Category: Seasonal

We now have our 2008 beer release calendar posted on the website. Please note that release dates more than a month from the current date are approximate and updated with the exact date two to four weeks prior to release.

» Click here to see the release calendar

Brewery only release starts at 10am; 12 bottle limit per person

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – At 10am on Saturday, March 15th 2008 Port Brewing will release the 2008 Bourbon Barrel-Aged version of The Angel’s Share. The first bottled release of one of the most highly rated beers in the world, supplies of The Angel’s Share are extremely limited, and availability is strictly a first come, first serve basis.

Release Details:

• Bottles will be $15 per cork finished 375ml bottle.
• Limit of 12 bottles per person.
• Beer is being sold at the brewery only. No email orders or holds for pick up at a later date.
• This is a special release; no discounts.
• There are approximately 120 cases available. Once it is gone, it is gone.

As with all Port Brewing special limited releases, all purchasers will be required to present valid ID at time of purchase to ensure that as many people as possible receive an allotment. For more information and the brewery location, visit www.portbrewing.com or www.lostabbey.com.

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – Port Brewing announced today that Russian River Brewing Company will distribute Port’s beers in the San Francisco Bay and Northern California regions. Under the agreement Russian River will provide Port’s full range of products, including the much-heralded Lost Abbey labels, to Russian River draft and bottle accounts.

“We’re very excited about this agreement,” said Port Brewing director of brewery operations Tomme Arthur. “Russian River is one of the most respected breweries in the world and serves the top draft houses and bottle shops in Northern California. Having them distribute our beers is great for our business.”

“There is a real buzz in the Bay Area regarding Port Brewing / Lost Abbey beers,” Russian River Brewer/Owner Vinnie Cilurzo added. “We’re happy to have a hand in making sure that Northern California beer lovers can enjoy these great beers.”

Port Brewing and Russian River have a longstanding history that dates back to the earliest days of both breweries. Cilurzo and Arthur are good friends and enthusiastic supporters of one another who frequently team up for special events as well as the occasional brewing collaboration.

Russian River will distribute Port Brewing / Lost Abbey beers to its accounts in the city of San Francisco and the East Bay, as well as Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties in the northern Bay Area. Deliveries are expected to begin in March 2008. For more information, contact Port Brewing company at tel:(760) 889-9318, or email: lostabbey @ gmail.com.

About Port Brewing / Lost Abbey
Founded in 2006, Port Brewing Company is 2007’s Great American Beer Festival Small Brewery of the Year and produces a line of award-winning American ales as well as the groundbreaking Lost Abbey family of Belgian-inspired beers. Craft brewed under the direction of co-founder and three-time GABF brewer of the year, Tomme Arthur, five beers are issued under the Lost Abbey label year-round: Avant Garde, Lost and Found, Red Barn, Devotion and Judgment Day. Additionally, a number of seasonal and specialty releases are offered at various times throughout the year. As many of these are blended and aged for up to 18 months in French Oak, Brandy and Bourbon barrels, Lost Abbey beers are universally recognized for their complexity, unique flavors, and bold, boundary-pushing styles. Port Brewing is located at 155 Mata Way, Suite 104, San Marcos, CA 92069, USA. Telephone (760) 889-9318, web: www.lostabbey.com.

Media Contact:
Sage Osterfeld
tel: (760) 295-4490
email: sage (at) bluntid.com

Tomme returns to Imbibe Magazine this month, this time talking about Session beers. The article by Adem Tepedelem is titled Smallville and includes some great photography and interviews with a number of other brewers as well.

The January/February 2008 issue of Imbibe is on newstands now.

» Read the article here (Courtesy of Imbibe).

Limited Edition Barrel-aged Flanders-style red ale available on January 19th

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – Port Brewing /The Lost Abbey will issue its long-awaited first release of Red Poppy Ale on January 19, 2008. A Flanders-style red ale made with sour cherries and aged in French Oak barrels for one year, the 60 case limited edition release will only be available directly from the brewery.

