SweetWater Brewing

Retired: SweetWater Hop Hash

SweetWater Hop Hash will soon be retired. The brewery’s first large scale release using the hoppy, sticky dust found after the hop extrusion process is dropping from the lineup.

The IPA was hopped with the dust that is left behind after hops are Continue Reading →

SweetWater Take Two Pils recipe retired

SweetWater Take Two Pils, a seasonal release that debuted in 2014, is being retired by the Atlanta, Georgia based brewery.

Atlanta’s largest brewery brought Take Two Pils to the lineup ahead of the Georgia heat in March of 2014. The pilsner was a Continue Reading →

SweetWater 19, a Belgian golden in wine barrels

2016 marks Atlanta, Georgia’s biggest brewery’s 19th year. To celebrate, meet SweetWater 19 Golden Belgian Style Ale.

Readers of Beer Street Journal will recall that last year’s birthday beer was intended to be a sour ale. However, anyone that knows anything about Continue Reading →

Posted in SweetWater Brewing, Don't Miss This

SweetWater Happy Ending won’t be bottled this year

SweetWater Happy Ending is leaving the brewery’s lineup indefinitely. The imperial stout will not be bottled for the first time in years.

The stout has marked the end of SweetWater’s brewing year for over a decade now, as well as been a local fan favorite. The removal of Happy Ending as well as the demise of Hop Hash are more examples of the brewery making room for new releases and innovations.

RELATED: SweetWater Squeeze Box, Grapefruit IPA

Recently, the Atlanta, Georgia based brewery installed a pilot system they have dubbed “The Hatchery,” from which you will see a host of experimental releases that could one day be a full scale release. Pictured below are new growlers that tour attendees could soon take home, filled with experimental and one-off beers.

No doubt there will be imperial stouts that will grace the SweetWater’s lineup in the future. For loyal fans however, the end of this beer might not be so happy.

SweetWater Hatchery Series 1

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in SweetWater Brewing, Don't Miss This, New Releases

Debut day: SweetWater Smokey and the Brett. It’s fantastic.

SweetWater Smokey and the Brett debuts today; a part of the brewery’s ongoing Dank Tank Series. The name is actually based on an all too real beer heist (not just an amazing movie).

Let’s begin with the real story. Employees arrived at the brewery back in June, to find two flatbeds full of freshly packed beer missing. As it turns out, thieves drove up to the brewery in an 18 wheel cab and drove off with the flatbeds. The geniuses didn’t disable the GPS trackers, and it wasn’t long before the beer was recovered.

RELATED: SweetWater retires Hop Hash

If you think about it, it’s a little bit like the Burt Reynolds classic – Smokey and the Bandit. Minus a rockstar cast, Sally Field, and well, real life crime.

SweetWater Smokey and the Brett – wild India pale ale (that is, brewed with Brettanomyces) spawns the next fictitious adventure of the series main character, El Danko.

What You’re Sippin: Slow fermentation of Brettanomyces gives aromas of grapefruit and apricot. Acidity and tartness fade into light bitterness from a well balanced hop profile. Dry hopping showcases the New Zealand nugs, creating a slightly sweet and funky, complex and developed Brett IPA.

The brewery really nailed it on this release. Smokey is the most brettanomyces forward beer SweetWater has never released. Very hop forward and bright. Expect citrusy, juicy hops woven into a big brett background.

SweetWater Smokey and the Brett is a draft and 22 ounce bottle offering for a limited time stating August 31st.

Style: American Wild Ale
Availability: 22oz Bottles, Draft.
Debut: 8/31/16

7.3% ABV

Ed Note: The beer is a “brett IPA” per SweetWater. Because of the Brettanomyces, we classify this as American Wild Ale. 

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in SweetWater Brewing, Don't Miss This

Retired: SweetWater Hop Hash

SweetWater Hop Hash will soon be retired. The brewery’s first large scale release using the hoppy, sticky dust found after the hop extrusion process is dropping from the lineup.

The IPA was hopped with the dust that is left behind after hops are extruded in the pelletizing process. The first time SweetWater fans found Hop Hash, it was in Dank Tank release Johnny Hash. The beer was well received that the brewery created Hop Hash. Hash Session and Hash Brown soon followed after.

SweetWater Hop Hash debuted in October of 2014. Despite eliminating this release, the brewery tells Beer Street Journal that more “hash” beers will soon be found in the brewery’s very hoppy lineup.

“It’s true – RIP, Hop Hash and Take Two Pils.  It’s not uncommon for us (or many craft brewers for that matter) to retire a brew; we like to keep the offerings fresh. Good news for Hop Hash fans is that Hash Session IPA, as of this month, is a year round offering, and Hash Brown India Brown Ale returns as our fall seasonal.  Both have that full-flavor, resiny goodness that Hop Hash delivered. Hash Session also provides the lower ABV drinkability that fans of Take Two may have liked.” – SweetWater Brewing Company

SweetWater Hash Brown, brewed in similar fashion, just hit shelves again in August.

