Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 12
TheTalks TV sits down with client Saint Arnold Brewing Company's brewer, Aaron, to get the lowdown on the brewery's latest offering in the Divine Reserve series. Saint Arnold is the oldest craft brewery in Texas.
Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 12 – which the craft beer community is calling ‘DR12’ – is an ‘Old Ale’ inspired by home brewer David Rogers’ winning recipe from the 2011 Big Batch Brew Bash. It is the first new release of the brewery’s small batch Divine Reserve series in more than a year. Rogers, a member of the Foam Rangers Homebrew Club in Houston, spent a day at the brewery earlier this year participating in brewing Divine Reserve No. 12. His submissions in the 16th Annual Big Batch Brew Bash wowed the judges, earning him first and second place out of a total of 107 entries.
“I've been making attempts to win the Big Batch Brew Bash so I could have my beer brewed as a Saint Arnold Divine Reserve since 2008 – about the time I started homebrewing,” said Rogers. “As we approach release day, I’ve been getting numerous e-mails, text messages and congratulations via Facebook. It is a dream come true.”
The Saint Arnold Divine Reserve series was introduced more than six years ago and generates considerable excitement among craft beer fans for delivering high-quality, full-flavored beer in limited quantities. Each new batch features a unique recipe and is distinguished from its predecessors by the batch number on the neck label. This the first time the series has tackled the Old Ale style, which features full malt body with plenty of character. Historically, Old Ales were used as stock ales for blending and owe their name to the fact that they were aged or stored for a significant period of time to mature.
“This beer is designed to age and will shine after being cellared for a year or more. The aging process will allow sherry notes to develop which will balance the spicy malt/alcohol flavors that dominate when this beer is young,” said Brock Wagner, Founder/Brewer of Saint Arnold Brewing. “For best result, cellar cold.”
Saint Arnold brewed approximately 343 barrels of Divine Reserve No. 12, which produced a total of 3,201 cases of 12 ounce bottles, 682 cases of 22-ounce bottles and 88 ½ bbl kegs, 90 1/6 bbl kegs and 20 casks.
Saint Arnold’s distributors allocate Divine Reserve to stores, restaurants and bars in Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio and other select markets based on how much Saint Arnold beer they have sold in 2012. In hopes of allowing as many craft beer fans as possible to try Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 12, the brewery is encouraging retailers to limit sales to two six packs per customer and is asking customers to limit their purchase to a six pack or two.
Earlier this year, the Houston Press recognized Saint Arnold for encouraging the craft beer community to use Twitter and Facebook to share Divine Reserve sightings. Those interested in keeping track of the hunt on release day can track hashtag #DR12. More information on the Saint Arnold Divine Reserve series is available at http://saintarnold.com/beers/divine.html.