A Blended Oak-Aged Ale

Otto is the result of our desire to utilize a longer matured, higher acidity beer aged in oak casks with peaches; while it already had complexity and a puckering fruit character from more than a year of aging, it wasn’t quite a Fair Isle beer on its own. Taking cues from the tradition of Biere de Coupage, we blended in a portion of fresh, young saison to provide a drier finish and tame the tartness of the older beer.

The aroma is reminiscent of Claude, our annually released oak-aged ale with white peaches – presenting a bright, sharp fruit character. On the palate, Otto is much drier than expected, with a lovely salinity coming through in the finish. As it warms, the character of the young saison in the blend rounds out the edges, while still retaining the depth and stone fruit notes of the older beer. We are quite pleased with how this one turned out, and are excited to share with fans of our fruited catalogue of ales.