From the Beer Writer: When Mikkeller announced plans to merge with San Diego stalwart AleSmith Brewing Company, I, like many, was very excited. This partnership brought together two very different yet reputable brewing interests—a gypsy with a flair for the wild and dramatic, and a 20-year-old brewery with a portfolio of traditional hits. When Mikkeller Brewing San Diego debuted in April, it was with great anticipation that I tasted through its first-run beers. That list was well over a dozen strong, but the greatest feature of the beer line-up was its length. I had hoped for more adventurous beers in keeping with the decade-old Mikkeller MO, but most of the offerings were either traditional beers—pale ale, porter, Berliner weiss, old ale—or one-off versions of staples like Mikkeller’s Beer Geek Breakfast. Frankly, it was pretty underwhelming. But there was one beer that stood out from the crowd right off the bat; one that I would go on to rave about during many a conversation about local beer…Mikkeller Amoeba Brett IPA. The Brettanomyces that gives it its funky, dry, peppery qualities is profound, but not overly so. The wild yeast teams with the beer’s hop-bill to form a nice symbiosis hinted at by the pine-forest-meets-barnyard scents rising from this India pale ale’s fluffy white head. Up until now, I haven’t had the opportunity to have as much of this beer as I’d have liked, but that all changed two weeks ago when the brewery canned what is now the only Brett-infused beer I’ve seen in aluminum cylinders. It’s best to keep this beer refrigerated to retard the effects of the wild yeast and keep the hoppiness at maximum levels, but with flavors this good, it’s unlikely long-term storage will be much of an issue.
From the Brewer: “Amoeba Brett IPA is available exclusively at our tasting room. It’s designed to showcase the flavor and aroma complexity that can be created by using certain hop varietals along with different Brettanomyces strains. Amoeba is a 100% Brettanomyces-fermented IPA with an alcohol content of 6.5% . Our inaugural canned batch showcases a blend of Galaxy, Centennial, Columbus and Equinox hops. With this combination, we focused on notes of passion fruit, papaya, citrus and pine, which creates an incredible stage to layer with the tropical-fruit notes that the specialty Brettanomyces strain that we have selected can create. This special blend creates an aromatic and flavorful treat that any IPA aficionado will be sure to appreciate. The intention of Amoeba is to create a beer without boundaries that will be ever evolving, so be sure to try our future releases and follow this unique style that will be ever-changing and always offer something unique.”—Bill Batten, Head Brewer, Mikkeller Brewing San Diego