Widmer Brothers Releases Old Embalmer ’12
Portland, OR – Widmer Brothers Brewing has released Old Embalmer ’12, a barleywine style ale, the third offering in the brewery’s Alchemy Project. The Alchemy Project is a series of three bold, vintage-dated beers that can be enjoyed immediately or cellared to improve with age. Widmer Brothers will release limited quantities of each Alchemy Project beer every year.
Like all Alchemy Project beers, Widmer Brothers will brew Old Embalmer each year; however for this beer, the brewery will feature a different hop varietal in each vintage. Old Embalmer ‘12 features Bravo hops, a varietal is from Oregon’s Willamette Valley. The Bravo hop was chosen for its fruit forward flavors that will balance the beer’s strong malt bill.
“Old Embalmer Barleywine Ale is great upon release, but – true to its name – we found that it will also cellar exceptionally well,” said brewer Doug Rehberg. “This year’s beer was brewed with copious amounts of malts, and features Bravo hops, which provide earthy, fruity and floral qualities for a brilliant balance and velvety finish. We are excited to be bottling and labeling it as part of our Alchemy Project series and hope other beer lovers enjoy it too.”
Widmer Brothers first brewed Old Embalmer in 1999. At that time, Widmer Brothers’ brewer Doug Rehberg, who was interested in crafting a unique iteration of the style for the brewery, spearheaded the project to create Old Embalmer. Throughout the years, the brewery has offered the Old Embalmer barleywine at its Gasthaus pub in Portland, Ore. and discovered its age-worthy potential.
Old Embalmer ’12 will be available in 22-ounce bottles and 1/6 barrels beginning July 30.
About Old Embalmer ’12
Tasting Notes
- Big, malty character
- Notes of toffee, vanilla and sweet caramel
- Robust body
- Pleasant floral and herbal Bravo hop quality
Ingredients
- Malts: 2 Row Pale, Caramel 60L
- Hops: Alchemy for bittering, Bravo for aroma
Profile
- Original Gravity: 21.5 P
- Apparent Extract: 4 P
- IBU: 75
- ABV: 10.2%
- Color: 23 SRM
About the Alchemy Project
In late 2011, Widmer Brothers Brewing launched the Alchemy Project, a new series of high-end, bold, vintage-dated beers that are brewed for cellaring. Like fine wine, Alchemy Project beers can be enjoyed immediately, but the process of cellaring and aging these beers contributes to enhanced flavor profiles and complexities as the beers evolve with time. This series showcases that evolution.
The Alchemy Project will include three specialty craft beers each year. Each will be released in limited quantities, and the same three beers will be released every year. The series was launched with the release of Barrel Aged Brrrbon ’11 last year, a follow-up to Barrel Aged Brrrbon ’10, which was initially released as part of the Widmer Brothers Brothers’ Reserve Series. Raspberry Russian Imperial Stout was the second Alchemy Project release, and Old Embalmer ’12 is the third.
About Widmer Brothers Brewing
What started as a dream for two ordinary brothers who just loved beer has now become a reality for two ordinary brothers who still just love beer. Kurt and Rob Widmer helped lead the Pacific Northwest craft beer movement in 1984 when, in their 20s, they dreamed of brewing unique interpretations of traditional beer styles. In 1986, Widmer Brothers Brewing introduced the first American-style Hefeweizen; today, the unfiltered cloudy beer is the company’s signature brew and one of the best-selling wheat beers in the country. Based in Portland, Ore., the brewery currently brews a variety of beers including Drifter Pale Ale, Nelson Imperial IPA, Rotator IPA Series, Drop Top Amber Ale and Pitch Black IPA. For more information about Widmer Brothers Brewing, visit www.widmerbrothers.com.
