Pellicle x Balance Brewing & Blending 6th Birthday Collaboration — Saturday 10th May
Pellicle’s life is intertwined with that of our pals at Balance Brewing & Blending. Sometimes it feels like we’re somehow part of the same grand and multifaceted organism—our mycelium spreading from very different parts of the drinks world, connecting to form a mycorrhizal network of creativity, big ideas, and a love for doing good in nature.
After our fifth birthday party in 2024, which finished at Balance, we said we were going to have a “quiet” year. No parties, just a big old push on what matters to us, namely: The Work. Then we had one of our characteristic not-really-a-meetings at the Balance taproom towards the end of 2024 and decided that the three collaboration beers we were secretly working on with Will and James needed a launch event…
That launch event idea, without much coercion it has to be said, became a sixth birthday party for Pellicle too, set to take place from 12pm until late on Saturday the 10th of May.
Poster designed by Molly Bland
It makes complete sense. Who else would we spend our birthday with but a brewery that makes some of the most intriguing and forward-thinking beers in the country right now? And with people we have known and supported—and who have supported us too—since day dot?
So it was decided. DJs, vegan street food, delicious beers including the Pellicle x Balance Trilogy, and whisky tastings throughout the day with White Peak Distillery (only 12 places per tasting, so don’t waste time booking your tickets!), a gallery of Molly Bland’s artwork who designed the Trilogy beer labels for us, and a merch shop featuring Pellicle and Balance gear. Forget the quiet year. We have loads to celebrate.
Six years of independent writing, funded entirely by readers, subscribers and our sponsors Loughran Brewers Select, and our friends and former sponsors Hop, Burns & Black, really is something worth celebrating. Our magazine has grown from a small but dedicated readership to a loyal crew of hundreds of Patreon subscribers, and many thousands of readers every single week, from all over the UK and the world beyond our shores.
This year we published our first print zine, A Place To Be, which has sold nearly 400 copies, and have plans for more print publications before the year is out. We are incredibly proud of what Pellicle has become over the past six years, and are immensely excited about what’s in store for the next six.
We’re just getting started.
How about the beers themselves? Together with Balance Brewing & Blending, we have collaborated on a trilogy of blended and barrel aged beers, each with their own unique character and botanicals.
“In Plonk we've tried to emulate some of the flavours of natural and orange wine, delivering a beer that masquerades as a totally different beverage!” says Will Harris from Balance. “We've done this through blending barrel beer with a beer fermented on damson stones.”
Photos by Matthew Curtis
It pours a subtle pink with effervescence that carries aromas of apricot skin, almond and peach. On the palate, tannins give structure whilst the fruitiness of the blend brings a sense of sweetness before finishing with poached pear, woody vanilla and crisp dryness.
“Ruin utilises an otherwise waste product of gin distillation, gathered from our friends at White Peak Distillery in Derbyshire,” he says. “After being used in the gin process we collected the botanicals and infused them into a blend of beers to bring unique aromatic flavours and capture the essence of White Peak Distilleries gin.”
Aromatically there's orange peel, floral sweetness and unmistakable juniper. The base beer brings fruity malt notes alongside cinnamon, subtle umami and a pithy finish.
Bine is a fresh hop saison. Full of complexity, with sharp lemon peel and blackcurrant notes on the nose, the sharp citrus hits on the palate too, along with earthy spice and piney resin. There's a herbal, peachy note which leads into a finish of pink grapefruit pith bitterness.
“For Bine we've kept things beer focused and incorporated traditional fresh hopping into our process which is a first for us,” Will explains. “It brings a unique complexity compared to dry hopping using dried cones or pellet hops.”
Each beer from the Pellicle x Balance Brewing & Blending Trilogy will be available to taste and buy by the bottle at the Balance tap room on the day of the event, and thereafter directly from Balance. Blended saisons, English Whisky, Music, Art, delicious vegan food. It all sounds very Pellicle doesn’t it?
See you on the 10th xox
