The Reaver way

Unconventional process.
Exceptional Brews.

We were the first brewery in the state—and one of the first on the East Coast—to install a coolship to brew our sour beers. A coolship is a wide, shallow pan used to cool down wort (barley, wheat and other grains mashed together and then boiled) that allows open air to touch the brew.

The process exposes the beer to the wild yeast, microflora and souring bacteria that is in the air and native to the area. The beer is then racked into oak barrels and allowed to spontaneously ferment, meaning whatever yeast it picked up from the air while cooling down in the coolship is what ferments the beer. The end result is a unique, flavorful beer that you won’t get anywhere else.

For more on our coolship process, check out this interview with Reaver Beach founder and lead brewer, Justin Macdonald.