A medium-bodied ale, Red Poppy has a reddish-brown hue, rich fruit aroma, and a complex mélange sour cherry, plum and red wine flavors accented with notes of chocolate and vanilla.

The beer’s name was inspired by head brewer Tomme Arthur’s annual springtime sojourns to Flanders, a time when fields of the Northern Belgian province are covered with the fiery red flowers.

Release Details: 60 cases; 375ml cork-finished bottles. Four bottle maximum per person. 5% ABV; $15 per bottle

Sales of the beer begin at 10am on Saturday, January 19th. More information on the release can be obtained via email at lostabbey @ gmail.com or on The Lost Abbey website at www.lostabbey.com

About Port Brewing / Lost Abbey
Founded in 2006, Port Brewing Company is 2007’s Great American Beer Festival Small Brewery of the Year and produces a line of award-winning American ales as well as the groundbreaking Lost Abbey family of Belgian-inspired beers. Craft brewed under the direction of co-founder and three-time GABF brewer of the year, Tomme Arthur, five beers are issued under the Lost Abbey label year-round: Avant Garde, Lost and Found, Red Barn, Devotion and Judgment Day. Additionally, a number of seasonal and specialty releases including Ten Commandments, Cuvee de Tomme and the Angel’s Share, are offered at various times throughout the year. As many of these are blended and aged for up to 18 months in French Oak, Brandy and Bourbon barrels, Lost Abbey beers are universally recognized for their complexity, unique flavors, and bold, boundary-pushing styles. Port Brewing is located at 155 Mata Way, Suite 104, San Marcos, CA 92069, USA. Telephone (760) 889-9318, web: www.lostabbey.com.

It’s Friday night. I’m sitting at the bar and there are patrons sampling beers including our two Christmas Beers- Port Brewing Santa’s Little Helper Imperial Stout and The Lost Abbey Gift of the Magi. Me, I’m having a huge glass of Gift of the Magi. Teri brought in some cheese for the tasting bar tonight so we’re having Humboldt Fog with Garlic Crisped Crackers. We’re also having some Brie with Roasted Onion and Black Pepper Crackers. If this sounds too good to be true, it’s not. Stinky cheese Plates on Friday nights is awesome.

So, now that I have the beer and food pairings and my bonus points out of the way, I should probably dive into the topic at hand.

I grew up Catholic and Christmas means something to me. It means that I grew up celebrating Catholic Religious stuff- you know like Jesus, Reindeers, Wooden toys and stuff. Fast forward to today, and some of that luster is gone. I’m not sure which year it went away. But somewhere in my youth to adolescence movement it went by by. You know the part where we say Merry Christmas?

Personally, I hate this notion that we shouldn’t offend anyone and as such we should wish them “Happy Holidays.” Sorry, screw that. NOT Screw you, but Screw that! I like Christmas. So Merry Christmas to you and yours.

At Port Brewing, we make not one but two Christmas beers. I like Christmas that much. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t enjoy the waiting in line to buy presents part. I certainly loathe the what color sweater might I be getting this year type gifts. But mostly, I am not a fan of the “Unspirited Christmas.” You know, the Christmas where everyone is too busy to notice that at the end of the day we’re supposed to at the very least be Thankful? It’s too much Dickens and BAH Humbug for me.

However, as a brewer each year, I am presented with the fantastical opportunity to connect with celebrating beer enthusiasts each and every year who are truly in touch with the meaning of christmas. And for all you South Park fans out there, it’s not HAM!

I decided that this blog would be about our newest Christmas beer called Gift of the Magi. I could easily have written about the last 11 years worth of batches of Santa’s Little Helper (can we have a blog session someday about Simpson’s inspired beer names too)? But Santa’s Little Helper is old school like Burl Ives, Bing Crosby and the Little Drummer Boy.

