Recently, a team of our Northern California Beer Specialists and Portfolio Managers spent some time with our good friends at The Bruery and Bruery Terreux. 

It didn’t take long before the team was put to work brewing and depitting fruit – and of course, learning! We sat down with Brendan (Portfolio Manager), Laura (East Bay Beer Specialist) and Jason (Sacramento Beer Specialist) to ask them about their experience.

What did you learn about the brewing process?

Brendan: I learned I’m better at drinking beer than brewing it.

Laura: Being creative and finding new ingredients to brew with is great. Brewing with powdered cream cheese will not be a fan favorite in the brew house. That being said I still would 100 percent try any cheesecake flavored beer The Bruery created, regardless of how stinky it smelled being brewed.

Jason:  I learned more about how a centrifuge works in relation to the brewing process. Also they are extremely loud at times (ask LIZ BUSH!) as she was hiding from it when the thing would kick really loud. It’s an interesting process as all the yeast/goodies/debris spin out to the edges as the beer remains in the middle.

Describe one of the interesting beers you tasted while at The Bruery and Bruery Terreux.

Brendan: Brucicle slushies! The base beer was a sour blonde ale mixed with tons of fruit and blended in a slushy machine. Perfect beer for a hot day.

Laura: The most interesting Bruery beer I tried was the Vindictive Cab, especially since Black Tuesday is my favorite beer from them. This right out of the barrel was quite the treat!

Jason:  I was hanging out with Darren, and he asked if I wanted to try something different. I of course obliged. We proceeded to sample an Offshoot Rose’ hazy IPA, I had never had anything like it before. I’ll be honest, it wasn’t my cup of tea but I could appreciate what they were going for. It’s refreshing that they will try just about anything, and it proves that with beer just about anything is possible!

While at Bruery Terreux, what was it like to help process the fruit?

Brendan: Sitting and processing peaches and cherums for hours gave me a newfound respect for all the work that goes into making the fruited Terreux sour ales.  I’ve also gained a new appreciation for freestone peaches.

Laura: Helping to process the fruit was so much fun! I don’t know if you can fully appreciate the process and hard work that goes into it until you actually participate. And since then, I have used the pitting technique many times on nectarines and peaches at home.

Jason:  Quite the tedious process, but well worth it in the end. When I got into a good rhythm, I was fairly efficient at removing the pit. I may have eaten a few cherums along the way but I did my fair share of contributing to the efforts! Also when stomping the fruit it felt really weird between my toes.

What makes The Bruery, Bruery Terreux and Off Shoot and their beers so unique?

Brendan: We asked Darren, director of brewing operations, what unique beers they’d been working on lately. Darren told us that just yesterday their pilot brewer Andrew had just sourced some powdered cream cheese for a cheesecake beer he was working on.  While this beer wasn’t created to be mass produced The Bruery and Bruery Terreux have never been shy to try new things. I’m especially looking forward to some of the upcoming beers they’re blending with wine grapes.

Laura: The sky is the limit! There is no holding back with the beer that is coming out of this brewery. To see them grow into three separate entities under The Bruery umbrella over the past few years has been incredibly impressive. It’s an honor to feel like a part of this growth now selling the Bruery, Bruery Terreux and Off Shoot for Wine Warehouse.

Jason:  I would have to say it comes down to The Bruery/Terreux/Offshoot and their innovation coupled with their dedication to brewing well-crafted beers. Not only do they push the envelope in brewing new, interesting and specialty brews but they keep the consistency. They can go from brewing a PB&J Beer one day to brewing another perfect batch of Mischief a day later. That shows how unique they truly are covering both ends of the beer spectrum!

A FEW FAVORITES FROM THE BRUERY