Méthode Traditionnelle comes to Culture
We sat down for a long chat with Primitive Beer, a spontaneous fermentation side project from Lisa Boldt (Odd13) and Brandon Boldt (Four Noses/Wild Provisions). We wanted to learn more about what makes Primitive so special and share why we are happy to bring them on as the newest member of the Culture Beverage Family.
Why start a brewery in one of the countries most competitive craft beer markets?
We’re in good company here! Even before starting Primitive Beer, we chose our migration to Colorado to experience the Beer Renaissance in “real time” at its epicenter. The abundance of craft breweries creating world class beer have fostered a feverish passion for creative fermentations, an accelerated exchange of ideas within the industry, and a highly educated consumer base. The spirit of healthy competition encourages us to rise to the challenge to meet the expectations of fellow brewers and consumers and perform our best work. Additionally, given our ethos for sourcing/supporting local ingredients and developing an authentic terroir, Colorado agriculture supports the growth of the barley, wheat, hops, and fruits that comprise the structure of our beers.
The koelschip at Primitive Beer.
Tell us what makes your beer different from other spontaneous projects and breweries?
There are only a handful of breweries concentrating on spontaneous beer (it’s a fool's errand that demands immense time and patience) and to our knowledge, we’re the only spontaneous beer brewery focused exclusively on Méthode Traditionnelle for the rules that govern our production and aging techniques. In other words, our goal was to create Lambic blendery outside of the traditional appellation (and therefore cannot be called Lambic). We believe in the history and tradition of lambic and therefore give it the utmost respect by following the specific guidelines that have been honed over the last couple centuries.
You have an interest, specifically, in the history of lambic - what sparked this?
We were (pre-COVID) avid beer travelers! We believe the best way to get to know a new place is by the handmade foods and drinks that people are passionate about. When visiting Belgium we were able to tour and taste some truly fantastic Lambic and G(u)euze that pair so perfectly with the local fare. It was during these times that we got to meet and talk to people from the region and learn what makes Lambic (as a beverage and especially as a culture) special, beyond the flavors and difficult brewing process. The rich traditions and history as well as the familial pride in Lambic production for generations really spoke to us. It is a form of fermentation genuinely connected to time and place and that speaks to the importance of skill and technique. As a beverage, no two batches can be identical, despite the use of blending to “close the gap”, and these fermentations have the potential to evolve and change continuously. As brewers and drinkers, Lambic is the one style that never seems to lose it’s mystical allure.
Who are some of your influences? What are your favorite beers?
Our main influences are, not shockingly, in Belgium. Lambic producers that have been running family breweries and barrel houses for generations are so fascinating to us. We love Oud Beersel, Girardin, Cantillon, 3 Fonteinen, and Boon, to name some of our “go-tos”. Some of the newer kids on the block in Lambic production/the up-and-coming experimental producers very much speak to our spirit as young brewers and blenders; this group includes De Cam, Antidoot, Bokke, and Tilquin.
For American breweries and blenderies that were a huge influence on our journey we look to Allagash, Jester King, The Referend, and De Garde. Allagash and Jester King paved the way for a koelschip- and spontaneous-focused brewery to exist. The Referend and De Garde are two places a lot like us, focusing solely on spontaneous beer and sticking to it! We’re excited to see how they, like us, grow and evolve.
Another batch naturally carbonating.
Describe your consumer, who buys your beer?
Our customers are the best! We’ve been blown away by the support of people who love “AmLam,” koelschip beers, and all things tart, funky, fruity, and oaky. In the beginning, we grew our consumer base exclusively through bag-in-box, uncarbonated, young beers, which selectively pressured a group of adventurous fermentation fanatics from all walks of previous beer experience. We are so grateful to our customers, and have been perpetually impressed with peoples’ readiness to be open-minded and try something new. The addition of bottle conditioned, sparkling, aged spontaneous blends has only made the fandom stronger and a bit more widespread, with a product and format that fits in with the greater understanding of “beer”.
Where do you see your products in a liquor store? What do they add to a store?
We represent the terroir of Colorado and have blended toward our own tastes. While we are not a replacement for Belgian gueuze and lambic on a bottle shop shelf, we add another value with the flavors of Colorado, highlighting our state’s incredible agricultural gems, and our own blending preferences. Similarly, our products can sit unassumingly on shelves, gathering dust, only getting better with time evolving gracefully, patiently awaiting a new home.
Why is your beer expensive?
We make no secret about what goes into our beer. We buy locally grown grains (Arnusch Farms), malted in Fort Collins (Troubadour Maltings), hops from the mountains (High Wire Hops), and fruit from Hotchkiss (Deer Tree Farm). These high quality ingredients are not the cheapest option, but we feel strongly about supporting our state’s agriculture and our friends’ respective businesses. Building these relationships is as valuable to us as the beer we’ve been able to produce. The youngest beer we ever released was aged nine-months and the oldest will be our three-year blend (with a Golden Blend to follow). Barrel aging to this extent is accompanied by necessary destruction of product (bad barrels get the boot!) and requires a range of resources in addition to time (which we’ve been told is money) and climate control. All that being said, we believe that beer, in all forms, should be an affordable beverage and available to all. We chose price points that we believe are fair to our customers and reflective of the costs of making our favorite weird beers.
Every one of their beers spends time maturing in oak barrels, with the goal of having most releases be blends averaging over three years.
Desert Island style, desert island brewery go:
I mean….I think its gotta be a young bag-in-box lambic. Probably the boxes from Oud Beersel. Maybe our desert island can get one of their dispenser fridges so we can have two bag-in-boxes on tap??? Please?!
What gets you excited? What are you pumped up for?
We love that people are adding koelschips to their breweries in droves... or at least a couple here and there, and it’s EXCITING! While koelschips can be implemented for the production of numerous historic styles of beer, given these vessels were used in nearly all breweries before the advent of modern cooling techniques, more brewers will now have the option to try their hands at the production of spontaneous beers. In other words, the proliferation of koelschips means that we’ll have more options for drinking unique and delicious spontaneous fermentations sooner than later, which is a prospect to which we can raise a glass!
Why did you decide to work with us as opposed to another distributor?
We love Culture Beverage’s approach to the smaller breweries of Colorado. You understand that we don’t have year-round beers, seasonal rotators, and/or a holiday ale. It’s a special company that can let its clients dictate the direction of releases and availability. Working with a large distributor with dozens and dozens of brands just wouldn’t be a good fit for us - we are sooo needy!! Furthermore, as an extension of Shelton Brothers distribution for Colorado, your knowledge of our exact niche and inspiration is unparalleled. We’ve heard a distribution partnership can be a lot like marriage, which is founded on trust and mutual respect.
Where do you see primitive and your beers in a few years? What is the end goal?
We’re excited to see how the characteristics of our beers change over the coming years. We’ve already seen changes in our overall terroir and are loving the direction things are going. It’s been fun to blend to our tastes, which are also always changing. As far as the end goal, for us it’s about the journey. We are not sure what the future will hold, be we are confident about facing it together as a team!
To learn more about Primitive Beers check out their website or follow them on instagram.
Culture will be starting with two fruited two year bottled blends; Maximum Hijinx and Harbored in the Fuzz as well as boxes of Lean into the Chaos and Eternity of Gibberish.