Wheaty/Lobethal Bierhaus Collaboration 'Ryewaka IPA' Launch - 3 Ways
Wheaty/Lobethal Bierhaus Collaboration 'Ryewaka IPA' Launch - 3 Ways
Wed 28th November from 6pm
Several years ago Al invited/challenged me to come up with a recipe for a beer we could brew together up at the Lobethal Bierhaus. I thought this was an excellent idea and promptly did nothing about it. Once Al reiterated the offer it was on; it was time to make real a beer that had been in my head for years…
Essentially, Ryewaka is a beer designed around a cheesy pun. I love Rye, love Rye in beer, love Riwaka Hops and am more than a little impartial to IPAs – enter ‘Ryewaka IPA’; a Rye IPA featuring, you guessed it, Riwaka Hops.
As it turns out, said Hops were a bugger to source in any real quantity and after nearly a year trying to track down the elusive Hop we decided to go ahead and brew anyway; with less Riwaka than we wanted, but enough to justify the name.
So three weeks ago, with no time, Hops or (apparently) need for a pilot run, the Wheaty contingent headed up to the Lobethal Bierhaus to help brew a 600L “test batch” of Ryewaka. With Al & Rosie having done all the preparation and hard work we had an absolute ball playing ‘Brewers’; this (no doubt romanticized) Brewing caper could become quite addictive…Brew Day went pretty much according to plan; no stuck mash, excellent yield and we hit some of our targets – OG (Original Gravity) was higher than we shot for but the thought of a slightly boozier beer didn’t worry us too much…
The idea of Ryewaka was to combine the spicy, fruity, ‘hard’ grainy character of Rye with the sharp, spicy, grapefruit-pith kick of Riwaka in a big, bitter and balanced IPA. As this goes to print we haven’t yet snuck a taste of the brew, though Al (who has) reassures us that “…it will probably be drinkable.” And if not, we’ll have staff knock-offs sorted for the next year or two…
Ryewaka Specs:
Malt: Traditional Ale, Rye Malt, Flaked Rye, Munich I, Pale Wheat, Carahell & Chocolate
Hops: Galaxy, Pacific Jade, Citra, Motueka & Riwaka
Yeast: American Ale II (Wyeast #1272)
OG: 1.069 FG: 1.015
ABV: 7.5%
SRM: ~9.54
IBUs: ~96
We’ll be pouring Ryewaka 3-Ways on the night: Regular Tap, Handpump and through the Glasshopper.
Don’t drive the car!
