From the Beer Writer: Mira Mesa’s Longship Brewery is all about offering a unique experience. Not only is its tasting room decorated in an over-the-top Viking thematic, the tap-list regularly features exotic beer-styles. Case in point, this week’s featured beer, Longship Ragnabock, a doppelbock that relies on semisweet malt character and lager yeast for the bulk of its taste profile. Even though it’s 8.1% alcohol-by-volume, it drinks like a five- or six-percenter and could easily be confused for a session red ale. It’s a smooth and enjoyable offering for those not looking for a hop-forward drinking experience—or simply a change of pace. When Longship opened, owner Dan Jachimowicz was only able to find five other doppelbocks being produced in San Diego’s saturated suds industry. He’s since crafted other lesser-brewed styles in small-batch format. A handful of them—a Belgian-style tripel, rosehip-infused saison, chocolate-orange stout, and brown ale with chocolate, cranberries, almond and oats—will be available at Longship’s one-year anniversary this Saturday, July 1, where those specialties can be glugged from a stylish Norse drinking horn.
From the Brewer: “I guess the biggest question with this beer is: ‘Why make a dopplebock?’ In a town where people crave hoppy IPAs, why go through the long trouble of making the anti-IPA? Why go through the ten-week process of fermenting and lagering a low-hop, malt-forward, strong, dark lager? Simple. Dopplebocks are delicious. The roasted-malt and dark-fruit flavors shine in this flavorful and unique beer, and Ragnabock stands as a refreshing reminder to non-hopheads that there are other styles of beer in the world. We wanted to make something unique and under-represented. Although I am still surprised by how many experienced craft-beer fans ask us what a dopplebock is, we will continue to offer the Ragnabock and many other unusual styles.”—Dan Jachimowicz, Owner & Brewmaster, Longship Brewery