The Purp is one of those beers that doesn’t seem real at first. Either you were one of the lucky few who had it during its first venture into our Tasting Room and out on draft in 2019, or you’ve heard people talk about it in its last two years of release.

Well, now you can snag some of your very own to enjoy - even from home! That’s right folks, ~for the first time in forever~ (ok, the first time in two years), The Purp is getting its own can release and scaled up distribution release! The fun starts this week, with a release in the Tasting Room and Brewtique today, May 14th, and cans will be popping up at some of your favorite stores in New Jersey and Pennsylvania starting May 17th. Our friends in Delaware can expect to see these bright purple cans the following week, starting May 24th!

Want to know more about this fabulous brew?

If you’re part of our crew, or a savvy blog reader, you know Packaging Operator Mitch Freeman is a fan. He’s particularly excited for this scale up.

“I think this was a good beer to scale up because of its uniqueness. I don’t often see other craft breweries taking a chance on something like a grape juice/soda-inspired beer! I think it’s going to be such a hit on the beach, especially with the warm weather that has finally arrived, too,” Mitch says.

As promised, we also chatted with Brewer and Cellar Lead Mike McGrath this week for more firsthand details in the shandy-izing process (a term you’ll remember was coined by our own Brian Hink).

“We add fruit and sugar in the cellar, basically making a large format of fruited lemonade,” Mike says.

Of course, each shandy has their own unique flavor and flair. For The Purp, it’s been compared to a jolly rancher, grape soda, purple gatorade, Welch’s, and more. They’re not far off on that last one, either! We actually use real Concord grape juice to give The Purp its distinctive punch and full body, making it taste like you spiked some grape soda.

“Every shandy is memorable, whether it be your first or your fifty-first,” Mike shares. “Most of the time, everything goes smoothly, but sometimes a mix up on the recipe can be a challenge or a certain fruit product could be frozen.”

Since we’re using a concentrated form of the fruit, sometimes those frozen buckets that come in need a “nice little bucket hot tub” fashioned out of one of our water reservoirs.

Who knew our beer ingredients also got some spa treatments??

“The Purp is a wheat ale, similar to what we use for other shandies, mixed with pure cane sugar and Concord grape concentrate,” he says.

If you’ve ever made or enjoyed a sangria, or even a mixed kool aid or lemonade, you can appreciate the way the fruit we add to the beer helps enhance this base.