Winter Harvest
Belgian-Style Golden Ale aged in White Wine Barrels w/Stone Farms Merlot Grapes
This golden beauty was created solely for barrel experimentation—you won’t find an unaged “2012 Stone Belgian-Style Golden Ale” in bottles anywhere (you can stop looking now).
CELLAR NOTES
Stone Brewer Matt Courtright came up with the recipe for this Belgian-style ale, designing it specifically to be aged in wine barrels. We did just that for over two years, during which native wild yeasts continued fermenting the beer. The result is an off-dry ale with pleasing levels of malt and tart fruit, especially tropical fruit flavors: guava from the Merlot grapes and pineapple from the Sauvignon Blanc barrels. Oak tannins contribute mellow non-hop bitterness while the Belgian yeast lends muted notes of clove and banana. Cellared properly, the dryness and complexity will increase over time.