An intradepartmental competition in which teams of two competed for the opportunity to have a beer they devised brewed, packaged, and distributed nationally. Stone wanted to “spotlight” the talented individuals that make up the Stone brewing team and encourage them to explore what craft beer is truly about: ingenuity, creativity and . . . well, having fun. On April 21, the craft beer company proudly unveiled the inaugural prize-winning beer in the Stone Spotlight Series: Spröcketbier, a black rye Kölsch-style ale.
Stone Quality Assurance Supervisor Rick Blankemeier and Production Warehouse Lead Robbie Chandler comprise Team Spröcket. Both Rick and Robbie regularly homebrew together, so they created the champion beer recipe from a previous recipe they had brewed for a rye Kölsch. They added a Stone-like twist by adding more hops and turned the traditionally golden beer dark by using Carafa malt. The malt also added a subtle roast character.
Despite its dark hue, the beer carries traditional Kölsch qualities—it’s light-bodied and refreshing, with relatively modest alcohol content. Rick and Robbie used a Kölsch yeast strain to give the beer an overall crisp flavor; they used flaked rye malt to add complex spiciness. Late hop additions in the whirlpool also contribute slight citrus and spice aromatics to the beer. All of these traits make for a brew that’s unique, Stone-esque, and definitely ahead of its time.
"Stone Co-founders Greg Koch and Steve Wagner, and I were very impressed with the beer submissions received from the twenty brewing teams,” said Stone Brewmaster Mitch Steele. “The beers were all fantastic and it was a very tough decision, but Spröcketbier had a little bit of that extra Stone character that the three of us were ultimately looking for.”
Watch the video the two brewers discussing their winning beer below, and read more about Rick, Robbie, and Spröcketbier.