Omnivore - Creature Comforts celebrates first anniversary with new beers, lots of beers

• JAMIE DEREVERE
• BREW SCHOOL: Adam Beauchamp (left) and David Stein of Creature Comforts Brewing Company

Fresh off an Atlanta can release Monday night, Athens’ Creature Comforts Brewing Co. is preparing to celebrate its one year anniversary. On April 25, from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., attendees can pay $25 for “sexy, collaborative stemware” into which they can pour a selection of 18 different Creature Comforts beers.

It’s been an interesting year for the young company.

The brewery trained its staff to become Cicerone certified, brought a Great American Beer Festival medal back to Georgia, made a number of delicious, hard-to-find beers, doubled its fermentation capacity, and also found time to fight for better beer laws. In a mere eight months, Creature Comforts became one of Georgia’s top 10 craft breweries by production.

“The most important thing we’ve accomplished in my eyes has been winning over the hearts and minds of the people who love to drink our beer and visit our brewery,” co-brewmaster Adam Beauchamp says. “We set out with the ambitious goal of giving people something they can truly connect with and get behind. We’ve tried to be true to ourselves and infuse everything we do with authenticity. I think we’ve been able to communicate that with our beer and our brand fairly well.”

It makes sense, then, that it’s time to celebrate.

In addition to the brewery’s core lineup, those 18 beers will include the much-raved-about Southerly Love Wild Ale, two brand new, hoppy selections (Automatic Pale Ale and Cosmik Debris Double IPA), and a barrel-aged version of the brewery’s Koko Buni Milk Porter. Additionally, No.’s 2, 3, and 4 of the brewery’s Curious Series will be pouring, as well as a couple variants of Creature’s Tritonia Gose, a new Saison called Reminisce, and a few surprises.

Head brewer Blake Tyers says Automatic and Cosmik Debris are an expansion of sorts on Creature Comforts’ popular Tropicalia IPA.

“These are both styles we enjoy to brew, to talk about, and to drink,” Tyers says. “We wanted to show people our take on hops across the family of IPA styles. I feel like you understand beers better in context, almost like songs on a record. Sure, we may have a hit with Tropicalia, but knowing what we do with the other stuff opens up things you may have not noticed before, even for Tropicalia.”

Tyers describes Cosmik Debris, which is made with Amarillo, Simcoe, Citra, and Columbus hops, as possessing “a more assertive flavor profile than our IPA, but still very much a soft bitterness. We love that pillowy mouthfeel that finishes dry with our hoppy beers.” At around 8 percent ABV, Georgians can expect Cosmik Debris in cans next year.

“A great pale ale is a dream beer for me,” Tyers says of Automatic. “Something close to 5 percent ABV, delicious, and huge hop flavor. After a sip, it makes me immediately want another sip.” Made with Motueka, Citra, and Mosaic hops, he says Automatic will tentatively be available for the first time in Creature’s tap room April 21, then during the anniversary party. A bigger release will follow in the summer.

After the party, consumers can expect a number of Athena variations, a Brett Pale Ale, a barrel-aged Maple Stout called See the Stars, a Brett Berliner, a Peach Brett Ale, a Biere de Garde, a Kentucky Common, a Brett Saison, and several other new beers throughout the remainder of 2015.

“We couldn’t be happier and more honored with the response from the community during our first year and we are now working around the clock to try and meet the demand,” co-brewmaster David Stein says. “We plan on increasing our presence in Atlanta, especially having released our cans this past week and hiring a full-time ATL Quality Specialist who will ensure that the quality of our product and the retail/consumer experience is always A plus.”