Oak Aged

Collaboration: Jolly Pumpkin & Anchorage

Love it when craft brewers collaborate? Then get behind this. Alaska’s Anchorage Brewing and Jolly Pumpkin (Dexter, MI) have created Calabaza Boreal.

Keeping with Jolly Pumpkin’s tradition of funky beer, this Belgian style beer is aged in oak barrels with grapefruit, Continue Reading →

Quick Look: Heavy Seas Plank III

Heavy Seas Brewing (Baltimore, MD) just re-released the first 2014 offering in the Uncharted Waters Series, Siren Noire.

The 2014 lineup is a lot like 2013, with just a couple of changes. Yuletide’s style will change this year (TBA) plus the Continue Reading →

Odell Preps Oak Aged Brett Golden Ale

Odell Brewing Company (Fort Collins, CO) has a new funky golden ale in the works – Fifty Niner Brett Golden Ale.

This offering is aged on oak staves (the wooden slats of the barrels) and bottled with brettanomyces yeast. As for Continue Reading →

Allagash Preps Tiarna Release

Allagash Brewing has been releasing nationally, a handful of oak barrel aged sour/wild ales. The most recent (and still making it around distribution) is Midnight Brett. Prior to that was  FV 13 and Merveilleux.

Tiarna is a blend of 100% brett fermented pale ale aged in Continue Reading →

More Wood For New Belgium

New Belgium Brewing (Fort Collins, CO) is adding 32 new French Oak foeders to the brewery. That will bring the count to 64. A foeder is a large wooden tank used to sour the beer.

This addition will double the production Continue Reading →

New Belgium Oskar Kissed Cherry

New Belgium Oskar Kissed Cherry showed up on the beer radar in October, 2013

While no official description exists, as the name suggests, Oscar Kissed Cherry is New Belgium’s Oskar (dark sour ale aged in oak foeders) with cherries.

Style: American Wild Continue Reading →

Posted in Coming Soon, Headlines, Jolly-Pumpkin

Collaboration: Jolly Pumpkin & Anchorage

Love it when craft brewers collaborate? Then get behind this. Alaska’s Anchorage Brewing and Jolly Pumpkin (Dexter, MI) have created Calabaza Boreal.

Keeping with Jolly Pumpkin’s tradition of funky beer, this Belgian style beer is aged in oak barrels with grapefruit, grapefruit juice, and peppercorns. The name is a mash up of the two brewery’s identities – “boreal” or northern region and “calabaza” meaning pumpkin.

When introspection fails, it’s time to look outward for inspiration. Perhaps Northward! One of the people who inspired me this past year is my friend Gabe Fletcher. of Anchorage Brewing Co. We brewed this beer together. I hope it inspires you.

Jolly Pumpkin & Anchorage Calabaza Boreal will be available in 750ml bottles.

Style: American Wild Ale (w/ Grapefruit, Grapefruit juice, Peppercorns.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles
Arrival: TBA

7% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Coming Soon, Don't Miss This, Heavy Seas

Quick Look: Heavy Seas Plank III

Heavy Seas Brewing (Baltimore, MD) just re-released the first 2014 offering in the Uncharted Waters Series, Siren Noire.

The 2014 lineup is a lot like 2013, with just a couple of changes. Yuletide’s style will change this year (TBA) plus the third release in the Plank Project.

The Plank Project features beers that showcase special wood aging treatments. (Like wood treated with heat.) Plank III will arrive in July, a Belgian-style Ale aged on Jamaican Allspice wood.

Our newest addition to our Plank Series, the Belgian-style ale is aged over Jamaican Allspice wood to lend bold and spicy flavor to a robust yet drinkable beer.

Look for Plank III in 22oz bombers and limited draft this summer.

Style: Belgian Strong Ale (Oak/Wood Aged)
Arrival: July, 2014 (Tentative)

?? ABV

Plank 1– English Strong Ale, aged on poplar oak
Plank 2 – Dopplebock, aged on poplar & eucalyptus

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Headlines, Odell Brewing

Odell Preps Oak Aged Brett Golden Ale

Odell Brewing Company (Fort Collins, CO) has a new funky golden ale in the works – Fifty Niner Brett Golden Ale.

This offering is aged on oak staves (the wooden slats of the barrels) and bottled with brettanomyces yeast. As for the namesake? Odell Fifty Niner Brett Golden Ale grabs its name from the Colorado gold rush of 1859. The gold seeking folks flooding in the state got the name ’59ers. (To my knowledge they didn’t make it to the Super Bowl this year either. Too soon?)

Odell describes the Fifty Niner flavor as   …shines with hints of lemon zest and pear accentuated by a rich vanilla and almond oak character and subtle earthy spiced pineapple Brett finish.

100% bottle conditioned in 750’s (ml.)

Style: American Wild Ale (Oak Aged)
Availability: 750ml Bottles
Arrival: TBA

?? ABV

Read more: Odell Brewing Company

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

Allagash Preps Tiarna Release

Allagash Brewing has been releasing nationally, a handful of oak barrel aged sour/wild ales. The most recent (and still making it around distribution) is Midnight Brett. Prior to that was  FV 13 and Merveilleux.

Tiarna is a blend of 100% brett fermented pale ale aged in French oak barrels and then blended with a saison.

When Allagash Tiarna is released, it would presumably arrive in 2014. Allagash will have details and any distribution details when the beer is ready.

Style: American Wild Ale (Oak Aged)
Availability: 12.7 oz Bottles
Arrival: TBA

7.1% ABV

Tiarna means “Lord” (Aristocratic term.) Irish origin.

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Don't Miss This, New Belgium

More Wood For New Belgium

New Belgium Brewing (Fort Collins, CO) is adding 32 new French Oak foeders to the brewery. That will bring the count to 64. A foeder is a large wooden tank used to sour the beer.

This addition will double the production of sour ale offerings in the coming years.

“With this expansion, we’ll get so close to that feeling I had the first time I walked through the forest of foeders at Rodenbach,” said New Belgium’s Wood Cellar Manager/Blender, Lauren Salazar. “Just knowing they’re all full of souring beer – ALL of them – is exciting. It’s a destination. Something you have to experience first hand.”

Tart Lychee and Eric’s Ale are expected to be in year round production by 2015. Over the next few months, the brewery will be rehydrating the barrels, and inoculating them with various wild yeasts. They will then age beer for nearly two years before bottling/kegging.

 

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in New Belgium, New Releases

New Belgium Oskar Kissed Cherry

New Belgium Oskar Kissed Cherry showed up on the beer radar in October, 2013

While no official description exists, as the name suggests, Oscar Kissed Cherry is New Belgium’s Oskar (dark sour ale aged in oak foeders) with cherries.

Style: American Wild Ale (w/ Cherries. Oak Aged.)
Availability: Draft only. Random.

6.8% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Coming Soon, Don't Miss This, Elevation Beer Co

Elevation Beer Immortalizes The Princess Bride

An absolute classic movie is The Princess Bride. If you haven’t seen the movie, you’re on a beer timeout until you do.

Elevation Beer Company (Poncha Springs, CO) immortalizes the classic movie in a oak aged imperial IPA, Inconceivable! The beer is aged in fresh (virgin) Kentucky oak barrels.

Style: Imperial IPA (Oak Aged)
Hops: Centennial, Citra
Malts: Two Row, Munich, Carared, Carafoam

Availability: 750ml bottles
Arrival: October, 2013

8.5% ABV, 70 IBUs

by Reid Ramsay