Unchained 12 - 100% Organic Ale
Tuesday, February 26, 2013 , By Chip Walton
Summit Brewing Company is proud to announce the release of 100% Organic Ale, the twelfth beer produced in our limited release Unchained Series and Minnesota’s first 100% certified organic beer. Organic Ale is brewer Gabe Smoley’s first Unchained creation. It will be available in draught and bottles the week of March 5 with a series of release events and food pairings in the following weeks (see below).
“Most USDA certified organic beers on the market are about 95-99.9% organic because it is extremely difficult to find ingredients like organic yeast,” says Gabe. “This beer is made with 100% organic ingredients including malts, hops and yeast. Summit microbiologist James Fetherston and I worked together to create our own certified organic yeast strain to do this, as there are virtually no organic strains available from laboratories.”
From the certification process to the actual brewing, this beer has been a challenge. But we enjoy those here at Summit. “Our company is full of innovators and I am excited to continue that tradition,” says Gabe. “The organic segment of the brewing industry is slowly growing and building steam. My hope is that by working with organic ingredients, we’ll learn some new, sustainable approaches to brewing and promote organic ingredients as a whole to the industry.”
Organic Ale is a lighter beer perfect for springtime with floral aromas of perfume, rose and potpourri. The malt backbone is mild but balanced, with the distinguishing characteristic of Organic Ale being its hop aroma and flavor as the beer is heavily hopped towards the end of production.
Organic Ale Specs:
AVB: 4.5% / IBU: 60 / Color: Light copper
100% organic hops: Palisade, Cascade, Centennial
100% organic malts: Pale, Munich 10, C-120, Carafa II
Check out this video of Gabe talking more about the brewing/certification process and tasting notes:
Gabe Smoley will attend a series of special kick-off events for Organic Ale, including:
- March 11: Meet the Brewer – MacKenzie’s Pub, Minneapolis, 2-5 pm
- March 11: Release Party – Butcher & The Boar beer garden, Minneapolis, 5-8 pm
- March 12: Release Party/Meet the Brewer - House of Pizza, Sartel, 5-7 pm
- March 13: Meet the brewer – Brasa St. Paul, 6-8 pm
- Brasa St. Paul and Minneapolis will also feature Unchained 12 food pairings from 5-9 pm
- March 14: “Hoppy Meals” pairings – Republic Uptown, 4-6 pm; Republic Seven Corners, 7-9 pm
- March 15: Firkin Friday with Organic Ale cask – Grumpy’s NE, 4 pm
- March 21: Meet Gabe and sample Organic Ale – Four Firkins, 6-8 pm
- March 28: Flight Night at Ginger Hop featuring Organic Ale. Flights include four Summit beers total.
Reader Comments (1)
Summit Extra Pale Ale
Brewed year-round
The brew that launched a brewery.
A pioneer in craft beer (hey, that rhymes), Summit EPA has been gracing the pint glasses of serious brew lovers since 1986. Bronze color. Gold medal-winning flavor. With caramel, biscuity malts superbly balanced with an earthy hop bite and juicy citrus.
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
12.0º P
IBUs
45
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
5.2%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Light bronze, 12.5° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Horizon, Fuggle, Cascade
YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
1986
Summit Pilsener
Brewed year-round
Czech, please.
Authentic Saaz hops from the Czech Republic give our Pilsener just the right amount of spicy floral aroma. With a crisp, refreshing malt backbone and lightly spiced hops, it’s a taste of the Bohemian life.
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
11.0º P
IBUs
25
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
4.5%
MALTS UTILIZED
Moravian 37, Caramel
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Golden, 5° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Vanguard, Saaz
YEAST
German Lager
ESTABLISHED
2001
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Brewed year-round
Nirvana. Now available in 12 packs.
This traditional English style was originally brewed with extra hops to help it survive the voyage to India. Our IPA is enlightened by spicy herbal hops with a hint of caramel malt sweetness.
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
14.2º P
IBUs
65
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
6.4%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel, Special B
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Bronze, 13° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Northern Brewer, East Kent Golding, Target, (dry-hopped: East Kent Golding)
YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
1993
Summit Great Northern Porter
Brewed year-round
Next stop…Malt City.
Originally named after London market workers who popularized this brew, we dubbed our Porter with a nod to the majestic railway stretching from St. Paul to Seattle. Roasted malts offer up coffee notes leading to a slightly sweet, chocolatey finish. All aboard!
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
13.2º P
IBUs
45
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
5.6%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel, Chocolate
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Black, 60° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Northdown, Fuggle, Cascade
YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
1986
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Brewed year-round
A richer shade of Red.
An inspired hybrid that blurs the boundaries between IPA and Amber styles. The exceptional blend of American hops (including the harder-to-find Horizon variety) gives it an intense pine, citrus and earthy character in the nose and on the tongue.
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
13.3º P
IBUs
60
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
5.7%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel, Wheat, Cara Red, Black
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Amber, 22° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Summit, Horizon, Amarillo, Cascade
(dry-hopped: Amarillo, Cascade)YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
2009
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Brewed year-round
Epic hop character.
Named after the Norse goddess Sága, drinking companion of the God Odin. With a divine tropical fruit hop aroma and clean, assertive bitterness.
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
14.0º P
IBUs
80
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
6.4%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Rich Gold, 9° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Horizon, Centennial, Amarillo, Citra, Rakau (dry-hopped: Amarillo, Citra, Rakau)
YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
2012
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Brewed in the Spring
Pronounced “My bock.” As in “Keep your hands off my bock.”
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ORIGINAL GRAVITY
15.0º P
IBUs
35
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
6.5%
MALTS UTILIZED
Moravian 37, Munich
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Dark Blonde, 9° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Saaz, Mt. Hood
YEAST
German Lager
ESTABLISHED
1989
Summit Summer Ale
Brewed in the Summer
Break out the koozie.
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ORIGINAL GRAVITY
11.5º P
IBUs
36
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
4.9%
MALTS UTILIZED
Moravian 37, Cara Pils, Malted White Wheat,
2-Row PaleCOLOR, (DEG L.)
Pale Straw, 4° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Mt. Hood, New Zealand Wakatu
YEAST
German Ale
ESTABLISHED
2012
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Brewed in the fall
Hold the bottle up to your ear. You can almost hear the polka.
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ORIGINAL GRAVITY
16.0º P
IBUs
25
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
6.6%
MALTS UTILIZED
Moravian 37, Caramel, Munich, 2-Row Pale
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Bronze, 15° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Northern Brewer, Tettnanger, Saaz
YEAST
German Lager
ESTABLISHED
2001
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Brewed in the Winter
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One taste and it’s easy to see why the Brits call this style Winter Warmer. Nutty, roasted malt flavor with hints of coffee, caramel, cocoa and a dash of hop spice. It’ll warm your cockles. Whatever those are.
ORIGINAL GRAVITY
14.5º P
IBUs
36
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
6.1%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel, Carafa II
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Brown, 40° L
HOPS UTILIZED
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YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
1987
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Venture off the beaten beer aisle.
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Brewed year-round
A taste you won’t find everywhere.
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ORIGINAL GRAVITY
13.3º P
IBUs
36
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME
5.1%
MALTS UTILIZED
2-Row Pale, Caramel, Oats, Crystal, Roasted Barley, Chocolate
COLOR, (DEG L.)
Pitch black, 80° L
HOPS UTILIZED
Northern Brewer, East Kent Golding, Fuggle
YEAST
Ale
ESTABLISHED
2004
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