Collab Beers Announced for 'In Cahoots! A Collaboration of Craft'

Some of Minnesota’s favorite craft breweries are ready to announce their collaboration beers for the first ever ‘In Cahoots! A Collaboration of Craft‘ on August 3rd, 2014.

Summit Owner Mark Stutrud recipe planning with Jay and Sandy Boss Febbo, owners of Bang Brewing Co. // Photo by Chip Walton, Summit Brewing Co.

There is something special about the craft beer ‘industry.’ Craft breweries seems to foster a different kind of competition. Seemingly less frequent in craft beer are cutthroat rivalries and undermining tactics. Perhaps a result of a ‘rising tide floats all boats’ mentality, or maybe just a signature of its relative youth as an industry, craft breweries tend towards cooperation more often than contention.

I mean, what’s not to love about an industry so willing–nay, excited–to work intimately with their direct competition to create innovative new products, casually sharing trade secrets (and pints) along the way?

This is what In Cahoots! A Collaboration of Craft is all about—bringing together eight Minnesota breweries and brewpubs to create four never before tasted, collaborative craft brews. On August 3rd at Red Stage Supper Club’s annual block party, Bent Paddle and Fitger’s Brewhouse, Summit and Bang Brewing, Fulton and Dangerous Man, and Schell’s and Sociable Cider Werks, will tap these collaboration brews for the first time, and possibly, only time. The event is free to the public and will also feature live music from Sonny Knight & the Lakers, Frankie Lee, Alpha Consumer, and more. If supplies last, the collaboration beers will be available at Red Stag Supperclub and other Kim Bartmann’s establishments.

So, without further ado, the collaborations of In Cahoots!

Brewery Team: Fulton & Dangerous Man

The Beer: The 13th Task

The Deets: A dry-hopped golden ale brewed with Medusa, Mosaic, and Herkules hops.

Post by Fulton Beer.

Brewery Team: Bang & Summit

The Beer: Mark

The Deets: A remake of Mark’s original Sparkling Ale recipe from 1991 with modifications to fit Bang’s all-organic process

On the prospect of collaborating: “Jay and I have never collaborated with other brewers. Even as long as we’ve home-brewed it was a bit intimidating having Mikey over to the bin for our first meeting,” says Sandy, of Bang Brewing. “Mike brought us a copy of Mark’s original hand written recipe – pretty cool. That’s a keeper.“

On the name itself: “Not only a nod to Summit’s founder, it’s a nod to bringing two our brand marks together in a collaboration, and a reference to going for it. Make your mark.“

Post by Summit Brewing Company.

Brewery Team: Schell’s & Sociable

The Beer: Burnout Smoked Apple

The Deets: Blend of Honeycrisp and Haralson Apples gets a nice kick in the pants by a brewed bittering component that is intensely smokey and smooth

“We knew we wanted to brew a graff, and we knew we wanted something really unique. I guess the real motivation was that you don’t see a lot of smoked beers around, and we certainly had never seen a smoked cider,” says Jim Watkins of Sociable. “Until proven otherwise, I think it is safe to say that this is the first Smoked Apple graff made in a production brewery. The biggest challenge for us was to brew a smoked adjunct that wouldn’t overpower a delicate apple balance. …The highlight (or lowlight depending on your perspective) was knocking out a double batch on a Saturday during taproom hours. I don’t think any of us had brewed with that kind of audience before.”

Post by Sociable Cider Werks.

Brewery Team: Fitger’s & Bent Paddle

The Beer: Red Smoke Rye

The Deets: Red Smoke Rye is a double smoked red ale that ties in with the smoke theme of their selected charity, the Gunflint Trail Volunteer Fire Department.

Post by Bent Paddle Brewing Co.