Style: Lager    
ABV: 5.0%    
IBU: 20    
Package: Draft or 32oz. Crowler Cans to-go!!

The main flavors and aromas associated with wheat, such as in a Witbier or Hefeweizen, are actually yeast driven, so wheat rarely gets an opportunity to to be the showcase of a beer, without being overpowered by other elements. Our objective with this lager was to give wheat an opportunity to take center stage by pairing it with clean fermenting yeast, and a simple recipe. We chose Virginia grown, and malted, Soft Red Wheat, from Murphy & Rude, and paired it with Virgina grown Greenmont Mother hops to produce a simple lager with a robust wheat-forward profile.

The aroma leads with flour and biscuit dough, with more subtle notes of lilac and dried lemon peel in the background. The flavor is a mix of toasted baguette and sun-dried hay, alongside delicate orange blossom and a subtle hop spice. Wheat is known for its contributions to the texture of beer, and that is no exception in this lager, it contributes a round creamy mouthfeel that fades into a pleasantly dry finish with just a hint of refreshing bitterness.

Grains: Pilsner, Murphy & Rude Soft Red Wheat, Munich, Acid
Hops: Greenmont Hopworks, Greenmont Mother
Yeast: House Lager

Style: Graf    
ABV: 4.4%    
IBU: 12    
Package: Draft & 500ml Bottles to-go!!

Anytime we get to collaborate on a beer we try to do our best to incorporate elements from all the partners involved. So when we started talking with Blue Bee Cider about a collaboration, we knew we wanted to produce something that had elements of both beer and cider. Which is why we chose to make a Graf, a hybrid of both fermented beverages. This particular Graf is modeled off an English Mild Ale, but in addition to a blend of some of our favorite Murphy & Rude Malts we also added, almost equal parts, apple pomace to the mash. 

Pomace is what remains from apples after they have been pressed for cider. The pomace we used for this project was from Hewe's Crab and Cox's Orange Pippin Apples, grown by Stony Creek Orchard, and pressed by Blue Bee Cider. Mashing the pomace with the grains this way allowed us to extract some of the remaining sugar from the apples as well as much of their flavor and aroma. The resulting beer is lighter bodied and drier than a typical English Mild, but still has plenty of toasty malt tones, accompanied by fruity apple and cider notes throughout.     

Grains: Murphy & Rude English Pale, Murphy & Rude Honey Light, Murphy & Rude Brown, Murphy & Rude Crystal 260
Hops: American Noble Simcoe
Yeast: House Ale
Other: Hewe's Crab & Cox's Orange Pippin Apple Pomace from Blue Bee Cider

Style: Hazy Pale Ale    
ABV: 5.0%    
IBU: 32  
Draft & 32oz. Crowler Cans to-go!

Nelson Sauvin is one of the most unique and sought after hops to come out of New Zealand. It is known for its distinct fruity profile, and its ability to deliver a very pleasant, mild, bitterness. We combined it with our favorite base malt, Murphy & Rude’s 6-Row Pale, to produce a hazy, hop forward Pale Ale with a round mouthfeel and a refreshing, bitter accented, finish.

The aroma is a delightful blend of crushed white grapes, candied grapefruit, and fresh white pine, but it also has subtle hints of passion fruit and tropical spices. The flavor delivers the classic gooseberry forward profile that has made this hop famous, alongside notes of papaya, lime zest, and New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Murphy & Rude’s 6-Row Pale provides a round easy drinking body but the beer still finishes crisply, with a welcomed dry, lime pith like bitterness.        

Grains: Murphy & Rude 6-Row Pale, Acid Malt
Hops: Nelson Sauvin
Yeast: Kveik

Style: IPA    
ABV: 7.0%    
IBU: 8    
Package: Draft Only

Vitalism is a hazy IPA dry hopped with Mosaic and Cashmere. Combined these two hops produce a bright aroma of tropical fruit, with notes of freshly cut papaya and peach nectar. The flavor carries some of these fruity tropical tones but also introduces bergamot, citrus zest, and mild floral notes. Vitalism has a medium body and a round mouthfeel that is paired with enough bitterness to avoid feeling too rich.      

