The Samuel Adams Nitro Project has launched Nitro White Ale, Nitro IPA and Nitro Coffee Stout this year. While nitro has been primarily linked to stouts, the project has been experimenting with a variety of beer styles to determine that ‘nitro truly can be the missing fifth beer ingredient’ (alongside water, malt, hops and yeast).
‘Nitro’ is short for nitrogen gas. While all beers contain carbon dioxide (carbonated as part of the brewing process), nitro beers use both nitrogen and carbon dioxide. Because nitrogen is mainly insoluble in beer, the bubbles are smaller and create a rich, creamy texture.
Stretching boundaries
Jim Koch told BeverageDaily that it took considerable time for the brewery to create beers that it was happy with.
“We first started experimenting with nitro beers in the 1990s and that appreciation for how nitrogen adds a new dimension to beer has never left us,” he said.
“We’ve been experimenting with different recipes for our Nitro Project for the past three years and it was not until recently that we felt the recipes for our Nitro White Ale, Nitro IPA, and Nitro Coffee Stout were ready for drinkers to enjoy.
“While we were experimenting, we quickly discovered that you can’t just put any beer on nitro. We developed recipes where nitrogen was the true fifth ingredient and really brought out the desired flavor profile of each brew.”
Flavor profiles
Nitro beers have been, for the main part, limited to stouts to date. When Samuel Adams started experimenting in the 1990s, it was both on its own and in collaboration with English brewery Whitbread.
“At that time, ale and stout nitro beers were really popular in the UK, because they created the cask version of a style for British drinkers,” said Koch. “Nitrogenated stouts continued to be a mainstay for beer drinkers worldwide because as a style, their malt forward flavor profile worked well with nitrogen.
“For our Nitro Project, we wanted to stretch the boundaries, so we asked ourselves why limit nitro recipes to just traditional dry stout when we can experiment with countless styles? I’d estimate we brewed more than 50 beer styles and worked with more than 200 recipes to create these three distinct beers.”
Excitement, awareness
“Our mission for all of our beers has always been to brew the highest quality beer and introduce it to the American beer drinker. For the Nitro Project, that meant perfecting everything from the recipes, the can and nitrogenator (which are imported from a manufacturer in England) to the way the beer is poured and the glassware in which it’s served.
“Releasing 3 styles and educating drinkers on how nitro affects the flavor profile of the beer will raise awareness and excitement with drinkers, who we hope will start to seek out more nitro beers!”
Jim Koch
Nitro beers use a specially-designed faucet when poured on tap. When beer is forced through at high pressure, it produces tiny bubbles for the recognizable nitro cascade. Tight bubbles create a creamy, uniform, thick head on the beer.
In cans, a cylindrical plastic widget (nitrogenator) replicates the delivery. Once the can is opened, beer should be poured immediately into a glass.
2016: the year of nitro beers?
Will 2016 be the year that nitro beers really take hold? Koch says it is a little early to define it as a trend, and it is still necessary to help drinkers understand what is special about the style.
“Right now, there are very few breweries that offer nitro beers to drinkers at all, and virtually none that offer a variety of nitro beers in cans on an everyday basis,” he said.
The three Samuel Adams nitro beers have launched in 4-packs of 15oz cans this month (following the launch of Nitro White Ale on draft last month), and so Koch is also eagerly awaiting feedback to the new beers.
Educating consumers on nitro beers may be what is really needed to drive the category forward.
What are nitro beers?
Nitrogen is mostly insoluble in beer, so the bubbles are smaller and make a rich, creamy texture. Beers that use CO₂ tend to have larger bubbles and a more pronounced acidity and carbonated texture.
“Think of the difference between carbonated and still water – both water, but the taste experience is radically different. When a nitro beer is poured, it creates a beautiful cascade down the side of the glass, a thick, creamy head and a smooth mouthfeel.” Samuel Adams
“Many drinkers are familiar with nitro beers, but we’ve seen there’s definitely still a need for education about how nitrogen fundamentally transforms the flavor profile of a beer style,” said Koch.
“For drinkers unfamiliar with nitrogenated beers, we’re including a great deal of education on our nitro can packaging and on our website.”
But the best way for nitro beer to be appreciated is by trying the beverage itself, and so allowing consumers to taste the beer is essential, Koch added.
“Really, the best way to truly experience nitro is to experience the cascade and the smooth, creamy mouthfeel first-hand, which is why we’re constantly sampling drinkers at festivals, bars and restaurants, and at our Boston Brewery.”