Our latest Intelligent Design* offering comes from brewer Paige Hiber, who brewed a traditional bock lager called, appropriately enough, Phiber Bock!
*If you’re unfamiliar, Intelligent Design is the name of our brewer-driven series of beers, wherein a brewer develops a beer concept and work with the Head Brewer and Brand Development team to bring that beer to life as a tap in the Surly beer hall. The entire process mimics Surly’s R&D process for developing new brands to bring to market, from brewhouse logistics to scaling up recipes to consumer appeal.
First of all, who are you, where are you from, what is your job title, and how long have you worked at Surly?
My name is Paige Hiber, I grew up in Cottage Grove, and now I live in St. Paul Park. I’m a shift brewer at our Brooklyn Center brewery and I’ve been here a little over a year.
How did you get into brewing?
I started my brewing career shortly after I turned 21, so I have been brewing professionally for about three-and-a-half years now. I started the adventure by enrolling into DCTC’s Brewing and Beer Steward Technology program. I was lucky enough to get hired by Urban Growler a few weeks after the program started. I think they saw the passion and excitement I had for brewing great beer. I am forever grateful to them for helping me get my foot in the door. Since then, I have brewed for Eastlake in the Midtown Global Market and Lift Bridge out in Stillwater before landing the job here at Surly.
What, exactly, is a Phiber Bock?
It’s simply a bock-style lager, but brewed with lots and lots of love.
What kind of hop/malt bill did you go with?
Besides said love, this beer is brewed with Maris Otter, Munich 2, and a touch of honey and biscuit malt. I went traditional German with the hops and decided on the ol’ noble Hallertau. I wanted to pay respects to traditional German bocks, and it is my very favorite.
What kind of flavors/aromatics should drinkers expect?
Beer lovers should expect flavors and aromatics of honey, biscuit, bread crust, and toast, with some floral notes in the mix.
If there’s anything else you’d like the drinking public to know about the beer, please tell them now:
I love a nice, malty lager, and with the nights getting cooler, it’s been great to kick back with a Phiber at the end of the day.
