Barrel Aged

Heavy Seas Great’er Pumpkin is ready for 2016

Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin, joined the Uncharted Waters Series in 2013. Before that, it was a part of the Mutiny Fleet. Each release in the series will feature some form of wood/barrel aging.

Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin, the brewery’s pumpkin beer aged Continue Reading →

Orpheus Coffee Minotaur, aged in whiskey debuts

Orpheus Coffee Minotaur releases on August 3rd. A new sour ale by the Atlanta based brewery.

Since day one, Orpheus has been expanding their barrel program. Finally, there is enough barrel room to release Orpheus Coffee Minotaur, an whiskey oak-aged sour ale.

Brewery Continue Reading →

Posted in Orpheus Brewing, Coming Soon

Orpheus Even the Furies Wept is two beers, lots of barrels

Orpheus Even the Furies Wept, a new American wild ale, debuts on August 10th.

This new wild ale is actually a blend of two different beers. Per Jason Pellet, Orpheus brewer and president, the first five barrels that were filled at the brewery are called “Tribute Barrels”. Each Cabernet barrel was individually inoculated with the yeast dregs from five select breweries. A Belgian-style pale ale was added to each of them.

RELATED: Orpheus Coffee Minotaur

In the case of Orpheus Even the Furies Wept, Pellet chose three barrels, with yeast from breweries Fantome, Drie Fonteinen, and Russian River. T

he second beer is a Brettanomyces heavy saison, aged in Sauternes barrels.  Total aging time for the beer in barrels is 18 months.

The story of Orpheus is a story of rebirth, first in his journey into and out of Hades, and finally in the transmigration of his soul not into the body of a swan. We pay tribute to this rebirth with every beer we put into barrels, to be transformed by its time in the wood and reborn as something new.

Orpheus Even the Furies Wept will be available starting August 10th at the brewery, with limited distribution to follow shortly after. This is the brewery’s first cork & caged offering.

Style: American Wild Ale (Wine Barrel Aged)
Availability: 750ml Bottles, Corked & Caged. Draft.
Debut: 8/10/16

7% ABV

Image: Orpheus Brewing

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Heavy Seas, Seasonal Return

Heavy Seas Great’er Pumpkin is ready for 2016

Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin, joined the Uncharted Waters Series in 2013. Before that, it was a part of the Mutiny Fleet. Each release in the series will feature some form of wood/barrel aging.

Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin, the brewery’s pumpkin beer aged in bourbon has become one of the brewery’s most popular seasonals.

RELATED: Heavy Seas Uncharted Waters Series

As fall approaches and thoughts turn to Halloween, we roll out the Great’ER Pumpkin. A coppery ale with forward notes of vanilla oak and flavors of Autumnal spice, the ale is brewed with actual pumpkin and imported English malts. Pairs well with turkey legs, sweet potatoes, and an evening looking at the stars…

Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin is a draft, and  22 ounce bottle offering, available as a limited seasonal.

Style: Pumpkin Beer (Barrel Aged, Bourbon)
Availability: 22oz bombers, Draft. Firkins
Latest Return: Aug/September, 2016

10% ABV

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

Check this: Evil Twin Bourbon Maple Syrup Barrel Aged Imperial Biscotti Break

Evil Twin Bourbon Maple Syrup Barrel Aged Imperial Biscotti Break sounds a bit crazy right?  Well, it’s coming. Soon.

Evil Twin teased the upcoming release today – not revealing the whole label, but you can obviously tell what this beer is, and it’s a doozy.

The series began with Imperial Biscotti Break, an imperial stout that mimics the dessert, brewed with almond, vanilla, and coffee. Variants have also included an edition with cherries, Barrel Aged Biscotti Break, and Pappy Biscotti Break (aged in Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon barrels).

This edition finds this well loved imperial stout, aged in maple syrup bourbon barrels. (The same kind of barrel that makes Founders CBS a beer geek wet dream.)

Evil Twin Bourbon Maple Syrup Barrel Aged Imperial Biscotti Break will be either a 22 ounce bottle or 16 ounce can release.

Style: Imperial Stout (w/ Vanilla Beans, Coffee, Almonds. Maple Syrup. Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability:
Debut: TBA

11.5% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Orpheus Brewing, Coming Soon

Orpheus Coffee Minotaur, aged in whiskey debuts

Orpheus Coffee Minotaur releases on August 3rd. A new sour ale by the Atlanta based brewery.

Since day one, Orpheus has been expanding their barrel program. Finally, there is enough barrel room to release Orpheus Coffee Minotaur, an whiskey oak-aged sour ale.

