This March, in honor of Sauce’s Guide to Beer, our focus has been on all beer everything – how to cook with beer, what brews are best for aging, where every brewery in town is located and distributed, and more.
With the end of March approaching, I wasn’t quite ready to break up with beer, but I was certainly ready for something new – something that didn’t come from a bottle, can or tap handle. I found what might be the perfect compromise: Tony’s 29 Hour IPA.
Created by Eclipse bar manager Tony Saputo, this cocktail involves Espolón Blanco tequila, Cocchi Americano Rosso, a cordial made from citra hops, lime juice, celery bitters and house-made ginger beer made with a touch of the wild yeast Brettanomyces. “If we added whiskey to it [to add barley], it would have the same ingredients as a beer,” Saputo said. “It’s a deconstructed, reconstructed beer.”
Why call it a 29-hour IPA? To make the citra hop cordial, Saputo infuses dried hops with Everclear and water for 29 hours. Once infused, he adds more water and sugar to make it a cordial. On its own, the cordial smells and tastes like an IPA reduction … in a this-taste-will-never-leave-my-mouth way. Combined with the rest of the ingredients, though? Just right.
Tony’s 29 Hour IPA’s looks are deceiving. At first glace, the light pink drink garnished with a cucumber and a lime wheel looks like some sort of gin or Pimm’s Cup summer sipper. Yet it smells a little bit like a beer. Initially, it tastes like a margarita because of the first hits of tequila and the brightness and acid from the vermouth and lime juice. Yet, a second later, there is a subtle spice from the ginger and just a bit of funk from the Brett. If I didn’t know better, I never have guessed the drink including Brett, but it adds another layer to this rich, refreshing (and strong) springtime drink.
Cheers to beer, cocktails and spring!
This article appears in Guide to Beer 2014.