Workhorse 12 oz. bottles

I didn't realize there was an actual recipe change either. It did taste better though and I just assumed the credit went to freshness! Also, by the way, I thought Fresh Hop Workhorse on tap at Apex was just about as good as any IPA I've ever had.

 

Major recipe change? I guess that explains why I tasted something different than the "old" WH...
At the risk of sounding pissy, if it was a major change, why call it Workhorse?

And if it is indeed a major recipe change, calling it WH and having the cardboard carrier declare its National IPA Champ heritage is misleading if the hop component is an entirely different equation and the stuff in the bottle is not the same product.....

 

I'm recovering from a cold so my sniffer/palate is a little out of whack, but this first bottle out of a 6-pack I picked up today is bright, clean and citrusy with plenty of nice hoppy punch. Can't complain about the price tag either.

 

I freaking love this iteration of Workhorse. $6.49 for a fresh bottle dated sixer that is super citrusy and nicely hopped. This is my new always in the fridge sixer.

 

Workhorse will be my go to IPA in a bottle if it stays at 7.99 price tag. Are there plans for further distribution? I've only seen this at Whole Foods/New Seasons/Zupan's. It'd be great to go to Fred Meyer and find this.

 

Hi Ramnuts, thanks for your question. I have found that even when there is no change, there will be people who perceive a change. This is especially true the more well loved a beer is. I have spent too much time racking my brain and trying to figure out the "I think they changed the recipe!" comments. When it is the same brewers, same materials, same stats. Most often these comments are not accompanied with any information on what they think is different, so I am left spinning my wheels trying to figure out what they are talking about.

The fact is things change all the time, even on those things that stay the same, like hop varieties or malt. all these things, including the beer is an agricultural process and it requires constant diligence to keep any of this drift in check. above and beyond that, it's my responsibility to continue to tweak and make things better. These are all common to every brewery. I would be surprised to hear of any IPA that has been around longer then 5 years that has not gone through significant change in that time. It is also true that peoples tastes change. That hop bomb from 5 years ago probably tastes different, perhaps more restrained as well. People often think that the brewery has been doing something radically different, without implicating their own perception as being part of that change.

For me, the feedback I was getting on the IPA actually inhibited me from diverging and continuing the development of this beer, in fact doing what I know was right for the beer, for fear of scorn. Personally I found this experience very liberating and I think beyond a doubt, it is tasting better then before. I was not a huge WH drinker before Laurelwood. I tend to go for Belgian/French lower alc. stuff, so I can't speak to that, not that it would matter anyway.

Ramnuts, these comments are largely rhetorical, and I don't mean to sound pissy either since I have a deep appreciation for your support as well as willingness to think and write about beer, but I think it is still Workhorse. You noted yourself that it isn't exactly the same, and as I noted materials and (our) tastes change. If the hops were not enough to raise big alarms for you, why should your knowledge of process change that? As beer lovers we all drink with our pallets, right? not with our minds. It is a hop forward WC/NW IPA, and it wouldn't make sense to produce two of the same style of beer. If I am going to have multipul IPAs, I am going to use that as an opportunity to make something new or make an old favorite we don't get to brew often, not two beers that are (almost exactly) the same. When do you think brewers should call it a different beer? every time they change a hop? when they move their time of hops added? How about mash temp. What if they forget to add a hop and add it later, or miss their strike temp? should they change the name then? We made several test batches to get this flavor profile and people have really responded positively to it, without mentioning a change or anything else. If everyone is loving it (perhaps not you?) and not thinking it is a different beer, why should we call it one? It would confuse them even further, like we are selling them something they have not tried before. What do you think a distributor would say? They have been getting Workhorse, which is so popular that we can not produce enough to supply them, but wait, here is a beer you never hear of but is almost exactly like Workhorse. I don't see the sense in it. I want each beer we produce to be distinct and brewed to the best of our ability. Regulars at our bar who drink this everyday are making a point of telling me how great it is tasting, and these are people who are not trying to flatter me.

People are loving it, I have had a chance to innovate on the recipe (again something you may not like, but long overdue). I think it is a win/win. Thanks for your time and let me know if you still have questions about this.

