Blind Bat Brewery

Wood-Smoked and Other Rare Rustic Ales

Wood-Smoked and Other Odd Rustic Ales

Production is limited, as the Blind Bat Brewery is currently a small, one-man operation. Not all of the following beers will be available at any given time, there will be different beers during different seasons, to better match the varying weather and foods.

So, what's available where and when? Check the Where to Find page on this site, or sign up for the Blind Bat Brewery Email Updates. The most frequent updates are on the Blind Bat Brewery facebook page.

- Wood-Smoked Beers -

All smoking of malts is done at the brewery over a variety of woods.

Hellsmoke Porter

A roasty robust porter. Brewed with a portion of English Pale malt smoked at the brewery over alder and apple wood. The smoke is balanced with some bittersweet chocolate notes.

In the tradition of Porters, it is lightly carbonated.

Goes great with steak, burgers, as well as barbecued, grilled, roasted, or smoked (of course!) food. Brats? Sausages? Smoked pork? You bet!

Cheeses?
Try it with Gouda, Brie, Swiss, or Havarti.

Old Walt Smoked Wit

A smoked wit?
Yup.

Researching smoked beers led me to a lost world of smoked wheat beers, particularly a smoked wheat beer popular in Poland about 100 years ago. (More on that below... ) I didn't find anything about smoked wit beers, but decided to experiment a bit (a wit is a wheat beer). The result is a wit with background notes of smoke, this is not meant to be a smokey smoked beer. A small portion of the wheat used to brew this beer is smoked at the brewery over mesquite. Important note! This is a tart and sour take on the Wit style, with some added Brett!

Pictured on the label is Long Island's old Walt Whitman, enjoying a smoke and a book in what is purported to be his favorite spot in his native West Hills. Long Island's springtime is awakening all around him.

Old Walt Smoke Wit pairs nicely with steamed mussels and light seafood dishes. Lobster roll, yum!

Vlad the Inhaler

Grodziskie, a smoked wheat ale, is considered to be the the only beer style native to Poland. Named after the city where it was brewed, it is sometimes known as Gratzer (the name the Germans gave the city of Grodziskie when they took over). This style was popular across much of Poland and northern Germany during the 19th Century and into the 20th up to the first World War. Thought to have been born sometime in the 14th Century, this beer style disappeared in the 1990s when the last brewery in Poland producing it closed.

Vlad the Inhaler is brewed with 99% wheat, 1% malted barley (Munich) is used to satisfy TTB regulations. (The official Federal definition of beer requires barley.) The wheat and barley is smoked at the brewery over oak for two hours prior to mashing.

An excellent accompaniment to brats, sausages, and need I add, kielbasa!

- Other Offerings -

Hell Gate

Inspired by the Tripels and Golden Strong Ales of Belgium, but adding Vienna malt to the traditional Pilsner malt for a slightly maltier and deeper golden color, Hell Gate follows the tradition begun with Duvel of using a devilish name. In this case, that name also references New York’s Hell Gate bridge between Long Island and Manhattan. 8.5 % ABV.

Belfry Brown

An American Brown Ale, hoppier than an English Brown, Belfry Brown also gets an addition of Grade B Maple Syrup after primary fermentation. The maple syrup adds a caramel quality, rather than a heavy maple.

Long Island Potato Stout

Long Island Potato Stout is brewed with local, organically-grown potatoes that are boiled, mashed, and then added to the mash of grains to add some extra dryness to a dry stout. Either Yukon Gold or Keuka Gold potatoes are used, depending on availability, but always local and organic. To date, the potatoes have been sourced from Sylvester Manor Farm, Sang Lee Farms, and Seedsower Farm (all Long Island farms).

Why organically-grown potatoes? Conventionally-grown potatoes rely heavily on the use of chemicals and pesticides -- not great for you or the environment. It is a challenge to grow potatoes organically, though, so they are not as inexpensive or as easy to find as conventional potatoes.

Like other Dry Stouts, Long Island Potato Stout is happily paired with raw oysters as well as steak, burgers, or hearty and rich dishes. Try it with some good cheddar if you're just in the mood to nosh some cheese.

This beer is part of Blind Bat’s Farm-and-Garden series of beers using local ingredients.

Long Island Oyster Stout

A labor of love, infrequently brewed in ultra-small batches, this beer is admittedly not for everyone. No beer truly is, but this one definitely is not!

The label was inspired by Sir John Tenniel’s illustration for the fourth chapter of Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass.

This beer is part of Blind Bat’s Farm-and-Garden series of beers using local ingredients.

Long Island Pale Ale

Originally just brewed for the Summer, it goes great year-round with pizza, stir fry, and Indian Food. (Try it in Lisa Dawn’s vegan recipe for beer batter onion rings.)

6% ABV, it’s crisp, dry, and citrusy thanks to a combination of Magnum, Cascade, and Galena hops in the boil, and then dry hopped with some more Cascade and Galena.

Eye Chart Ale

My dry-hopped “ESB” (Extra Special Bitter -- which isn’t as bitter as folks not familiar with the style might think). Served on cask when possible.

Sometimes we do an Imperial version, just for fun.

mild-mannered ale

There aren’t too many Pale Mild Ales out there, so I figured if I wanted to have some, I’d have to brew it myself.

Brewed in very small batches for serving on cask, low hop bitterness, low carbonation, low alcohol by volume. Light in body with light fruits and florals, with a bit of dryness that adds to a sessionable drinkability.

The label was inspired by the works of René Magritte.

Ceci N’est Pas Mild Ale

The wild Belgian cousin to my “mild mannered ale.” The same recipe of malts and hops, but with a combination of a Belgian and local wild yeasts. For the latter, I open the fermenter at night to allow the wild yeasts to have their way with the wort which is fermenting into beer.

This label was also inspired by the works of René Magritte, perhaps even more appropriately for this beer. Magritte’s famous painting of a pipe, with the legend “Ceci n’est pas une pipe” means “This is not a pipe.” (It is, instead, a painting of a pipe.) Likewise, this is not a mild ale, but it does resemble one.

Honey & Basil Ale

For a 3 barrel (93 gallon) batch, 60 pounds of honey from the Catskills is added at the beginning of the boil, and a bit of local organic basil (sourced from my wife’s Seedsower Farm and/or Makinajian Farm in Huntington) is chopped up and added at the last 15 minutes of the boil. (The recipe is available here for any home brewers who might want to give this a try.)

An earthy and floral ale.

This beer is part of Blind Bat’s Farm-and-Garden series of beers using local ingredients.

- For the Summer -

Beached Blonde

Inspired by the lower-alcohol range of Belgian Ales while day-dreaming on Long Island's Jones Beach, Beached Blonde is brewed using mainly Pilsner malt with a bit of flaked wheat. Some Saaz hops, cardomom, and coriander added to the boil, and fermented with a Belgian Ale yeast.

Goes great with salads, chicken, sushi, salmon, bratwurst, or light Summer dishes. Pair with Monterey Jack or similar cheeses (light, nutty).

Harborfields HefeWeizen

Not as tart as a Berliner Weiss, but more tart than most HefeWeizens currently out there. Unfiltered.

Named for the Centerport-Greenlawn area of Long Island that is home to the Blind Bat Brewery, Harborfields Hefeweizen goes great with fish, chicken, or a summer salad.

Some folks even like it with brunch! (Please enjoy your waffles responsibly.)