Sometimes the weirdest combinations just make sense. A brewery and a creamery in Oregon partnered together to make a new tasty creation: blue cheese beer.
Rogue Creamery and the Crux Fermentation Project teamed up to craft Coolship Beer No. 6, a lambic-style ale brewed with Rogue River Blue Cheese and aged in oak barrels for nearly two years. “I think we handled a healthy dose of skepticism even from our blue cheese devotees,” Marguerite Merritt, cheese emissary for Rogue Creamery, said.
Larry Sidor, the founder and master brewer for the Crux Fermentation Project, said it was difficult for him to convince his own team about the creation. “When I told my brewers what we were doing, they pretty much laughed. They thought, ‘no way, this will not work,'” Sidor said.
The pair said that despite the many doubters, Coolship Beer No. 6 had proven to be a tasty new brew that is completely out-of-the-box.
“It’s got nuance and complexity, but it’s not too cheesy, it’s not too strong. It’s a really nice balanced product that once you get to know it a little more, maybe sip two, three, glass, two or three, you may begin to pick up on that very, that slight hint of blue cheese on the finish,” Merritt said.
Sidor said was also quite pleased with the outcome of the beverage. “I was really impressed. And the brewers that were skeptical were very impressed,” he said.
Coolship Beer No. 6 will be available at the Crux Pub in Southeast Portland, which is holding a tasting event for the new brew.