 and are looking to build a local following here in the immediate area as we expand our brand into the surrounding cities. We would love to hear from you so please be sure to stop by or shoot us an email.

The Event:

Jailhouse Brewing @ Taco Mac Metropolis!

August 25, 2010 – 6-8 pm
933 Peachtree Street Northeast
Atlanta, GA 30309-7900
(678) 904-7211

by Reid Ramsay