(DURANGO, CO) — This holiday season, Ska Brewing will give grown ups a drinkable version of their favorite childhood holiday memories with the release of Peppermint Bark Stout. This Milk Stout, made with peppermint bark from Durango’s local Animas Chocolate Company™, debuts at the brewery World Headquarters on Friday, November 4.
This new release marks a decade of Ska Brewing’s seasonal Stout experimentation– which has included Hibernal Vinifera, Autumnal Molé, Estival Cream, and Vernal Minthe Stout. The brewery’s highly decorated Steel Toe Stout dates back even longer, and holds medals in all of the major global beer competitions, including the Great American Beer Festival®, World Beer Cup®, Stockholm Beer and Whiskey Festival, European Beer Star, and the Australian International Beer Awards, among others. It goes without saying that Ska is all in on Stout.
Now Ska’s research and development on Milk Stout style yields a new expression of the style that will hit shelves in perfect timing for Peppermint Bark Day on December 1, and holiday festivities in general.
Peppermint bark was invented by Williams Sonoma in 1998. “Turns out we opened the brewery before peppermint bark was officially a thing, but the chocolate and candy cane combination goes back as long as most of us can remember,” says Ska Brewing Co-Founder and CEO Dave Thibodeau. “Doing R&D for this holiday ale brought home much nostalgia.”
True to Ska fashion, Peppermint Bark Stout is a product of local collaboration. It was brewed with actual peppermint bark (white chocolate, dark chocolate, and candy canes) made in Durango by the Animas Chocolate Company, owned by Marc Snider (who directed the infamous Brew Minions video) and his wife Carley since 2011. Its sweetness from peppermint bark and chocolate-forward malts is balanced with cocoa nibs and a hint of mint. The addition of lactose makes for a creamy, smooth finish.
Peppermint Bark Stout will be available exclusively in Colorado in extremely limited quantities while supplies last. Find it on tap at Ska Brewing, and in canned, 12 oz. 4-packs that include a QR code linked to a playlist of Thibodeau’s favorite holiday jingles. This beer will be the first from Ska to be packaged with paperboard rings, supporting the brewery’s long-term effort to eliminate all plastic. Come spring of 2023, all of Ska’s beers will be packaged with these can holders.
Animas Chocolate Company will also serve Peppermint Bark Stout as part of their alcohol and chocolate pairings for the holiday season. Their staff has selected the Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk cookie,
