A Conversation With… Wild Weather Ales
Iain and JD joined us from Wild Weather Ales
Exclusive chats & beers
When I started A Woman’s Brew: The Podcast, I didn’t think we would have three episodes back to back of interviews with breweries. But what’s even more exciting is that this is also our first exclusive!
Wild Weather Ales have released Cephalopod - a 12% heather honey stout that they are very proud of, and Tori & I got an exclusive first taste!
Cephalopod - Honey Heather Stout
Cephalopod - 12% Heather Honey Stout
This beer has a very interesting back story - which JD tells us about in this episode. From it’s start in a student house brew pot to finding the perfect honey in Spain, Cephalopod is a labour of love. The area of Spain where the honey is from is surrounded by heather and this adds to the flavours. These will never be repeated as the conditions will always be different. With that in mind, Wild Weather plan to make different versions of Cephalopod with different kinds of honey. Tori and I are planning on keeping some aside to age and compare over time!
Terroir in Beer
You often hear about terroir in wine - where the soil and conditions in the area where the grapes are grown affect the final product. You are starting to hear more about this in beer. Breweries are specifically selecting local ingredients or ingredients from a specific region or part of the world. Hop growers are analysing the soil and fields they use to cultivate the crop - some brewers say crops from particular fields are better than others! Companies like Yakima Chief, are doing research into this. Brewers are foraging for ingredients in their local area to give local provenance to their beers. Spontaneous fermentation programmes are being started in UK breweries to see what naturally occurring yeast, local flora and fauna do to wort left open to the elements. This all accumulates into interesting, diverse beers for us craft beer lovers to try!
Selecting quality ingredients and the right ingredients for the outcome required is a science and an art that brewers work really hard on. Iain and JD discuss how unpasteurised honey, added at just the right point in the brewing process makes a huge difference on the final outcome of Cephalopod. The choice of ingredients is very important to Wild Weather Ales - from fresh kiwis to cockles to rare Jara lemons from Bangladesh, they make sure they have the best quality ingredients and flavours for their beers. I’m excited to see what they produce in the future. If you want to hear about how they make these choices, make sure you listen to the episode!
Cephalopod is a thick, warming, satisfying stout. The flavour of the honey really shines through, balanced by a base beer that is made to be a vehicle for those flavours. Even though it is 12% there is no alcohol burn and it is very easy drinking. It was the perfect accompaniment to our conversation with Iain and JD - thank you so much for coming on to talk to us guys and thank you for the exclusive beer tasting! We are going to hold you to coming back on to the podcast in the future, maybe from The Weather Station!
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Have you grabbed Cephalopod yet? Let us know what you thought in the comments!