So this evening, I thought I would share my thoughts on our new friends the Magi. When I set out to design a Christmas Beer for The Lost Abbey, I thought about the things that I truly enjoy each and every year in beers for the holiday season. For what it’s worth, I am not a huge Wassail fan and Munich Malt doesn’t come bearing plates of Fruit Cake around here too often. I like spiced beers but right now, nothing stands out in my mind as a spice that I would like to evoke. Besides, I appreciate Anchor’s Christmas beer and love that they keep the spicing a Fort Knox like secret.

So tell us about the Gift of the Magi you say. Initially, it was my plan to find a way to incorporate Gold, Frankincese and Myrh into the beer. I actually think it’s possible to do this but at the end of the day, it just seemed like to big of a gimmick for what I wanted to accomplish.

And you ask? What was it that I wanted to accomplish in designing and releasing another Christmas beer? First, I wanted something memorable. I’m not a fan of anything that doesn’t attempt to stand out. So, it had to have perspective. So we brewed a more contemplative Biere de Garde which we dry hopped and spiked with Brettanomyces at bottling. That ought to take care of the standing out like the kid picking his nose in the back row of the 5th Graders performance of “Oh Come All Ye Faithful” each year.

But I also felt it needed to say “Merry Effin Christmas Jesus is the Reason for the season keep Christ in Christmas Away in a Manger, here’s your religion in a 750ml bottle (Thanks Jeff) don’t worry about not going to church this year. Hopefully, there’s enough panache in each bottle that God Fearing Heathens (our Sinners and Saints alike) will find their own personal savior each time the cork is popped.

The taste is something I think will resonate with our patrons. The beer pours with a muted and glowing orange opacity. You might even say it radiates the colors of a candle burning in a manger. The aromas are bold with notes of honey, candied fruits and herbal hops. The first sip presents faint sweetness and a long dry finish with noticeable hops. At this time, the Brettanomyces has yet to really assert itself.

It is my hope this Christmas Season that there will be an Epiphany of sorts after the first of the year when these friends of ours will arrive. And when they do, our Magi will come bearing gifts of Alcohol, Hops and Wild Yeast. That my friends will make me very Merry. Because as we know, Christmas is about giving more than receiving. Here’s to hoping that The Gift of the Magi continues to give to each and every beer drinker seeking the meaning of Christmas in a bottle.

Imbibe Magazine’s November/December issue features an entertaining article by Stan Hieronymus titled Symphonic Brew. An examination of the art of batch-blending beer, it profiles a number of American brewers dabbling in beer alchemy, including our own brewers, Tomme Arthur and Vince Marsaglia.

The end of the story also includes tasting notes on nine great batch-blended beers, most notably Lost Abbey’s GABF 2007 Gold Medal winner Cuvee de Tomme.

You can download and read the entire article right here:

» Imbibe Magazine Symphonic Brew (PDF – Courtesy of Imbibe Magazine.)

Brewery celebrates the start of the holidays with release of Older Viscosity, Amazing Grace and Gift of the Maji

SAN MARCOS, Calif. — Beer lovers will have a reason to put down the turkey leftovers and give thanks of another kind this weekend when Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey issues three new limited releases for the holiday season. Beginning at 11:00 am this Saturday, November 24th, brewery visitors will be able to purchase the following special brews:

Older Viscosity
The barrel-aged version of the popular Old Viscosity. A dark, strong ale aged over a year in American oak bourbon barrels, it’s a deep, silky black brew thick with luscious chocolate, cocoa, vanilla and caramel flavors balanced by notes of burnt wood and ash.
Release: 120 cases; 375ml cork-finished bottles. Maximum 6 bottles per person. 12% ABV; $10 per bottle.

Amazing Grace
A barrel-aged issue of the brewery’s lauded Lost & Found Abbey Dubbel ale. Aged 6 months in French Oak Red Wine barrels Amazing Grace matches an earth burnt umber color with rich aromas and complex flavors of figs, molasses and dried fruits.
Release: 80 cases; 750ml cork-finished bottles. Maximum 4 bottles per person. 8.5% ABV; $12 per bottle.

