By Emily Monaco / Source: EcoSalon

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The newest addition to the Patagonia Provisions family is the perfect pair for your favorite grilled meats or a packet of Patagonia Provisions buffalo jerky: a refreshing, organic beer called Long Root Ale.

Brewed in partnership with Hopworks Urban Brewery in Portland, Oregon, this Northwest-style pale ale is the first ever beer to be made with Kernza, a “superwheat” perennial developed at The Land Institute in Salina, Kansas.

“Beer holds a critical role in society and history. It is the center of many tables, uniting us with its common language,” notes Birgit Cameron, senior director of Patagonia Provisions.

“Patagonia Provisions saw an opportunity to use such a widely influential product to tell the story of organic regenerative agriculture, via Kernza, to a wide swath of people with a product we can all enjoy and get behind. All it takes is a small tweak in the way we make our beer to effect big change – we are hoping this message reaches the big brewers of the world.”

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Kernza, an organic grain derived from an ancient form of wheatgrass, is the ideal grain for this project, given how it is perfectly suited to organic restorative agriculture.

The eponymous “long roots” of this organic beer come from Kernza’s perennial growth; these two characteristics combined allow the grain to thrive without pesticides and with less water than conventional wheat. Its long roots also help Kernza to reduce reduce erosion and remove more carbon from the atmosphere than annual grains.

“As organic brewers we are really excited about the ‘grain to glass’ model and Long Root Ale is just that,” notes Christian Ettinger, founder and brewmaster of Hopworks Urban Brewery.

The organic beer is made with a grain mix of 15 percent Kernza and organic two-row barley. It offers a citrus hoppiness that offsets the mild maltiness of the grain blend quite nicely. It’s a refreshing beer with a good effervescence and lasting flavor that would pair very nicely with grilled meats and vegetables.

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