Tröegs Scratch #44

For Scratch #44, we were determined to break our mold of recipe formulation by taking a homebrewed beer and scaling it upward to make a Scratch beer. Scratch #44, a Belgian-Style Quad, is based on the winning recipe by Team America from the semi-annual Troegs Metal Brewer competition; truly one of the funniest brewery events we hold. For Metal Brewer we divide all our co-workers into teams and ask the teams to brew a beer using a secret ingredient this year was dried fruit€œ and develop a marketing presentation for the beer. As an added incentive, the winning team got a Scratch Beer made in their honor, which you have the pleasure to enjoy. Scratch #44 comprises of a complex variety of malts featuring Special B and CaraBelge that gives this beer a rich red hue and thick caramelized sweetness. Once this uber-high gravity wort made it to the kettle, we added a combination of Magnum hops for bittering, and Saaz hops for an herbal contrast to the caramel malts, along with Demararra sugar. For a unique twist on this style, we used a combination of Saaz whole-leaf hops, and more than 40 pounds of Zante currants in the hopback. We pitched Westmalle yeast for a complimenting spicy balance and after a long fermentation, we give you Scratch #44 €an interesting spin to a style that’s been enjoyed for centuries.