Boston Beer Co. and Germany’s Weihenstephan Brewery announced a partnership and plans to unveil a new style of collaboratively brewed beer next spring. The companies say they have been working together for almost two years to perfect an innovative beer style that explores new brewing techniques. Their yet-to-be-named crisp, pale brew is slated to debut in the United States and Germany next spring in cork-finished bottles.

 

The companies describe the product as an effervescent, Champagne-like beer that will contain more than 10 percent alcohol by volume, "yet remain very dry and crisp, shattering the preconceived notions of what can be done following the Reinheitsgebot Law." Reinheitsgebot refers to a German beer purity law that dates back to 1516, and states that all beer must be brewed using only malt, hops, water, and yeast.

 

“The Weihenstephan Brewery is a mecca for brewers and people around the world who are passionate about beer and brewing. No brewer can stand at the site of this brewery without feeling a sense of reverence for what has been done here,” said Jim Koch, founder and brewer of Samuel Adams beers. “It is a great honor to work together on this mission to explore the limits of the Reinheitsgebot and to brew a beer that represents the platinum standard in the art of brewing.”

 

“This journey we’ve embarked on with Samuel Adams is unprecedented in the beer world,” says Josef Schrädler, managing director, Weihenstephan. “We are making history with Jim and his team of brewers; turning our traditional brewing techniques on their head will result in an innovative beer that is ground breaking, delicious and unique."