London-based Mondo Brewing Co and Upslope Brewing Co, of Colorado, have collaborated on Book Club, brewed with Phantasm, a natural thiol precursor new to UK brewing.
Mondo and Upslope came together through the Brewers Association and their mutual desire to brew fantastic beer. While in the capital for the London Craft Beer Festival, in August, Upslope’s head brewer, Alex Meyer, spent a day brewing Book Club at Mondo’s Battersea brewery.
Book Club is a 5.1% ABV IPA, available in 440ml cans and 30-litre kegs. It was brewed with Nelson Sauvin and Citra in the Cool Pool along with Phantasm, a thiol precursor product extracted from Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc grapes.
Phantasm is packed full of tropical thiol precursors which convert to passionfruit, grapefruit, and exotic tropical flavours in the right fermentation conditions. This is the first time Phantasm has been used in the UK and was brought over by Upslope specifically for this special brew.
The beer has a fruity, white wine character, low to no bitterness, and a soft mouthfeel. The use of the experimental
product has resulted in a very fruit-forward beer with passionfruit, guava, and citrus coming through strongly in aroma and flavour.
Lotte Peplow, the Brewers Association’s American craft beer ambassador for Europe, said: “It’s great to see a high-quality American craft brewery like Upslope collaborating with an equally high-quality British brewery, Mondo.
“Having sampled Book Club myself, I can safely say it’s tasting awesome and showcases the creativity, skill, and all-round brewing excellence of super-talented brewers from both sides of the Atlantic!”
Thomas Palmer, director of brewing at Mondo, added: “Lotte Peplow is a dear friend of the brewery and a great ambassador to have here in the UK for the Brewers Association. The opportunity to work with her and Alex from Upslope was an exciting chance to use some exclusive ingredients and make a great beer with a great brewer.
“We’ve been trying to work with Phantasm and Nelson CGX since reading about them in the trade journals. Alex facilitated that supply and we’re very pleased with the resulting product.
“With the addition of our first experience using IRC7 thiol boosting yeast, we’re positive our customers are going to enjoy the tropical fruit flavours bursting from this beer as much as we do.”
