Appalachian Mountain / Fonta Flora Baba Budan

The IPA was frist brewed in the 19th century by the English. They would add massive amounts of hops to the beer for sailors of the East India Trading Co. to take on long trade voyages around the Cape of Good Hope to British colonies in India. Beloved by the red coats in India, this beer quickly became one of the most popular both at home and abroad. The antimicrobial properties of the hops helped prevent the beer from spoiling and saved many a thirsty sailor too. This IPA is of the American variety, using hops with more citrus and floral aromas to create a clean, smooth bitterness.

Coffee was introduced to India a few centuries earlier by Baba Budan, the namesake of this beer. A merchant and a smuggler, the legend has it that Budan brought the first seeds of the coffee plant from Yemen to India sometime in the 17th century. The collaborative brew between AMB and Fonta Flora brewery in Morganton, NC is named after him. Just as he brought the new flavor of coffee to the markets of India, we are bringing you this new variety of IPA. We took a true West-coast style IPA and infused it with 40 pounds of locally roasted coffee from Expresso News coffee shop in downtown Boone. The result is a delicious mix of roasted and citrus aromas in a beer that will delight drinkers of both.

Cheers to Baba Budan and his unlikely path to bring these two worlds together.