Clifton Park, NY — Hot on the heels of its 2nd Anniversary extravaganza, Shmaltz Brewing Company joins forces yet again with Missouri’s Cathedral Square Brewery and Georgia’s Terrapin Brewing to bring back two summer treats, including the third resurrection of St. Lenny’s, in honor of patron saint Lenny Bruce, and a brand-new recipe for Reunion Ale ’15 — A Beer for Hope. Rejoice! St. Lenny’s Belgian Style Rye Double India Pale Ale returns with Shmaltz and Cathedral Square’s “Immaculate Collaboration.” Shmaltz teams up for the fifth year-in-a-row with Terrapin Beer Company, Alan Shapiro (founder of SBS Imports) and Pete Slosberg’s (creator of Pete’s Wicked Ale) to create Reunion Ale ’15, a special dark ale brewed with Pumpkin, Cinnamon, Chocolate, Cocoa Nibs, Ginger, Nutmeg, Vanilla, and Chili Pepper Extract. Reunion Ale ’15 marks Shmaltz’s first ever pumpkin brew, they finally gave in to the pumpkin beer craze! A portion of the proceeds from Reunion Ale ’15 are donated directly to The Institute for Myeloma and Bone Cancer Research. National fundraising events will occur throughout the fall; events to be announced on Shmaltz’s event calendar at www.shmaltzbrewing.com.
St. Lenny’s® (July – August 2015)
For its 10th Anniversary in 2006, Shmaltz brewed the first batch of Bittersweet Lenny’s R.I.P.A. to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the death of prophetic Jewish comedian Lenny Bruce. The rye-based double IPA went on to win two Gold medals at the World Beer Championships (2010 & 2011), and it currently holds a 97 Rating with RateBeer.com and a 99 rating from the beer bros at BeerAdvocate. Its barrel-aged incarnation,R.I.P.A. on Rye took home Silver medals at both the Great American Beer Festival (2010, Wood & Barrel Aged Strong Beer Category) and National Wood-Aged Beer Competition (2010).
St. Lenny’s flips the award-winning rye double IPA on its head using a custom Belgian yeast blend (2 Trappist and 1 Abbey) with the original R.I.P.A. recipe. With a spicy punch of rye and caraway, fruity clove and anise flavors, and a gorgeous Belgian character, St. Lenny’s is destined to intrigue hop heads and Belgian beer fans alike.
“The Immaculate Collaboration” is a labor of love, shvitz and shtick between two longtime friends and colleagues, Jeremy Cowan (Founder, Shmaltz Brewing) and Brian Neville (Brewmaster, Cathedral Square Brewery). As a disciple of Belgian-style creations, Neville suggested the use of their Belgian yeast to create a monk-inspired version of Bittersweet Lenny’s R.I.P.A.®. The result is an amazing flavor profile of hopped-up goodness rounded out with a soft Belgian character. The Belgian Style Imperial Dark Rye Ale will be distributed throughout Shmaltz’s national sales network, and a limited edition 750 cork finished bottles will be available in Missouri and at the Shmaltz Tasting Room in Upstate, New York.
Cowan notes, “After a decade of shared brewing connections, I couldn’t be more excited to once again cook up St. Lenny’s with Cathedral Square’s audacious brewmaster Brian Neville. I’m still mad that he stole my thunder by coming up with such exceptional shtick — but can’t wait to share the amazing flavors with our cult of He’brew enthusiasts.”
Shmaltz Brewing Company and St. Louis’ own Cathedral Square Brewery celebrate the national launch of St. Lenny’s: The Immaculate Collaboration (10% ABV) with two “Meet the Brewers” events during St. Louis Craft Beer Week 2015. Don’t miss this special opportunity to schmooze with Jeremy Cowan and Brian Neville as these two gurus preach the gospel of beer at Flying Saucer (July 31) and 21st Street Brewers Bar (Aug 1). At both events, each brewery will pour St. Lenny’s as well as several craft beer selections from their acclaimed portfolios.
Reunion Ale ’15 – A Beer for Hope® (September – October 2015)
Shmaltz Brewing proudly joins Terrapin Beer Company and Alan Shapiro (founder of SBS Imports) to participate in brewing Reunion Ale ’15 – A Beer for Hope. Reunion is brewed annually in memory of Virginia MacLean, a dedicated cancer research supporter who lost her own battle with Multiple Myeloma in 2007 and a dear friend and co-worker of Alan Shapiro and Pete Slosberg’s (creator of Pete’s Wicked Ale). As a tribute to Virginia, a portion of the proceeds from Reunion Ale ’15 is donated to the Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research (IMBCR) in Virginia’s name.
