NORTH BEER CLUB
DECEMBER 2020
NORTHBREWCO
NORTHBREWINGCO
WELCOME TO DECEMBER’S NORTH BEER CLUB BOX! Hello! There are a few more of you here this month - in fact we’ve almost doubled in size! Thank you to every one of our subscribers who spread the word and encouraged friends to sign up. Here we are at box number two. This one is packed with some properly decadent treats for the festive period. We’ve got Double IPAs, we’ve got stouts, we’ve got birthday beers, and we’ve got a brand new glass for you to drink them out of. The feedback on box number one was brilliant - as ever the beer club is a work in progress and we want to make being a part of it the best possible experience for you.
For those of you who follow us on social media you may have noticed a Save The Date announcement. We are planning our first ever beer festival at our new home Springwell. North Beer Club subscribers will get early access to tickets so make sure that you save 28 - 30 May 2021 (and keep your fingers crossed for us to be out of lockdown). Thank you again for all your support this year! It’s been a wild one. Although December is going to be pretty different this year we hope that this box of beers helps you to feel festive. Have a brilliant Christmas and New Year! Love North x
We had a few people ask us for some sort of North Beer Club online group - we love this idea and have set one up on Facebook. To join scan our QR code or search ‘North Beer Club’. The group is a friendly, welcoming space where you can chat about the beers in your boxes and all other things North and beery. We’ll use it to let you know about subscriber perks and events (don’t worry, they’ll still be in this booklet for those of you not on Facebook), and also be on the lookout for any ideas and feedback.
Join the North Beer Club Facebook Group
NORTH DOES MOVEMBER We take Mental Health seriously at North Brewing Co. The industry that we are in can be a tricky space in which to look after your Mental Health: Physical work and ready access to cold beers doesn’t always encourage us to take enough time for ourselves. 2020 has been full of ups and downs - at the end of October we were facing the prospect of another national lockdown, not knowing whether to keg, can or stop brewing, all with shorter, darker, colder days ahead. Prince of the canning line, Andrew, suggested getting involved in Movember as something to lighten the mood a little, whilst also making a difference. We used Movember as a chance to chat about Mental Health on our social media channels, interviewing each moustache-d team member about the importance of self care, resources and being open. Some team members opened up about their history of Mental Health
struggles, and things that had helped them at the time. We have raised over £1200 (and counting!) and opened up important conversations around the brewery.
Thank you to everyone who has donated – we wonder which ‘taches will graduate to being a permanent style choice! To donate please visit: movember.com/t/north-brewing-co
NORTH BEER CLUB BOXES THIS MONTH GOLD SUBSCRIPTION
SILVER SUBSCRIPTION
NORTH X IMBC / SOMEHOW LOSE GLASS Style
NZ IPA
ABV
7.0%
Hops
Motueka + Simcoe
IMBC is one of our favourite festivals of the year. This year was going to be our first hosting a swimming pool (try reading that sentence out of context…). Whilst plans for the pool have been postponed, we still wanted to celebrate the Indy Man that never was. North X IMBC pays tribute to the spirit of the festival: go big and don’t go home. We used naked oats and torrefied flaked oats for a beer as thick as your head after the Saturday night session, alongside Chit Malt for some nice froth on top of your beer. New Zealand’s darling Motueka hops provide aroma, lemon and lime vibes and those tropical fruit flavours. Finally we threw in some Simcoe too, just because it’s a beaut!
Vegan / Contains Barley + Oats
NORTH X PARROTDOG Style
NZ DIPA
ABV
8.0%
Hops
Nectaron, Citra, El Dorado
This has been one of the most widely anticipated beers of 2020 amongst the brew team. Last year we brewed an IPA with New Zealand’s Parrotdog using an experimental hop called HORT 4337, which they brought over in their suitcases (it was legit, we promise). It ended up being one of our beers of the year however, we couldn’t get our hands on any more of the hops for a rebrew. Fast forward to 2020 and HORT 4337 has been legalised, named Nectaron, and is available in the UK! This beer is rich and intense, with a full passion fruit and peach flavour. Citra and El Dorado hops sit alongside the Nectaron to back up the beer with smooth fleshy pear, succulent pineapple and juicy nectarine.
Vegan / Contains Barley + Oats + Wheat
PALE BLUE EYES Style
West Coast Pale
ABV 5.5% Hops
Ahtanum, Centennial, Simcoe
Moving on from the New Zealand section of the box we’re travelling to the West Coast of America! Can you tell we’re missing travelling yet…? Pale Blue Eyes is a classic WC Pale: It’s crisp, it’s 5.5%, it’s not going to get you in trouble. Silky, resinous, oily hops coat your mouth. Blood orange juice squeezes over your tongue, aromas of flower bouquets and pine fill your nose. It’s December, who knows what Tier/Lockdown situation we’ll be in when you read this, sometimes a classic 5pm beer is what you need.
