We’re excited to announce the release of the 2018 Barrel-Aged Framinghammers. This year is our biggest launch yet. Nearly 300 bourbon barrels were sourced from Kentucky to create all the variations. The first batch of Barrel-Aged Framinghammer launched in 2012 with only two barrels: it’s been a long journey learning and experimenting with this beer. Over the years, we’ve created many variations of our BA Framinghammer. This year, you will see our standard Bourbon Barrel-aged Framinghammer, Mole, Vanilla and Graham Cracker varieties go into distribution.
In the Beer Hall, we’ll have limited availability of Peanut Butter & Jelly, Cocoa-Nut, Cherry, and our newest creation: Super Mole. These batches will be sporadically launched at the end of April and through May. Be sure to keep up with these releases on our social media pages. These fan favorites are super limited so come in and stock up while you can!
This year’s releases features one main change over previous years. You may notice that all labels for our Barrel-Aged Framinghammers have the “unpasteurized” notation removed. After significant internal discussions among our brewers and quality team we determined that pasteurizing these products was the best solution to guarantee long term quality of these products.
All of our barrel aged beers go through extensive aging in wood barrels. This process is what gives the beer its unique flavor. The beer absorbs the bourbon or other spirits that had been trapped in the wood along with many flavors like vanilla and spice that the toasted oak staves provide. While there are many benefits of aging beer in wooden vessels, there is one potential downside. Wood is an unsanitary surface and its impossible to age beer on wood without nominal microbial activity. Bacteria and yeast can live in the wood of barrels even when they are filled with distilled spirits.
When we release Barrel-Aged Framinghammer, the beer has already been aged for at least four months. It’s then very common for these beers to be aged or cellared for extended periods of time. While Jack’s Abby Brewing has always closely monitored the microbial content of our beers, and we have always seen below acceptable industry standards to no activity, the benefits of pasteurizing outweigh the potential for long term off flavors. We want to ensure that even years later, Barrel-Aged Framinghammer will be as good or better as when we bottled it.
Enjoy this years Barrel-Aged Framinghammer!
-Jack
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