Drew Curtis / Wil Wheaton / Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout Debuts Monday
(Escondido, CA) – What happens when a professional brewer, a home brewer, and a guy that really likes to drink craft beer get together to brew? In the case of Stone Brewing Co. CEO and Co-founder Greg Koch; actor, craft beer lover and overall geek idol Wil Wheaton; and Fark.com creator Drew Curtis…an extremely imaginative, dark, hoppy, massive beer. Monday, Drew Crutis/Wil Wheaton/Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout is debuting throughout the U.S. on tap and in bottles featuring commemorative artwork.
The story of how these three men, and dare we say, geeks, met requires a complex explanation and jaunt back in time. In 2005, Wil Wheaton signed up for the Stone email newsletter and just so happened to be the company’s 10,000 email subscriber. Astonished that THE Wil Wheaton was the lucky subscriber, Koch reached out to him to say thank you, and laid the foundation for what blossomed into a friendship based on a mutual appreciation of brewing delicious craft beer. Koch and Wheaton discussed brewing together for some time but were unable to coordinate a date to meet up until the clouds parted, the sunshine beamed down and, finally, their busy schedules were cleared to make room for a reunion in the brewhouse. Next on the agenda was deciding who to include in their collaborative effort. Wheaton suggested Curtis, as they have been friends for more than 10 years. Additionally, Koch had met the Fark.com creator on several occasions. In April, the trio convened at Stone’s brewing facility to craft what is now known as Drew Curtis/Wil Wheaton/Greg Koch Stone Farking w00tstout.
“Wil does such a great job of communicating to other people the joy of home brewing,” said Koch. “I like the way he unabashedly shares his love for it, so I asked Wil if he would like to join us for a brew session. He agreed, and since we do collaborations in threes, Wil suggested Curtis. It was a lot of fun brewing with these guys and I have to say, I’m really impressed with the result!”
“Brewing at Stone was the culmination of many years of learning to love amazing craft beer and then learning how to make it myself,” said Wheaton. “Having the opportunity to work with people I really like and respect and do it on a grand scale was great.”
“Don’t ask me why, but I had no idea when I agreed to this that I’d actually end up making the beer,” said Curtis. “I thought Greg and crew would have preferred to do it themselves, but apparently watching me and Wil fumble around with 50 pound bags of malted wheat and crushed pecans was plenty hilarious I definitely had a blast doing it!” (Editor’s note: Hilarity Ensued??)
In addition to beer’s tradition ingredients – water, hops, lamted barley and yeast – Drew Curtis/Wil Wheaton/Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout was brewed with wheat, rye and pecans. After fermenting, a portion of this imperial stout was stored in bourbon whiskey barrels for two and a half months, and then blended with the rest of the beer to add complexity. The result is a beer bursting with myriad smells and flavors including cocoa, coffee, licorice, oak, nuts, vanilla and of course, bourbon. In what may be the highest alcohol beer ever brewed at Stone, it clocks in at 13 percent alcohol-by-volume (ABV) and 65 international bittering units (IBUs). The beer is ready to enjoy now, or may be properly cellared for several months or years. Over time, it will develop deeper, rounder coffee, nutty and bourbon flavors as the hop aroma and bitterness subside.
Stone decided to release three bottles with various artwork labels. Why? Why not! The first design is Stone’s 2013 collaboration beer bottle design featuring an intricate hop vine crest with hop cones. A second “hero” bottle features illustrations of Koch, Wheaton and Curtis as superheros complete with capes, masks and a gargoyle emblem on the chest of Koch’s outfit. The final “comic” bottle includes artwork by comic artist Joel Watson of HijiNKS Ensue, in which each collaborator offers one of the key ingredients for the beer – Curtis’ pecans (he’s a Southerner), Wheaton’s wheat (his name is WHEATon) and Koch’s hops (he’s a confessed hop addict). The hero and comic bottles are limited release (hint: collector’s items).
Name: Drew Curtis/Wil Wheaton/Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout
Stats: 13% ABV, 65 IBUs
Availability: Limited 22-ounce bottles and draft, beginning July 15
Hops Bill: English Target
Distribution: AK, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT and WA.
About Stone Brewing Co.
Known for its bold, flavorful and largely hop-centric beers, Stone Brewing Co. has been brewing in North County San Diego since 1996. Founded by Greg Koch and Steve Wagner, Stone is the 10th largest craft brewer in the United States – a position it achieved without paid advertising, discounting or compromising standards. In addition to brewing, Stone owns two eclectic farm-to-table restaurants- Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens- Escondido and Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens- Library Station- and Stone Farms, an organic farm located near the brewery which grows produce for the restaurants. Stone also operates an off-site events company, Stone Catering, as well as Stone Distributing Co., which distributes more than 30 craft beer brands throughout Southern California. For more information, please visit stonebrewing.com or on social media sites: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram,Google+, YouTube, and The Stone Blog.
