Rare Beers and Why Unusual Flavors Are In Right Now

If you’re not afraid to try some outlandish ingredients, you’re in luck. There are many unusual flavors of craft beers out there – and some will truly surprise you.
We talked to Shaun O’Sullivan, brewmaster/co-owner of 21st Amendment Brewery (a San Francisco’s award-winning brewery known for their canned craft beers) to learn more about rare beer flavors and why you should give them a try.

Q: What makes a beer rare? Is it just about the spices/flavors used?
O’Sullivan: A “rare beer” implies that there is a limited supply and, in general, they are hard to find and not part of the everyday inventory you would find at your favorite beer retailer.
Rare beers really go beyond their scarcity and delve into the time and energy needed to produce them. Yes, they can cost more, as they require more care and can succumb to the economy of supply and demand. Unusual ingredients not found in mainstream beers also play a part beyond the four basic ingredients of water, malt, hops and yeast, and can include spices, herbs and the uncommon.
But, when a brewer has to put time and energy into a beer maybe though souring or barrel-aging before it sees the retail shelf, these beers take on a life of their own evolving with time from where they started. For example, if a brewer needs to blend several versions of the same beer or other beers for consideration into the final release, that is where the real brewers art comes into play and makes these beers unique and special.

Q: Are unusual craft beers mostly seasonal?
O’Sullivan: Seasonal beers play to the time of year they are enjoyed and embody the spirit of their seasons. Whether it’s a beer like our Hell or High Watermelon Wheat brewed with real watermelon, light and refreshing that celebrates summer, or darker and stronger beers that are a tad bit higher in alcohol to keep you warm during those colder months.
Spices that conjure the feeling of winter like our Fireside Chat, a winter warmer with an array of holiday spices can find their way into your holiday seasonal as well as stronger hoppier beers like Sierra Nevada’s Celebration.

Q: Can you tell our readers about your watermelon beer?
O’Sullivan: Our Hell of High Watermelon Wheat beer has a great past and story. It was actually a homebrew recipe that my business partner Nico Freccia made in his kitchen (yes, recipes do in fact start there) in San Francisco years ago.
The first year we opened the 21st Amendment in 2000, Nico came to me and asked about brewing that beer and my response was “nobody is going to drink that beer.” Well, the following year, I surprised him and took him back into the brewery where I had stacked from floor to ceiling cases of watermelons. I made that beer and it’s been a hit ever since.
At first, hardcore craft beer fans didn’t cotton up to the idea right away. Eventually, I had these big beers guys, who like imperial IPAs and big stouts, come up and whisper to me that they loved this beer and I would pat them on the back and tell them that they are fine and it’s ok to like this beer. Now it’s a huge hit. We stop selling it in October and when that happens we receive a lot of emails asking when the beer is coming back. It’s an amazing phenomenon and keeps getting bigger every year.

I like having secrets in the brewery and I think we have a very unique beer and I like to not tell how exactly we make this beer. The only clue I give homebrewers is that watermelon does ferment which is what makes this beer so unique. We also use real watermelon juice, NOT fake extracts and I that comes through in the beer. You expect a Jolly Rancher sweet flavor and what you have in your pint glass is a nice wheat beer with bready tones and a touch of watermelon flavor and aroma. Hell or High Watermelon is summer in a glass and you can keep sending your emails, but we won’t release it until next March.