Weyerbacher News–May 2011 IPA Project North, Que?beck, Sixteen, Blasphemy

New Beer Releases
We have several to announce this time around. First up, Blasphemy releases this Saturday, May 21 at our Visitors Center. Now in cork n cage and bottle conditioned, Blasphemy is our QUAD aged in bourbon barrels, a beer we have not made in 3 years.

Next up is our 3rd entry in the IPA project, called “North”. North is expected to be on tap around the 20th at the same accounts that have been part of our IPA project all along. Chris has much more info on this beer below. Last, and certainly not least, Sixteen will make its debut at the Visitor Center on Saturday, June 4. Chris also has the scoop on this beer as well. Hope you get a chance to try all of these beers and post your feedback on our website, we’d love to hear from you.

Cheers,
Dan W.

Head Brewer Chris Wilson:
The third beer in our IPA Project will be called “North”. I would say it’s closer to an India Brown Ale or maybe an India Dark Mahogany Ale, whatever. While the combination of Pale, Munich, Biscuit and CaraAroma malts forms a nice bready base, this beer is dominated by a heavy dose of Centennial, Chinook and Columbus hops that lend a distinctly spicy and citrusy flavor and aroma. It’ll be 5.7% and 53 IBUs. If you live in NJ or Philly, please check out the list of participating bars and go out and try it. After you try it, visit our site and let us know what you think or fill out the survey right at the bar.

We will be ramping up production this month for June. We will see a few more new beers including the fourth entry in the IPA Project, as well as Que¿beck which will be the next release of the Brewer’s Select Series. As you know, the naming system for the BSS is based on the NATO phonetic alphabet. You may not know that the TTB will not allow a brewery to name a beer the name of an existing place if the beer is not made there. So Quebec (pronounced “ka-bec” by the locals there) is out and Que¿beck is in. We have not brewed it, but I can give you an idea of what to expect. We are looking for a nice summer refresher with a crackin’ hop character. It should be 5 to 5.5% ABV and around 20 IBU. It’ll be finished with Cascade and Sorachi Ace hops which will deliver a nice citrus, lemon character. A lot of summer beers call for a slice of lemon, lime or orange. We hope to brew it into the beer for you.

We will also be releasing our sixteenth anniversary beer. Sixteen will be a dark braggot made with 1,440 pounds of honey per 40BBL batch or over 18.5 oz. per gallon!! That is truly ABSURD! It is an impressive beer. We say it for all of the Anni beers, but this one is going to be fun to cellar. I think it is going to be really interesting to see how this beauty changes over time. Here is some marketingese to get you salivating.

Sixteen
Caramel, crystal, munich and chocolate malts form a rich foundation for this dark and complex ale. Brewed with an absurd amount of honey from Pennsylvania bees, this braggot has a profound honey character and a nice warming finish. It is the perfect beer to celebrate our sweet sixteen.

Get your calendars out and mark down June 3rd – June 12th for Philly Beer Week. We have more than 25 events over the 10 days with more to come. Keep your ear to the tracks for a special newsletter detailing our plans for the week around the 1st of June. I will say that these events will be a good opportunity to try our new beers.

Cheers,
Chris Wilson

Team Peggy!
Have you heard about Weyerbacher’s Peggy yet? NO!??! What are you waiting for!?! Read the press release on our website to see how a three-legged goat saved by Weyerbacher brewer Colin Presby upset the goat races at Sly Fox’s Bock Fest! Get your TEAM PEGGY T-shirts (all proceeds benefit the Berks County Humane Society) to show your support! Shirts will be made available shortly on Peggy’s facebook page. GO TEAM PEGGY!