Beer Release: NW: Coming Soon … Full Sail Brewing “Brewer’s Share” Series, beginning with Extra Special Barney

Located just down the street, along Interstate 84, the folks of Hood Canal’s Full Sail Brewing have a special announcement.

In 2008 Full Sail Brewing created their small batch Brewer’s Share series as an opportunity for each of their individual brewers to express their creations to be shared on tap exclusively in their pub. Since their crew came up with so many great beers, they decided to share a selection of them with beer lovers everywhere.

So what’s the first beer in this new series? It’s Extra Special Barney (ESB), developed by Brewing Supervisor, Barney Brennan.

Of course we were curious what inspired this recent release so we asked the brewery.

“It’s rare to know who makes your beer. We’re proud to be the people behind so many award winning brews.  As an independent and employee owned brewery, you know that we put our hearts and souls into every drop. With Brewer’s Share, we take it one step further and introduce our individual brewers by name and beer,” - source, Irene Firmat, Full Sail’s CEO and Founder.

But if you asked Brannan his intent with Extra Special Barney he would tell you the beer is a reminder where the Northwest’s E.S.B. came from. With an attention to respecting the traditional English-style Extra Special Bitter, the beer was brewed with an attention to balance, showcasing both the malt & the hops.

Five different malt varieties give the beer its orange hue, and caramel complexities. A single hop was used, Challenger, including a pound per barrel dry hop. The pint first offers the interaction of the aromas of malt and hop, then the medium body and caramel flavors finish with a slight bitterness. Drinkable and quenching with an invitation to return for another taste.  6.5% ABV, 35 IBU

But let’s allow Barney to speak about the beer.

“I was sitting on the deck at the brewery overlooking the river in the sunshine – drinking a perfectly balanced bitter – already looking forward to the second pint.  It was one of those great beer moments. Hopefully, my ESB will make one of those moments for someone else with its five different specialty malts and this one very special hop. We made it entirely with US Challenger hops including a pound per barrel dry hop because we wanted to share the aromatic experience we had at the hop rub in Yakima with our customers.”

Then again there are probably some of you who are scratching your heads wondering what the Brewer’s Share series is all about.

The inspiration for the name “Brewer’s Share” came from that mysterious portion that vanishes from a barrel during aging that brewers refer to as the “angel’s share,” and that led to “Brewer’s Share,” an equally mysterious offering that appears during inspiration.  Brewer’s Share can also mean a unit of ownership, as in stock. Consider this program to be an Initial Public Offering (IPO).  Whenever you purchase a Brewer’s Share you get a unit of ownership – one share of the batch.  As a shareholder you have the right to consume the beverage.  In doing so you will also be investing in the public good – as each brewer not only chooses the recipe, they choose a local charity or organization that will benefit from each bottle sold – Which can bring an excellent return on ingestion (ROI).

It’s also important to note that the Brewer’s Share isn’t just another beer release, as the brewery also encourages each of it’s employee’s philanthropic endeavors through a donation in their name to their favorite charity. In Barney’s case a portion of the sales from Barney’s ESB will go towards The Columbia Gorge Arts in Education.

About The Columbia Gorge Arts in Education

The Columbia Gorge Arts in Education provides visual, literary, and performing arts to local K-12 students. Through artist residencies in schools, workshops, after school programs, community art projects and installations, programs for at-risk youth, and cultural performances, Columbia Gorge Arts in Education served 6,000 kids last year in the Mid-Columbia region. For more information please visit www.cgaie.org.

Look for Extra Special Barney to rest on shelves and featured on draft, starting this January 2012. As always if you don’t see it on draft or on the shelf ask your server or grocer to buy some! About Full Sail Brewing Company

The independent and employee-owned Full Sail Brewery is perched on a bluff in Hood River, Oregon, overlooking the most epic wind and kite surfing spot in the world. At this very moment our specialists in the liquid refreshment arts are crafting barley and hops into your next beer. Among the company’s most popular brews are Full Sail Amber, IPA, Pale, LTD, Wassail, Session, Session Black, and Session Fest Premium lager. Founded in 1987, the Full Sail crew has been fermenting godlike nectar for 25 years.  Committed to brewing great beer and sustainable practices their award winning brews are now available in 28 states. The Full Sail Tasting Room and Pub is open seven days a week. Swing by for a pint, grab a bite, tour the brewery, or just soak up the view.  http://www.fullsailbrewing.com

Cheers