Beer of the Week: Dr. Barry N Friends Summertime Elixer

From the Beer Writer: Back in 2018, when a group of brewer-entrepreneurs named their entity Creative Creature Brewing, I hoped this operation would live up to its innovative adjective. Have they ever. Using a combination of ultra-now and esoteric styles as a canvass for creation, their in-it-together brew crew has explored countless flavor combinations. They readily admit that they’re not always certain of exactly how their beers will turn out, but fandom around the brand speaks to their successful track record, even with beers that sport ingredient lineups as long as the Padres’ batting order. Case in point, this week’s featured beer, Dr. Barry N Friends Summertime Elixer, which was an attempt to supply an imperial smoothie sour ale with the flavors of praline peach cobbler. All it took to make that happen was peaches, cinnamon, vanilla, and scads of toasted almonds and walnuts. Despite the abundance of the last two ingredients, the praline aspect is extremely subdued, though the nuts do add to a prominent crust/crumble-like experience that, along with the peaches, absolutely nails the confectionery aims of this beer. A nitro delivery brings in some luxe creaminess while further proving there’s far more to this El Cajon brewery’s moniker than alliteration.

From the Brewer: “This nitro imperial sour smoothie ale is a collaboration brewed with B52 Brewing in Texas. We decided to reconstruct a praline peach cobbler in beer form. Dr. Barry is our brewer Brian Kelly‘s alter ego, a Victorian-Era apothecary salesman. This is the second beer we have done in the Dr. Barry series. Southern peaches, roasted almonds and pecans, cinnamon, vanilla and milk sugar where combined with liquid nitrogen to create a creamy, decedent sour ale. We recommend hard pouring the cans into a glass for the ultimate dessert-beer experience. A nice creamy head with cinnamon and vanilla will form on the top with juicy peaches and praline underneath, finishing off with a slight roasted-nut character on the backend, hiding any heat from the 8% ABV (alcohol-by-volume). I should probably also mention that the label was designed by Antonio Sanchez, AKA @wortwrangler.”—Derek Carnation, Co-founder & Brewer, Creative Creature Brewing