JUST WHO IN THE HECK IS SUMMIT DARK INFUSION FOR?
Here at Summit Brewing Company, we pride ourselves on making consistent, high-quality, well-executed and traditional British-style Ales, German-style Lagers, and the occasional Belgian-style Wit. We like to experiment and break outside of those parameters from time to time, of course, but our bread and butter is making approachable and flavorful beers for thirsty beer drinkers who like the taste of beer. It’s been that way since 1986.
That said, Summit Dark Infusion is a bit of a departure for us. A rich, full-bodied imperial milk stout infused with cold-brewed coffee? That doesn’t sound too traditional if you ask us. You don’t see many German or British brewers working with Brazilian dark roast, so why the heck are we doing it?
Easy: It’s all part of our plan to corner a very covetable segment in the larger beer-drinking market.
HOW TO GET THE BEER NERDS IN YOUR CORNER
First, we appeal to the beer nerds with sweet, roasted notes from six specialty malts. Then, we make kettle additions of lactose for additional sweetness and body. After using Pilgrim and Fuggle hops from the U.K. for balancing hop spice, we kick things up a notch with a smooth, bold infusion of cold-brewed Brazilian coffee from St. Paul’s Blackeye Roasting Company. Rather than hitting the beer nerds over the head with that coffee, however, we use the cold-brew to complement the beer’s existing flavors of caramel, graham cracker and dark chocolate. Finally, we make the beer limited as hell, because the beer nerds LOVE rare beers. Whalez, they call ‘em.
HOW TO GET THE SPACE DWEEBS LUSTING AFTER YOUR BEER
And what about the space dweebs, you ask? Do they even like beer? Well, we cut the graphic designers and copywriters loose to go nuts with packaging and storytelling, and they came up with a scene out of some atomic-era spaceman comic book that ought to make the galactic warriors curious, if not lustful. Just look at that can. And that six-pack wrap.
And the story? Oh, here it is now, just for your space-dweebing pleasure:
SPACE BREWER STORY
Never content to settle for the best ingredients available on our humble planet, Summit Brewing Co. acquired a fermentation-powered rocket and launched a brave Space Brewer on a mission to collect the galaxy’s finest malts and hops. While gathering samples near a distant star, however, our Space Brewer was captured by super-intelligent aliens, no doubt on their way to invade Earth and harvest our organs. Fortunately, our Space Brewer has temporarily pacified the aliens with his dwindling stash of Summit Dark Infusion, a rich, full-bodied imperial milk stout with sweet, roasty notes of cold-brew coffee. Recent transmissions indicate the aliens are thirsty for more, and because the future of our planet depends on us, we’ve brewed more Summit Dark Infusion and sent it at warp speed to the dangerous extra-terrestrials. A small quantity remains here on Earth — for you — so stock your bunker with this limited beer before it’s too late!
AND THERE YOU HAVE IT, #DORKINFUSION ACHIEVED
Pair the beer nerds and space dweebs together, and we’re confident we’ve got a beer to mobilize a very powerful segment within the beer community. And if not, then what the heck, we’re all more than happy here at the brewery to drink all the Dark Infusion if we have to. After all, we’re beer nerds, too, FYI.
THE LAST WORD(S)
For all those naysayers out there who believe Summit never does anything new: Let this beer stand as proof that we’ll go outside of our comfort zone when we believe in a beer.
For all those folks on the beer-nerd forums who say Summit keeps on making the same old boring beers: Let this beer stand as proof that Summit is not afraid to innovate or change or shake things up. (Just don’t shake your beer. Contrary to popular belief these days, exploding beer cans ARE NOT OK).
And finally, for all the people who believe a beer is only worthwhile if it’s super-limited and super-premium-priced and over the top with non-traditional beer flavors like cinnamon or papaya juice or blueberry-vanilla birthday cake, let this beer stand as proof that when Summit Brewing Company brews a beer, whether it’s a traditional, gold-medal winning German-style Pils or a big, roasted stout with coffee added at packaging, we intentionally brew a balanced, flavorful beer with complexity, nuance and purpose — not some random, unrepeatable accident that taste like moldy foot if you sucked out all the adjuncts.
You asked for something new and different. You asked for Summit to come out and prove itself by expanding its offerings with something a little left-of-center. And now, well, you get to drink it. Cheers.
Summit Dark Infusion is available for a limited time on draft and in 6-packs of 12-oz. cans. Find it here.
P.S. And if you’re a longtime Summit beer drinker who doesn’t like weird beers brewed with coffee, that’s OK. Summit Extra Pale Ale, Saga IPA, Dakota Soul and the rest aren’t going anywhere. Your support means the world to us, so cheers to you, too.
