Once again Sam Adams Brewing delivers craft beer fans an unexpected treat. Their commitment to innovation is unparalleled in the brewing industry. This month Sam Adams Brewing unveiled their Nitro Project. This project is not a brewer simply adding a handful of new ingredients to their beer to roll out a new flavor or line. The Nitro Project features new packaging, brewing techniques and brewing technology for the Boston brewer.
Sam Adams Brewing is not the first to introduce a nitrogen based beer in a can. Many of you have most likely experienced some of the nitro stouts on the market. Where Sam Adams Brewing has taken this to a new level is by introducing three styles in a nitrogen charged can and accompanying glassware to enjoy the beer with.
The first of these beers I will talk about is will be the most familiar to those of you that have enjoyed a nitrogen charged beer in the past. The Nitro Coffee Stout starts with a cold press of Sumatran & Indian Monsoon Malabar coffees. Letting the coffee brew in cold water gives a more natural flavor to the coffee and helps in avoiding the bitterness and acidity often associated with coffee stouts. The beer has a bark brown almost black appearance as expected. The nose is of beautiful, coffee aromas reach you nose as you pop the top of the can, they are even accented more as you begin the pour. The mouthfeel is smooth and creamy, quite enjoyable. You don’t have to fight through the carbonation to get to the chocolate and coffee tones in the beer.
The Nitro IPA is another offering from the Nitro Project. In typical Sam Adams fashion they backed up the hop truck for this ale. The beer weighs in at 100 IBUs, a sweet spot for hopheads. Not so hoppy the flavor is lost in the bitterness, but hoppy enough to keep worshipers of the lupulin more than happy. The beer has the familiar IPA trappings a white head with a golden-amber body. The aroma is all about hops with great floral and grapefruit tones raising from the glass. The flavor is all about hops however the bitterness is well balanced by a modest malt backbone. A malt backbone that gives this beer a 7.5% ABV. The finish is very smooth and creamy. It is reminiscent of some of the pub IPAs I have drank in the past in the finish. That being said the aroma and flavor are 100% that of an American big IPA.
In typical Sam Adams fashion the brewer wants to make the drinker a partner in their experimentation. The third release from the Nitro Project is the polar opposite of the other two offerings. It is a delicate 15 IBU White Ale. This gives the drinker a chance to see how the nitrogen reacts and enhances different ingredients. The flavors of pepper and orange wash ever so gently over your tongue with a wash of wheat.
The people at Sam Adams are quick to tell us these are the first three of the Nitro releases, there are more to follow. If I know this brewer and I think I do, it is my guess the next three have already been selected. It am betting they have nitro charged everything they could get their hands on in Jamaica Plains. Quite frankly I enjoyed the first three offering of the Nitro Project so much I can hardly wait to see what they roll out next. You can find out more about the Nitro Project on SamuelAdams.com
