Carlsberg has leveraged its relationship with Brooklyn Brewery to produce a beer sourced from fonio, a drought-resistant grain from western Africa.
Carlsberg Fonio, which will be available commercially in very limited quantities, is a result of Brooklyn’s ‘Brewing for Impact’ programme, set up by the craft brewer’s brewmaster, Garrett Oliver. Carlsberg owns the rights for Brooklyn Beer’s brands across Europe and several Asian markets.
According to the Denmark-headquartered multinational, fonio “has thrived in West Africa for over 5,000 years …, can thrive in poor soils and is drought-resistant”.
The product was created in the company’s research laboratory in Copenhagen, using only Senegalese folio. About 200 75cl bottles were produced and are on sale from Carlsberg’s retail outlet in the Danish capital.
The per-bottle price was not immediately available.
As well as its packaging – in 75cl bottles – Carlsberg Fonio is pale in colour, more like a white wine than a beer. The 7.5%-ABV drink also has peach notes, albeit with a bitter, beer-like aftertaste.
Earlier this year, the brewer released details of a refresh for the Grimbergen Belgian abbey beer brand.
