New release alert: Granville Island Mocha Porter, Powell 4th Anniversary Ale, Gladstone Black Braggot

Granville Island Brewing's Mocha Porter is made with Peruvian dark roast coffee from JJ Bean. Contributed photo
Granville Island Brewing’s Mocha Porter is made with Peruvian dark roast coffee from JJ Bean. Contributed photo

Granville Island Mocha Porter

Granville Island Brewing’s latest small batch creation sees the Vancouver craft beer legend teaming up another local institution – JJ Bean coffee roasters.

Granville Island’s Mocha Porter is infused with Peruvian dark roast de-caffeinated coffee from JJ Bean, as well as cocoa nibs.

The beer is well-balanced with the requisite notes of coffee and chocolate present and accounted for, with a deep caramel sweetness keeping the bitterness in check. Very easy-drinking, with a surprisingly dry finish.

The collaboration is a natural one, given Granville Island was the site of the very first JJ Bean café.

Mocha Porter is available in retail stores for a limited time in 650ml bottles.

GIB.ca

 

Powell's 4th Anniversary Ale is fermented with a blend of Brett yeasts and aged for 18 months in French oak. Contributed photo
Powell’s 4th Anniversary Ale is fermented with a blend of Brett yeasts and aged for 18 months in French oak. Contributed photo

Powell 4th Anniversary Ale

The newly rebranded Powell Brewery (formerly Powell Street Craft Brewing) is celebrating it’s fourth anniversary with the release of its 4th Anniversary Ale.

This barleywine was barrel-aged for 18 months in French oak with Brettanomyces bruxellensis and Brettanomyces lambicus yeasts. 4th Anniversary Ale clocks in at 10.4% ABV and 44 IBUs, with “a pleasant and distinct funky aroma [leading] into flavours of dried dark stone fruits and umami overtones, complemented with a dry, sherry-like finish,” according to the brewery.

Only four barrels were produced and each barrel has been bottled as its own series and numbered by hand with each barrel slightly different than the next.

You’ll only find 4th Anniversary Ale at the Powell Brewery tasting room, and they are limited to two bottles per person ($20/750mL bottle), so check it out before it’s gone.

PowellBeer.com

 

 

Gladstone Black Braggot is made with 330 litres of local Comox Valley honey.
Gladstone Black Braggot is made with 330 litres of local Comox Valley honey. Contributed photo

Gladstone Braggot

Courtney’s Gladstone Brewing Company has announced their very first bottle release, and it’s a doozy!

Gladstone Black Braggot weighs in at a whopping 11.5% ABV, and is made with 330 litres of local Comox Valley honey.

Hand-bottled and hand-labeled, the beer has been aged in bourbon barrels for a year, giving it a “deep, dark body and a sweet, smoky aroma,” according to the brewery.

“We are so proud to be taking this next step in production” says owner, Daniel Sharratt. “We have always intended to share our beer with our community, and the idea that our beer might reach new people with this release is extremely satisfying.”

Hopefully this is the first bottle release of many, giving those of us not lucky enough to live in the Comox Valley a chance to sample what Gladstone has been up to.

The Gladstone Black Braggot is a limited release of 850 bottles, exclusively available at the brewery.

GladstoneBrewing.ca

 

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