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It’s hard to find fault with anything produced to raise money to fight breast cancer. I mean, who does that? Well…sometimes I do. Obviously, the creation of such beers is a wonderful thing, especially when they taste great. Unfortunately, they’re almost always limited edition brews; one-and-outs that merit fanfare then go away forever.
Ingrid’s One-in-Eight and Boob Check spring to mind. Both are outlandish fundraiser beers brewed with ingredients not typically found in standard issue pale ales, IPAs and stouts. The former was a Belgian-inspired amber ale infused with ginger and cocoa nibs brewed collaboratively in 2010 by Coronado Brewing Company and Ballast Point. The latter company was responsible for Boob Check, a reddish creation flavored with hibiscus, cherry, honey and lime, which debuted earlier this month and should tap out before the year is up. It’s the beer and humanitarianism equivalent of good news/bad news.
Fortunately, one brewing company has learned that good recipes and good intentions need not be inextricably linked. Earlier this year, Green Flash busted out Treasure Chest, a Belgian-style pale ale fortified with the brewing company’s trademark hop forwardness and the flavorful funk of Brettanomyces. It raised thousands of dollars to support Chicks for Beer (a local non-profit founded by Ingrid Qua, namesake of the aforementioned Ingrid’s One-in-Eight). It also stood out as one of the better beers to debut in San Diego in 2011. Rather than retire the beer or bring it back every now and then like the beery version of a bake sale, they’ve decided to offer it nationwide starting in January 2012.
But don’t go into your liquor store looking for bottles bearing the image of a buxom pin-up girl. That artwork and the name Treasure Chest have been replaced by royal blue packaging including the beer’s standard logo and a new name—Rayon Vert. While the recipe features small changes, they’re nothing more than standard evolutionary improvements. The flavor profile remains the same and, charity angle or not, it’s still worth every penny.
Pictured: Treasure Chest poster
It’s hard to find fault with anything produced to raise money to fight breast cancer. I mean, who does that? Well…sometimes I do. Obviously, the creation of such beers is a wonderful thing, especially when they taste great. Unfortunately, they’re almost always limited edition brews; one-and-outs that merit fanfare then go away forever.
Ingrid’s One-in-Eight and Boob Check spring to mind. Both are outlandish fundraiser beers brewed with ingredients not typically found in standard issue pale ales, IPAs and stouts. The former was a Belgian-inspired amber ale infused with ginger and cocoa nibs brewed collaboratively in 2010 by Coronado Brewing Company and Ballast Point. The latter company was responsible for Boob Check, a reddish creation flavored with hibiscus, cherry, honey and lime, which debuted earlier this month and should tap out before the year is up. It’s the beer and humanitarianism equivalent of good news/bad news.
Fortunately, one brewing company has learned that good recipes and good intentions need not be inextricably linked. Earlier this year, Green Flash busted out Treasure Chest, a Belgian-style pale ale fortified with the brewing company’s trademark hop forwardness and the flavorful funk of Brettanomyces. It raised thousands of dollars to support Chicks for Beer (a local non-profit founded by Ingrid Qua, namesake of the aforementioned Ingrid’s One-in-Eight). It also stood out as one of the better beers to debut in San Diego in 2011. Rather than retire the beer or bring it back every now and then like the beery version of a bake sale, they’ve decided to offer it nationwide starting in January 2012.
But don’t go into your liquor store looking for bottles bearing the image of a buxom pin-up girl. That artwork and the name Treasure Chest have been replaced by royal blue packaging including the beer’s standard logo and a new name—Rayon Vert. While the recipe features small changes, they’re nothing more than standard evolutionary improvements. The flavor profile remains the same and, charity angle or not, it’s still worth every penny.
Pictured: Treasure Chest poster