Brewery founder Jason Pellet tells Beer Street Journal that the base beer is sort of a sour amber, brewed with Golden Promise malt and Munich malt. The coffee is from Java Lords, found on Euclid Avenue in Atlanta. In total, the beer spent a total of 5 months in Heaven Hill & Jack Daniels Single barrels.

The story of Orpheus is a story of rebirth, first in his journey into and out of Hades, and finally in the transmigration of his soul into the body of a swan. We pay tribute to this rebirth with ever beer we put into barrels, to be transformed by its time in the wood as something new. Orpheus Coffee Minotaur

Orpheus Coffee Minotaur is a 22 ounce bottle release, available as a souvenir on the tour on August 3rd.

Style: American Wild/Sour Ale (w/ Coffee. Barrel Aged. Whiskey)
Availability: 22oz Bottles, Draft. Limited Release.
Debut: August, 2016

8% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Odell Brewing, Headlines

Odell Crossover Sour Blonde looks to debut in September

Odell Crossover Sour Blonde looks to join the brewery’s sour and wild lineup in the near future.

In our personal experience, if you want to get a wine person to like beer, let them try a wine barrel aged beer, or a sour ale. Odell Crossover Sour Blonde is both. A sour ale aged in a white wine barrel. The base blonde beer has been aged in both chardonnay and sauvignon blanc barrels.

We’re in a relentless search for new ways to influence the character of our beer. Crossover is our tribute to the complex partnership between two of the most prolific and ancient fermented beverages – beer and wine. We brewed a sour blonde ale and aged it in chardonnay and sauvignon blanc barrels to introduce notes of tropical fruit, elderflower, and subtle oak finish. The result of the unique combination is a dry, effervescent beer balanced with hints of pear, tart sourness, and light funk.

Odell Crossover Sour Blonde Ale is a 750 milliliter bottle potential, tentatively scheduled for September.

Style: American Wild/Sour Ale (Wine Barrel Aged)
Availability: 750ml Bottles
Debut: September, 2016

?? ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Boulevard Brewing, New Releases

Boulevard Rye on Rye “Sazerac” debuts for beer/cocktail lovers

Boulevard Brewing’s Smokestack Series, a collection of big, unique, beers, has grown considerably over the past year or two. The venerable Smokestack Imperial Stout has recently been joined by Raspberry and Coconut variants. Now, Rye-on-Rye, the barrel aged rye beer, has its own variant – Rye-on-Rye Sazerac.

Variations of the classic sazerac cocktail includes cognac, whiskey or absinthe. The brewing team at Boulevard nuanced this edition with lemon peel, cinnamon, cardamom, and star anise in order to mimic the liquor and flavors of the bitters in the cocktail.

As a special treat for fans of our popular Rye-on-Rye ale, Boulevard Brewign Company offers the 2016 Rye-on-Rye “X” series. The “X” factor stands for key ingredients added to the special release, giving it a unique character. Inspired by the classic Sazerac cocktail, we included lemon peel, cinnamon, cardamom, and star anise in this edition before allowing it to ge in Templeton rye barrels.

Boulevard Rye-on-Rye X “Sazerac” is now available in 750 milliliter bottles for a limited time.

Style: Rye Beer (w/ Lemon Peel, Star Anise, Cardamom. Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles
Debut: August,  2016

11% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Firestone Walker Brewing, Coming Soon, Don't Miss This

Firestone Walker Helldorado 2016 Vintage releases this weekend

Firestone Walker Helldorado 2016 will debut this weekend.

Dark beers and barleywines are quite popular to use in retired spirits barrels. (For good reason, they make damn good barrel-aged beers.) If you are reading this, you already know Firestone Walker is incredibly gifted when it comes to barrel-aging finesse.

A couple of years ago, the brewery thought a blonde barleywine, one brewed with a lighter base malt, would go well in oak barrels.

The bready, honeyed flavors of pale malts pull out rich wildflower honey, vanilla and coconut notes from the oak, creating an overall flavor evocative of bourbon-glazed graham crackers that stands as singularly unique in our Vintage lineup. Helldorado may be lighter in color but it is a full-bodied and densely concentrated sipper at 11.8% ABV.

Firestone Walker Helldorado 2016 debuts once again on August 6th, in 22 ounce bottles and draft. Both very limited.

Style: Barleywine (Oak Barrel Aged.)
Availability: 22oz Bottles, Draft. Limited Release.
Latest Return: 8/6/16

11.8% ABV

Image: Firestone Walker

by Reid Ramsay