San Jose Sharks help create custom 'Chum' red ale
The Gordon Biersch brewery in San Jose has a new ale in honor of the San Jose Sharks.
The name of the beer is called “Chum” and it’s a dry-hopped red ale – named after the bloody bits of fish that are thrown into the water to attract Sharks.
“When that name just came out, there was no other name that we could think of to beat it,” Gordon Biersch CEO Dan Gordon told the San Jose Mercury News. “It’s a natural.”
According to the story, the decision on the brew came over dinner between Gordon and Sharks COO John Tortora.
Gordon hoped to produce a beer for the team’s milestone 25th season last year, but the timeline proved too tight. Now, he’s just hoping fans can enjoy it deep into a long playoff run and perhaps another Stanley Cup Finals berth.
“I’ve been a die-hard Sharks fan since Day One, and we’ve been great partners for 15 years now,” Gordon said. “I don’t think that there’s any other NHL team that has its own beer.”
A release by the Sharks says, “Chum has a malty 7.2% ABV and 42 bitterness units created by flavorful Hallertau and Tettnang hops. The beer will be available in both bottle and draft form and will be sold at SAP Center at San Jose, Safeway, and other retail/restaurants throughout the Bay Area.”
Sharks broadcasters Randy Hahn and Dan Rusanowsky were on hand as bottling started at Gordon Biersch’s Japantown brewery.
#ChumRedAle ???? @GBBrewingCo https://t.co/TkOgIx9AJE
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) September 8, 2016
This is somewhat similar to Tinley Park, Il.-based Hailstorm Brewing Company, which made a beer in honor of Chicago Blackhawks Jonathan Toews last summer.
San Jose has quite the craft beer scene and Gordon was born and raised in Silicon Valley, before going to brewing school in Germany.
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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
