Colorado brewery to release bag-in-box sour beers

The boxed booze trend is gaining momentum as Primitive Beer, a side project launched by staff at Lafayette-based brewer Odd13, plans to launch a range of Iambic-style sour beers in 1.5-litre capacity bag-in-box.

Lisa and Brandon Boldt. Image: Facebook (Primitive Beer)

Primitive Beer, a new blending facility and taproom due to open tomorrow (14 April), will serve uncarbonated, Iambic-style sour beers both on tap and take away bag-in-box.

As reported by West Word, Primitive will be open for two days per month and will serve beers on tap for $18-$20 per pitcher and in 1.5-litre boxes for $25.

The project was founded by Brandon and Lisa Boldt, head taproom brewer and assistant taproom manager respectively at Odd13.

The Boldts, who want to recreate a style of beer popular in Belgium, told West Word that “this is definitely an experiment”.

The spontaneously fermented beers are aged in wooden casks from between nine months and three years. Some are blended while others are combined with fruit or hops.

In the US, the term ‘Methode Traditionelle’ was coined in 2017 and used to refer to Iambic or gueuze (blend of Iambic beers that are re-fermented in bottle) after a group of breweries wanted to produce beers of a similar style, but without using the Belgian terminology.

According to West Word, the base blend is called Unbroken Boulevard of Green Lights, which will be the first beer that’s sold in bag-in-box. Also due to hit the taps include a beer aged with plums called Life’s Complicated and one aged with peaches and hops called Pretty Chill Time.

Primitive will be open on the second and fourth Saturday of every month, from noon until 10pm.

Image: Facebook Primitive Beer

While beer in box is yet to take off in the same way as wine has, it has certainly been around since the 1980s, when according to beer writer Michael Jackson, a Californian microbrewery called Golden Pacific was selling its Golden Pacific Bittersweet Ale in a box.

Meanwhile, in spirits, Pinkster recently unveiled a 3-litre carton of its raspberry-infused gin priced at £135.