Skip to content
Food
Link copied to clipboard

Kid stuff: Beer brewed with goat brains

Folks at Dock Street are loyal fans of AMC’s The Walking Dead. In tribute to the show, the new beer will debut on March 30 at 5 p.m., just four hours before the last episode of the season is screened on the brewpub’s 120-inch screen.

How do you celebrate the season finale of a show about zombies? Braaaaains!

Goat brains, to be exact. Goat brains brewed into beer, to get even more specific. Meet Dock Street Walker, a special limited-edition release from Dock Street Brewery.

Folks at the West Philly brewhouse are loyal fans of AMC's The Walking Dead. In tribute to the show, the new beer will debut on March 30 at 5 p.m., just four hours before the last episode of the season is screened on the brewpub's 120-inch screen.

Do goat brains make for a good beer? Though Dock Street hasn't previously brewed with meat, it's not unheard of. Recently, Denver's Wynkoop Brewing made national news by introducing Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout, a beer brewed with the Colorado delicacy that is roasted bull testicles.

Dock Street Walker is an American pale stout built on a bill of malted wheat, oats and flaked barley, with Fuggle hops and cranberries in the mix. And those brains.

Goat brains are a delicacy in many parts of the world, of course - think of that scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (minus some of the xenophobic ridiculousness). At Dock Street, head brewer Justin Low first smoked the goat brains to bring out flavor, and then added them to brew just prior to sparging (that's the step that separates the wort from the spent grain).

"The beer is actually really good," brewery rep Sasha Certo-Ware says, sounding just a bit surprised that the adventure he had a hand in instigating has produced such tasty results. Pale stouts are a new style in general, and instead of the roasty/chocolately notes the word "stout" might connote, this beer has flavor that's tart and just lightly smoky. It rings in at 7.2% ABV (no word on its BPB - brains per barrel - rating).

Interested in trying it? Head to Dock Street on Sunday, March 30. If you don't make it out alive, at least you'll have tasted some unique and interesting beer.

The label, incidentally, was created by Alexis Anne Grant, who bartends at Dock Street while freelancing as a painter and image designer.