Finally, someone has done it. For years I’ve been writing about this and wondering why no one has done it yet. And now Peak Organic has become licensed by TransFair USA to market a beer containing fair trade certified coffee.
Espresso Amber Ale is brewed with Sumatran espresso-roasted coffee beans from Maine-based roaster Coffee By Design. I haven’t tasted the beer yet but look forward to sipping a beer with a toast to social justice for coffee farmers.
Truth is I am actually really irked that I wasn’t the first to do this commercially. I’ve been plotting it for years and am scheming with a potential partner as I write this and then BAM! Peak up and beats me to it. Kudos to them for getting it done. But hey, ours will be even better!
Do you know about Pisgah Brewing in Black Mountain, NC?
They’ve come out with Valdez, a fair-trade coffee stout in the past year as well:
http://www.pisgahbrewing.com/Beers.htm
I had the Espresso Amber at the Maine Brewers Fest this weekend and it was probably my top pick overall. The beer did really well at integrating the coffee without bringing that acidic bite that so many other coffee beers do. It was good enough that I made sure to pick up a 4pack on the way home from the fest…
How exciting– finally fair trade beer! I’m a University of Oregon student doing a report on craft brewing. It would be greatly appreciated if you took my survey!
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=f0RJBTvHoYdA2nnumQfL2A_3d_3d