Now brewing exclusively in Clifton Park, NY — Monday, March 2, 2015 — There’s a whole lot of funk and rhythm going down at Shmaltz Brewing with a brand new blend of Funky Jewbelation® dancing off of the packaging line at its Upstate New York brewery. The limited-edition March 2015 release of Funky Jewbelation® launches Shmaltz’s ambitious 2015 brewing schedule, and starts the year off on the good foot (as James Brown would sing). This year’s Funky Jewbelation® (9.4% ABV, March 2015) features six ales and lagers aged in bourbon and rye whiskey barrels, and it’s now nationally available in 22 oz. bottles and a limited amount of draft at select bars.
Funky Jewbelation® is the latest Limited Engagement in the brewery’s bold and captivating Barrel-Aged Series. This year’s hand crafted recipe of Funky Jewbelation® is an expert mash-up of Jewbelation Reborn® (aged 16 months), Messiah Nut Brown Ale® (aged 8 months), Bittersweet Lenny’s R.I.P.A.® (aged 6 months), Winter Lager 2013® (aged 15 months), Rejewvenator® 2014 (aged 11 months), and Death of a Contract Brewer® (aged 16 months).
“Funky Jewbelation 2015 embodies Shmaltz’s commitment to the craftsmanship of truly exceptional beers,” says Shmaltz’s Lead Brewer Richie Saunders. “Funky has been aged in Buffalo Trace Bourbon and Sazarac and Willett Rye whiskey barrels. It’s a monumental blend of our favorite ales and lagers that we’ve lovingly nurtured for over the last year. Funky Jewbelation 2015 glistens a deep ruby color with a big, tart, sour cherry flavor and a malty earth aroma. A lovely puckering is complemented by subtle hints of bourbon, charred wood, molasses and light notes of vanilla.”
Funky Jewbelation® 2014 currently has a 99 overall rating on Ratebeer.com, and the 2013 version won a Silver Medal in the World Beer Cup, the only American Craft Brewery in the Sour and Barrel aged category. The 2012 version of Funky Jewbelation® took home two consecutive Gold Medals at the 2012 World Beer Championships. The 2012 World Beer Championships featured 799 breweries from 54 countries and 45 U.S. states with 3,921 beers in 95 beer categories. Now four years in the making, Shmaltz’s barrel-aging program also includes such all-stars as the 2010 Great American Beer Festival Silver Medalist HE’BREW R.I.P.A. on Rye® (R.I.P.A. on Rye® has a 98-rating on RateBeer.com); 2011 World Beer Championships Gold Medalist HE’BREW Vertical Jewbelation®, and the 99-rated (on RateBeer.com) HE’BREW Genesis 15:15®. Next up in the series is Bock Bock® (10% ABV, May 2015), a burly Imperial American Bock aged over 3 months half in Jim Beam and half in Heaven Hill whiskey barrels.
The Limited Engagement Barrel-Aged Series not only represents some of Shmaltz’s most decorated beers, but also boasts the highest consumer ratings from BeerAdvocate.com and RateBeer.com. The latter ranked Shmaltz Brewing as one of the “Top 100 Breweries in the World” in 2013. With the release of this year’s Funky Jewbelation®, Shmaltz continues to design sophisticated beers that rank with the world’s best specialty libations.
Funky Jewbelation® tasting parties are coming to a city near you, please see the list of events below:
*Wednesday, March 4, 2015, 7pm @ Star & Shamrock (1341 H Street NE, Washington DC): Join Shmaltz Brewing for the special release event, Purim vs St. Patrick’s Day, featuring Funky Jewbelation® and other Shmaltz offerings.
*Saturday, March 7, 2015 @ Desmond Hotel (660 Albany Shaker Road, Albany, NY): The Second Annual Craft New York Brewers Festival will bring together 40 New York Breweries (and brewers) from every region of the state featuring up to 90+ hard to find and award-winning beers. To make this very special event more exclusive, food sampling and pairings will be featured from local Albany restaurants and food vendors to go along with each brewery attending.
*Saturday, March 7, 2015, 2-6pm @ Shmaltz Tasting Room (6 Fairchild Square, Clifton Park, NY): Join Shmaltz Brewing for the Official Release of Funky Jewbelation ’15®! Get your first taste of Funky ’15® and savor vintage funky and a sweet Vertical Jewbelation® from their vault. They’ll have funkadelic music from D.J. Chad Koenig and wood fired pizza from Pies on Wheels. *Wednesday, March 18, 2015 @ Newport Pizza, Ocean Beach (5050 Newport Avenue, San Diego, CA): Shmaltz Brewing hosts a mini tap takeover, serving Funky Jewbelation®, Hop Manna®, and more! *Friday, March 20 & Saturday, March 21, 2015 @ Seaport World Trade Center (200 Seaport Boulevard, Boston, MA): Extreme Beer Fest is the ultimate throwdown of craft beer creativity. Join Shmaltz Brewing as they celebrate brewers who push the boundaries of brewing and raise a fist at the norm. Featuring Funky Jewbelation ’15® and other rare brews from Shmaltz.
