East Aurora, New York’s 42 North Brewing Company and Ukraine’s 2085 Brewery have launched an open-source collaboration beer program called Resolve to support the humanitarian effort in Ukraine, 42 North founder John Cimperman told Brewbound.
“As a brewery, we have deep connections to Ukraine and feel pretty helpless in what we can do to help,” he said. “If we can raise awareness and funds, it’s the least we can do.”
The Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24 and has intensified in the days since. More than 2 million Ukranians have fled the country since the invasion began.
One of 42 North’s founding brewers, Naz Drebot, is Ukrainian. Cimperman credited Drebot with helping build 42 North during its first three years before he returned to Ukraine and opened a brewery in Kyiv called 2085 Brewery.
“Not that we need any more reason to support Ukraine, but when one of your own is literally in the middle of it, it really brings it close to home,” he said.
Cimperman said the project is being called Resolve due to the word often being used to describe the Ukrainian people. Resolve follows other open-source collaboration fundraisers such as Resilience, Black is Beautiful, and Brave Noise.
Resolve will be a kellerbier (4.8% ABV) and 42 North will provide the recipe and artwork for breweries who want to join the effort. Proceeds from the sale of the beer will go to Global Empowerment Mission, a not-for-profit that is “providing emergency aid in Ukraine to the fighters and families that have stayed behind, as well as humanitarian aid to the women and children that are trying to cross the border into Poland,” according to the Resolve website.
42 North plans to brew its version of Resolve on March 9. Participating breweries that have already signed onto the effort include Kings County Brewers Collective (New York), Keel Farms (Florida), Platform Brewing (Ohio), Vetra Beer (Italy) and Reketye Brewing (Hungary).
Other efforts have popped up to support the humanitarian effort in Ukraine. Oregon’s Rogue Ales & Spirits created “F*#k Putin,” a 6.5% ABV Northwest IPA, with 100% of the proceeds going to Global Giving’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund to help nonprofits provide access to education, food, medical services and more in Ukraine. The effort hits close to home for Rogue president Dharma Tamm, whose family was displaced in 1944 when Russia invaded Estonia.
Pravda Brewery, the Lviv-based craft brewery that gained global attention for shifting its beer production to making molotov cocktails, announced its own collaboration beer and fundraising effort, offering the recipes for its beers — Putin Huylo dry hopped strong ale, Syla Belgian tripel, Red Eyes American red ale, Frau Ribbentrop Belgian witbier, From San to Don Ukrainian imperial stout — to brewers from around the world to brew with proceeds going to its relief funds.
Pravda is welcoming participating brewers and media to connect with them via video chat to brew together.
“As peaceful craft brewers, we want to return to the normal life ASAP and enjoy brewing and drinking,” the brewery wrote. “But first, we must kick the cockroaches out of our land.”
Meanwhile, Drinkers for Ukraine has launched a three-pronged effort, including a solidarity beer, online auctions, and fundraising livestream.