Barolo 5 Foedre

So it's no surprise that John loves Averie Swanson – former head brewer at Jesterking and currently running her own project Keeping Together. In order to woo her to hang out more, we devoted a special foedre just for her. The first beer we put in it was when she was still with Jesterking and came up to Chicago. Our brewing schedules didn’t line up with her trip, so we hung out along Argyle St eating pho and buying rice then made a batch of mix ferm sake together. We used that koji inoculated rice in a simple saison base then fermented it with a blend of wild cultures from both JK and our own. The second beer also used koji inoculated rice and a light saison base but with some more floral leaning spice and hopping. Currently, we have a wild fermented saison called Socks brewed with black limes and African dried lemons aging in it. The first batch of Socks was made with Josh Hambright, formerly of Central State, since Josh is very large and has a way of pushing his way into things!

Pink Knit Socks [2021/2023]

We aged Socks, our foedre-aged wild saison brewed with black limes and African dried lemons, in a Sangiovese puncheon with pink lemons (they exist!) and Sangiovese grapes. Expect vibrant chords of pink lemonade, cherry skins, and tangerines.

BLUE Knit Socks [2022]

A small batch Blueberry Rhubarb version of our foedre fermented lemonade saison (aka Socks). The African dried lemons and black limes play up a blueberry lemonade character while a light portion of rhubarb adds a background strawberry-like chord. A lovely note of summertime lemonade stands and carefree afternoons.

Socks [2019/2020]

Wild fermented saison aged in one of our Barolo foedres with African Dried Lemons and Black Limes. Both Black Limes and African Dried Lemons undergo ancient preservation methods. Black Limes are Persian limes which have been boiled in salt water and left to dry in the sun, turning the lime completely black. The bright, citrus pop remains but takes on a deeper, almost smokey herbaceous quality. African dried lemons are not boiled in salt water so they don’t undergo the same color transformation however sun drying similarly concentrates and intensifies their expression. An abundance of preserved citrus couples harmoniously with the slight pineapple funk and citric tartness from our wild yeasts with vinous hints from its lengthy stay in one of our foedres conjuring warm, summer thoughts regardless of season.

Cygnet [2018]

Pleasant intertwining of our two breweries' mixed cultures showcasing the nectarine/stone fruit ester profile of our wild yeasts alongside the more lime forward, mineral character of Jester King house culture. White grapes, papaya, and guava overlay a spritzy acidity with elegant oak structure from a 13 month rest in our Barolo foedre and a subtle perfume from the koji inoculated sake rice Averie (Jester King’s Head Brewer and John’s perennial source of obsession) made with us.