Barolo 1 Foedre

Barolo wine falls under the Italian Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG), similar to the French system of Appellation, legally tying the production to a particular methodology in a particular place. In this case, 100% Nebbiolo grapes grown in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy (where the Italian side of John's family comes from) on hillsides with full, unblocked northern exposure to the sun. Prior to release, the wine must be aged for a minimum of 38 months of which 18 need to be in wood. The wines are known for deeply complex tannins, mid palate strawberry, chocolate, and soil with a rounded, spiced finish of extremely dark fruits. Think fruit reductions that keep going until they hit a just before burnt, tar like consistency.

Gator Time [2020]

Wild fermented saison aged in an Italian Barolo foedre for eight months then refermented with Montmorency cherries. A vibrant starburst of cherry skin and clementine with sparkling rosé like acidity and minerality bookended by Barolo’s trademark black cherry notes and drying oak tannin.

Squoke [2018]

Our very first batches brewed at Mousetrap blended together and aged in one of the five foedres we pulled out of a winery in the Piedmont region of northern Italy where they spent their lives cradling Barolo for 18 years. In order to pull as much of these wood and wine derived aromas and flavors out of the foedre as possible, we let it slumber for 20 months (labels say 16 but shockingly we often have to order labels far ahead of when we actually need them and looked up the wood aging requirements of Barolo's DOCG embarrassedly late in this whole process). More important than simply the function of extended time, Squoke sat in the foedre for multiple seasons. Seasonal changes in temperature force the beer into the wood when it's warm and coaxes it back out as the days cool - this capillary action captures residual flavors locked deep inside the wood fibers and is the primary reason we don't climate control our foedre room. We fussed a bunch about which of our beers to showcase how gorgeous these foedres are through extended aging and opted for a variation of probably our most beloved wild ale whose light, spritzy profile provides an elegant base to showcase the amalgamation of oak, wine, and mixed fermentation. (Eeek!, which we're sure you already figured out was the groundwork for this so let's just go ahead and talk about it parenthetically, of course is our collaboration with Miller High Life explaining how the Lady in the Moon ended up there. This is not that nor did we work with Miller High Life on this...though we certainly drank a bunch of them during the 20 months it took to make. Think of Squoke more as a variation of that story from the mouse's point of view. The grain bill and hopping are slightly different and this beer is not light stable.

More importantly, where there is all of the wild mixed culture harvested from Eeek!, we've supplemented and adjusted the culture with additional Brettanomyces and Sacchromyces strains. Also Eeek! is fermented solely in stainless whereas the fundamental point of this beer is the foedres which are very fancy ergo the fancier sounding 'Squoke' rather than the far more pedestrian 'Squeeked.' This last point of nomenclature is very dumb and John probably had too many High Lifes when he argued it.)

ANYWAY, the dry, but wonderfully fruited, vinous character is supported by complex wood tannin structure while barnyard earthiness plays off ripe pineapple and nectarine notes from mixed fermentation of Brettanomyces claussenii, mango like farmhouse ale yeast, and acidic wild cultures. Initial blushes are of nectarines, strawberries, and blackberry jam with a deeper base of soil, mahogany, and India ink. These are followed by a quick nip of nectarine like acidity expanding to an expressive meadow of over-ripened peach flesh, angel food cake, and summer harvest honey. The finish is a long, meandering affair of tannin, slate like minerality, pie crusts, and black cherry.