IF YOU'VE BEEN FOLLOWING OUR 4SEASONS PROGRAM for any length of time you know that its become known for a few things: bold flavors, big ABVs, and essential collaborations. The latter of those has been tough to coordinate in the Covid-era so we are taking a collab hiatus so-to-speak, but our commitment to the former has remained a constant since the program's inception in Spring of 2014. Big, bold beers are the cornerstone of the series so creating something season after season requires constant recipe innovation and out-of-the-box thinking. Fortunately our brewers are very capable of both.
This Spring our brewers are exercising their inner Einstein and we're taking our seasonal program to the next level with our newest 4Seasons release – a Bourbon Barrel-aged Coconut Cake Imperial Stout. If that seems like a mouthful, it is, quite literally. Our quarterly release represents the top-tier of our program and this year’s Spring selection proves itself to be no exception. Featuring toasted coconut, chocolate, vanilla, and lactose, it’s a sumptuous experience from the moment you open the can. Our Director of Brewing Operations, Chris Baker describes the beer and it’s flavor profile:
"Melding flavors like coconut and chocolate to achieve balance is very difficult. The base beer itself is pretty complex so we didn’t want the adjuncts to steal the show entirely. What you’re getting here is a very complex ale with oak, caramelized sugar, and coconut dominating the palate, with a silky mouthfeel and dessert-like finish. We selected German and English noble hop varieties to harmonize with the earthy tones of flaked rye and dark crystal malts. This brew is a malt-bomb through and through.”
Building a beer like this requires more than skill and luck though. It aint cheap. Getting results from the addition of an ingredient like coconut, for example, requires a lot of it to shine through the dense layers of flavor. Chris and his team dumped a whopping 150 lbs of coconut and 100 lbs of local, custom roasted Ecuadorean Cacao Nibs. On top of that the addition of Madagascar Vanilla adds depth and perceived sweetness to an already decadent beer. Distilling all this information down to some practical tasting notes would go something like this: Expect a big, thick, sweet Pastry Stout thats better sipped and savored than guzzled. Bold, dessert-like flavors are at the center of every sip, with a stout bitterness to help with structure. Let it warm a bit before consuming and you will be rewarded in spades.
4Seasons releases are sold in limited quantities and they typically go fast due to the one-off nature of the program. Customers are encouraged to find these highly sought-after brews early to ensure availability.
Spring ‘21 is available in 16oz cans and limited draft where independent craft beers are sold. Customers can search for it near them using our Beer Finder. Can't find it? We can direct ship to CA, AK, and DC. Shop online at Bevv.
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