 

I don't know the dates but I think you will see a fuller roll out as more beer becomes available. The way a lot of these Chain stores work, they are looking to performance in other stores either within their company or at a competitors store, before they move. I imagine the sales of a beer brand is the first thing they look at and personal preferences for the stuff a distant second, if at all. I think this beer will do well and as a result, you should see it in more places, assuming we can keep up with demand. Thanks,

 

Thanks for the explanation and insight, Vasili. When you said "major changes", I took it at face value. Also, when Workhorse went on hiatus after Chad left, the explanation offered by Laurelwood, at that time, was that the usual hop ingredients were not available - see the Sept. 2011 Laurelwood news release: http://laurelwoodbrewpub.com/2011/09/10/workhorse-ipa/ Now, hop substitutes are introduced and the use of the WH moniker is no longer an issue? If Laurelwood had not cited the inability to secure the "two main hops" as the reason for not making it in 2011, I could readily accept the explanation you have offered. I guess it was critical back then to stay true to the hop bill, but not so much today. I know that happened prior to you coming aboard and don't blame you for the hypocrisy. Kudos to you, however, for knocking out something that tastes a lot like the old WH, but with different ingredients.

 

Oh no, you are correct. We exhausted our contracts of Simcoe and Amarillo just as I started working at LW, and had to stop brewing it within the month. Dark times, and a train wreck everyone could see coming, then in I come...the next year's contract was the same thing. We had some of these hops, but not anymore then we had the previous year, so it was either go all out with it and cut EVERYONE off in August, or keep it on in the pubs, do something else in distribution, and use whatever amount was left for big hoppy beers like Deranger, which took gold again that year at GABF, which is what we did. As you can imagine it didn't make us popular. So I wrote new contracts for 2012 crop year, i.e. 2013 hops, the soonest I could contract for and here we are. If I had Citra and Galaxy to work with then, I could have done that, but like Simcoe and Amarillo, I couldn't write a contract for hops that were not available, certainly not in the quantities (thousands of pounds) we would have needed. I had Cascade and Centennial, not bad hops, just too different from what was there, that it would have really damaged that beers reputation. I'm not going to do that. We tried a few tests with them, but decided to bite the bullet and take the hate rather then end up now with a destroyed reputation. Then when we started to brew it again, well...see comments about not tasting the same above. As I said, I am very happy with where it is at now, and am fine with the trials it took to get here. I will keep on my toes about keeping it great, and I am sure you all will keep me there too. I hope this explains it, but let me know if I can help clarify. Cheers,

 

Gonna be on sale for $6.99 at WFM Redmond in a few days. Currently on sale for $7.99.

 

Nice to see a brewer's perspective. You guys have to remember that it's a business and scaling a beer is going to come with some changes (or sacrifices if you want to look at it that way). I'm just stoked to see 6 packs. I'm tired of paying for 22 oz. beers when all I want most times is to crack a 12 oz. after work and relax. I just get smashed on 22s these days.

 

Also yeasterbunny didn't even bring up the Feds. The time and money it would take to submit and get approval for a new label is never fun. Assuming you have a in house art department. Otherwise contract that out and add the fee too. It takes WAY to much time and is totally not free. Where I work there are small tweaks every few batches. Take 40 pounds malt from here and add it to here or in a whole new grain. Add this hop or switch it out for this one. Always improving. If it's not a hop heavy beer 99% people wouldn't even guess a change unless you tell them. I for one find this (workhorse) to be awesome and the price damn! Might be best Beer for buck ever.

 

No the price will not stay where it is for long.....Splurge now while you can! It is drinking AWESOME right now, mmmmmm if someone were to ask me what a PNW IPA tastes like, this is what I would pour for them

 

Yeah. I'm on six pack number three in the past week. Belmont Stations regular non-sale price tag says $7.99. What makes you think the price will change?

 

I asked for it at Bottleworks yesterday & was told it's not available here yet. Go figure.

 

I am enjoying one right now. I think this will be my go to IPA

 

Bottleworks the last to get a beer? That's a first. I feel like I've seen Workhorse 6-packs everywhere.

 

Yeah. Pretty bizarre. No confusion about what beer I was asking for. He initially produced it in a 22 from a case that was sitting on the floor right next to where I was standing. I then said I was really looking for it in a six pack.

 

I have information, but lets just go with basic supply and demand economics