Style: IPA (w/ Hop Hash)
Hops: Centennial, Simcoe, Cascade

Availability: Retired

7.8% ABV

Hop Hash is inspired by another “Hash” offering from the Dank Tank, Johnny Hash…

SweetWater’s Latest Dank Tank: Johnny Hash from BeerStreetJournal.com on Vimeo.

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in SweetWater Brewing

SweetWater Take Two Pils recipe retired

SweetWater Take Two Pils, a seasonal release that debuted in 2014, is being retired by the Atlanta, Georgia based brewery.

Atlanta’s largest brewery brought Take Two Pils to the lineup ahead of the Georgia heat in March of 2014. The pilsner was a bit hoppier than your average beer in the same style, pleasing much of their hop addicted fan base. Pils was later added to the can lineup.

Take Two Pils is a step into an alternate reality for SweetWater, a head-first dive down the rabbit hole into the Wonderland world of lagers. The adventurous golden blonde German style pilsner is brewed with a mad hatter’s dose of spicy floral hops. It’s beautifully Bohemian in body, earthy in soul and it’s moving low. Go ask Alice, I think she’ll know. Call us in the morning!

SweetWater Take Two Pils for the time being, will not return. The current fall seasonal is SweetWater Hash Brown.

Style: Pilsner
Hops: Stryian Golding, Saaz, Mt. Hood
Malts: Pilsner, Munich, Carapils

Availability: Retired

5.5% ABV

Read more: SweetWater Brewing News

 

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in SweetWater Brewing, Seasonal Return

SweetWater Hash Brown returns to seasonal lineup

SweetWater Hash Brown has returned to the Atlanta, Georgia brewery’s lineup this week.

Those of you familiar with SweetWater’s hoppy lineup, will know this beer started with Dank Tank release Johnny Hash. That imperial IPA made use of Citra hop hash (the potent dust that is left behind after hops are pelletized). Johnny Hash was so well received, SweetWater created their own blend of hash, and now sell it year round as SweetWater Hop Hash (just ask Diggs.)

Why stop there? SweetWater Hash Brown is here to help you transition to cooler weather. Building off a familiar brown ale recipe, SweetWater added malts that compliment the bold hop hash flavor. The result is a very hoppy brown ale, aka India brown ale, that smashes two styles together to get a sum greater than its parts.

Oh me oh my-. What did we do? We fired up the skillet to 420 degrees, tossed in a sizzling concoction of 2-Row, Wheat, Pale Chocolate, Cara-Brown, and Midnight Wheat, then added in a hefty dose of hop hash and other dank-ish-ish-ish fixins to scatter, smother, and cover this baby all the way. Resiny, citrusy hops spice up the rich chocolate and caramel notes the malt brought to the mix, making this platter slide down the counter at 60 IBU’s.

SweetWater Hash Brown is now shipping 12oz cans, bottles and draft. Scattered, smothered, and covered indeed.

Style: India Brown Ale
Availability: 12oz Cans, 12oz Bottles, Draft. Seasonal Release.
Latest Release: Early August, 2016

6.2% ABV

SweetWater’s Latest Dank Tank: Johnny Hash from BeerStreetJournal.com on Vimeo.

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Coming Soon, Headlines, SweetWater Brewing

SweetWater 19, a Belgian golden in wine barrels

2016 marks Atlanta, Georgia’s biggest brewery’s 19th year. To celebrate, meet SweetWater 19 Golden Belgian Style Ale.

Readers of Beer Street Journal will recall that last year’s birthday beer was intended to be a sour ale. However, anyone that knows anything about wild ales knows that the beer is ready when it’s ready. That sour is still in the barrels.

While not the sour ale that everyone is still clamoring for, SweetWater 19 is a golden Belgian-style ale, aged in both Merlot and Cabernet barrels.

This Golden Belgian Style Ale matured for over a year on brett in Cabernet and Merlot barrels, then was blended with a bright, citrusy hop-forward Belgian style IPA. Four plus two equals seven here, as the finished product is bigger than the sum of its parts. The art of this crafted cuvee is in the hop profile with a Belgian style nose up front, followed by woody undertones and a complex finish. After 19 years we’re still all about brewing great beer, supporting the communities who drink it and having a kick ass time along the way.

Much like the previous releases, SweetWater 19 will be available in 750 milliliter bottles, corked & caged. The brewery has not yet announced this offering.

Style: Belgian-style Strong Ale (Barrel Aged. Wine Aged.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles, Draft. Limited Release
Release: TBA (Typically February/March), 2016

7% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in New Beers, SweetWater Brewing

SweetWater 19 Golden Belgian Style Ale

SweetWater 19 Golden Belgian Style Ale

by Reid Ramsay