Brewgooder, Vault City and Bruichladdich Auction First 'Whisky Sour' Beer for Charity

Beer and whisky have an intimate relationship. Most of us have heard that in a basic sense, whisky begins life as beer (at least, they both begin as a fermented mash of grains) and so it's always intriguing to see this alliance celebrated in new and exciting ways.

For this unique collaboration, Brewgooder has joined forces with sour beer heroes Vault City and B-Corp distillers Bruichladdich to create a 'whisky sour' beer, inspired by the iconic whisky sour cocktail.

The beer was brewed at the Vault City's independent craft brewery in Portobello, Edinburgh, using a mixed fermentation base sour and barrel-aged in Bruichladdich casks for nine months to infuse it with the iconic character of Bruichladdich’s unpeated Islay single malt. The depth of flavour from the casks provides delicate notes of sweet oak and barley. The beer is complemented with the addition of hand-picked lemon balm foraged locally from Islay and Scottish heather honey.

The first four bottles from the project, which were also hand sampled, personally labelled and signed by Vault City's Head Brewer, feature exclusively in Whisky Auctioneer's January Auction. It hopes to become one of the most expensive bottles of beer ever auctioned, with all proceeds raising funds for charity: water, an organisation which has already unlocked more than 100m litres of clean drinking water in developing countries.

Along with securing these unique bottles of the whisky sour beer, the highest bidder will gain exclusive access to the Vault City brewery and taproom as well as a host of other exclusive extras including a tour and tank tasting session led by the company’s co-founder and Head Brewer. The lot also includes a hardback edition of ‘Thirst: A Story of Redemption, Compassion, and a Mission to Bring Clean Water to the World’ which is authored by Scott Harrison, Founder and CEO of charity:water.

Alan Mahon, Founder of Brewgooder, said:

"This beer is not only innovative, unique and delicious, it also has the potential at auction to be the most impactful beer ever made for a good cause, producing literally thousands of litres of water for those who need it. The craft and love that went into this beer from Vault City and Bruichladdich is evident from the finished product and we know that this lot will make one lucky beer and whisky enthusiast, and possibly hundreds of other less fortunate people very happy."

Joe Wilson, Head Curator and Spirits Specialist at Whisky Auctioneer, said:

“This is the first time that Bruichladdich casks have been used in a direct partnership with a brewery, making this not only an unprecedented collaboration for the distillery, but an exciting opportunity for Islay whisky fans and beer enthusiasts to support a huge number of people who do not have access to clean and safe water.

“The four bottles offered at auction have been exclusively selected to create this unique lot. Each bottle is individually numbered and signed by Vault City’s Head Brewer, Ravi Bos, which sets them apart from the rest of the release.

“It is my hope that we can collectively raise a significant amount of funds which will help those most in need. We have agreed to waive our selling fees and donate the 10% buyer's commission in addition to the hammer price raised to charity.”

Richard Wardrop, Head of Marketing at Vault City added:

“After nine months of barrel-ageing in casks previously used to create the iconic ‘Laddie’, Vault City Head Brewer sampled the whisky sour beer from each individual cask, choosing his personal favourite based on flavour profile to create the first four bottles from this unique collaboration.”