Journeys Through Barrels & Blends
Our Odyssey range is a collection of beers that have been blended. Sometimes a blend of the same beer in different barrels, sometimes very different beers that work together in a way that makes the sum greater than the individual parts. Blending is a journey and also a challenge, and we felt that the challenges faced in the Odyssey stories were an apt description for our beers
World Beer Cup Silver Medal
More than 8,000 entries from 66 countries competed at the ‘Olympics of Beer’, held every two years. 295 expert judges were appointed to call the shots. We truly value this recognition, no other competition has such a high standard of entrants and such a strict criteria of judging, so it makes the achievement all the more important to us.
We’re proud and humbled to pick up the medal. Our love of barrel ageing began on day one with Maiden and still epitomises what we’re about as a brewery today. It’s testament to the hard work of the whole team here, but in particular we have to single out our Barrel Manager Steve, who also happens to be among the first people ever employed in the brewery. Odyssey 008 was a labour of love that he did a superb job with.
Odyssey 008
The barrel-aged beers were selected for their aroma and acidity. After blending the beer was returned to barrels for another 3 months (in red wine barrels from which part of the original blend was drawn, plus some bourbon barrels which previously housed Acid Jam). A small addition of seasonal British fruit was added to some of the barrels. The fruit additions total ~75g/L in the overall blend, consisting of 40% cherries and 60% blackcurrants. The resulting beer has a gorgeous oak character with prominent red wine tannin influence, bramble & berries and a fruity acidity on the palate. Of course there’s a complexity too, and our tasting notes pick up floral notes, almonds, umami and a delicate funkiness from the brettanomyces. As always, we’d love to know how your tastings compare.
We're delighted that Odyssey 008 picked up a World Beer Cup Silver Medal in 2018.
Odyssey 011
Our latest Odyssey goes back to the routes of the project, with a blended Imperial Stout. Featuring a select mix of some of the finest dark beers from the barrel store, Odyssey 011 sings with rich chocolate notes and an experience akin to liquor-soaked fruit cake, with some fresh Irish cream on the nose.
Odyssey 011 is built from a majority of Bourbon barrels, with the addition of one or two rogue rum barrels, however there are decadent Sherry notes that really shine here. It's a beer that sticks around with delicious liquorice character.
When you consider that beers like Trubbel and our highest ever rated beer, Dark & Perilous Nights, make up some of the blend, it's no wonder this one is so full of flavour. We're very proud of how this has turned out and hope that you enjoy it.
