Dank Juice Returns... And It's Danker Than Ever!

First conceived back in 2018, Dank Juice was brewed to do exactly what it said on the tin – be deliciously dank, boozy and oily, with ‘down & dirty’ hops. Smooth, slick and thick with a chewiness that came from adding huge doses of hops that epitomise the style. Fast forward to 2023, and that concept hasn’t changed at all, but the beer has evolved to be danker, smoother, and juicer than ever.

In fact, our Sales & Marketing Ambassador, Matt, was actually there on the day it happened back in 2018 – kinda. You see, you might have heard him credit Jordan, Head Brewer & Founder of UnBarred for his pathway in to craft beer. It was back in 2018 when, after a few beers arrived on the doorstep on one of Matt’s friends (a beer selection box from craft beer legend Ghost Whale that included some of Jordan’s finest!) a series of events led to him joining Jordan on a brew day.  On that very day, Dank Juice was being canned. Queue a few freshies straight off the canning line (and a few more on the train from Haywards Heath back to Brighton!) the obsession strengthened for Matt. Not just for craft beer, but for UnBarred, and Dank Juice! As Jordan says, this beer holds a very special place in the heart of lots of people. ‘Dank Juice represents my journey of understanding biotransformation. The interaction of active yeast and dry hops being added to the fermenter’ Jordan says. ‘I remember the first time; I had a big stainless steel bowl full of the dankest hop combo I could muster. The beer was in high krausen and when I opened the FV I found a current of beer flowing and churning. It was a risk but, it was time to throw them in and get the lid back down ASAP. As soon as the hops hit the beer a volcano erupted, and beer was spraying in every direction as I tightened up the tri clamp. I had to clean the ceiling with a mop that day but I left feeling confident something magical was going to come from it! Active yeast pulls such wonderful flavours and aroma from hops. More stone fruit and this case more stick icky icky!’

Fast forward to 2023 and Dank Juice has made a few appearances over the years but, for 2023 it’s back and it’s better than ever. Tripe dry hopped for the very first time (once when the yeast is pitched, another during high krausen, and then finally at the last few points of fermentation) it’s got the most hops in it do date. A selection of the finest Cashmere, Chinook, Citra & Mosaic combine for an aroma of grassy dankness, eucalyptus, stone fruit, citrus and pine with beautifully ripe papaya, gooseberry, mango and subtle melon on the palette. Lingering herbal notes round out this full-bodied beer with a long finish. However, it’s the introduction of our newly commissioned centrifuge that really makes the difference with this beer.

People who follow our blog will be no stranger to the fact that we have a brand-new centrifuge installed at the end of 2022, and that we’ve been working hard perfecting our processes to bring you even tastier beer. In this case, it has allowed us to use even more hops, extracting even more or those beautiful dank notes, and the sticky, ripe stone fruits that we all want in a beer like this, but with no astringency, and cutting a tonne of the hop burn back so as to not overwhelm the palette. ‘Thanks to the centrifuge we can spin those hops out before they make the beer too bitter. We want all the juice and nothing but the juice’ Jordan adds. Essentially, Dank Juice is the most refined you’ll taste yet, without compromising on flavour.

We can’t wait for you to try this year’s version and let us know what you think. We’re over the moon with the finished product and spend a good 10 minutes during the first taste test shouting out all the incredible flavours we were getting, far more than we can list in this blog. We think you’re going to have a lot of fun with this year’s Juice!