The latest news from Vanberg and DeWulf, courtesy of the importer’s recent email newsletter…
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New Beers and Arrivals for Late Fall
LAVA 9.4% ABV- FROM ICELAND Olvisholt Brewery – Selfoss, Iceland – farmstead brewery from the Ring of Fire
We’ll be bringing in a new shipment of LAVA in 750ml bottles and we have 30 liter key kegs in stock. The reviews are spectacular. Lava is the World Champion Smoked Imperial Stout. LAVA rates 99 on Ratebeer. There is a new Nordic cuisine wave sweeping across the country and this beer could not be more perfectly positioned. A total treat on tap. Read the whole overview here. Account highlights: LAVA is selling like crazy at Skal in NYC, at Fondren Public in Jackson, Mississippi. It’s been spotted on tap at Churchkey, Publican, Frisco Taphouse – here there and everywhere. This beer will only grow in appeal as temperatures drop.
NEW from Olvisholt Brewery- SKADI – Farm Ale
Skadi is a 7% Icelandic farmhouse ale made with Icelandic herbs – principally Angelica which grows wild all round the brewery. In Norse mythology, Skaði is a goddess associated with bowhunting, skiing, winter, and mountains. It is being bottled as we write. Skadi is reddish to deep amber in color. The hops are Slovenian Celeia and East Kent Goldings. Pilsner malt, dark caramel malt, rye malt, malted wheat, brown sugar, and wild organic Icelandic angelica go into the brew. The yeast strain is French in origin. This is the US debut of this lovely beer from Olvisholt which is rightly developing an amazing reputation for distinctive and delicious beers. Tap only 20 liter slimline key kegs.
And from our newest Icelandic Brewery- GARUN – Icelandic Stout- 11.5% ABV
We are very pleased to be working with another great craft brewery in Iceland–Borg. This small brewery is part of the large Olgerdin group charged with making waves in the Icelandic beer market Led by brewer Valgeir Valgeirson, they are a small, dedicated and intensely beer loving bunch. Garun is their 1st offering for export. At 11.5%, it is what they call an ‘Icelandic Stout’ which makes sense since it seems obvious that a stout coming from the land of fire and Ice would be, shall we say extremely stout! Garun is named for the strong and brave heroine of one of Iceland’s most popular folktales “The Deacon of Dark River” a tale of ghosts, undying love and life triumphing over death against the backdrop of elements essential to Iceland’s character: snow ice and flooding waters whorling dark and mysterious. These are the same elements that inspire the rich dark intense bold Icelandic stout. Intensely aromatic, full of roasted coffee notes, a very rich, almost unctuous body that finishes remarkably clean with just the right balance of bittersweetness, it reminds you as much of a coffee liqueur as beer. Remarkable! The ideal winter ale.
FROM THE UK – Green Jack Brewery- Lowestoft, Suffolk, England the easternmost town in the UK
The Green Jack Brewery (6000 hectoliter) is installed in a former herring smokehouse at the end of Love Lane. Therein Tim Dunford – the idiosyncratic witty founder/brewer – produces a stunning range of small batch, site-specific, Belgian-influenced beers. They are not widely distributed – mainly sold in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridge – but real ale cognoscenti prize them for their balance, originality and finesse.
RIPPA – 8.5% -NEW SHIPMENT
This English Triple was Named Supreme Champion Winter Beer of the UK by CAMRA. Rippa is an amber ale redolent of peach and grape with an herbal, tropical bittersweet taste and a fruity bitter finish. Rippa is brewed with pale ale malt, caramalt, maize, wheat, and sugar. UK Challenger hops lend a black pepper spice aroma, and Slovenian Celeia hops add bitterness. The first batch sold out swifty and as the brewery is small we can only bring in shipments a few times a year. Scheduled to arrive in November. Don’t miss out on this shipment! It just earned Gold in the World Beer Championships. They write “Hazy deep amber copper color. Aromas of honey-buttered scone, dried fruit, and toffee with a supple, dry-yet-fruity medium-to-full body and a refreshing, beautifully balanced finish with emphasis on roasted nuts, cocoa, and grass. A great take on the style.” WORLD BEER CHAMPIONSHIPS AWARD: Gold Medal RATING: 90 points (Exceptional) Keg and Bottle
BALTIC TRADER – NEW – 10.5% ABV Gold | Overall Champion | Chelmsford Winter Beers 2010.
