Now that we’re poised to start releasing bottled beer from the Monolith (and shortly, from the Market) we’d like to share some details about our supply of available bottles and our plans for their release. Put very simply, we don’t have a whole lot of beer (yet). We’re going to be conservative with our initial release plans so as many people as possible get a chance to try the beer.
As of October 2019, we have one batch of beer from the Monolith ready for release, and other batches of beer finishing off conditioning and cellaring prior to their release. With each new beer launch we aim to direct the lion’s share of the batch direct to customers through the Bottle Room and Biera at the Ritchie Market. This will be the case until we open the Monolith taproom. (More on that in another upcoming blog).
Once we’re ready to launch, bottles will be available for sale to try on site at both the Bottle Room and Biera, or for takeaway. At the current time we’re not kegging any of the beer from the Monolith. We may occasionally keg the Monolith beers in the future, but the first releases are all in bottle.
The frequency of our upcoming releases will depend on when the beers are finished. We’ll explain the process of bottle conditioning in a future blog, but the quick summary is that bottle conditioning and cellaring of these complex beers can take six months, or even longer. We release beers based on sensory and lab testing, as the cellaring time is hard to predict. We’ll announce a release date once the beers have finished and are tasting their best.
In addition to serving and selling beer ourselves we will be selling a small volume of beer to partners like liquor stores, bars, and restaurants. Initially, we’ll be targeting a smaller number of select partners due to the limited supply. As we release more beers our reach will grow and we hope, over time, to be in a wide range of stores and establishments across Alberta. Ultimately, we’d like to ship beer to other provinces and even countries, but that will take place only once we feel we’re doing the best we can to serve our local market.
That’s the scoop for the Monolith beers. As we get closer to the actual launch you’ll be hearing more about our first beer, as well as learning about a special event we’ll be holding at the Bottle Room at the Ritchie Market on launch day. We also have some barrel-aged beers from the Market that will be ready fairly soon. We’ll be talking about those in yet another upcoming blog.
