Photo courtesy of Land-Grant Brewing Company
Defying Gravity
A look at the high-ABV beers of central Ohio
The Arnold Classic isn’t central Ohio’s only demonstration of great feats of strength.
All year long, local brewers are creating brews that pack a wallop, and it so happens that many of them will be on full display just a month prior to that showcase of physical power.
On Feb. 6, more than 20 central Ohio breweries will bring out their best barley wines, stouts, Belgians, double and triple IPAs, and barrel-aged beverages at the High Gravity Hullabaloo, organized by the Columbus Craft Beer Alliance. The event is also highlighted by smoked meats and classic arcade games.
“You can sample some beers you can’t get anywhere else. You can mingle with the brewers,” says Laura Oldham, alliance co-founder. “Every brewery in Columbus will be there.”
Photo courtesy of Columbus Craft Beer Alliance
Defying Gravity
The most common high-gravity styles include:
-Barley wines: Often at the top end of the ABV scale, these potent potables announce their presence with an often-noticeable alcoholic punch to their flavors. Example: Zaftig Brewing Co.’s Big Barley Wine.
-Imperial stouts: Dark and thick, these heavy stouts often have notes of – or are outright brewed with – chocolate and/or coffee. Example: Barley’s Brewing Co.’s Bourbon Meyer Buckeye Stout.
-Belgian strong ales: Coming in dubbel, tripel and sometimes even quadrupel varieties, these beers brewed in the style of Belgian abbey ales often have flavors reminiscent of dark fruits. Example: Wolf’s Ridge Brewing’s St. Francis Quad.
-Imperial IPAs: Where Belgians are sweet, strong IPAs – which may be called double or triple IPAs – are bitter and highly hoppy. Example: Hoof Hearted Brewing’s Dragonsaddle Triple IPA.
-Barrel-aged beers: An otherwise unassuming beer is wood-aged, often in a barrel that previously housed bourbon or another strong spirit, imparting the flavor of that spirit and pumping up the alcohol content. Example: Jackie O’s Pub & Brewery’s Bourbon Barrel Wood Burner.
Besides impressing beer lovers both casual and dedicated, festivals such as the Hullabaloo encourage brewers to stay at the top of their game.
“All the other beers there will be fantastic,” says Walt Keys, creative director at Land-Grant Brewing Company in Franklinton. “We love to do these ones that have a theme built into them. They bring the best out of ourselves and all the other breweries.”
Keys names Land-Grant’s Deep Search Baltic porter – a strong, dark beer with notes of chocolate – as his personal favorite high-gravity brew.
“The batch we did last year was fantastic. The longer it sits and ages, the better it gets,” he says. “One of our guys has a secret stash at his house, and we drank it the other week. Six or seven months after the beer came out, it tasted better than when we tapped it.”
Photo courtesy of Seventh Son Brewing
Defying Gravity
Land-Grant faces stiff competition.
Seventh Son Brewing, of Italian Village, will present its Oubliette Imperial Stout, a 12 percent ABV blend of chocolate, espresso and fruity notes.
“Oubliette is the French word for both ‘forgetting’ and ‘deep dark dungeons,’” says Collin Castore, partner at Seventh Son. “The name seemed appropriate.”
Jaya Pillai is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
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