Okay. You know those nights you’re at the bar and ready to give your potential beau another reason to come over and “check out your extensive collection of James Dean films,” or “meet your roommate’s dog” or “view your curated IKEA art selection”? Of course you do. So you, smart reader, tempt them with free bevvos that you have in good supply as an eligible bachelor(ette): beer. You rascal/temptress! Only problem, record scratch, “Oh…I don’t really like beer.”
Never fear, SAMPLE is here. And it was rolled out exclusively at GABS 2018 in Melbourne last weekend.
SAMPLE looks to push the beer game to the next level with their Modifiers. It’s beer meets cocktail mixes. Pour the relevant modifier into the relevant SAMPLE beer and you’ve got a completely new drinking experience to show to your new beau/prey/victim.
They’ve got three different modifiers to go with three styles of beer, and each with their different flavour profile. One thing they all share in common? Sweetness. While that may put some seasoned beer drinkers and tasters off, it opens beer up to the vast crowd of grog-drinkers that had previously disdained beer in favour of a sweet treat to start or continue their night. The Modifiers all mimic different styles of cocktails and on-the-nose trends- from the bee pollen in the Mead Shandy, to the balsamic vinegar styles of the Koji Caramel Boilermaker.
So, what’s on offer for your new Netflix chiller?
Modifier_01 – Saltbush Lagerita
This is not your standard premixed margarita lager- there’s no fake citrus here. Mixed in with SAMPLE’s crisp and clean lager, the finished combo is floral, sweet and a touch sour.
Modifier_02 – Mead Shandy
The sweetest of the three modifiers, the mead shandy is added to SAMPLE’s pale ale to create a honey-coated experience.
Modifier_03 – Koji Caramel Boilermaker
IPA and caramel come together in this lightly hoppy take on a Boilermaker. The balsamic vinegar hints are heartily appreciated. This was the most complex of the three. The vinegar, caramel and mandarin with the three-quarter strength IPA allowed each of the flavours to come through. Perhaps this is the one most to impress your quarry into staying for just one more film?
SAMPLE wants to innovate with not only their modifiers, but in everything they do, and they’re not innovating just for creativity’s sake. Their aim is for 100 per cent of the market, not just the handful of specialty drinkers. It’s all about opening beer up to more consumers, whether that’s through giving people options in how beer is drunk or through considering the strength and sessionability of a beer when putting it to distribution.