Ales for ALS

Since 2013, we’ve taken part in a program called Ales for ALS, which brews beer to raise money for ALS research, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Organized by Loftus Ranches and Hop Union, Bell’s has been involved since the beginning. The program has raised over $1.75 million for ALS research, with more than 140 participating breweries. The farm donates a special hop blend to breweries to make a special beer. A dollar from each beer sold will go to the ALS Therapy Development Institute. “It’s important that the brewing industry gives back,” said John Mallett, Bell’s director of operations who has helped pick the hop blend in the past. “It’s a pretty fun program. Good hops, great beer, great cause.” In 2018, Ales for ALS will be an oat IPA.  It will be available at the Eccentric Café and have limited distribution. JL Beers locations in Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota will be tapping kegs of this beer. Keep an eye on the Cafe's tap cam and our Events Calendar for more info. Here’s a list of the Ales for ALS hop blends from years past: 2014 Ales for ALS: Tropical, grapefruit, oatmeal IPA, using Citra, Mosaic, and four other experimental hop blends. 2015 Ales for ALS: Tropical, grapefruit, silky, and oatmeal notes with Equinox, Mosaic, and experimental hops. 2016 Ales for ALS: Tropical, grapefruit, Rye IPA, with Simcoe, Equinox, and seven other experimental hops. 2017 Ales for ALS: Oat IPA with Citra, Loral, and four experimental hop varieties. 2018 Ales for ALS: Oat IPA with Eukuanot, Simcoe, Loral, and four experimental hop varieties.   

We’re proud to again be participating and brewing for the Ales for ALS program to raise awareness and money for ALS research. “It’s important that the brewing industry gives back,” John Mallett, Bell’s director of operations who has helped design previous hop blends, said about the program. “It’s a pretty fun program. Good hops, great beer, great cause.” We recently started brewing this year’s recipe, which will be an IPA with oats. Ales for ALS was created by B.T. Loftus Ranches and Hopunion LLC to support ALS research. Started in 2013 by Loftus Ranches and Hop Union, and Bell’s has been involved since the beginning, the program has raised over $1.25 million for ALS research with more than 130 participating breweries. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that leads to paralysis due to the death of motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain. Each year, Loftus and Hopunion donates a special hop blend to breweries to make an Ales for ALS beer. Proceeds from each pint sold will goes to the ALS Therapy Development Institute. This year’s hop blend includes Citra®, Loral™ and four experimental varieties. See more details. Keep an eye out on our draft cam to see when our Ales for ALS goes on tap and check out all the other breweries taking part in the great program.  Update (8/16/17): This year's Ales for ALS is now on tap. Check our Draft Cam before stopping by though!     [[{"fid":"677","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default"},"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"default"}},"link_text":null,"attributes":{"class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"1"}}]]  

For the fourth year, we’re participating in the Ales for A.L.S. program which raises money for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. The program started in 2013 by Loftus Ranches and Hop Union, and Bell’s has been involved since the beginning. The farm donates a special hop blend to breweries to make a special beer. A dollar from each beer sold will go to the ALS Therapy Development Institute. Our brew uses the same hop blend and is an American Rye IPA brewed with three types of rye. The rye adds an earthy, sometimes spicy malt character to the beer. It’s on tap now at the Eccentric Café. The hop blend is a mixture of staple and experimental hop blends, chosen each year by leaders in craft beer. This year's selection team included Russian River's Vinnie Cilurzo; Firestone Walker's Matt Brynildson and Sam Tierney; Sierra Nevada's Danny Kahn; Bale Breaker's Kevin Quinn; Perrault Farms' Jason Perrault; and our own Director of Operations John Mallett. [[{"fid":"1169","view_mode":"default","type":"media","attributes":{"alt":"Ales for ALS 2016","title":"Ales for ALS 2016","height":1200,"width":1800,"style":"width: 400px; height: 267px; margin: 10px; float: right; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid;","class":"media-element file-default"},"link_text":null}]]“A bunch of really smart, hop-focused brewers, sitting around, rubbing hops, smelling them and talking about what the possibilities are to pull together a fantastic blend of all these varieties,” Mallett said. The blend includes Simcoe® from Select Botanicals and Equinox from Hop Breeding Company. There are also seven are experimental hops from Hop Breeding Company: 492, 494, 344, 438, 522, 682, 291. Take a look at the hop blend here.   During the selection process, the selection panel found different experimental hops with fruity, citrus, bright, tropic aromas, and found ways to balance them together to make a new blend. “It’s a really great chance to pull together some of these similar, but distinct and different hop flavors, and put them together in a fantastic blend for a really stellar cause," Mallett said.

