Beer Freshness

A few years back, Big Beer began advertising that their suds were fresh. You might remember the 'born on date' ads from the '90's. It brought awareness to brew beyond the 'great taste, less filling' meme.

Stone Brewing Company has decided to take newness to the next level. They've come up with something that's 'Brewed not to last.'

This Cali-based company has come up with a neat little idea. They released a beverage called 'Enjoy By' and sent to only a trio of U.S. markets in August. The brewers were quite serious about their admonition. They told elbow-benders that the stuff had to be downed by the 21st of September. Furthermore, distributors were instructed to gather any of the remaining bottles on September 22nd. Any leftovers will be returned to Stone and destroyed.

The social media campaign bolstered the product in a surprising way. Many of the package stores in the three-state target say they sold out of 'Enjoy By' in about a day.

So what makes-up a bottle of 'Enjoy By?' Stone collects 11 types of hops like Delta, Amarillo, Simcoe and Target in the kettle at first. Later in the process, during the kettle hop, Citra, Cascade and Motueka are added. Finally, the whirlpool hop gets an infusion of Galaxy and Nelson Sauvin hops at the rate of one pound per barrel. Yikes!

The company explains that this double IPA is a can-kicker. At an ABV of 9.4%, it won't take much to reach the planet of Mellow. This is what else Stone Brewing Company says about this brand new way of thinking about beer:

'You have in your hands a devastatingly fresh double IPA. While freshness is a key component of many beers - especially big, citrusy, floral IPAs - we've taken it further, a lot further, in this IPA. You see, we specifically brewed it NOT to last. We've not only gone to extensive lengths to ensure that you're getting this beer in your hands within an extraordinarily short window, we made sure that the Enjoy By date isn't randomly etched in tiny text somewhere on the label, to be overlooked by all but the most attentive of retailers and consumers. Instead, we've sent a clear message with the name of the beer itself that there is no better time than right now to enjoy this IPA.'

As a person who takes your beer swilling seriously, you already know that some kinds of high-alcohol styles need to set a spell to release their flavors. But double IPAs always need to always be fresh.

There were merely around 200 barrels of 'Enjoy By' that were brewed in this first effort. Not to worry, Stone says they'll roll-out another lot soon.

Sadly, only those fortunate folks who live in Southern California, Chicago or New Jersey will be able to wrap their lips around a bottle of this first 'Enjoy By' stuff.