Free Will Brewing (2023)

I feel like now with the smaller regional forum, Free Will does enough cool stuff to warrant their own thread.

Free Will Brewing - Perkasie, PA
(also with a second taproom location in New Hope area at Peddler's Village)

General info:
https://www.freewillbrewing.com/
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28091/

They just announced another batch of their Dystopias, a 20% abv cuvee of barrel aged beer that is bottled still. I recently enjoyed a bottle of Hair of the Dog's Don that was similar in concept and I enjoyed. Looks like $50 for a 750ml bottle.

 

They brew such a variety of style of beers and rarely is there a miss. I assume they are the brewery that I've drank the most different beers from- looking at their BA page, so far I've reviewed 140 different beers of theirs. (Although by volume, maybe I've drank more Yards over the years as their variety packs us to be my default fridge filler. Or maybe Yuengling, from almost two decades of post-rugby beers at the American Legion.)

No, the description from their Instagram and Facebook posts were what I quoted above. I wonder if the "base" liquid was Ella, or if they brewed something else to start with.

 

The Source releasing a Nitro ESB that was a collaboration with Free Will.

While I welcome more traditional British style beers, I'm usually a little underwhelmed with Nitro pours of these type of beers, especially when you can get the real thing (cask conditioned from beer engine) locally at Forest & Main and Troubles End.

From Social Media:

sourcebrewing
PUB TIME ⏰
5.2% ABV | Nitro Extra Special Bitter Ale

Brewed in collaboration with our friends @freewillbrewing

Pub Time is a proper English-style ale designed to be thoroughly enjoyed by you and your best drinking mates.

We brewed this quaffable pub ale with a base of premium, English, Maris Otter barley layered with specialty crystal and biscuit malts. It was hopped 4 times in the kettle with 100% English East Kent Goldings hops.

Pub Time was packaged with liquid nitrogen to emulate the cascading pour effect of a pint of real ale pulled with a beer engine. When Smash Poured into a proper pint glass from a can, the tiny, cascading, nitrogen bubbles rise to the top in mesmerizing fashion, forming a long-lasting head of frothy, off-white foam that laces the glass with each swig.

Pub Time pours a light copper hue into a glass and visually stimulates the pallet with its tantalizing head of dense foam.

You can expect a very balanced, easy-drinking, medium-light bodied ale that showcases flavors of malt, yeast, and hops and finishes with a smooth, clean bitterness.

We get notes of orange marmalade, toasty biscuits, caramel, lavender, orange blossom honey, thyme, ripened pear, flower/ herb garden, and English bergamot tea.

 

COB was released back in November. One of my favorites of their seasonals, it was great again this winter.

Safeword was released in April last year, so it might be coming up again soon.

If you like Ralphius, they switched to only releasing different barrel versions on Black Friday. They have other imperial stouts throughout the year that have various additions that go under different names.

 

I was at the brewery the other night. Aside from a new hazy IPA and their Grand Marnier aged Imperial Stout, I was pretty impressed with two of their newish lagers.

Field Guide: Barbe Rouge, their dry hopped lager series which I've had a couple of other versions. But never had a beer featuring Barbe Rouge hops before - had a bit of strawberry to the aroma. I actually think a dry hopped pale lager can be a nice way to showcase a hop variety.

Spinning Webs, their Czech Pale Lager was the great combo of flavorful but easy drinking being a 4% abv beer with a drier finish.

 

Another good lager from them- Moon Servants, a Dunkel. I've enjoyed cans of this a few times since they released it the first time a few years ago.

 

@CentralPABeerDude this year's batch of Safeword is now released

https://www.instagram.com/p/CrzPbQcpboq/

 

Their Crooked Trails is another winner from their ongoing Imperial Stout variants with adjuncts and not bearing the Ralphius name. 15.2% abv, aged in Cognac and Bourbon Barrels with Chile Powder, Cinnamon, and Vanilla. In the small 250 ml cans. A ton of complexity from the two different barrels, and great mild smokey pepper notes blended with woody earthy cinnamon and vanilla. Not too sweet, and incredibly smooth for the strength. silky mouthfeel. Overall it's excellent.

 

Drinking a bottle of Coffee Ralphius tonight. I realized its now only 4+ months until the next Ralphius release. Looking forward to it.

 

Appearently Free Will shut down their satellite location at the Broad Theater in Souderton. There is a sign up over the bar that "Cinema Brewing" is coming soon.

 

Looks like Free Will is back to releasing barrel aged sour beers following the wipeout of their barrel cellar due to the flooding two years ago.