Powderkeg Brewery have added a new beer to their cask range for 2025, their first of many new beers the Devon outfit have planned for this year.
Young Gun (3.4% ABV) starts a series of amber ales “from when the West Coast was the wild new frontier of craft brewing”.
Powderkeg owner and head brewer, John Magill, said: “We have a history with this style — it’s one we keep coming back to. It started with 6ixes & 7evens, way back in 2016. Last time we brewed it, in 2023, it was crowned the best indie amber ale in the UK [by SIBA].
“Then last year, we did a limited-edition brew called Simcoe Pleasures that sold out in a matter of weeks, and we remembered how much we — and everyone else — loves a West Coast amber. It’s that perfect mix of modern and trad brewing, and it has a lovely balance between the malt and hops.”
Now, the brewer is embarking on a run of ambers using a series of newly-released, often still experimental hops. These will all be sourced from growers on the West Coast of America.
The first in the edition is Strata, a hop that brings tropical fruit and a shot of classic US dankness to a prominent malt base.
“This will be the perfect offering for all those venues looking for a craft cask beer to compliment the more traditional ales on their handpulls,” said John.
“It’s a more modern style and a more interesting beer, but it still has a very broad appeal because of that amber colour and full bodied maltiness.”
