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Two More Years

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After all this time old man Giles is still around — mug definitely hoisted in the air, pleading for more weight. In fact, so much has been piled upon him that the town has run out of stone*. New rock must be sourced and that buys us a little time to reflect upon these last two years. Sit down and I’ll pour you a pint…

Beer
Since our last update in May 2010 we’ve brewed 14 new batches under the GCBC label — some completely new concepts, and others recreations of past favorites:

Blueberry Kolsch, The Great Gulper, Dark Things, Harvest Brown, Double IPA, Raisin Olde Ale, Zuricher II, Ril Dil Pils II, Hop Ceiling, Homstead Noble Pils, Pumphaus Pumpkin Heffe, Dark Things II, Rust, Golden Fleece II

Last June, an old friend from San Francisco stopped by. As a side project we brewed a clone of a favorite beer, 21st Amendment’s Watermelon Wheat. Since it’s not distributed here the next best thing was to try and replicate it. The result was spot on. A crisp beer so refreshing and delicious that it resulted in more than a few than a few afternoon blackouts and served as the catalyst for the brewing marathon that followed.

After just a few pints, our friend Jason Shea was so inspired (or drunk?) that he purchased an [expensive] replica of the GCBC brew system on the spot. Over time he’s become a loyal apprentice  and together we’ve brewed several collaboration batches:

American & Belgian Pale Ale, ECHOFest II, Coffee Stout & India Dark Ale

Moving On
Brewmaster Zac purchased a new home last May — a charming, old world colonial in Hebron very fitting to his style. We brewed the Homestead Noble Pils on-site in the old barn out back and lagered it for almost a year. Tasty.

Brewery friend & consultant Dan “D-Money” Smith (a key contributor on batch #1 – Pumpkin Porter) also left to attend grad school in Philadelphia — he’s now our CEO in training. Before he said goodbye to Connecticut we hit up the beach in Watch Hill, RI where we discovered the joys of Copper Bell light. For $4.99/12 pack at Whole Foods this stuff is cheaper than water. I don’t often stray away from Giles’ own brew, but when I do, I’m a Copper Bell man.



A Storm Is Brewing
New England was devastated in August 2011 by tropical storm Irene. For 7 days the brewery was without power and the lagers went warm. Like Giles himself, the brews soldiered on and persisted despite the harsh conditions. We like to think that the Homestead Noble Pils has a bit of extra character for it.

It couldn’t happen again, right? Two months later the hurri-blizzi-cane knocked out power for another week. The lagers rejoiced while the rest of us died a little bit inside. I felt for everyone from my luxury hotel room in Chicago.



The Future

Spring is here and the beer is fresh. Our hop crop is up to almost 20 vines. We have kegs of Rust, our latest American Pale Ale, and the Golden Fleece will be tapped soon. There is talk of Jay brewing a Blueberry Heffe and Giles’ has considered crafting a brewery first — a German Radler — using an authentic Helles base.

Good times ahead! Stay thirsty, friends.



* …or just maybe Brewmaster Zac stole it all for use in his stone wall.


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