(photo credit, Mittenbrew.com)
This past week I have been reluctant to get a hold of Lindsay VanDenBoom, public relations of Perrin Brewery for questions about some of the aspects of beers from Perrin. Perrin, based in Comstock Park, MI is a big name in the craft beer world and it was a pleasure to be granted this interview. Unfortunately, we could not do an in person interview due to scheduling conflicts but she was happy to answer questions via email about Perrin.
Emmanuel: I am a fan of the creativity that goes into the naming of a lot of the beers brewed by Perrin , such as, “Damsel In Distress, Poop your Pants, Caesar’s Gimp” and others. I read the blog Written by Sheldon King entitled, “The Difficult Stage of Naming a Beer” and was curious on how getting into more detail on the stages of naming certain beers such as the three mentioned above. Was it the style of beer, is it trying to pick something edgy to make it stand out or is it completely random?
Lindsay: A lot of the beer naming is crafted by the Brewers. For example, “No Rules” came above when a Brewer was having a tough day at the brewery and shouted “There are no rules around here!” and from that, the theme “no rules” stuck and that eventually became a beer name. The imagination of each brewer is what makes the naming process fun. Depending on the style of the beer and the ingredients that go into each batch becomes an inspiration in the naming process.
Emmanuel: Craft beer is a big thing in the state of Michigan, how does Perrin stand out from the other breweries in the state?
Lindsay: At Perrin Brewing, we utilize a unique water filtering system that is very rare in the brewing industry. It’s the Reverse Osmosis System, a system that removes all impurities from brewing water and allows the most consistent, true to style beers possible. After the water is stripped of all its impurities, brewing salts and acids are added to build the water back up. This allows us to make each water profile specific and unique to each style that we brew.
Serving over 20 beers on tap, we intend on finding a beer fit for anyone!
Emmanuel: What would you say is your favorite style of beer? (IPA? Pilsner? Porter? Or other)
Lindsay: My personal favorite style of beer is either a light n’ crisp pilsner in the summertime and a rich, flavorful stout in the fall/winter.
Emmanuel: What would you say are the three most popular beers created by Perrin?
Lindsay: The Perrin flagship beer is Perrin Black Ale, a light-bodied dark ale with hints of semi-sweet chocolate and soft nuances of fresh coffee.
No Rules, Vietnamese Imperial Porter was ranked one of the top beers in the world by RateBeer in 2016. And sells out within hours of releasing!
The Grapefruit IPA and Michigan Cherry IPA are the top seasonal brews released during spring and summer.
Emmanuel: It’s very interesting concept to create a beer without hops because it has been such a core element in beer for so long, so, how did the idea for a “Gruits” style of beer come about?
Perrin has never particular brewed a Gruits beer, only research on the style.
Emmanuel: How did the idea for the No Problem Session IPA come about?
The thought process in this beer was crafting a light, crisp, session-able beer that you can enjoy several of during warm days. This crush-able beer has a complex hop profile by layering hops in the brewing process, yet the beer still remains light with intense hop flavor. With a cold beer in hand, there is “no problems”! Plus it played a role in our Pack of Problems, IPA Variety Pack featuring 4 cans of No Problems Session IPA, 4 cans of 98 Problems IPA, and 4 cans of Lotsa Problems IPA.
Emmanuel: How long have you been with Perrin Brewing?
Lindsay: I have been working at Perrin Brewing for one year.
Emmanuel: What tips would you offer to anyone looking to get into brewing their own beer?
Lindsay: Start with a pre-packaged brewing kit and work up from there. The first homebrew will most likely not turn out the best. It can be a trial and error at first but with a quick guide at the beginning and experimenting after that, you’ll be amazed how tasty a successful homebrew can be!
In short, Perrin has and always will be a standout name in the beer world and their style of brewing along with creativeness is what separates them from the pack. I appreciate Lindsay for taking the time out to get back to me on the details of Perrin Brewery and I appreciate everyone for reading along.
Stay tuned for more updates for Beats and Brews, 2017 will be a busy year!
Beats, Brews and points of view 