The Grey

Origin Story

From Ryan Hale:So a little while ago I was researching some Belgian styles that we haven't taken a crack at yet and came upon the Grisette. A Grisette is a Saison like ale, but they are usually lower in alcohol and cleaner, as apposed to the sometimes farmhouse like Saison which could have Brett or lacto in it. Also, Gris is French for Grey. The name Grisette refers to the working class factory women in 1800's who would wear grey frocks, and as one story told, would hold trays of this lighter Saison style of beer for the workers to drink as they emerged from the mines. So as Saisons were for the farmhands, Grisettes were said to be for the mine workers. I brought this up to Tony and Mike and Mike has also read up on this style and has wanted to make one. So Mike and I worked on the recipe. I also wanted to try out some Belgian malted Pilsen malt, which we have not used before, which is also the recent batch of Dubbel Down. The name the "The Grey" refers to the origin of the name, but also the movie The Grey with Liam Neeson popped into my head..so yeah :).