Gift of the Maji
The Lost Abbey’s first release of this Winter Seasonal ale, Gift of the Maji is a deep golden caramel-colored Bière de Garde brewed to a contemplative 9% ABV and bottle conditioned with Brettanomyces. Laden with toasted malt and caramel flavors accented by notes of grape, apple and cherry, its truly magical gift is a complexity that grows and softens as it ages.
Release: 170 cases; 750ml cork-finished bottles. Maximum 2 bottles per person. 9% ABV; $12 per bottle.

To ensure the largest number of people receive these limited releases, patrons will be required to present identification, and purchase quantities will be recorded. Those who attended the Lost Abbey Barrel tasting in October and reserved bottles at that time will be limited to purchasing the reserved amount.

Members of The Lost Abbey Patron Saints will be able to purchase their allotments of these releases one day in advance, beginning at 4:00pm on Friday, November 23rd.

More information on these releases can be obtained via email at lostabbey@gmail.com or on The Lost Abbey website at www.lostabbey.com

About Port Brewing / Lost Abbey
Founded in 2006, Port Brewing Company is 2007’s Great American Beer Festival Small Brewery of the Year and produces a line of award-winning American ales as well as the groundbreaking Lost Abbey family of Belgian-inspired beers. Craft brewed under the direction of co-founder and three-time GABF brewer of the year, Tomme Arthur, five beers are issued under the Lost Abbey label year-round: Avant Garde, Devotion, Lost and Found, Red Barn and Judgment Day. Additionally, a number of seasonal and specialty releases including Ten Commandments, Cuvee de Tomme and the Angel’s Share, are offered at various times throughout the year. As many of these are blended and aged for up to 18 months in French Oak, Brandy and Bourbon barrels, Lost Abbey beers are universally recognized for their complexity, unique flavors, and bold, boundary-pushing styles. Port Brewing is located at 155 Mata Way, Suite 104, San Marcos, CA 92069, USA. Telephone (760) 889-9318, web: www.lostabbey.com.

From the article:

King Arthur’s kingdom was in disarray.

After a triumphant weekend in Denver at the nation’s largest beer competition, Tomme Arthur returned here to find his brewery – Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey – under siege.

A balky capping machine had spoiled cases of Shark Bite Red Ale.

A glass supplier has run out of the distinctive bottles that hold the distinctive Lost Abbey ales.

The tiny brewery has so many orders, it’s unable to fill them all.

Still, it’s nice to be king. Last month at the Great American Beer Festival, the industry’s annual showcase, Arthur’s beers won three medals. Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey, which opened its doors in 2006, was dubbed the nation’s best small brewery, and Arthur was crowned the top small-brewery brewer.

» Read the rewst of the article (Via Sign On San Diego)

It’s official! On November 10th, 2007 we will open the doors at Port Brewing Company and release the 2007 Brandy Barrel Aged version of The Angel’s Share.

In order to accommodate more interest and demand in this beer, we will be opening the doors at 10 AM. We “may” have bottles of Older Viscosity available for sale as well. This all depends on our bottling situation this weekend. There is about a 25% chance these will be ready.

Please also note the following rules for this release:

• Bottles will be $15 per cork finished 750ml bottle.
• There will be a limit of 6 bottles per person.
• You will need identification to buy these beers as each person will only be allowed to purchase 6 bottles.
• This beer is being sold at the brewery only.
• We will NOT take email orders nor will we hold back bottles for pick up at a later date.
• We will NOT ship this beer to out of state patrons.

Once it is gone, it is gone.

There are about 90 Cases available for Sale next weekend.

In a little over one years time, The Angel’s Share has become one of the most desirable beers that we produce. As such, we are implementing the above rules this year to ensure that as many people as possible can secure their allotment.

We believe a system like this is necessary and we ask for your patience on Saturday as we test it out and work out the kinks for future releases.