BROOKLYN — Brooklyn Brewery fans across the country can now start making the Williamsburg beer at home.
Home-brewing company Brooklyn Brew Shop is debuting a kit that fans of the brand can use to make Sorachi Ace with just a pot and a stove.
The mix, which costs $40 and makes a gallon of beer, includes the same grains and hops that brewer Garrett Oliver uses for the light, farmhouse ale.
It's the first time Brooklyn Brewery will be offering a home-brew kit on such a wide scale.
"Sorachi Ace is really one of our favorite beers," said Stephen Valand, co-founder of Brooklyn Brew Shop. "It’s a really nice, light, dry saison."
Valand and his wife Erica Shea, who make all the recipes for Brooklyn Brew, tried about six to eight test batches of the small scale Sorachi Ace recipe with Oliver before choosing a final version.
Just like the Sorachi Ace made at Brooklyn Brewery, the home mix will taste lemony and herbal, Valand said.
Home brewers should just expect the beer to be slightly less clear, as the four-week process doesn't include the same amount of filtering as beer produced on a larger scale.
"You're going to get a little more grain residue in there," Valand said. "But we're quite pleased with the end results. It tastes quite similar."
Sorachi Ace is one of the first recipes that Oliver came up with when he became brewmaster at Brooklyn Brewery, he said.
Making it at home should help beer drinkers understand why the ale tastes the way it does, Oliver said.
“This kit will give both seasoned brewers and beginners the opportunity to deconstruct one of our favorite creations and understand what really makes it tick," he said in a statement.
Brooklyn Brew Shop has partnered with Brooklyn Brewery once before to offer a chocolate stout kit that was only available in limited quantities at the brewery, Valand said.
The Sorachi Ace kit is available for sale through the website and will be offered at least until the end of the year.
The collaboration is part of the home-brewing company's goal of offering more kits that use recipes from craft brewers.
Evil Twin and BrewDog have also had home brew kits on the site.
The packages include barley, hops, yeast and a glass jug "fermenter" to mix them in. Home brewers only need a couple of pots.
"At the end, you have alcoholic, bubbly, good-tasting beer that you can share with your friends," Valand said. "You get a huge kick at the end."
