Alright Louisiana beer fans, the much anticipated release of Parish Brewing's Grand Reserve Barleywine is getting close! December 14th, to be exact, with the first bottles being released at the brewery itself. After the initial brewery release (3 bottles max per person, must reserve in advance) then bottles and kegs will be dispersed throughout the Parish distribution area. I've heard from Andrew, the owner and brewmaster, and he says that they have about 2000 bottles and 20 kegs this year, and they expect that 1200 to 1300 will be distributed while the remaining are expected to be sold directly from the brewery on Dec. 14th. Last year there were 1300 bottles produced, so those in Baton Rouge looking for it on the shelves can expect a similar amount as we saw in 2012, but hopefully they will stretch a little farther as some of us will likely be buying bottles at the brewery!
In my opinion Grand Reserve is the best Louisiana brewed beer, so I'm quite excited about this release, and I'm very happy that there will be a brewery release as well as normal distribution. Andrew told me they will also have a cask of the 2013 Grand Reserve at the brewery, as well as a keg of 2013 for snifter pours, and a keg of 2012 Grand Reserve available in 5 oz. pours for comparison. There should also be several food trucks on site to add the to festivities.
Sounds like a great day to me!
