(San Leandro, CA) – More newsletter catch-up. Here is a look at new/returning brews at Drake’s Brewing.
HOPOCALYPSE IIPA – 9.3% ABV – Large amounts of American two-row malt and English pale malt are combined with Vienna, Rye & Crystal malts, then balanced with German magnum, Simcoe and Chinook hops. Then, of course, more hops! — as we dry hop it with additional Simcoe and Chinook. Finally, this deep orange monster is loosely filtered to keep the integrity of the malt and hops in tact. Enjoy the massive aromatic revelation and prophetic hop flavor of this beer, now and forever after.
HOP SALAD – 8% ABV – Hop Salad is an aggressively hopped Double IPA that is fruit forward with a salad of pine, citrus, and floral aromas and bitterness. Medium carbonation levels with a slightly yellow head. Don’t expect to get by putting a small amount on your plate (…your palate), this one’s an all-you-can-eat buffet of liquid alpha goodness (we used loads of Magnum, Simcoe, & Summit hops). Loads of two-row barley and a small amount of Caramalt make up the grain bill. I’ll keep you updated on when this beer will be out and ready for a lunch date!
DRAKONIAN IMPERIAL STOUT – 8.75% ABV, 40 IBUs – A big, malty beast of a beer, with an abundance of two-row malt blended with Chocolate malt, roasted barley and dark Crystal malt. Only one hop addition for bittering is added so that the malt can shine through this beer.
* Stay tuned for information on 22oz bottles of Imperial Stout, coming out in late January 2011!
JOLLY RODGER 2010 – 8.0% ABV, 68 IBUs – Heeeee’s almost gone! The Jolly Rodger is on his way out, and won’t be back til next year- get your Jolly bottles before they run out!
CHINOOKIAN DARK ALE – 7.5% ABV – The tale of this beer comes straight out of the Northwest, where the legendary Cascadian Dark Ale (and controversy) was born back in the 1990s. Some call it a Dark IPA, others a Black IPA- you decide for yourself. We used two-row barley, Honey malt, caramalt, crystal malt for the base, and a combination of chocolate rye and chocolate malt for the color and roastiness. The hops are German Magnum, Cascade, and a ton of Chinook. The flavor and mouthfeel is definitely a roasty to sweet maltiness, with a noticeable hop bitterness reminiscent of an IPA. Medium carbonation & brownish white head with a slight opalescent black color.
ALPHA SESSION– An American Session Ale – 3.8% ABV, 80 IBUs – Session beers originated in Britain during the First World War when factory workers (in need of a beer) were required to work long periods of time. The “sessions” were periods of time during the day that they were allowed to drink a beer that contained less than 4.0% ABV (so the story goes…). Our session beer is 3.8% ABV, but packed with as much hops as we use in our double IPA’s (Citra, Simcoe & German Magnum). All very high in alpha-acids, giving the beer great flavor and aroma. Have an Alpha Session today!