A Note from BBC15 Partner, Huntsville/Madison Country Convention & Visitors Bureau
When you’re a city with more PhDs per capita than anywhere else in the U.S. and your tallest building is a Saturn V moon rocket, people expect pretty smart things from you. To that end, our burgeoning craft beer scene in Huntsville, Alabama has folks heading back to the classroom and learning a thing or two about some stellar craft brews.
STRAIGHT TO ALE
Let’s start with Straight to Ale embracing Huntsville’s past, present and future role in the U.S. space program by taking us to “history class” with inspired creations like:
LAIKA (a Russian Imperial Stout) – Named for the Russian space dog, Laika is a huge, chewy beast of a beer. Dark, rich and robust, it has a wonderful body and a flavor that has notes of chocolate, coffee and toffee.
MONKEYNAUT IPA – Albert. Able. Gordo. Miss Baker. Bonny. Goliath. Between 1948 and 1961, these primate pioneers bravely went where no man had gone before, paving the way for manned U.S. spaceflight. This hoppy little monkey of a beer is a tribute to those simian heroes of yesteryear. It has a citrusy, floral hop aroma, a strong malt body and a crisp finish.
ROCKET REPUBLIC BREWING COMPANY
Next up, Rocket Republic Brewing Company, not shying away from the ingrained “space love” in Huntsville but maintaining a decidedly “science class” approach.
VAPOR TRAIL CREAM ALE – Aptly named for the milky white lacing left behind on your glass after this beer is long gone! With a generous amount of honey and biscuit malts, this smooth, sweet, easy-to drink-ale is going to pave the trail in their Flagship Series and will keep you coming back.
MACH 1IPA– Fully loaded in all-American style with sweet tangerine aroma and tangy citrus flavor. An ample amount of rye malt is added to the mash early in the brewing process, igniting a zesty pepper kick to the tongue, contradicting the smooth characteristics coming from a cataclysmic combination of Cascade and Centennial hops.
YELLOWHAMMER BREWING
We can’t forget Yellowhammer Brewing with a little “music class” to round out your schedule.
LOST HIGHWAY (Black Lager) – A German-style schwarzbier, brewed with a blend of German Munich malt, Vienna malt and huskless roasted malts, give this beer a smooth toasty character.
Thought all this talk of school was just a metaphor? That’s where you’d be wrong. Construction is underway for a joint project between Yellowhammer and Straight to Ale revitalizing a long-vacant middle school complex including new construction for not only both breweries but restaurants, home-brewing supply stores and a 2,000 seat outdoor amphitheater.
So next time you’ve got a little “recess”, come check out these and the four other operating breweries located in Huntsville (making us Alabama’s craft beer capital). For more information about all there is to do and see here visit: huntsville.org or our blog site: iHeartHsv.com(With our own dedicated craft beer blogger!)
