Growlers: Slate Rock Opens Thursday, Lost Forty Cream Ale Riffs, Rebel Kettle Spring Cleanin'

It’s been two and a half years since I first met Shawn and Orianne Burgess and heard how they wanted to open the first brewery in Clark County. This week, that dream is realized with the grand opening of Slate Rock Brewing in the small town of Amity. The microbrewery’s grand opening is Thursday from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m. and continues with those same hours until Monday. Slate Rock hasn’t announced its hours past opening week. The brewery will debut with four of its own styles on tap: Gold Rush IPA, Hybrid Pale Ale, Roots Irish Red and Fire Tower Stout. Slate Rock will also have a root beer on tap and a very limited food menu. This is a historic opening; not only is it Clark County’s first brewery since going “wet” in 2010, but it will also become the southernmost brewery in Arkansas. Best of luck to Slate Rock both this week and going forward.
For its most recent Freshcut Monday, Lost Forty put out a very capable cream ale that I have been enjoying for a few days. Today, the cream ale gets a couple of upgrades in a double Freshcut Monday release. First, it’s a small batch of Mango Cream Ale, where the brew team dumped 80 pounds of pureed mangoes into the batch for a slightly fruity experience with just a little sweetness. The second batch is a Coffee Cream Ale, which features Guatemalan coffee beans roasted by Mountain Bird Coffee and Tea Co. in Eureka Springs. I admit, the Coffee Cream Ale is the one I’m more excited for, though I’ll certainly be trying both. They are available today in the taproom; no word yet from Lost Forty if these will only be served by the glass or if you can take some home.
Rebel Kettle is making room in the hop freezer by emptying four different hops into its 4:30 Thursday release. The brewery is releasing Spring Cleanin’ 2018 Double IPA, featuring Kohatu, Mandarina, Bavaria and El Dorado hops. This one has three pounds of hops per barrel for a juicy IPA that Rebel Kettle says features tangerine and tropical flavors. Also, there are still a few cases remaining of Purple DinoSour boysenberry sour ale in four-packs for you to take home.
This week is April 20 (4/20), and Stone’s Throw is marking the day with a special collaboration beer with Buffalo Brewing Company. The two breweries have teamed up to create “High-P-A” Dank Session IPA, and they’re releasing it Friday in a special event at Stone’s Throw. Starting at 4:20 p.m. (when else), 420 Fest invites guests to dress as their favorite stoner, compete in the marijuana-thon (I didn’t ask) and enjoy some loaded fry and nacho plates from AphroSense Kitchen. One lucky guest will win a hydroponic kit from The Water Buffalo.
Saturday, April 21, is International Women’s Day, and a few of Arkansas’ wonderful female brewers are collaborating for a special release that day at Prestonrose Farm and Brewing Company. Rose Schweikhart from Superior Bathhouse Brewery, Tony Guinn from Gravity BrewWorks and Liz Preston from Prestonrose teamed up for a new saison. It’s a hibiscus saison dry-hopped with blended hops from Pink Boots Society, which supports women in the beer industry. A portion of the proceeds from the beer goes back to Pink Boots Society. This is a delicious way to support female brewers and enjoy the excellent Prestonrose experience at the same time.
Do you have beer news you want to share with us? Email steve@rockcityeats.com.

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