Sweetwater Brewery drops anchor with Motor Boat seasonal

Motor Boat is cruising on back into SweetWater Brewing Co.’s Catch and Release lineup in mid-August and will keep making waves through this fall. The two-time Great American Beer Festival medal winner is SweetWater’s titillating version of an Extra Special Bitter (ESB), naturally built for speed and comfort … for the old sailor in everyone.

“This was the first time we brewed the beer in our new brewhouse so we had the opportunity to play with the ingredients,” said Mark Medlin, brew master at SweetWater Brewing Co. “We kept a similar grain bill, but modified the quantities to accentuate the hops.”

Brewers used previous Saaz and Sterling hops to bring back the familiar spicy and herbal aroma, but added new hop varieties in the whirlpool and dry hop stage including Columbus, Amarillo, and Styrian Golding to give the beer an extra citrus and floral kick. All in all, the unfiltered beer now finishes around 5.8 percent ABV.

Fans will find the decorated brew on draft and in six-packs, as well as featured in SweetWater’s Tackle Box variety 12-packs throughout the Southeast. So batten down the hatches, prepare your party barges and drink up while you can, ‘cause Motor Boat will be sailing off into the sunset this October until its return again in next year.