By now Americans are used to English beers served from cans or bottles on nitro, Guinness and Bodington’s have been doing it for years. We are equally accustomed to these brews served on draught with the characteristic falling bubbles and creamy head. But, there are few American beers that are served on nitro from the tap much less from a bottle. Until now that is.
Left Hand Brewing out of Longmont, Colo. has been producing an extremely popular and tasty Milk Stout that has been served in Jacksonville for quite some time. But, until now, the only way you could get this brew is on tap. Last year that all changed when the geniuses at Left Hand figured out a way to bottle their delicious brew with nitro. Alone this may not seem like a big deal. But these guys figured out how to retain the creamy character of a nitro stout without using a device known as a “widget” in the bottle to release the nitrogen.
The exact method employed to obtain these results is secret, but there is no doubt that whatever the process, it is nothing short of spectacular. In order to attain the best results, the brewery recommends you pour the beer hard into an upright glass and not tilting the gas. The idea is to agitate the mixture of carbon-dioxide and nitrogen in the beer. To view a video of instructions, consumers can scan a QR code printed right on the bottle.
Nitro Milk Stout is also a critical success as well as a technological feat. One reviewer on beer rating site RateBeer.com describes the brew as, “what I love and look for in a stout, smooth, soft, taste-full [sic].” Left Hand’s website says “The aroma is of brown sugar and vanilla cream, with hints of roasted coffee. The pillowy head coats your upper lip and its creaminess entices your palate. Initial roasty, mocha flavors rise up, with slight hop & roast bitterness in the finish. The rest is pure bliss of milk chocolate fullness.”
Left Hand Brewing started in 1994 with the introduction of their Sawtooth Ale, which won a Gold Medal at the Great American Beer Festival that same year. As the brewery grew, added personnel, and equipment, the word got out about the brewery and its beers. In 1998 the brewery merged with Tabernash Brewing from Denver which allowed them to begin bottling their brews. This year the brewery made the Brewers Association’s Top 50 Craft Brewers list. With six 480 barrel fermenters, an additional 500 barrel bright tank, and a new KHS keg line the brewery is poised to take the craft beer world by storm.
The brew should be available at Total Wine, Broudy’s, Grape & Grain Exchange, and other retailers in the next few days.
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