Contains Barley + Wheat
NORTH X FIELDWORK / GOLDEN MILK Style
Apricot + Coconut + Turmeric Sour
ABV
6.0%
Hops None
Originally brewed for 2019’s Rainbow Project in collaboration with California’s Field Work Brewery Golden Milk is a Turmeric, Apricot and Coconut Sour. Golden Milk was a divisive beer to say the least! Some of us begged Seb and Sam to add a rebrew to the schedule. Some of us didn’t react well to the news of its return… Golden Milk is a 6% sour made using loads of naked oats, flaked oats and wheat. We used coconut chips in the mash, boil and postfermentation. We infused cinnamon into the beer along with fresh peeled turmeric root - the smells in the brewhouse when we were making this were immense! We then finished it with the triple fruited treatment, adding 1.2 tons of organic apricot puree. It’s thick, it’s juicy, it’s aromatic, and it’s a little spicy.
Contains Barley + Oats + Wheat + Cinnamon + Lactose (Milk)
MYSTERY OF ZERO Style
Chocolate Milk Stout
ABV 6.0% Hops
HBC 472 + Magnum
Mystery of Zero is a Chocolate Milk Stout for dark December nights. Originally designed to be a cask exclusive (with an impending national lockdown, we were optimistic!), Mystery of Zero should be drunk next to a roaring fire after a brisk socially distanced walk around the park. Mystery of Zero is brewed with Chocolate, Vienna and Crystal malts, giving the beer sweetness and fudgy flavours. To this we added in vanilla paste for that Dairy Milk taste. Reminiscent of chocolate decorations on the Christmas tree or advent calendar treats.
Contains Barley + Oats + Lactose (Milk)
NORTH X MIKKELLER Style
Imperial Stout
ABV
12.5%
Hops Magnum
We turned 5 and err didn’t have a party! Instead we invited Mark from Mikkeller’s Brewpub in Exmouth Market, London up to the brewery to brew a big old birthday stout. Nine different varieties of oats and malt went into this beer to give it body, colour, roastiness, and thickness. We then got creative with muscovado sugar, cinnamon, cacao nibs, coffee from North Star and vanilla. We pretty much tried to recreate our favourite type of birthday cake in beery form. The strongest beer we’ve done in a long time (maybe ever?) this is one to be shared. Or drunk very slowly over a long evening.
Vegan / Contains Barley + Oats + Wheat + Cinnamon
NORTH X PREMIER HOP Style
Double IPA
ABV 8.3% Hops Nelson Sauvin + Amarillo + Simcoe + Citra Speaking of birthdays we weren’t the only ones celebrating this month! Our friends at Premier Hop turned 2 this winter and asked us to brew a beer to celebrate! This is our second collab with Premier Hop (anyone remember that TIPA?) and the pressure was on to brew something brilliant! We went for an 8.3% DIPA made with a host of A list hop celebrities. Roll out the green carpet, Nelson Sauvin, Amarillo, Simcoe and Citra are all guests of honour at this birthday party! We’ve been friends with Premier Hop for a while now, it’s always such a pleasure to see them and they have supported us since day one... *wipes away tear* Happy Birthday Premier Hop! We love you and wish you many, many hoppy returns.
Vegan / Contains Barley + Wheat + Oats
SPUTNIK Style
Pale Ale
ABV 5.0% Hops
Ekuanot + Columbus + Citra
Sputnik! By far the best selling beer that we’ve ever brewed. And the beer that we’ve definitely drunk the most pints of. A hazy American pale ale that has balance at its core. Sputnik is fermented using traditional English yeast and dry hopped with New World hops: Ekuanot, Columbus and Citra. Bold flavours of juicy honeydew melon, citrus grapefruit, ripe mango and a touch of lychee finish with crisp bitterness.
Vegan / Contains Barley + Oats
ORNAMENT Style
Session Kveik IPA
ABV 4.1% Hops Citra + Azzaca + Simcoe + Galaxy + Mosaic
Hopped like an IPA and fermented using Norwegian Kveik Yeast, Ornament bursts with ripe tropical aroma. The flavours are bright zesty lemon rind, aromatic pink grapefruit, succulent juicy pineapple, white grape and fleshy honey melon. This month we’re drinking Ornament to bring back memories of socially distant sunshine beers in the carpark at the brewery over the summer.
Vegan / Contains Barley + Oats
PIÑATA Style
Mango + Guava Pale Ale
ABV
4.5%
Hops
Citra + Azzaca + Mosaic
Made using New World Hops and organic fruit puree, tropical flavour explodes in this sessionable tropical pale ale. A core favourite and staple of our summer food fair Eat North - Piñata reminds us of sunny days in beer gardens during these long winter nights. Goes great with spicy food - Boxing Day turkey curry anyone?
Vegan / Contains Barley + Oats + Wheat
SPRINGWELL GLASS You’re the first to get your hands on our latest glass release. This glass celebrates the new home of North Brewing Co in Leeds: Springwell.
In a perfect world this glass would have come accompanied by Springwell Lager - a beer brewed to celebrate our new home. It’s 2020 and a fair few things haven’t gone to plan this year. The first batch of Springwell Lager didn’t taste quite how we’d planned, so we’re tweaking the recipe, analysing some samples, and rebrewing the beer. As soon as the beer is ready - it will be in your beer boxes. Until then enjoy drinking some excellent beers out of the glass!
IN THE TANKS
+
PERSISTENT ILLUSIONS
DYNAMIC TENSION
NORTH X GOOD THINGS
DOUBLE IPA
TRIPLE IPA
BARLEY WINE
THAT DONZOKO COLLAB WE MENTIONED IN LAST MONTH’S BOOKLET
AND SERIOUSLY...
SAVE THE DATE 28–30 MAY 2021