Bell’s Brewery is again participating in Ales for ALS, a program that brews beer to raise money for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. The program started in 2013 by Loftus Ranches and Hop Union, and Bell’s has been involved since the beginning. The farm donates a special hop blend to breweries to make a special beer. A dollar from each beer sold will go to the ALS Therapy Development Institute. The 2015 Bell’s Ales for ALS IPA has tropical, grapefruit, silky and oatmeal notes. It comes in at 6.5 percent ABV and is now exclusively available at the Eccentric Cafe. “It’s important that the brewing industry gives back,” said John Mallett, Bell’s director of operations and one of the designers of the hop blend. “It’s a pretty fun program. Good hops, great beer, great cause.” It was brewed with the same hop blend, which includes Equinox, Mosaic and experimental hops. (See the full blend here). The blend was designed by Bell’s Mallett, as well as Bear Republic's Rob Kent, Sierra Nevada's Ken Grossman & Brian Grossman and Beachwood BBQ and Brewing's Julian Schrago. Learn more about the Ales for ALS program on their website.

Bell’s Brewery is again participating in Ales for ALS, a program that brews beer to raise money for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. The program started in 2013 by Loftus Ranches and Hop Union, and Bell’s has been involved since the beginning. The farm donates a special hop blend to breweries to make a special beer. A dollar from each beer sold will go to the ALS Therapy Development Institute. The 2015 Bell’s Ales for ALS IPA has tropical, grapefruit, silky and oatmeal notes. It comes in at about 6.5 percent abv. “It’s important that the brewing industry gives back,” said John Mallett, Bell’s director of operations and one of the designers of the hop blend. “It’s a pretty fun program. Good hops, great beer, great cause.” It was brewed with the same hop blend, which includes equinox, mosaic and experimental hops. (See the full blend here). The blend was designed by Bell’s Mallett, as well as Bear Republic's Rob Kent, Sierra Nevada's Ken Grossman & Brian Grossman and Beachwood BBQ and Brewing's Julian Schrago. Learn more about the Ales for ALS program on their website.    

Bell’s Brewery is again participating in Ales for ALS, a program that brews beer to raise money for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. The program started in 2013 by Loftus Ranches and Hop Union, and Bell’s has been involved since the beginning. The farm donates a special hop blend to breweries to make a special beer. A dollar from each beer sold will go to the ALS Therapy Development Institute. The 2015 Bell’s Ales for ALS IPA has tropical, grapefruit, silky and oatmeal notes. It comes in at about 6.5 percent abv. “It’s important that the brewing industry gives back,” said John Mallett, Bell’s director of operations and one of the designers of the hop blend. “It’s a pretty fun program. Good hops, great beer, great cause.” It was brewed with the same hop blend, which includes equinox, mosaic and experimental hops. (See the full blend here). The blend was designed by Bell’s Mallett, as well as Bear Republic's Rob Kent, Sierra Nevada's Ken Grossman & Brian Grossman and Beachwood BBQ and Brewing's Julian Schrago. Learn more about the Ales for ALS program on their website.

More than 60 breweries from 22 states have signed on to participate in this year’s Ales for ALS and Bell’s is proud to be one them. Ales for ALS was created by B.T. Loftus Ranches and Hopunion LLC to support ALS research. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that leads to paralysis due to the death of motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain. In exchange for participating, breweries gain access to a proprietary hop blend. This year’s blend was designed by Russian River’s Vinnie Cilurzo, Sierra Nevada’s Ken Grossman and our very own John Mallett. It uses Citra and Mosaic hops along with four other experimental blends that are so new, they do not have official names yet. [Read more about them.] A portion of the sales from each beer in this program will go to ALS TDI, the world leader in ALS research. You can also donate here. Bell’s Ales for ALS IPA (6.5% ABV) is an oatmeal IPA brewed with malted and flaked oats with notes or tropical fruit and grapefruit with a silky mouthfeel. It is currently on tap at the Eccentric Café (be sure to check our Draft Cam before heading out the door) and $1 will be donated for each pint sold.