Craft Beer and Sake are coming together in Brooklyn. Five Boroughs Brewing Company is teaming up with its Sunset Park neighbors, Brooklyn Kura – New York’s first craft sake brewery and tap room that opened in Industry City, Brooklyn in March 2018 – to create a one-of-a-kind rice lager.
The special brew features a 50/50 split of extra pale pilsner malt and Brooklyn Kura’s American-grown rice inoculated with koji mold, an essential ingredient in sake. But instead of being brewed into a batch of sake, the rice was transported a few blocks south to the Five Boroughs brewery. There, the rice was brewed, cold fermented and allowed to mature according to traditional lagering methods, with the intent of allowing the koji’s citrusy, fresh rice character to play center stage.
The result is Sunset Kura, a unique, unfiltered and unrefined lager unlike any other, which debuted at the “Summer in Sunset Park” kick-off event on May 5. Sunset Kura will continue be available at the Five Boroughs tap room while supplies last.
“As a brewery in Sunset Park, we were extremely excited that Brooklyn Kura moved into the area and knew that we wanted to collaborate together,” said Nick Griffin, Head of Brewing and Quality Management at Five Boroughs. “While the brewing of beer and sake are distinctively unique, this collaboration served as an opportunity to blend our two worlds together and create something truly special.”
Brian Polen, Co-Founder and President of Brooklyn Kura said of the team-up, “This is Brooklyn Kura’s first official beer collaboration since Brooklyn Kura launched in March, so we are very excited to have partnered with Five Boroughs Brewing Co. as they make excellent craft beer!”
If you are in or will be around the Brooklyn area any time soon, be sure to stop by Five Boroughs Brewing at 215 47th Street to try this unique craft collaboration. And head down the road to Brooklyn Kura at 68 34th Street to experience one of the few American Craft Sakes, blending ancient Japanese tradition with unique American ingredients.
| Five Boroughs Brewing Co. 215 47th St | Brooklyn, NY 11220 (718) 355-8575 www.fiveboroughs.com |
CEO and Co-Founder Blake Tomnitz dreamed up Five Boroughs Brewing Co. in Summer 2011 while he was a college homebrewer. Blake partnered with COO and Co-Founder, Kevin O’Donnell in 2014 (after attending years of fantastic craft beer events throughout the city) to start making the dream a reality.
Five Boroughs Brewing Co. was created with the goal of making a product that was not only obsessively high-quality, but also incredibly accessible—a tricky balance, especially when producing at high volume. They brew a wide variety of styles and make them with the city’s tastes and preferences in mind.
| Brooklyn Kura 68 34th Street | Brooklyn, NY 11232 (347) 766-1601 www.brooklynkura.com |
As the first sake brewery in NYC, Brooklyn Kura is dedicated to creating and serving high-quality sake and building a new community of sake lovers. With only 15 other sake breweries across the country, Brooklyn Kura is at the forefront of a new category: American Craft Sake. Respecting the 1,000-year-old brewing tradition of Japanese sake, founders Brian Polen and Brandon Doughan are invigorating this ancient beverage with unique American ingredients and a passion for the process.
Brooklyn Kura is brewed in a 2,500 square foot space in the heart of Industry City, a rich community of makers and retailers in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The space, designed by Carpenter + Mason and Biz Designs, was modeled after the functionality of Japanese breweries, and provides a clean design and accessible space. The tap room offers a one-of-a-kind experience, as guests can taste select sakes only available on-site. Peek behind the bar to see the tanks where the moromi (sake mash) is being made as you sip the latest batch in front of you.
