Mixed Results: How Sour Ale Producers Make the Numbers Work

Mixed-fermentation, long-aged sours are among the most prestigious styles in all of beer. The esoteric flavors and lore of Belgian Lambic styles have inspired countless American brewers to look beyond conventional fermentations in search of mystery and glory. It’s an expensive but esteemed branch of brewing, and one upon which many reputations have been built. The only problem? Hardly anyone seems to be buying these beers anymore.

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Barrel Room Spotlight | Floodland Brewing

Up until this point, the Barrel Room Spotlight has exclusively featured brewery programs specializing in malty, high-gravity, oak-aged beers. For this installment, Floodland Brewing breaks the mold. We had the privilege of interviewing founder and brewer Adam Paysse to gain some insight into Floodland’s mixed fermentation portfolio, some of his approaches to culture collection and ingredients, and how he is able to assert his vision through unique, high-quality, bottle-conditioned beers. Read More

Zebulon Artisan Ales | Blueberry Sour

Zebulon Artisan Ales in Weaverville, North Carolina, is the brainchild of brewer, Mike Karnowski. Ever wonder what a traditional English Barleywine or an IPA from the 1800s might taste like? Mike has researched it. Each beer he makes is a study of history and process. Zebulon Blueberry Sour is a study in fruit — delving into the flavors of the landscape surrounding the brewery.

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Sour Series: Yazoo Brewing | Trio (Batch #2)

Brandon Jones is no stranger to barrel-aging and storytelling, using both his words and beer as the medium. Jones is a brewer, beer blender and self-proclaimed “funk wrangler” at Yazoo Brewing, one of the godfathers of the Nashville’s craft beer scene. When Brandon isn’t wrangling funk, he’s sharing recipes on his blog, EmbracetheFunk.com, where he talks about spontaneous fermentation, wild yeast and bacteria—all of what give wild ales their unique and “sour” profiles. On Embrace the Funk, Brandon states his modest goal of making the world of sour beers a bit more approachable.

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Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales | Raven Rock

While styles like lambic and gueuze might conjure images of a farmhouse in the rolling countryside,  some of the best sour and funky beers in America are made by Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales right on South Broadway in Denver, CO. Their collab with Falling Rock Tap House, called Raven Rock, is no exception. While Raven Rock might not technically be a lambic, it’s about as damn close as you can get. 

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Firestone Walker Brewing | Blue Love

If you’re native to the Central Coast of California, summers filled with picking blueberries at local farms might be a tradition of yours. Gathering the family together in the summer heat. Driving down the dusty dirt road to a local farm. Grabbing that galvanized tin bucket and picking off the freshest berries you can find. Chances are you couldn’t resist popping one, two or a couple dozen blueberries into your mouth as you filled your bucket. These are just some of the fond memories during summertime in the Central Coast.

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Off Color Brewing | Chicago Craft Gin Week is a Real Thing

Every once in a while, a truly insane beer comes around and delights the masses. Chicago Craft Gin Week Is A Real Thing (CCGWIART) from Off Color Brewing is one of these beers—if the masses love a sour, that is. Off Color brews up some of the best beers in the Windy City, from their experimental Miller High Life collaboration, Eek!, to the delicious dessert that is Dino S’mores Russian Imperial Stout. With CCGWIART, the brewery has yet another unconventional (yet delectable) feather in its cap. Read More

Libertine Brewing Company | Pacific Ocean Blue Gose

A beer is only as good as its water: It is the starting point and foundation from which all else grows and changes. Libertine Brewing Company wanted one of their staple beers to evoke the essence of the place they call home—the central coast of California—so they decided to use local, Pacific Coast salty sea waters to add the traditional brininess in a Gose.

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Wild Creatures | Tears of Saint Laurent

What happens when a vintner’s daughter, who has worked in her family vineyards and wine cellar from early childhood, falls in love with spontaneously fermented beers in Belgium? Enter Jitka Ilčíková and her “vintner brewed beer” at Wild Creatures in Mikulov, Czech Republic.

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5 Questions with Firestone Walker’s Master Blender, Jim Crooks

Being a master blender is much like being a mad scientist. It takes an innate knowledge of the craft, a bit of daring, and a bit of flare. The job inherits a lot of risk thanks to how unpredictable wild yeast can be. Thankfully, California-based Firestone Walker has the man up to the task.

