Grainworks & Holtman’s laud return of ‘Lime Coconut’ items
WESTCHESTERTWP.— Grainworks Brewing Company has teamed up with Holtman’s Donuts for a second time to bring back a popular brew, Lime Coconut Donut Beer, which pairs with a special donut that Holtman’s created, the Lime Coconut Donut.
“Holtman’s Lime Coconut Donut and our Lime Coconut Donut Beer were both a huge hit last year,” said Brian McGinnis, head brewer and co-founder of Grainworks Brewing Company. “This unique brew was one of the most popular beers we made in 2021. And this year, we’ve made even more to keep up with demand.”
The Lime Coconut Donut Beer is a Gose-style beer, which is an historic northern German style that has become very popular in the United States over the last decade, flavored with lime, toasted coconut and a few other secret ingredients to create a “donut-like” taste, to match Holtman’s Lime Coconut Donut.
“We were thrilled that Grainworks wanted to continue our collaboration,” added Maggie Rochon, creative director at Holtman’s Donuts. “This donut stood out as one of the more creative recipes we’ve ever done, and we’re excited to bring it back. It’s the perfect pairing for this delicious beer.”
James Czar, director of sales and marketing at Grainworks Brewing Company, said the two companies collaborated for the first time last year and the beer was so popular that they brought it back. Grainworks doubled the amount of beer it made this year to meet the demand.
“It’s just amazing. We actually have donuts in the beer itself,” he said. “It sold out so quickly, we couldn’t get it to everyone who wanted it. So, we made more.”
There are various things to flavor the beer to make it taste like the donut. However, just for fun, we literally threw in a dozen donuts, Czar said.
To celebrate the return of the Lime Coconut Donut Beer and Lime Coconut Donut, Grainworks will host an event in the taproom Saturday. The Lime Coconut Donut Gose will be available exclusively in the Grainworks Taproom, on tap and for carryout in 16 oz, 4-packs, at the event. Following the event, the beer will be available at select retailers, bars and restaurants, starting the week of May 16.
Grainworks Brewing Company opened in Sept. of 2017 in West Chester Twp. The company was founded by McGinnis, and two of his high school friends, Anthony Russell and Steven Brock. The facility, just off of Cox Road, includes a taproom, a 1,380sq. ft. covered patio, and two private event rooms, as well as a 10-barrel brewhouse.
“The one thing we can hang our hat on is the beers that we do are really good for the styles that they are… We’ve won three or four national medals for our beers. We’re proud that experts have regarded our beers as great examples of the styles that they are, and we’re proud to say that we do really good, solid versions of those styles, and they are very popular,” Czar said.
People keep coming back for those, and our growth has been because of the quality of the beer, he said.
In 2020, the company expanded, and tripled the size of the taproom, now at 5,800-sq. ft, added private event spaces that are available for rental, and added a 1,000-sq. ft. kitchen space. Currently, there are food trucks on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. (Grainworks is seeking a restaurant partner for the new kitchen space.) The company also added additional staff to meet the needs of their customer base.
“We had a record-breaking year in 2020, when a lot of other folks really struggled. It paid off to invest in ourselves, and believe in ourselves during that year. As far as 2021, it was even better than 2020 … And 2022 is going even better. So, every year, has been better than the year before. We continue to grow and expand where our beer is, and expand our staff,” Czar said.
The taproom is open Tuesday through Sunday. Grainworks is closed on Mondays.
Typically, there are 16-20 different styles of beer on tap as well as wine, cider and craft cocktails.
“We have nine yeararound beers that are all very popular, and they are one’s that we’ve found will sell all year around. Then, we have three beers that are seasonal beers that we’ll sell in a certain season, usually based on the temperature and climate of the season. So, for the spring and summer seasonal offering, we have our Cherry Pineapple Tart,” Czar said.
Cherry Pineapple Tart goes great in the warmer months. It’s a very light, refreshing beer, and people love it, he said. A lot of people who are used to seltzers and other lighter beverages are very excited. It’s very tasty.
Gearing up for the fall, in August through October, Grainworks releases an Oktoberfest Beer. A few other seasonal flavors are only made available in cans.
Then, every month, Grainworks offers one or two limited-release batches, where they only make one release of a particular flavor.
“For this month, our release was the Lime Coconut Donut Beer. Last month, we had two releases, including ‘Luke, I Am Your Lager,’ which is a Star Wars-themed beer, and we brought that out in April, so it was ready for May 4. As you probably know May 4 is a big Star Wars holiday, among Star Wars fans,” Czar said.
Luke, I Am Your Lager is made available twice a year, around May 4 and at Christmas, which is generally around the time they release new “Star Wars” movies and television shows.
“Also, last month, we released ‘Orange Dreams,’ which is like an orange creamsicle in terms of the taste. It’s a creamy orange beer, and that’s part of our Dreams series. We do four of those per year. This year, we’ve already done Berry Dreams in January, and in April, we did Orange Dreams. In July, we’ll be featuring Pina Colada Dreams, and in the fall, in November, we’ll be releasing Peach Dreams, which is a peaches and cream beer,” said Czar.
In June, releases will include Bavarian Princess, a Hefeweizen-style, and a new theme for an old beer, Rebel Yell, which will be themed after “Star Wars” Rebel Alliance.
In addition to the taproom, Grainworks’ packaged products are available in more than 130 retailers, and on draft at more than 260 bars and restaurants in greater Cincinnati and Dayton. For several years, a number of Grainworks beers have won Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals in the U.S. Open Beer Championship.
Grainworks will be celebrating the company’s 5th Anniversary this year on Sept. 9-11 with a weekend festival, which will include an outdoor stage, live music with bands all weekend, a rotation of food trucks, special, one-off brews made especially for the event and more.