Reunion Ale ’15 is a dark Imperial Brown Ale brewed with Pumpkin, Cinnamon, Chocolate, Cocoa Nibs, Ginger, Nutmeg, Vanilla, and Chili Pepper Extract. Following its initial release in 2007, the Reunion project has raised more than $130,000 for the IMBCR through bottle and draft sales of Reunion, retailer fundraising events, and private donations. Beer lovers can also donate money directly through the Reunion website, the Reunion Facebook page, or the IMBCR website.
“At 8%, Reunion will have a sturdy backbone, but a light elegance from the Belgian Monastery Yeast mixed with the delicate additions of hand selected spices and seasonal flavors,” says Shmaltz Lead Brewer Richie Saunders. “A pumpkin beer for Belgian beer lovers, Reunion will stir the senses with its light airy aroma that blends the seasonal favorites with a traditional dark Belgian Abbey-Styled Ale. The nose will be rich with the warm aroma of cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin, chocolate, cracked pepper and ginger. The flavors will be smooth caramel malts, mild chocolate, warming cinnamon and nutmeg with refreshing ginger and lingering chili pepper. This is certainly not a pumpkin beer to miss out on!”
Terrapin Brewmaster Brian “Spike” Buckowski will be onsite at the Shmaltz brewery to brew Reunion Ale ’15 with Lead Brewer Richie Saunders on Tuesday, July 28, 2015. Media are welcome to attend the brewing session for an exclusive look into the truly collaborative spirit behind this extra special fundraiser beer.
Reunion Ale ’15 will be available in 22 oz bottles, as well as limited amounts of draft in the nearly 40 U.S. states and in Western Canada through Shmaltz’s distribution network.
About IMBCR:
The Institute for Myeloma and Bone Cancer Research is dedicated to independent research on developing effective therapies that improve the quality of life and longevity of patients with myeloma and bone cancer. Myeloma and bone cancer are two of the fastest growing diseases in the world, afflicting more than one million people in the U.S. alone.
About Shmaltz Brewing Company:
Ranked in 2013 as one of the “Top 100 Brewers in the World” by RateBeer.com, Shmaltz won 9 Gold and 5 Silver Medals in the World Beer Championships in 2012. A recipient of the “Distinguished Business Award” by the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, Shmaltz was also included in the “Top 50 Fastest Growing Bay Area Companies” by San Francisco Business Times.
Founder and owner Jeremy Cowan established the company in San Francisco in 1996 with the first 100 cases of He’brew Beer® hand bottled and delivered throughout the Bay Area in his Grandmother’s Volvo. He’brew now sells across 37 states, through 40 wholesalers and nearly 5,000 retailers. In 2007, Shmaltz released a new line of craft brewed lagers under the Coney Island® banner. In August of 2013, the Coney Island brand was acquired by Alchemy and Science, a craft beer incubator, owned by Boston Beer (Sam Adams).
After 17 years of being an outspoken cheerleader for contract brewing, Shmaltz recently broke with tradition and opened its own New York State production brewery in Clifton Park, NY, 10 minutes north of Albany’s capital district. Shmaltz’s new home boasts a 50-barrel brewhouse with 35,000 barrels of annual capacity. The new brewery packages 12 and 22 ounce bottles and kegs of their diverse core and seasonal favorites, and hosts fans and beer tourists in their new tasting room for tours, barrel-aged previews, and special releases.
In 2010/11, Cowan published his small business memoir, Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah: How It Took 13 Years, Extreme Jewish Brewing, and Circus Sideshow Freaks to Make Shmaltz Brewing Company an International Success. A free sampling of Chapter One and suggested beer pairings, can be viewed at www.craftbeerbarmitzvah.com. In 2012, Cowan spearheaded the creation of the non-profit New York City Brewers Guild (which manages NYC Beer Week) and served as its Founding President.
Cowan also has presented at the 2013 Craft Brewers Conference, as well as previous Great American Beer Festivals, BevNet’s Brewbound conference, Beer Advocate’s Extreme Beer Festival, the Atlanta and the St. Louis Jewish Book Fairs, and the San Francisco and New York Jewish Museums.
Shmaltz Brewing beers have appeared in such distinguished media outlets as The New York Times, CNN Headline News, Beer Advocate Magazine, NPR’s “Weekend Edition,” Fox Business News, Men’s Health, San Francisco Chronicle, The Jerusalem Report, New York Jewish Week, andWashington Post.