LEXINGTON, Ky. – In 1999, Lexington, Kentucky, had only one small brewery, and the craft beer movement had not yet taken hold in the Bluegrass region. That year, the same brewery received new life from a local, Irish-born entrepreneur, Pearse Lyons, and Lexington Brewing Co. was enabled to continue a brewing tradition that dates back to the 1700s.
Twenty years later, what is now Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. is the largest craft brewery in the state, with an ever-growing following for its flagship brew, Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale, which will receive an updated look for its 14th year in production. In addition to the flagship brand, all beer and spirits from Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. will receive new looks for its 20th anniversary.
“Unifying our brands under one style will help our customers better recognize our products on the shelf and will reinforce our position as the standard in quality bourbon barrel-aged beers,” said Pete Weiss, marketing manager for Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co.
In addition to the new look, the brewery and distillery are in the midst of new product releases, most notably Kentucky Coffee Barrel Cream Ale and Town Branch Malt.
Kentucky Coffee Barrel Cream Ale is a new beer available in 6-packs and will be on draft this year. Following the success of Kentucky Vanilla Barrel Cream Ale, this new cream ale is brewed with coffee and aged in freshly emptied Kentucky bourbon barrels. This brew has a pronounced coffee flavor unique to a cream ale, with just enough bourbon sweetness to balance the notes of bitter coffee.
“This is a coffee lover’s dream beer,” said Brandon Martin, head brewer at Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. “It has big notes of our Haitian coffee, and a hint of sweetness, all in a package that is just 5.5 percent alcohol by volume, so it is very drinkable.”
Town Branch Distillery is launching the new Town Branch Malt to complement its family of whiskeys. The 7-year-old, Kentucky single malt whiskey will be released at 87 proof.
“This is a whiskey we have been developing for some time,” said Mark Coffman, master distiller at Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. “We have now been distilling for over 10 years and have some great whiskey that is ready to bottle. There is no better time than now for a 7-year-old, American single malt.”
According to Coffman, Town Branch Malt carries notes of sweet cereal on the nose, with flavors of molasses, vanilla, brown sugar and nutmeg. A long, smooth finish opens even further with a drop of water.
In addition to Town Branch Malt, the distillery is refreshing its other flagship whiskeys. Town Branch Bourbon will be increased to 90 proof, up 10 points from its previous bottling strength and Town Branch Rye will move to a single barrel selection on every batch.
“We really want to bring out the unique notes on these whiskeys, and the changes in batch sizes and proof will allow these spirits to really shine,” said Coffman.
Kentucky Coffee Barrel Cream Ale and Town Branch Malt will be available in Lexington the week of March 18 and additional markets the following week.
Follow the Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. Facebook page or @LexBrewingCo on Twitter for updates as well as special events and product releases.
For more information about Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co., visit www.LexingtonBrewingCo.com.
About Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co.
Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. is the producer of award-winning beer and spirits and one of a handful of joint brewing and distilling operations in the world. Since its founding in 2000 by Irish entrepreneur Pearse Lyons, founder of Alltech, its Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale has grown to become the brewery’s flagship brew, capitalizing on the brewery’s proximity to fresh Kentucky bourbon barrels. Today, the Kentucky Ale family of brews – Kentucky Irish Red Ale, Kentucky Kölsch, Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale, Kentucky Coffee Barrel Stout, Kentucky IPA and a unique barrel-aged seasonal series – has collected numerous awards. In 2012, the company became part of the world-renowned Kentucky Bourbon Trail experience with the opening of its Town Branch Distillery, which crafts Town Branch Bourbon, Town Branch Rye, Town Branch Malt, Pearse Lyons Reserve malt whiskey and Bluegrass Sundown bourbon-infused coffee liqueur. For more information, visit lexingtonbrewingco.com.