Balance Brewing & Blending and Stockport-based food, drink, and culture magazine Pellicle are to release a collaboratively-produced trio of beers.
Photograph: Pellicle
The brews mark the sixth anniversary of Pellicle and will be launched at a free-to-attend all-day party event held at Balance’s tap room in Piccadilly, Manchester, on 10th May.
The three beers are a subtle nod towards Pellicle’s editorial remit. They comprise:
- Plonk
Inspired by natural and orange wines, Plonk pours a subtle pink, with effervescence that carries aromas of apricot skin, almond, and peach. On the palate, tannins give structure, while the fruitiness of the blend brings a sense of sweetness before finishing with poached pear, woody vanilla, and crisp dryness.
- Ruin
Botanicals from White Peak Distillery infuse the character of their house gin into this beer. Aromatically, there’s orange peel, floral sweetness, and unmistakable juniper. The base beer brings fruity malt notes alongside cinnamon, subtle umami, and a pithy finish.
- Bine
A fresh hop saison. Full of complexity, with sharp lemon peel and blackcurrant notes on the nose. The sharp citrus hits on the palate, too, along with earthy spice and piney resin. There’s a herbal, peachy note, which leads into a finish of pink grapefruit pith bitterness.
Also taking part in the celebrations will be Derbyshire’s White Peak Distillery, makers of Wireworks English Whisky, who will be running whisky tasting sessions throughout the day. These are ticketed, and tickets can be bought for £12 each via the Pellicle website.
“We’re really jazzed about these three collab beers we’ve created with Pellicle,” said Will Harris, co-owner of Balance Brewing & Blending. “At both Pellicle and Balance, it feels like we’re excited and inspired by the wider world of beverages, with beer forming a bit of a central pillar around which we weave our thoughts and ideas of what’s possible creatively.
“For these beers we’ve taken three approaches which focus on incorporating traditional techniques to bring new and complex flavours, emulating wine through using barrel beer, fruit stones, and judicious blending, and finally utilising waste products to give them a second life and extract unique and characterful flavour. We can’t wait to share them with you.”
Pellicle founding editor Matthew Curtis added: “It’s been a thrill to produce these beers with our pals at Balance, who are without doubt one of the most exciting small beer makers in the country right now. Each beer represents something we love about the culture we cover via the magazine, and I’m excited to try them all!”
All three beers have label art designed by Morecambe-based artist, muralist, and riso-print zinemaker Molly Bland, and will be available to buy on the day of the event, and via Balance Brewing & Blending directly.
