Beginning with a 5 p.m. tapping today at the Meddlesome Moth, the recently launched Peticolas Brewing Company is off to a strong start, or at least starting out with a strong beer.
Rather than start out with a lighter, more accessible beer -- not to mention one that's easier to brew -- Peticolas' inaugural beer will be Velvet Hammer, an imperial red ale with an ABV level of 9 percent. But the choice reflects Michael Peticolas' plan to let his customers guide the brewery.
"What I'm trying to do is let the market decide what my flagship beer is," he says. "We'll brew it for four months and depending on what the market says, bring it around again or not. Everyone has responded strongly to Velvet Hammer, so if everyone says it's great, why don't I give it a shot?"
The Common Table will be the next to offer the brew, tapping it Thursday -- and offering the chance to try it alongside brews from Deep Ellum Brewing Co., whose new IPA is incredibly good, by the way -- with a free 9:30 p.m. performance by Mission to the Sea. Trinity Hall and Goodfriend Beer Garden and Burger House will also have kegs shortly, Peticolas says. Following on the heels of Velvet Hammer will be Great Scot!, a malty 6.8 percent ABV Scottish ale likely to be released in a couple of weeks. Spring will bring the more sessionable Golden Opportunity, which Peticolas says falls somewhere between golden ale and kolsch, and the English pale ale Royal Scandal.
