Devils Post Pale Ale

In honor of Devils Postpile’s Centennial, Mammoth Brewing Company decided to create a commemorative beverage to celebrate the occasion. Employees got so excited they threw rocks in the beer. Not just any rocks, however, but basalt – the same type of rock that makes up the Devils Postpile monument. MBC’s head brewer Jason Senior grabbed some of these rocks from alongside 395 (not from the Postpile itself!) and put them in buckets on a large barbecue. He fed the barbecue’s fire with almond wood to make the rocks super hot and smoky. After reaching a temperature over 600 degrees, the rocks were placed in the brewery’s kettle, which was then filled with wort (the liquid extracted from the mashing process during the brewing of beer). Senior likened the process to the caramelization of sugar, but with rocks. The beer was then boiled with the rocks and the normal fermentation process took place.

Only 240 cases and 12 kegs of “Devils Post Pale Ale” will be sold. One case is only 12 bottles because each bottle is 22 ounces, and the cost is $7/bottle. In other words, you (according to Lunch) could buy a gallon of Boone’s Farm for the cost of a bottle of this beer, but that’s because the brew required doubled the hops (Centennial Hops, coincidentally), double the man-hours and 50% more hops than a typical Mammoth Brewing Co. beer. The end product is 7.5% alcohol by volume.

Visit MBC’s Tasting Room and Retail Store at 94 Berner Street or call 760.934.7141.