Peaks and Pints likes to think of craft breweries as liquid philanthropists as they donate a piece of their pie to charity. They believe true fulfillment never comes from financial or material success. Happiness and deep sense of connection is their goal. The five craft breweries we highlight in our sample, in-house beer flight sit on the same mountaintop. Money comprises the base, but idealism, balance, and good vibes more than tops the peak. This is not a compendium of the only or even the most generous breweries, just a handful that not only serve their community by proffering fresh beer, but by pouring out their souls as well, through generous donations and volunteerism. Thank goodness these breweries have their hearts, check books, and mash tuns in the right places. Again, Peaks & Pints presents a Tuesday beef flight focusing on charitable beers — a flight we call Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: Charitable Brews.
Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: Charitable Brews
Dogfish Head SeaQuench Ale
4.9% ABV
Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales‘ Beer & Benevolence program helps more than 150 nonprofit organizations every year, from their immediate neighbors in Delaware’s southern county all the way up to co-sponsoring events in the northern city of Wilmington. They’ve worked with the Delaware Nature Society, the Nature Conservancy, the Wilmington Art Loop, the Delaware Historical Society, the local elements of Habitat for Humanity, and a multitude of other organizations. After the merger with Boston Beer Company, Dogfish Head co-owner Mariah Calagione became a social impact leader for Boston Beer, a job that marries two passions: craft brewing and philanthropy. SeaQuench Ale is a session sour mash-up of a crisp Kolsch, a salty gose, and a tart Berliner weiss brewed in sequence with black limes, sour lime juice and sea salt.
7 Seas cliMB for Kids Hazy Pale Ale
5.3% ABV
7 Seas Brewing and cliMB (Create Love Inspire Mary Bridge) have partnered to create a climb for Kids Hazy Pale Ale donating $1 of every pint sold in support of the Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. Brewed with Pilsner and Pale malt, flaked wheat, and flaked oats, plus Centennial, Idaho 7, and Azacca hops, this hazy and hoppy, medium-bodied pal are bursts with notes of citrus, pineapple, and ripe guava. Expect a gentle malt sweetness and a juicy mouthfeel leading to a slightly resinous finish.
Ex Novo Mosaicus
6.6% ABV
In 2014, Ex Novo Brewing opened its doors in Portland’s Eliot neighborhood with the mission to brew great beer and to use their business as a platform for good in their community and across the globe. Their mission has always been to donate 100 percent of net profits to organizations building a better world. We have since expanded into three locations: Portland, Beaverton, and Corrales, New Mexico, home to Ex Novo founder, Joel Gregory, and have built cool spaces to fully embrace their “Drink Beer, Do Good” motto. Their Mosaicus is a single hop West Coast IPA hopped with, as you might have guessed, Mosaic. Expect notes of guava, tangerine, and pineapple express.
Maui OMG Hazy IPA
7% ABV
The death toll after the Maui fire is already horrific: 115 people have been confirmed dead in the rapidly moving blaze on the west side of the Hawaiian island, making it the deadliest wildfire in the United States in over a century. As the community’s needs change, Maui Brewing humbly asks those who want to assist in the Maui Wildfire Recovery efforts to consider a monetary donation to make the greatest impact at this time. Makai Foundation, Legacy of Aloha, and the Maui Brewing Co Fire Fund are local organizations that they know will support the local community. If you’re a brewery and want to participate in their Kokua beer, direct message them with a brewery contact and email address, and they will send out information as soon as it becomes available. Maui Brewing’s unforeseen named OMG Hazy IPA is brewed with Citra, El Dorado, and Laurel hops for notes of orange, mango, and guava juice.
Here Today Clean Water for Great Beer
7.2% ABV
Seattle craft beer bar and bottle shop Bottleworks and their manager and marketing diretcor, Brandon Wiley, gathered 76 different beer-centric establishments in Washington, including Peaks & Pints, to brew Clean Water for Great Beer benefiting Washington Wild’s Brewshed Alliance to promote the essential connection between protecting our forests and rivers, and the clean water they provide to make great beers. Brewed at Here Today Brewing in Seattle and Lumberbeard Brewing in Spokane with Simcoe in the boil and dry hopped with Cryo El Dorado and Sabro, this hazy IPA hits the nose with dank pine, pineapple, coconut, stone fruit, and just a touch of sage. The sip has more of the same with grapefruit pith, strawberry, and a touch of white chocolate on the finish.
LINK: Peaks & Pints beer and cider cooler inventory
