The creative adventures continue back in the production area of the brewery where small-batch experiments are being developed on a regular basis. In fact, the ideas behind the experimental brews can come from just about anywhere. “Sometimes, one of us will be eating something and think ‘I wonder what this would taste like in a beer?’ Then we just go talk to the brewer and he figures it out.” Food seems to be a running theme with their experimental mixtures. “We like to eat! So that’s where a lot of the inspiration for our beers come from. But sometimes we just like to see what we can do. For example, one of the beers we are releasing next month is our most hops-per-barrel beer ever. We just want to see how much hops we could put in a beer and not be overpoweringly bitter. We did eight pounds of hops per barrel.” Has your tongue curled up into a frightened ball in the back of your mouth yet? Not to worry. The brewers at Mispillion River have the answer. “Here’s the thing,” Bigelow explains. “We used Vermont Ale Yeast for that beer. And the way Vermont Ale Yeast works is it generally tones down bitterness in a beer. It makes it very juicy. So, the beer is not very bitter at all. You actually get more flavor from the hops than you do the bitterness from them.”
The brewery’s tasting room has up to 10 beers flowing at any given time, and they bottle a few more for retail outlets. Bigelow explains that Mispillion’s best seller changes depending on the point of purchase. “Our best seller? There are two answers to that question. Out in the market, I believe our ‘Not Today Satan’ 7.3% IPA is the top seller. That onehas been in cans for about two years now. And we find that for our packaged products, IPAs sell the best.” This is hardly a surprise, as IPAs are by far the current top selling style of craft beer across the continent. The on-site sales at the brewery paint a different picture. Bigelow says, “In our tasting room, on the other hand, our sours tend to be our best sellers. We make them very well. And it seems that our general tasting room customer is more adventurous than the typical market customer.”
If that isn’t unique enough for you, Mispillion River Brewing is quite famous for their “Golden Stout.” It’s not your average heavy tar-colored traditional stout. In fact, many first timers assume it is being sold in the wrong category when they raise their pint and the golden color catches the light. “It is the color of a Budweiser, and it tastes like chocolate, coffee and has the texture and feel of a milkshake. It is the weirdest, mind-boggling beer you will ever try. So that’s one of those experiments that we’ve become known for.” But wait! There’s more! Want a beer you can dump over the head of the Super-Bowl-winning coach on the sidelines? Or perhaps sip slowly while you’re peddling away on the stationary bicycle at the gym? Your electrolytes will thank you for this next experimental brew. “Yeah. We made a sour beer with Gatorade. We used the blue Gatorade and made a sour beer out of it. It’s one of my all-time favorite beers… I would drink it and go for a run. It’s amazing!”
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NOVEMBER 2019 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • NOVEMBER 2019
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