ASTORIA, Ore.— Buoy Beer Company will release their first Foeder beer this January 2019. Brett Saison is a blend of three saisons all featuring pilsner, wheat, Vienna and buckwheat malts. Additions of Oregon-grown Meridian hops are layered throughout and citrus zest from lemons, oranges and grapefruits were steeped in the whirlpool. All three saisons were originally fermented in stainless and one of them was acidified with lactobacillus. Once combined in the Foeder, the beer was inoculated with our blend of Brettanomyces and left to age for 10 months.
The 60BBL Foeder arrived at Buoy Beer in early 2018, purchased from The Commons Brewery at the time of their closure. Previously, the Foeder was used by Anchorage Brewing in Alaska. The Foeder addition was welcomed by the Buoy brewers, who are excited to expand the styles brewed and create unique beers with classical methods.
“Our Foeder has a lot of history to it and we are honored to be able to continue making beer with it,” says Kevin Shaw, Head Brewer. “This Foeder project has been a lot of fun because it is different than most everything else we have done at the brewery so far. It has been the chance to step outside the box a bit and try something different. We are all very proud of what we created.”
This marks the second specialty bottle release by Buoy Beer Company and the continued use of their specialty bottle label. A departure from their classic logo-centric year-round and seasonal labels, the specialty label artwork incorporates artwork from Pacific Northwest artists. The Brett Saison label artwork was created by Ashley Montangue, an artist from Portland. The label depicts an octopus pouring himself a beer from the Foeder.
“We were excited to incorporate Ashley’s art into these bottles,” says Jessyka Dart-Mclean, Marketing Manager. “Ashley has been doing live art at our annual Red, White & Buoy event for the past 4 years. His artwork is all over our restaurant wall so it seemed fitting to include him.”
When the Brettanomyces was done “doing its thing” in the Foeder, the beer was divided into three parts: one-third released as-is, one-third dry-hopped with Azacca, El Dorado and Meridian hops, and one-third infused with Starvation Alley cranberries. The first two will hit the shelves in January, with the cranberry version spending a couple extra months in wine barrels before being released. All three variations will be available in refillable 500ml bottles distributed sparsely throughout the Oregon/Washington area.
The Brett Saison and dry-hopped Brett Saison will release in bottles and on draft at Buoy on Jan. 12. Belmont Station will release the bottles on Jan. 18. Corvallis Brew Supply will release the bottles on Jan. 18.
About Buoy Beer Company
Astoria, Oregon overlooks the meeting of one of the West’s most relentless rivers and the wilderness of an entire ocean – and it’s here that Buoy Beer Company brews its beer. With balance always a priority, we focus on traditional lagers and NW ales to savor after a hard day’s work and to share with friends.