Grains: Pilsner, Flaked Oats, Flaked Wheat, Chit Malt, Acid Malt
Hops: Mosaic, Cashmere, Cryopop  
Yeast: Kveik

Style: IPA    
ABV: 7.2%    
IBU: 50     
Package: Draft Only

We love the smell of fresh pine needles and hoped to capture some of that in this IPA by brewing it with Virginia and Loblolly pine tips, along with a malt base featuring Murphy & Rude Soft Red Wheat. Pine tips like these can add a wide range of flavors and aromas that go beyond just pine, often mimicking many of the notes we expect to come from hops, making them an excellent addition to this otherwise traditional IPA. The Virginia Pine we used displays more on the aroma, showcasing a distinct citrus character alongside fruity hops. The Loblolly brings more earthy, resiny, notes to the flavor and a minor herbal note to the finish.

Grains: Pilsner, Murphy & Rude Soft Red Wheat, Murphy & Rude Chit, Murphy & Rude Cimmerian Wheat, Acid Malt
Hops: Mosaic, Simcoe, Cashmere 
Yeast: House Ale 
Other: Foraged Virginia Pine Tips, Foraged Loblolly Pine Tips

Style: West Coast IPA    
ABV: 6.6%   
IBU: 45    
Package: Draft Only

Pouring a beautiful light copper hue, Richness of Martens is brewed to be a classic take on West Coast IPA. Hopped with a combination of Mosaic and Chinook, this IPA has an aroma that leads with notes of balsam pine, pomelo, and orange blossom. The flavor has some sweetness at first, but notes of candied orange peel and Asian pear soon give way to sappy mountain pine and a grapefruit-like bitterness that accents its dry finish. 

Grains: Pilsner, Flaked Wheat, Flaked Oats, Crystal, Acid Malt
Hops: Mosaic, Chinook 
Yeast: House Ale

Style: Czech Dark Lager     
ABV: 4.8%    
IBU: 25    
Package: Draft & 32oz. Crowler Cans to-go!

Also known as Tmavé Pivo, Czech Dark Lagers are rich, malty, beers that pack a complex array of flavors into a smooth and incredibly easy drinking package. Our interpretation of the style has a sweet, nutty, aroma that combines bread crust and cocoa nibs with subdued spicy hops. It has a medium body, and creamy texture, that carries flavors of cold brew coffee, baker’s chocolate, and cola. Meanwhile background notes of dried dark fruit, pumpernickel, and vanilla add additional layers of malty flavors before eventually fading to a dry finish. 

Grains: Pilsner, Munich, Pilsner, Crystal, Murphy & Rude Cimmerian Wheat, Acid Malt
Hops: Saaz
Yeast: House Lager

Style: Smoked Stout    
ABV: 7.0    
IBU: 50    
Package: Draft & 500ml Bottles to-go!!

We typically try to approach smoked beers with a delicate hand, hoping to produce beers that are approachable first and smokey second, this is not the case for this stout. We relied on the rich profile of our American Stout to stand up to the largest quantity of smoked malt we have ever used. The base of Murphy & Rude’s English Pale malt sweetens and tempers the robust character of Cherrywood Smoked Malt, producing a balanced, but very smoke forward, stout. 

The aroma is a blend of charred and roasty aromas with specific notes of bonfire, espresso, and treacle. The flavor showcases classic stout flavors of roasted cocoa nibs and dark roast coffee alongside a sweet, fruity, bacon-like smoke character. The end result is a smooth, dark, ale with a medium, semi-sweet, body that is balanced by a robust smoky profile and mellow dry finish. 

Grains: Murphy & Rude English Pale, Cherrywood Smoked Malt, Murphy & Rude Crystal Malt, Murphy & Rude Chocolate Wheat, Roasted Barley
Hops: Nugget 
Yeast: House Ale

Style: Gose    
ABV: 5.6%    
IBU: 10      
Package: Draft & 500ml Bottles to-go!!

We do our best to make good use of the limited space we have for growing fruit, and after several years of tending to our trees and brambles we finally had a large enough crop to make a beer with them. While we grow many different things, our blackberries and plums tend to be the most bountiful, and their complementary flavors made them a natural addition to our mixed culture Gose.

The base Gose was brewed with Murphy & Rude barley and organic raw wheat, grown just down the road, from Greater Richmond Grains. It was fermented with our wild-caught culture, before being aged for just over six months in oak. After this aging we then conditioned it on over 300 pounds of Fine Creek grown blackberries and plums. Like all of our mixed culture beers, we then packaged it and allowed it to naturally carbonate and condition in bottles and kegs.

