Beer News

Invasion of the Space Barley!

Japanese brewer Sapporo recently unveiled Space Barley, a limited-edition brew made with barley grown over a duration of five months in zero-gravity aboard the International Space Station as part of a crop-growing experiment.

Anyone interested in purchasing a six-pack must have entered a lottery-style random drawing on the brewer’s website that ended December 24. The lucky winners were drawn in January, and those who won the drawing paid 10,000 yen (around $115 US) for their beer.

According to an official press release, proceeds from the sale of Space Barley are going to charity and will “contribute to the promotion of science education for children and the development of space science research in Japan and Russia, through donation of all proceeds to Okayama University.”

The International Space Station has successfully grown other crops, like peas, lettuce and wheat, and will try cultivating potatoes next.

VT’s Long Trail to Acquire Otter Creek

Vermont-based Long Trail Brewing Company is in the midst of closing a deal to acquire a fellow in-state brewer, Otter Creek Brewery, who also brews and distributes the Wolaver’s Certified Organic family of beers out of Middlebury, Vt. The purchase price has not yet been disclosed.

Despite what it may appear to be, Long Trail is not out to buy the competition. In fact, the acquisition is a mutually beneficial arrangement for the two companies designed to improve their ability to compete with craft offerings from bigger breweries like ABI and Miller-Coors. No job cuts are planned, and both brands will continue to brew their own products, the same as before.

In a phone interview, Long Trail CEO Brian Walsh told BA the deal will enable the two companies to purchase packaging and ingredients at a larger volume to reduce costs. “The Otter Creek brand fits very well with our Vermont theme of the great outdoors, and Wolaver’s really falls right in line with one of our strategic pillars, eco-brewing. Organic brewing is a nice niche that will grow over time.”

Another aspect of the deal that will help both brands is an extended distribution range. Walsh adds, “Currently, Long Trail is in nine states and Otter Creek is in 15. Our next expansion plans would be to extend to the mid-Atlantic region, and Otter Creek is already there. That’s the kind of synergy that Otter Creek and Wolaver’s add to Long Trail.”

Walsh concludes, “We’re very excited to be able to acquire such iconic brands in Otter Creek and Wolaver’s, and to be able to continue to produce at their authentic birthplace in historic Middlebury.”

BrewDog Sets Off Tactical Nuclear Penguin, the World’s Strongest Beer

On November 26, Scottish brewery BrewDog earned themselves further notoriety with another high-alcohol brew—an Imperial Stout named Tactical Nuclear Penguin. However, this isn’t just another strong beer. Weighing in at a hefty 32 percent ABV, it sets a new record for the world’s strongest beer! The previous record, which stood at 31 percent, was held by the German brand Schorschbraer.

BrewDog founder James Watt explains in a blog post, “The Antarctic name inducing schizophrenia of this uber-imperial stout originates from the amount of time it spent exposed to extreme cold. This beer began life as a 10 percent imperial stout 18 months ago. The beer was aged for eight months in an Isle of Arran whisky cask and eight months in an Islay cask, making it our first double cask aged beer. After an intense 16 months, the final stages took a ground breaking approach by storing the beer at -20 degrees for three weeks to get it to 32 percent.”

In a move likely aimed to help them avoid controversy, BrewDog warns about TNP’s potency on the label, stressing, “It should be enjoyed in small servings and with an air of aristocratic nonchalance.”

Each 330 milliliter bottle sells for £35 (roughly $57 US), and is uniquely packaged in a brown paper bag, decorated with a hand-drawn penguin.

So far, the beer’s popularity has greatly exceeded expectations. The first two batches have sold out, but BrewDog hopes to be able to ship a third batch to the US in the near future.

Photo from Frankenmuth’s
inaugural course.

Be Brewmaster for a Day at Frankenmuth

For most people, the dream of being a brewmaster is extraordinarily difficult to fulfill. They just don’t have the time, resources or space in their home to devote to 650-gallon brew tanks.

However, Michigan’s Frankenmuth Brewery can make people’s dreams come true, if only for a day. For $195, Frankenmuth will enroll them in their new “Brewmaster for a Day” program—a one-day instructional course on large-scale commercial brewing, where participants craft their own beer.

Beginning January 6, each four-hour session will be held on Wednesday nights, Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons. In addition to gaining copious amounts of brewing know-how, each participant receives swag like a growler, class photo and diploma.

Perhaps the most rewarding incentive, though, is a tasting session one month later, where they can invite friends to taste the beer they helped make.

After being destroyed by a tornado in 1996, the Frankenmuth Brewery came back under new ownership from a 13-year hiatus this past July, and has been distributing kegs throughout Michigan. They hope to begin bottling beers for distribution in early 2010. ■