From the Beer Writer: What’s 23 plus 32? I’ve always been horrible at math, so it shouldn’t surprise you that my answer isn’t 55. That’s OK, because the solution to this equation isn’t a number at all. The answer is maibock, because in this case I’m talking about the sum (or product, in this case) of Division 23 Brewing Company and 32 North Brewing Company. Both operations are based in Miramar and each of their head brewers recently put their heads together for a collaboration beer that will debut when Division 23 celebrates its one-year anniversary today starting at 3 p.m. Six-and-a-half percent alcohol-by-volume, it’s light in body, bright with mineral-like expressions of lager yeast and easy to love. Making its name Playor Hator Maibock a tad ironic, but still pretty darn funny. For more on that handle, I’ll defer to one of the individuals responsible for it…
From the Brewer: “This strong, pale lager was brewed to celebrate both the change of seasons and Division 23’s one-year anniversary. It was our first collaboration brew with our friends and neighbors at 32 North Brewing Company. (32 North head brewery) Will Gallaspy and I both share a love for traditional German lagers, so a maibock was a natural choice. This beer is light and easy drinking, with a mellow bitterness and slight honey aroma. We chose to follow the German tradition of naming bocks with the -ator suffix, and so the name Playor Hator was born. It will be available on tap at both of our tasting rooms for a limited time, starting with our two-day anniversary on June 10 and 11, where we’ll be releasing our first barrel-aged beer—a bourbon barrel-aged version of our Night Shift imperial stout—as well as a new barley-wine and our Sour Superintendent Berliner weisse served with a quintet of special syrups such as chipotle, Sichuan-spice and lemongrass.”—Kevin Daugherty, Head Brewer, Division 23 Brewing Company