BEER MEETS ALCOHOL

From a coffee-infused Weizenbock, a Belgian Dubbel matured in ex-rum casks to an Imperial Stout aged in ex-whisky casks, beer is on a colonising spree.

- Gagan Sharma

You toy with wines and beers in any way, and it'll irk the purists. They are considered sacrosanct, and disturbing their zen could be punishable by an act of god. However, this simple narrative is now changing. New-age brewers are challenging the status-quo and injecting more flavours, through unprecedented means, producing daring combinations, that will definitely raise eyebrows in suspicion, and maybe in awe too.

The Beer Matchmaker

The term ‘beer-meets-alcohol’ signals beer coming together with other alcohols, usually to create a cocktail. Micheladas put beer and tomato juice together, Boilermaker has a shot of whiskey followed by chugging a pour of beer, Margarita topped up with lager is a Lageritas—you get the gist. Beyond these, brewers are now taking matters in their hands, and getting innovative. Delhi’s FortCity Brewing was recently awarded the best craft brewery in India, at the coveted 30BestBars show, and at its helm is lawyer-turned-brewer Gautham Gandhi. He hasn't been shy at being touted as the unofficial matchmaker of the beer world, finding suitable spouses for his own crafty brews. In the recent past, FortCity has introduced a coffee-infused Weizenbock, a Belgian Dubbel matured in ex-rum casks, an Imperial Stout aged in ex-whisky casks, and is on to make one with limoncello.

“When I became a brewer, the idea was to do something that makes everyone drink beers. I could see Delhi bartenders’ dishing out funky flavours, which moved me to do something of my own. While we were opening FortCity, we knew that spirits will become an easy entry for those with a limited exposure to craft beers. We reached out to a few of our friends in the Indian craft spirits space, and came up with these barrel-aged beers. The intent was also to position beers as the catalyst that puts everything together in terms of what the industry has given to us today”, says Gautham.