I’ve never thought too much about how to pair my beer-and-shot combo, but PBR usually covers the first part of that dive bar equation.
Now for some possible synergy: Pabst Brewing is teaming up with the artisan spirits arm of West Michigan-based New Holland Brewing for a Pabst Blue Ribbon Whiskey to be released later this year. NHC already received federal label approval from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) late last year, according to MiBiz.
(The publication also reminds us that Pabst released a bourbon in 2017 called “Not Your Father’s,” but it didn’t associate itself with the classic cheap beer.)
While neither Pabst nor New Holland is saying much, we do know a few things: The mash bill is 52% corn, 27% malted barley, 17% wheat and 4% rye. It’s a standard 80-proof tipple; but what’s not so standard is that it’s aged for a whopping five seconds. So, essentially, it’s a moonshine or a “white dog” whiskey.
The blue ribbon label certainly evokes the (ahem) spirit of PBR. As well, the label notes, “This is Pabst Blue Ribbon Whiskey. Made from nature’s choicest products that, legend has it, Jacob Best used in 1844 to provide its smooth, complex flavor.”
You know, the same adjectives you use to describe PBR.
Photos: Paul Sableman/Flickr Creative Commons; TTB
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