Celebrating World Pear Day with Mortalis Brewing

The team at Mortalis is always down for a creative new showcase idea. For those unfamiliar with the dedicated fruit holidays, the first weekend in December is celebrated as World Pear Day. When it comes to relating this peculiar fruit to the world of craft beer, one specific name comes to mind above all else. We’ve collaborated with Paul Grenier and Mortalis yet again to feature the most monstrous version to date of their famous Pear Brandy Leto in celebration of one of the most-consumed fruits in the world.

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Forager Brewery | 9th Anniversary Showcase

It’s been about two and a half months since Forager Brewing’s 9th Anniversary Foragerfest celebration, and people are still buzzing about the bottles released for the occasion. Free to attend and open to all ages, Foragerfest has become hugely popular over the years, and people have traveled from near and far to Rochester, Minnesota to get a taste of the one-off barrel-aged offerings, live music, and artisan markets that have become so popular at the event. Austin Jevne and the team were generous enough to send us the full lineup from this year to review and share on PorchDrinking, and we can’t thank them enough for allowing us the chance to share the experience with our readers.

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WhereT App & Lonerider Beer | Busy Brew Lager

Odds are that sometimes you just want a quiet place for a few beers or to grab some food. Maybe you tried to call a few spots, or Googled the venue to try and gather some intel about how busy it was at that time. Enter the WhereT app. Developed around the foundation of venue transparency, Brandon Lewis created the app as a remedy for the time lost and potential revenue lost for businesses. Lewis, who currently resides in Raleigh, NC, also partnered with Lonerider Brewery to create Busy Brew Lager. This beer was created exclusively for the WhereT app and is the only beer that truly works for you.

We took time to chat with Lewis, discussing his vision for WhereT and his successes with the social app. We even got to crack open a Busy Brew and taste the beer helping people KNOW before they GO.
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Collaborating for a Cause | New Image Brewing

It’s honestly baffling to come to the realization that it has been 17 and a half months since Alex Kidd’s shocking announcement that he had been diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic colon cancer. The beer community immediately rose to the occasion, raising over $400,000 for Alex and his family to help with his medical bills. Even after all this time, PorchDrinking still has yet to feature all of the breweries and their beers and/or releases dedicated to the man behind Don’t Drink Beer. That said, we started this journey back in June of last year with Horus Aged Ales’ Stay Strong Alex, and this is now the 23rd installment of Collaborating for a Cause. For this spotlight we zoom northwest of Denver, CO, and set our sights to New Image Brewing.

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Voodoo Brewing | Hydrogen Hop Water

As Sober October quickly approaches, hopheads are scrambling to find an alternative before the fall hiatus. We come to you with Voodoo Brewing’s Hydrogen Hop Water (HHW). Crafted with natural ingredients and zero alcohol, HHW makes a great alternative not only for those just wanting to take a break but also for those health-conscious consumers looking for a hoppy alternative for any occasion.

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Voodoo Brewing | Hazy Vibes IPA

For the last six years, Voodoo Brewing Co.’s Hazy Vibes New England-style IPA has only been available as a spontaneous release. Well, we come bearing good news! The famous Meadville, Pennsylvania, brewery has plans to add Good Vibes’ cloudy counterpart as a more regular offering to its lineup. Voodoo has distributors in more than a dozen states, so check out the brewery’s Find Our Beer page to see where you might be able to find Hazy Vibes soon!

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Collaborating for a Cause | Relentless Perseverance

On July 9th, 2024, Odd Breed Wild Ales announced the impossible decision to close their doors at the end of the month. The logistics fueling brewery ownership have become increasingly difficult worldwide, and it’s seen some truly talented programs shut down as a result. Odd Breed owner and head brewer Matt Manthe is a true gem in the industry, emphasized by his incredible gratitude to all the support from loyal customers both near and far. In an effort to pay that generosity forward, he announced that the final bottle release that Odd Breed would conduct would be Relentless Perseverance, a massive barrel-aged barleywine created in collaboration with The Hallway Tap & Brew, in support of Alex Kidd and his family.

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Crafting History | Brussels Edition

Back in July, I had the incredible opportunity to visit Brussels, Belgium. A city and country rich with beer history, this trip is a bucket list destination for many connoisseurs. Belgium’s diversity of styles, centuries-old brewing techniques, and preservation of tradition have all impacted its place as one of the most culturally significant countries in the world when it comes to heritage. This installment of Crafting History features contributions from legends of the industry Werner Van Obberghen – Owner and Managing Director of 3 Fonteinen, Moeder Lambic owner Jean Hummler, and former Chairman of De Heikantse Bierliefhebbers Fons Minne, as well as reviews of a few Belgian relics – some of which have been cellared for over two decades.

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Voodoo Brewing | ManBearPig South Park Anniversary Showcase

It may only be diehards who know this, but today marks the 27th anniversary of South Park. The show, which chronicles the misadventures of Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny, has divided viewers with its controversial takes on political, religious and social issues since its first episode in 1997. It has had a lasting impact on popular culture through its boundary-pushing comedy, unique animation and rapid-fire turnaround time allowing for quick responses to real-time world events. It’s even made its way into craft beer. The team at Voodoo Brewing are long-time fans of the influential series, and we thought who better to celebrate another year of South Park with than the crew that brought us ManBearPig.

