Crooked Stave News – 2014 Releases, Expansion, Collaborations + More

We caught up with Chad from Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project. Items of discussion are plans for 2014, market expansion and an upcoming collaborations with other popular breweries. Enjoy and cheers!

What’s in store for 2014?

In 2014 we plan to make our core sours more available (Origins, L’Brett d’Or, and Nightmare on Brett) within our distribution chain. We are always coming up with new and creative beers from the ones that we already produce. For example, we will be releasing a Holiday Vieille with Hibiscus, Cranberry, Nutmeg & Cinnamon. From our base beers we can add seasonally available fruits and spices. We try to have a good plan on what we want to release throughout the year, but it always ends up taking a different route (in a good way).

Expansion Plans?

Right now we are working hard to supply our home market, Colorado, as well as ship limited amounts of beer to New York City and California. Through Shelton Brothers, our beer has gained attention in more states. It is exciting to see more and more people become familiar and enjoy our beer all across the country.

We have a Collaboration with Jeppe at Evil Twin coming up in January that we are just starting to work on. Last month we did a collaboration with Jester King down in Austin, which will be aging in barrels for several months. At the beginning of 2014 our collaboration with Anchorage Brewing Co, Between The Staves, should hit shelves. It is a dark sour ale aged in Cognac Barrels for 11 months with Brett/Lacto/Pedio…all the fun stuff.

What worked well in 2013?

All of sour beers sell quick since the market is incredibly demanding right now, but they are produced in such small qualities it is hard to determine if one of those is our “best selling product.” A very popular beer for Crooked Stave is Surette. It is a great introduction to Crooked Stave and the beers that we love brewing. Surette is a full-bodied Saison, with a good amount of dryness and funk from the oak-aging/Brettanomyces. The beer itself has a lingering tartness that can typically turn people onto sour and wild ales.