The Piney River Brewing Co. will celebrate its eighth anniversary on Saturday, March 23, at the brewery off of Highway ZZ in Bucyrus.
The “8th Aleiversary” party will be held from noon to 7 p.m. at the BARn, the popular brewery and taproom at the facility.
This year’s Aleiversary event features special beer releases, two bands and two food trucks.
Mule Team IPA (an imperial India pale ale) is released annually at Piney River’s Aleiversary. The 2019 Mule Team will be a “brut-style” IPA – dry, crisp and heavily hopped and dry-hopped exclusively with Nelson-Sauvin hops from New Zealand. The Nelson-Sauvin variety is known for its tropical and fruit-forward aroma and flavor. Mule Team IPA will be 10-percent alcohol by volume, and only a few barrels of the beer is made and released annually.
“I am really looking forward to this year’s Mule Team IPA release,” said Piney River Brewing co-founder and owner Brian Durham. “The sole use of Nelson Sauvin hops and the brut-style will be complimentary to each other, and it’s something we can do with a small batch, limited release beer like Mule Team.”
Also featured at the Aleiversary will be the brewery’s first Barleywine ale, aged for a year in bourbon barrels.
“The process of barrel-aging provides additional flavor while mellowing the alcohol and hop notes in the beer,” Durham said. “Like many barrel-aged beers, we didn’t know what we create in the barrel-aging process, but 2019 Barleywine is delicious.”
The Layton Hollow Gals and The Hurricanes are the featured bands for the event.
The Layton Hollow Gals feature the vocal harmonies and acoustic instruments of Melinda Mullins and Betsy Mae Graves of Springfield and Emily Higgins of Bucyrus. The trio is known for performing the tunes of Melinda Mullins’ late father, Johnny Mullins, the Ozarks’ grammy-nominated school janitor who penned hit tunes for several artisits, including Loretta Lynn, Porter Wagoner and Emmylou Harris.
The Hurricanes are a five-piece Americana rock band featuring Springfield-based musicians Barak Hill and Mike Henderson on guitar, Jody Bilyeu on keys, Dallas Jones on bass, and Brandon Moore on drums. The band performs original tunes and rock covers.
Rounding out the music will be two food trucks: Bubba’s BBQ and Team Taco. Both hail from Springfield and feature unique spins on classic barbeque and tacos.
“We are looking forward to enjoying a beautiful spring day in the Ozarks at our upcoming Aleiversary,” Joleen Durham, co-founder and owner, said.
Brian Durham described the Aleiversary as “the biggest event in Bucyrus,” as each spring, hundreds of people from across the region visit the Piney River Farm for the event.
“The event is family-friendly, and there is no charge for admission,” he said. “Many Piney River fans look forward to this day at the BARn all year long.”
The Piney River tap room will have an extensive list of year-round and some limited release beers available during the Aleiversary festivities, too. Andy’s Root Beer, a non-alcoholic soft drink, will be available for kids and designated drivers.
The special release beers will be available all weekend long, beginning on Friday afternoon when the tap room opens and going through Sunday evening, if they do not run out.
“Saturday’s party can be a little too busy for some people, so we will plan to have enough Mule Team IPA available to last all weekend long,” Joleen Durham said. “You will be able to enjoy a pint in the tap room or purchase a four-pack to take home.”
Brian Durham said that because Mule Team IPA is only released once a year, many people make extra efforts to purchase it the day of the Aleiversary.
Weather permitting, most of Saturday’s activities will take place outside.
“If the sun is shining we encourage you to bring a camp chair to enjoy the bands, food and beer outside with us on the 23rd,” Joleen Durham said.
The Aleiversary is a free event open to all ages.
Piney River Brewing is located on Durham’s 80-acre farm. The tap room and a portion of brewing operations are located in a restored 75-year old barn. The Durhams founded the brewery in 2010 with a 10-gallon brewing system. Today, most the brewing and packaging operations are located in a recently built 12,000 square foot barn on the property.
The brewery has distribution throughout Missouri and Arkansas.
Additional information about Piney River Brewing and the 8th Aleiversary can be found online at www.pineyriverbrewing.com.