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Collaborating for a Cause | Narragansett Life Barleywine

It’s been nearly three months since the last installment of Collaborating for a Cause. This newest collaboration with Narragansett Brewing and their Life barleywine is the perfect place to pick the series back up, highlighting a very special beer that had two iterations bottled exclusively for PorchDrinking.

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Sneak Peek: Pulpit Rock | Barrel-Aged $ticker $hock Imperial Stout

It’s alarming at how quickly time has passed since highlighting Pulpit Rock Brewing Co.’s EIGHT Imperial Stout, one of a handful of beers released as part of its eighth anniversary celebration last August. Year nine for the small Iowa brewery has mirrored this fast pace, as it has continued to grow in popularity and also increased its barrel-aged production. On April 16, the brewery announced a save-the-date for its highly sought after $ticker $hock barrel-aged Imperial Stout. $ticker $hock hasn’t seen a new vintage since 2020, and we’ve collaborated with head brewer Justin Teff and the team in Decorah to provide PorchDrinking readers an exclusive sneak peek at the 2024 iteration ahead of its July 13 public release.

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Lua Brewing | Lua’s Birthday Blend Barleywine

A curious question that arises frequently at brewery bars is “How’d you decide on the name?” Sometimes there’s quirky, meaningful backstories, sometimes it’s a spin on the founder’s names, sometimes it’s inspired by their geographic location, or it’s one of a million other possibilities. For Lua Brewing, owners Scott and Whitney Selix found no better namesake for their passion project than their beloved pup. Lua turned 13 years old on March 14th of this year, and a month later the team in Iowa released a very special birthday blend in her honor.
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Anchorage Brewing | Sister, Mother, Daughter Barleywine

For many, craft beer and brewing provides a creative outlet—a unique method of expression. Every day, a different brewery releases a new and exciting beer to share with their consumers, hoping that the quality of their ingredients, brewing expertise and distinct marketing can lead to a successful, conversation-worthy beer. But sometimes, a beer represents so much more. The story and blend of Sister, Mother, Daughter and its inspiration needs to be shared.

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Barrique Brewing | Static Between Worlds Vienna Wine

Those who have extensively followed Barrique Brewing and Blending know that they’re in for a treat whenever a new “wax top” release is announced. While often high gravity and brewed in small batches, one thing that always holds true is that these releases are particularly special to the team in Nashville. Static Between Worlds was no different. A collaboration with former Orpheus Brewmaster—and current owner and Head Brewer of The Hollows in Amsterdam, Netherlands—this massive Vienna Wine sought to capture the essence of the past and promise of what’s to come through a complex tapestry of flavors.

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Collaborating for a Cause | Alex’s Life

Our showcase for the Alex’s Life installment of this series has been a long time coming. A collaboration of six of the biggest names in today’s craft scene, this joint effort was an undoubtedly pure testament to the magnitude of togetherness exhibited toward Alex Kidd and his family as he endures this fight with Stage IV cancer. With additional thanks owed to craft beer marketplace Tavour as the outlet used to maximize the release’s scope, this Veil-headlined benefit still remains the largest fundraiser to-date for the Kidds.

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Horus Aged Ales | Year Nine Spotlight

It has been over a year now since collaborating with Kyle Harrop and Horus Aged Ales on a spotlight of his unique and formidable barrel program. Now, Horus finds itself preparing to open year seven of the Convocation membership. We reconnected with Harrop for a brand new feature, highlighting some of his recent projects as well as digging deeper into what we can hope to expect from this sought after program in 2024.

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Collaborating for a Cause | For Alex

At the end of May 2023, Wax Wings Brewing pledged their support for Alex Kidd with a dedicated bottle release. This series has always looked to highlight breweries and the benefits they’ve conducted to help support Alex and his family as he continues to fight for his life. As we approach 20 installments to this series from breweries and meaderies all over the country – and even Norway! – we find ourselves back in Michigan to take a deep dive into Wax Wing’s For Alex release.

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Saint Errant Brewing | Skosh Barrel-Aged Stout

In today’s craft beer industry, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to stand out. To this Saint Errant Brewing said “hold my beer,” throwing something entirely new into the barrel-aged stout game. On March 19, the Chicago brewery announced the release of Skosh. A whimsical idea morphed into a pragmatic reality, this oak-aged imperial stout was packaged in a bag. In a box. With a pour spout. There was no way that we weren’t going to showcase craft beer going full Franzia mode, so we asked Saint Errant co-owner Brent Banks to send a box our way to feature on PorchDrinking.

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Collaborating for a Cause | Wren House Life Barleywine

As this series continues to surge through the spring months of 2024, it’s amazing to note just how many of these recent installments were announced during just the first few months after Alex Kidd’s cancer diagnosis. As we continue to see outpouring of support for DDB and his family, it’s also important to continue to reflect back on some of the first breweries to release dedicated beers in an effort to raise money for the cause. This week we take a deeper look at Wren House Brewing and their Life Barleywine.

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Hair of the Dog | Don Barleywine: A Vertical for Alex

Every now and then, when speaking with—or collaborating with—brewery staff, a truly organic opportunity blossoms. Those who have followed Don’t Drink Beer for a long time know that not only has Alex Kidd always championed Barleywine, but he also took opportunities to highlight the beers and breweries that were years ahead of their time as industry trends evolved. One brewery in particular that has cemented its impact on craft beer history is Hair of the Dog in Portland, Oregon. In a tribute to Kidd as he continues to fight his ass off to beat cancer, we collaborated with Hair of the Dog owner and founder Alan Sprints on a special vertical tasting.

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