The Grifter Brewing Co Tortoise & The Hop

The Tortoise & The Hop pilsner is a beer the Grifter Brewing Company couldn't have made when they first started on their brewing adventure. That's not to say they couldn't have done it technically, but physically. You see, lagers (of which pilsner is, of course, one) need to spend considerably longer fermenting when compared to their ale counterparts. And when you're brewing in someone elses brewery, as the Grifters do out of the very busy and predominantly ale-focused Young Henrys, it's not all that practical to take up valuable tank space for a long time. But what happens if you buy your own tank in that brewery? Well, you can brew what you like. And so we have the Tortoise & The Hop pilsner that's been fermented long, slow and cool. As is their want for brewing beer with character, this is a Grifterfied version of the classic pilsner; it's 6.2 per cent, unfiltered and uses all New Zealand hops (and a generous amount of them). It probably took the Grifters over a year to get to the stage where they were able to brew this beer, so be sure to enjoy it like a Tortoise would: slow and steady. NO

Published September 2, 2013 2013-09-02 00:00:00