Kinnegar Brewery is known for their TRO (Taproom Only) concept for somewhat more off-beat, unusual and adventurous experiments in brewing.
First introduced in September, this week seen the second edition in the series brewery, combining seaweed and coffee in a simple stout to produce a very special beer.
Rick LeVert, Owner and Head Brewer at Kinnegar Brewery said the first thing they discovered is that the seaweed impacts the gravity of the wort, tricking with the results that we’re used to seeing in the kettle.
“Our kelp came from Rosaria Piseri and her team at AlgAran who hand harvest organic seaweed at Muckross Head in Donegal Bay and process it in Glencolmcille,” he said.
The second thing the brewing team discovered is that “cupping” — the time-honoured sensory process for selecting coffee beans — is a very specialised skill.
Under the guidance of the experts at New Kid Coffee, also based in Letterkenny, Rick eventually agreed on a bean from Fazenda Bela Vista in Brazil.
Richard Finney, New Kid Coffee said the clean flavour profile of this particular bean should allow the other ingredients in the beer to shine.
“Naturally processed coffee should boost the body and make for an interesting beer texture,” he said.
The TRO series has very limited availability.
Working with just five “Taproom Partners” around the country — in Belfast, Dublin Cork, Galway and Athlone — and they become Kinnegar’s “home away from home” for the release of these very special beers.
Donegal beer enthusiasts can enjoy Coffee Kelp Stout at Kinnegar’s K2 Taproom in Ballyraine, open Wednesday to Saturday, 1–7pm.
For anyone who can’t get to the brewery, cans of this intriguing Donegal collaboration can be purchased on the Kinnegar webshop at www.kinnegarbrewing.ie/shop.
New Kid Coffee and the unique range of seaweed food and cosmetic products from AlgAran are also available online.
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