For Brew King's second run in the country, the freestyle brewing challenge organized by Singapore-based Asia Brewers Network pitted 23 unique beer styles from 23 different local breweries. The hero ingredient is Zappa—a pure, wild, American hop named after the legendary musician Frank Zappa, and exclusively grown by CLS Farms from Yakima Valley in Washington, USA. It has flavor descriptors of spicy, tropical fruity, citrusy, and piney.
Charles Guerrier of Asia Brewers Network invited Engkanto Brewery to take part in the challenge and despite the tight operations schedule at Carmona, Cavite, Engkanto Brewmaster Michael 'MJ' Jordan and Lead Brewer/R&D Supervisor Zar Acoba took on the task and tried out Zappa hops on a new craft beer they named ‘Wild Love IPA’.
“Wild Love as beer style is a Double-Dry Hopped IPA, and we used the Zappa hops firstly at the hot side and then in the first and second dry hopping,” explained Lead Brewer Zar. “Since we didn’t have much time to make several test brews, MJ came up with the recipe while we both revised the parameters in terms of aromas and flavors. Despite having just one trial, we were pleased with the results for Wild Love at 8.2% ABV.”
Brewmaster MJ described Wild Love as a “Juicy Imperial IPA showcasing a blend of hops along with Zappa hops. The wild flavors of Zappa and other fruit-forward hops will leave you loving this Double Dry-Hopped IPA slice of heaven.”
On the day of beer judging last 5 August at Quezon City, Lead Brewer Zar represented Engkanto while fellow local brewers and other notable names in the beer industry from Australia and other countries were in attendance. The judging criteria included the creativity in the beer, the detectable off-flavors, and the showcase of Zappa hops.
At a relatively large scale of 23 beer entries that included Double IPAs, Hazy IPAs, and a Lager, Zar's judging experience and appreciation of local beers soared to its highest point.
“There's a lot of competitive brewers,” he quipped. “From us in Cavite to one brewery in Pampanga and another who came from as far as Negros Oriental, it's nice to experience great craft beers from around the country and get to know the people behind the beers.”
The final tally for the Brew King 2023 entries consists of the scores from the judges and the public votes, which came in later in the night. Cubao X Brewery’s Saison took home top the prize while Wild Love came as the first runner-up much to Lead Brewer Zar’s delight.
“We’re all happy with the result given the limited time to make Wild Love,” Zar said. Snagging first runner-up is another show of the dedication the team puts to all Engkanto beers, whether in the core line-up, competition, or seasonal brew. The team is looking forward to new competitions in the coming months.