The finished beer has a fruity aroma of fresh plums, grape skins, and blackberry blossoms. The flavor is sour with specific notes of tart wild blackberries, green plums, and freshly squeezed lemon juice. While there is a juice-like texture to the body of this beer, the level of acidity, and subtle tannins from the blackberries, make it feel much lighter, and dry out the finish considerably, producing a tart, refreshing profile with subtle fruit notes throughout.  

Grains: Murphy & Rude 6-Row Pale, Greater Richmond Grains Raw Organic Wheat, Murphy & Rude Virginia Pils, Flaked Wheat
Hops: House Aged Hersbrucker, American Nobel Citra, El Dorado
Yeast: “Slashes” Wild Culture from Ashland, VA, Belgian Ale Yeast
Other: Fine Creek Grown Blackberries, Plums, Figs, Blueberries, & Cherries, Fresh Ground Coriander, Mediterranean Sea Salt, Sweet Orange Peel

Style: Bière de Coupage  
ABV: 6.7%    
IBU: 20      
Package: Draft & 750ml Bottles

Bière de Coupage is a phrase that has been used in different ways over the years, but in general refers to a blend of young and old beer. Inspired by this tradition of blending, we took fresh Avec Frère 7, Belgian Style Dubbel, and blended it with two beers that both spent over two years in barrels, each conditioning with a different culture. This blend allows us to display mature mixed culture beer, with a complex profile and acidity, alongside fresher beer with a mellower profile and balancing bitterness, that would normally stunt the development of our other mixed cultures.

The fruit forward aroma leads with notes of black plums, dried cherries, and red grapes but also has layers of sweet vanilla, toffee, and toasted malt. Meanwhile the flavor displays a much brighter acidity than the aroma would suggest, with tart notes of red currant and unripe raspberry, that slowly mellow into notes of red wine and burnt sugar. The body has mild round juice like quality but quickly fades to a dry finish with pleasant toasty oak notes and mild tannins. This is a beer that will continue to develop in bottles and can be enjoyed fresh or after some aging.  

Below are the beers blended in this year’s Bière de Coupage:

-Sour Red Ale, aged over two years in barrels with our “Slashes” Wild Culture

-Spelt Saison, aged two years in Blenheim Vineyards Petit Verdot Barrels with a single strain of Brettanomyces bruxellensis

-Avec Frère 7, Belgian Style Dubbel, fermented in stainless steel with Belgian Ale yeast

Grains: Murphy & Rude 6-Row Pale, Murphy & Rude Malted Spelt, Epiphany Malted Wheat, Greater Richmond Grains Organic Raw Wheat, Murphy & Rude Soft Red Wheat, Murphy & Rude Belgian Amber, Red Malt, Vienna, Crystal Malt,
Hops: American Nobel Citra, American Nobel Simcoe, Nugget, House Aged Hersbrucker,
Yeast: “Resettle” Culture, “Slashes” Wild Culture, Brettanomyces bruxellensis, House Saison, Belgian Ale, Lactobacillus Blend
Other: Belgian Candi Syrup

Style: Mixed Culture Farmhouse Ale 
ABV: 11.0%    
IBU: 20    
Package: Draft & 500ml Bottles to-go!!

This beer is a blend of a fresh, dark, Belgian inspired, Farmhouse Ale with a smaller portion of mature mixed culture beer that was aged in barrels for over two years. The fresher portion of the beer helps to temper the acidity and funkiness of the barrel aged portion, but still allows the complexity of the barrel aged portion to come through. The resulting beer is a varied blend of dark malt with mixed culture overtones and specific notes of tart cherry, dark chocolate, and baking spice.

Grains:Vienna, Pilsner, Red Malt, Special B, Murphy & Rude 6-Row Pale, Murphy & Rude Malted Spelt, Epiphany Malted Wheat, Greater Richmond Grains Organic Raw Wheat, Murphy & Rude Soft Red Wheat, Murphy & Rude Belgian Amber
Hops: Greenmont Mother, American Nobel Citra, American Nobel Simcoe, Nugget, House Aged Hersbrucker 
Yeast: “Resettle” Culture, “Slashes” Wild Culture, Brettanomyces bruxellensis, House Saison, Belgian Ale, Lactobacillus Blend
Other: Belgian Candi Syrup