We pleased to announce the release of Saisonztraminer, a brand new offering from our Co-Fermentation Project. Blurring the line between brewing and winemaking, our Co-Fermentation Project explores the interaction of grapes and grain, aspiring to achieve a blend that surpasses the sum of its parts.

“Each release co-ferments a blend of traditionally brewed wort and the juice of wine grapes, with fermentation often followed by a period of aging in oak wine barrels,” explains our brewmaster Phil Leinhart. “Our hope is to surprise even the most discerning palates, expanding expectations of what beer can be.”

Saisonztraminer begins as a delicate farmhouse saison. After the brew house, the wort is blended with gewürztraminer grape juice and then co-fermented using the brewery’s Belgian house yeast. The result is a beer with all the peppery phenols and lively effervescence of a traditional saison, but with flavors of rose petals, lychee fruit and honeysuckle, and vinous minerality that would be impossible to achieve without co-fermentation.

Saisonztraminer is 6.7% ABV, brewed with two-row malt, white wheat, and Vienna malts, and hopped with Bravo and Citra varietals. It pours golden copper with a brilliant white head. The aroma opens with lychee and pear, resolving to sweet honey and black pepper. The gewürztraminer is present immediately, lending a unique wine-like character to the beer, which has a crisp, dry finish. This beer shines alongside cheeses like mozzarella or ricotta, subtle dishes like seared scallops or poached salmon, and fresh desserts like macerated berries with whipped cream.

Available on draft and in 12-ounce four-packs, Saisonztraminer launches at the brewery in Cooperstown beginning on Friday, July 12. It ships nationwide later this month to the brewery’s distribution network in the following states: AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, GA, IL, KY, MA, MD, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WV, and Washington, DC.