Jim Crooks, affectionately called Sour Jim, has run Firestone Walker’s Barrelworks wild yeast facility since its introduction in 2014. During that time, he’s worked on unique barrel blending projects like Feral One and newer ventures like their recently-released Rose-style beer that uses locally-sourced Paso Robles grapes. Crooks has produced a lot of innovative offerings over the past five years, but the best may be yet to come given their focus on blending the lines between beer and wine with the help of locally-sourced ingredients. We asked Jim five questions about his role, why he focuses on fresh, and what comes next for Barrelworks. Here’s what he said.

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Cruz Blanca Brewery Launches Sour Program in Chicago’s West Loop

Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood is home to some of the city’s most iconic restaurants. From Girl and the Goat to Au Cheval, followed by an endlessly growing list, it’s a Chicago hot spot for eating but also drinking. While there are a lot of places to get great cocktails in the West Loop, the craft beer scene is also becoming more prominent in the area and starting to make a name for itself. Read More

A Beer Insider’s Road Trip Guide to Northern California

For most, the foray into the world of beer trading is swiftly met with an introduction to the secondary value world, as that perceived value tends to drive the trading market. Fortunately, there are still areas free from the shackles of “me first” mindset. Luckily, through my own beer journey, I’ve been fortunate enough to find a small group that acts as a family. While the group mostly allows us to maintain connections online and send each other beers as presents, surprises, and BIFs (beer it forward, essentially chain mail but with beer as presents); recently I have focused my domestic travels on meeting these people in person. With SF Beer Week in progress and more than a half dozen faces I had yet to meet in person, I “sailed off for the San Francisco Bay”.

“Ride, captain ride upon your mystery ship. Be amazed at the friends you have here on your trip.”

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Propolis Brewing | Spruce Golden Saison

Just 60 miles north and a short ferry ride from Seattle sits Port Townshend, a favorite weekend getaway destination for Seattlites at any time of year. Located on the eastern edge of the Olympic Peninsula, Port Townshend truly has its bases covered as an ideal getaway destination: it boasts a state park for hiking, a marina for whale watching trips and boat tours, and a charming downtown full of local goodies. Highlights include a seriously legitimate tea shop, waterfront ice cream, an inspiring bookstore, and – last but not least – Propolis Brewing. Read More

Event Recap | The Inaugural Funk Collective: A Gathering of Independent Breweries

Craft beer as a whole has gone through a shit storm over the last few months. Literally and figuratively. And the in-fighting hasn’t stopped. But at the Funk Collective: A Gathering of Independent Breweries, no amount of storminess could keep the masses away.  Read More

Journey into the Woodlands

SweetWater Brewing Company has always pushed an image of nonconformity. Its latest venture, The Woodlands, is no different. Over the last 20 years, SweetWater has focused on growing its brand, and as founder Freddy Bensch explains “We have capacity under control, and can give more time to projects we’ve always aspired to do.” Bensch continued, pointing out, “We’re always challenging ourselves to evolve and master our craft.” The Woodlands is the physical manifestation of the brewery’s vision to push its practice and, as Bensch finished, “…make some really phenomenal beers.” So it was in this spirit of innovation and mastery that the Woodlands was born.

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Odell Brewing | Elephunk Imperial Wild IPA

ABV: 9.9% | IBU: 33

Funky doesn’t begin to describe Odell Brewing Elephunk Imperial Wild IPA. This delicious boozy palette puncher is indeed a wild ride. It’s weird. It’s complex. It’s funky with a “p-h.” Yep, it’s PHunky.
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Event Recap | Beers Made By Walking 2016

Beers Made By Walking’s sixth go-around did not disappoint attendees at the Denver Nature and Science museum this past Tuesday, Oct. 4. Attendees rolled in at 5:30 p.m. sharp to fill their tasting glasses alongside earthly relics like a sparkling gemstone exhibit and a huge whale skeleton suspended from the rafters. The setting was certainly fitting for the nature theme of the festival, and breweries displayed whimsical adjuncts like pine cones and berries on their respective tables. I felt a buzz just thinking about how the event’s proceeds would be directly benefitting this museum we were standing in.

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BREAKING | Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales

Veiled by a shroud of mystery and intrigue, Denver’s Former Future Brewing shuttered taproom operations earlier this week and promptly began transmitting a series of cryptic messages, videos, and an equally arcane Facebook event page as a teaser for bigger things to come. Read More

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