So when the opportunity arose to collaborate with two musicians from stylistically different backgrounds, the show was on. The collaboration “band” consisted of the Stone Brew Crew, led by Brewmaster Mitch Steele (who is the guitarist of Craigsband and Stone's house band, The Flocculators); hard rock guitarist Keri Kelli (who has played with the likes of Alice Cooper, Skid Row, and Slash from Guns N’ Roses); and keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth of The String Cheese Incident. Together, they brewed an epic double IPA infused with elderberries and coriander and named their magnificent creation Collective Distortion IPA.
"To make sure we selected the best herb combination, we tried nearly a dozen different infusions with Stone IPA and ultimately found that elderberry and coriander provided a wonderful augment to the various hop characters,” explains Steele. “The entire collaboration has been a unique experience. I’m always excited when the opportunity to combine two of my favorite passions, craft beer and music, comes up.”
“Both in music and in brewing one has to take risks to reap great rewards, and with this beer we brought both worlds together to create a tour de force," says Hollingsworth.
“Never being the one to be complacent, I said to the guys, ‘Let’s make the biggest, baddest beast of an IPA we can using some hops new to Stone and a few interesting ingredients without trying to reinvent the wheel,’” Kelli recalls. “I think we really brought the hammer down and cranked this one up! One sip of this beast and you will taste the unforgiving nectar of the gods that is Collective Distortion IPA!”
Available for a limited time in small quantities, this imperial IPA is meant to be consumed fresh or within ninety days of being bottled or kegged to fully enjoy the beer’s hop-forward flavors and aromas.
For an exclusive download of “Racer X,” a new track from Kyle Hollingsworth’s upcoming album Speed of Life debuting late summer, as well as a download of “Let’s Go Outside” by The String Cheese Incident from the album Song in my Head, visit Stone Brewing Co.'s website.
Read a profile of Kyle Hollingsworth and check out the recipe for Kyle’s Birthday Brew.