Earlier this week I experienced what was for me, and probably a lot of people, a once-in-a-lifetime event – a total solar eclipse. A total solar eclipse (totality) occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun. This results in a darkening of the sky, similar to dawn or dusk. Total solar eclipses are more common than many people think. In fact, they occur on average once every eighteen months. However, with 71% of the Earth’s surface covered by water (mostly oceans), the chances of a total solar eclipse being viewable from where any individual lives is pretty slim. Indeed the next time a total solar eclipse will be viewable from Toledo, OH will be 2099. The last one, prior to 2024, was in 1806. The eclipse was a spectacular event. In Toledo, totality started at 3:12pm and 18 seconds and ended at 3:14 and 9 seconds, thus lasting for a total of 1 minute and 51 seconds.
Craft beer aficionados will not be surprised to learn that craft breweries across the country took the opportunity provided by the eclipse to produce one-off beers to celebrate the event. For example, Great Lakes Brewing Co. in Cleveland, OH produced a limited edition Vanilla Blackout Stout, which was “brewed with a sliver of vanilla to eclipse your palate with extra richness”. Sun King Brewery in Indianapolis, IN brewed a coffee-infused Golden Ale which it named “3-07”, the length of time of totality in Indianapolis. The beer “embodies both the brightness of the sun and the depth of darkness during an eclipse”. The coffee used in the beer was provided by a local coffee roaster, Sun Bean Roastery.
Breweries in Toledo were no exception, and two days prior to the eclipse I got a chance to sample some of the local eclipse-inspired beers. I did so at an event called Total Brewclipse held at the Imagination Station, an interactive science center, in downtown Toledo. Fifteen local breweries, one meadery, and a university Craft Beverage Program had some of their beers for attendees to sample. Not only did a ticket to the event provide ten samples of beer, but it also allowed attendees to access to all the exhibits in the science center, including an interactive, planetarium-style show on solar eclipses in the center’s theater. The local home brewing club, the Glass City Mashers, were also there. In addition to answering attendee questions, the Mashers held a short program where they described and explained the science of the brewing process.
Like Great Lakes and Sun King mentioned above, most of the breweries participating in the event had brewed beers in celebration of the solar eclipse. The beers were creatively named – Path of Totality, Turn on the Dark . . . I’m Scared of the Light, and Umbra and Penumbra (the two shadows cast during a solar eclipse) being some examples.
In most cases, the connection between beer names and the solar eclipse was obvious . This was not so (at least to me) with Leonidas (In the Shade) a Pale Ale, brewed by Outskirts Brew Co. & Dive of Lima, OH. I had to do a little internet research to understand the significance of this beer’s name. Here is what I found. Leonidas (c. 530-480 B.C.) was king of the city-state of Sparta from 490 B.C. until 480 B.C., when he was killed during the Battle of Thermopylae against the Persian army. According to the Greek historian Plutarch, at one point during the battle one of Leonidas’s soldiers complained that the Persian would release so many arrows that they would block out the sun, to which Leonidas replied, “Won’t it be nice, then, if we shall have shade in which to fight them?” In addition to having a very cool name, Leonidas was brewed using Eclipse Hops. While the sign at the event stated that Eclipse Hops are from New Zealand, my research suggests that they are in fact from Australia.
Brewclipse was a wonderful event. In addition to the opportunity to sample some one-off beers, what I particularly liked was the setting. I have attended a number of beer sampling events that were held in a nondescript and sterile convention center-type setting. The Imagination Station, with attendees having access to its exhibits, was a colorful and stimulating venue. The partnership between craft breweries and the Imagination Station was especially appropriate given the event (the total solar eclipse) that we were all going to witness and experience. Brewclipse also provided craft breweries a venue to demonstrate their creativity, relevance, and connection to the local community.