BALTIC TRADER is an Extra Strong Export Stout. Smooth, rich and fruity with roasted coffee & vanilla flavours. Baltic Trader celebrates the North Sea sailing ships that traded between England’s East Coast ports like Lowestoft, the Low Countries and Scandinavia. This is the first time this superb beer reaches the shores of North America. Rates a 95 on Ratebeer: “Translucent, dark mahogany. Pours thick, brown head, which persists – very fine bubbles, nice & creamy. Light carbonation. Aroma – Very chocolatey, rich, sweet chocolate, bit woody, dark fruit, good, slightly piney hops, slightly citrus, nice. Rich, piney, woody, terpene flavors & oils. Some savory yeastiness (marmite) and licorice notes. Nice hops (some citrus flavors) give bitter balance towards end.” Keg and Bottle
FRUIT BAT – 5.5% ABV NEW
Extra special bitter with a taste of plums! Golden amber color. Aroma is plummy fruits, wood, caramel, some mild earth as well as herbs. Flavor is wood, mild floral and fruity notes as well as some dark berries with just a touch of spiciness and sweet maltiness on the palate. Pours a clear mid-brown color with a medium sized frothy & lasting off-white head that leaves a heavy lace. Another great find from the under-rated (or rather not talked about enough) Green Jack. “Green Jack ales, are just the right side of full-flavored but have a soft gentle carbonation that makes them a very classy beer.” The Ormskirk Barons. Keg only.
FLOWER POWER – 6.0% ABV NEW
Flower Power is a vintage elderflower ale, involving generous amounts of hops and buckets and buckets of fresh locally harvested elderflowers. A taste of East Anglia in a bottle. The elder is a small but bountiful tree that usually grows on the woodland edge. The tree has an abundance of history and folklore surrounding it. The tiny white flowers, which bloom from late May, mark the beginning of summer. Elderflower has has been called “the medicine chest of the country people” and the roots, bark, berries, leaves and flowers have all been used in a variety of different ways, from medicines to wines, beers and facial toners to jams. Delightful, delicate and delicious. Keg only.
A note about KeyKegs for Green Jack specifically
There is no doubt about the importance and deliciousness of British Ales. However, we have always shied away from importing them because as good as they are, they’re difficult shippers. Most British Ales are not re-fermented in the bottle (re-fermentation being very important to reducing oxidation) and they are lighter under 6% ABV, (alcohol being an effective flavor preservative). Our whole raison d’etre is to select beers that offer 99.9% the same flavor experience in the US that they do in their home market. The most happy news is in Green Jack Rippa we have found a true, great, British tasting ale that does just that. It ships in bottle as well as any Belgian beer we import. And importantly, the other Green Jack ales coming in KeyKegs. This means they are virgin filled, with the lowest possible oxygen pick-up. No gas can ever touch the beer, burning off the wonderful, delicate, nuanced malt and hop flavors that are the heart of Real British Ales. By offering Green Jack Ales only in KeyKeg, we all can guarantee our customers that they’re drinking exactly what Tim Dunford, Master Brewer at Green Jack, brewed and nothing else. It’s as close as you can get to drinking Green Jack in a pub in Lowestoft.
OUR FAVORITE BEER FROM GHENT –
GANDAVUM – 7.5% ABV Dry Brown Belgian Ale from our belgian home town of Ghent!
It’s only fitting that with Ghent as our adopted Belgian hometown, we have a beer of that city in our portfolio. The town’s most well situated bar (located alongside a canal) and celebrated publican is Pol of Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant. The bar’s custom-brewed) house dry-hopped beer is called Gandavum (the Roman name for Ghent). Pol is equally famous for his genever pub, The Dreupelkot, so it is no surprise that Gandavum is an extraordinarily dry and herbal blond beer. Gandavum is unfiltered, made with all (pilsner and Munich) malt, hopped with Tomahawk and Willamette, and dry hopped with Willamette. If you have not tried it yet, jump on the bandwagon. To know it is to love it.
MORE GOOD NEWS ON CONTESSA- Italian Pale Ale from Birra Amiata
The results are in from The World Beer Championships. They write: “Cloudy pale amber color. Bold aromas of lemongrass, grapefruit marmalade, sourdough baguette, green tea, and grass with a supple, dry-yet-fruity medium-full body and a long, tangy lemon cake, herbal honey, poached pear and earth driven finish. Fantastically flavorful. WORLD BEER CHAMPIONSHIPS AWARD: Gold Medal RATING: 93 points (Exceptional). Contessa is ranked as one of only fifty-five 5-star beers of 1,200 reviewed in the Slow Food Guide to Italian Beers. We say this Chinook, Cascade and Amarillo hopped beer is a stupendous IPA—Italian Pale Ale. We love Contessa with spit roasted lamb and chicken, rustic soups, artisan cheeses like Taleggio and Pecorino, and citrus sorbets.