The Charlottesville 29

Jason Oliver has compromising photographs of some of the world’s best brewers.  He must.  How else could you explain the collection of talent  the Devil’s Backbone Brewmaster has assembled for the brewery’s new Adventure Pack Collaboration Sampler?  Surly Brewing Co., for one, is one of the most decorated breweries in the country.  And, the other four are stellar, too, including NoDa Brewing Company, Sun King Brewing Company, Wicked Weed Brewing, and the Northern hemisphere debut of Australia’s Thunder Road Brewing Company.  What makes them an extra special treat for area beer lovers is that none of these breweries’ beers are typically available in the Charlottesville market.

This Thursday, January 14, at 6 pm, Kardinal Hall is celebrating the release of the sampler pack, and it will be one of the few times the beers will be available on draft.  Oliver himself will be on hand to chat about the new beers, and throw back a few as well.  “We really enjoy the collaboration process,” said Oliver. “Creatively, as brewers we get to learn from each other, from recipe formulation to working with new ingredients and brewing techniques.”  A description of the 12-pack sampler:

Devils Backbone Brewing Company: Vienna Lager (5.2% ABV; 18 IBU) is amber in color with a subtle toasted caramel note and a smooth malty finish. Brewed using a combination of Northern Brewer and Saaz hops with Vienna, Pilsen, Dark Munich and Caramel malts and allowing five weeks for the lagering process and the flavors to fully develop.

NoDa Brewing Company:  Session IPL (3.8% ABV; 60 IBU) a session India-style pale lager.  This highly sessionable, hoppy, crisp beer was brewed with Vienna malts, oats and a combination of Northern Brewer, Simcoe and Azacca hops.

Sun King Brewing Company:  Another State of Kind (6.8% ABV; 68 IBU) a double dank cream-style ale.  Pale in color and loaded with Simcoe and Columbus hops, this beer is an unlikely marriage of a cream ale and a double IPA.

Surly Brewing Company:  Risen (8.4% ABV; 50 IBU) a coffee and oak, double brown ale.  This lavish brown ale was brewed with over 100 pounds of locally roasted coffee and was rested on oak for a toasted finish with extra complexity.

Thunder Road Brewing Company:  Double Pacific Ale (8.4% ABV; 50 IBU) a strong Australian-style ale.  Pacific ale is an emerging style that uses fruiter hops grown in Australia and New Zealand, for this US brew the team used Aussie galaxy hops and a combination of malts for smooth, tropical notes.

Wicked Weed Brewing Company:  Seven Summits (10.5% ABV; 20 IBU) an Imperial Stout brewed with ingredients inspired by the world’s famed Seven Summits.  This complex brew includes Coconut (South America’s Aconcagua summit), Cocoa (Africa’s Kilimanjaro summit), Blue-green Algae (Antartica’s Vinson summit), American Oak (North America’s Denali summit), Pink Himalayan Sea Salt (Asia’s Everest summit), Black Rye Bread (Europe’s Elbrus summit) and Wattle seeds (Australia’s Mt. Kosciuszko summit.)