WINNING COMBINATIONS
Troegs and Unique Snacks want you to enjoy their popular beers and pretzels together.
If Unique Snacks pretzels are making you thirsty, Tröegs Independent Brewing has the perfect solution: beer.
But what kind of Tröegs beer depends on the variety of Unique pretzel for a new collaboration from the Hershey brewery and Reading snack maker.
On Monday, the companies introduced their “Better Together” campaign, which identifies the best possible pairings of five different types of Unique pretzels with five Tröegs beers.
“Both of us geek out on taking ingredients and making something delicious, and those two things happen to taste great together,” said John Trogner, Tröegs cofounder and brewmaster, in a statement.
The collaboration between two Pennsylvania businesses is happening as Unique Snacks recognizes its 100th anniversary and recent rebrand from Unique Pretzel.
The Better Together combinations are also arriving just in time for Oktoberbest celebrations — and while the marketing program is only scheduled to run through Oct. 31, technically, you can pair Unique and Tröegs any time.
“A lot of the beers that are on this list are staple beers for Tröegs,” said Norm Cross, director of sales for Unique Pretzels, on a call. “We can do this pairing with most of their beers and all our pretzels year-round.”
What are the pairings?
Tröegs and Unique worked together on the oh-so-difficult task of discovering which beers and pretzels complemented each other best.
“I think they’re spot on,” Cross said of the combinations. “We learned some things about our pretzels by pairing them with beer that we did not know. That was exciting for us.”
The recommended combinations and accompanying descriptions are:
• Perpetual IPA with Original Splits — “crispy, crunchy, citrusy”
• Troegenator Double
Bock with Extra Dark Splits — “bold, dark, malty”
• Lucky Holler Hazy IPA with Sourdough Craft Beer Pretzel Rings — “malted barley, tropical pineapple”
• Sunshine Pilsner with Pretzel Shells — “crisp, snappy, refreshing”
• Haze Charmer Haze Pale Ale with Multigrain Splits — “savory grains, juicy pineapple”
Of the five combos, only Lucky Holler is a seasonal product, meaning it is not available year-round.
Tröegs and Unique products can both be found at select Giant Food Stores, Redner’s Markets and Weis Markets locations across Berks County, or individually at many more retailers.
The only catch is the beer and pretzels are not packaged together, so while they may or may not be displayed nearby in some cases, the pairings must be purchased separately.
More fun from Tröegs and Unique
While the program has its limitations with the products not being packaged together or tied more directly, it is a fun and simple way to hold a foodand-beer tasting in your own home.
Although many in Pennsylvania and Berks have surely tried Tröegs beers and Unique pretzels before, it’s easy to appreciate how a Perpetual IPA and Original Splits balance one another.
In experiencing the pairings, you may just find a combination you want to keep around the house or take to parties all the time.
The hope is Better Together will become a perennial program, said Cross, and no idea — even potentially packaging the two brands — is off the table.
That includes an idea for a pretzel-themed beer currently being explored by Tröegs and Unique.
“It’s very slowly in the works,” Cross said, adding the new product is not expected to launch in 2021. “That’s something we really want to work on.”
Cross hinted there could be even more collaborations in the future.
“We love working with Tröegs,” he said. “They’re a smart group of people that care about their brand and product, just as we do at Unique.
“It’s great to have that Pennsylvania, family-owned vibe between them.”