*Monday, March 23, 2015 @ Tap House Grill (1472 Market Street, Suite A-103, Des Plaines, IL): Shmaltz Brewing will tap Funky Jewbelation ’15® and Death of a Contract Brewer®!
*Tuesday, March 24, 2015 @ World of Beer (5005 S Cooper Street, Arlington, TX): Shmaltz Brewing will host a mini tap takeover and super ’70s Funky party. They’ll be pouring Funky Jewbelation ’15®, Hop Manna®, and more! *Wednesday, March 25, 2015 @ Drunken Donkey (301 W Round Grove Road, Lewisville, TX): Shmaltz Brewing hosts a tap takeover and Funky party!
*Thursday, March 26, 2015 @ Dallas Beer Kitchen (1802 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX): Join Shmaltz at this tap takeover presented by Shmaltz Brewing’s own Alaina and Zak! *Wednesday, April 1, 2015 @ El Bait Shop (200 SW 2nd St, Des Moines, IA 50309): Join Shmaltz Brewing Proprietor Jeremy Cowan for a Tap Takeover featuring Funky Jewbelation ’15® as well as Funky Jewbelation ’13®, Hop Manna IPA®, Messiah Nut Brown Ale®, Death of a Contract Brewer® Black IPA and Bittersweet Lenny’s RIPA®.
*Tuesday, April 14, 2015 @ Dive Bar (24 Ocean Avenue, West Haven, CT): Featuring five lines of Shmaltz Brewing beers with Funky Jewbelation ’15® as the piece de resistance!
Praise and fun with Funky Jewbelation® (2012 – 2014) “What Would Jesus Drink? He’d want a beer big enough to enjoy at a last supper, and this American Strong Ale would be just the type of brew that Jesus would want to share with his flock. Plus, coming from Shmaltz, it would surely be a hit. Because, you know, Jesus was Jewish. And one funky dude.” –Complex Magazine “Shmaltz brings the funk with Funky Jewbelation.” –Cigar Aficionado “You best be ready to shake some tail feathers when you bring this extra-special beer to the party.” –The Kitchn “Cheers to He’Brew for managing to, impossibly, blend six beers into a whole greater than it’s parts.” –Yum Sugar “…in this brewmaster’s skilled hands, the result is a beer with great depth and nuanced flavor.” –Brewsandbooks.com “The beer is indeed funky, in all the right ways.” –Cooking District About Shmaltz Brewing Company Ranked in 2013 as one of the “Top 100 Brewers in the World” by RateBeer.com, Shmaltz won 9 Gold and 5 Silver Medals in the World Beer Championships in 2012. A recipient of the “Distinguished Business Award” by the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, Shmaltz was also included in the “Top 50 Fastest Growing Bay Area Companies” by San Francisco Business Times.
Founder and owner Jeremy Cowan established the company in San Francisco in 1996 with the first 100 cases of He’brew Beer® hand bottled and delivered throughout the Bay Area in his Grandmother’s Volvo. He’brew® now sells across 37 states, through 40 wholesalers and nearly 5,000 retailers. In 2007, Shmaltz released a new line of craft brewed lagers under the Coney Island® banner. The Coney Island brand was recently acquired by Alchemy and Science, a craft beer incubator, owned by Boston Beer (Sam Adams).
After 17 years of being an outspoken cheerleader for contract brewing, Shmaltz recently broke with tradition and opened its own New York State production brewery in Clifton Park, NY, 10 minutes north of Albany’s capital district. Shmaltz’s new home boasts a 50-barrel brewhouse with 20,000 barrels of annual capacity. The new brewery packages 12 and 22 ounce bottles and kegs of their diverse core and seasonal favorites, and hosts fans and beer tourists in their new tasting room for tours, barrel-aged previews, and special releases.
In 2010/11, Cowan published his small business memoir, Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah: How It Took 13 Years, Extreme Jewish Brewing, and Circus Sideshow Freaks to Make Shmaltz Brewing Company an International Success. A free sampling of Chapter One and suggested beer pairings, can be viewed at www.craftbeerbarmitzvah.com. In 2012, Cowan spearheaded the creation of the non-profit New York City Brewers Guild (which manages NYC Beer Week) and served as its Founding President.
Cowan also has presented at the 2013 Craft Brewers Conference, as well as previous Great American Beer Festivals, BevNet’s Brewbound conference, Beer Advocate’s Extreme Beer Festival, the Atlanta and the St. Louis Jewish Book Fairs, and the San Francisco and New York Jewish Museums.
Shmaltz Brewing beers have appeared in such distinguished media outlets as The New York Times, CNN Headline News, Beer Advocate Magazine, NPR’s “Weekend Edition,” Fox Business News, Men’s Health, San Francisco Chronicle, The Jerusalem Report, New York Jewish Week, and Washington Post.
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