Beer

This saint is hard to find, but so divine

A good beer isn't supposed to make people angry, but that is precisely what Divine Reserve No. 1 did.

Things have been rolling this year for St. Arnold Brewing Co. in Houston. The brewery expects to brew 12,000 barrels of beer this year, up more than 20 percent from last year, owner Brock Wagner says. New brewing tanks are on order because Wagner is squeezing out every drop of capacity.

In a celebratory mood, Wagner and his staff decided to brew the first of what Wagner says will be a periodic release of special beers. Each made a different recipe at the whims of the brewers, made in small batches and numbered under the name Divine Reserve.

Divine Reserve No. 1 is a barleywine, a word brewers coined to describe a beer so heavy with malt that its fermentation produces alcohol at levels more like wine than beer. Reserve No. 1 is dense and vinous, the big malt and tempering hops creating a raisin flavor and a finish not unlike a good port. This is a fine snifter and fireplace beer.

The trouble was, Wagner overestimated how big his small batch would be. Rather than the 500 cases he thought he produced he got 327. The 30 cases the brewery allotted Spec's, Houston's well-known downtown liquor store, sold out in 13 minutes. The Whip In here set a limit of two 12-ounce bottles ($3) per customer and sold out in days. Choice St. Arnold's accounts were piqued to learn that they wouldn't be getting any Divine Reserve. "I've made more enemies over this beer than friends," Wagner says, kidding, but only a little.

Fear not: Divine Reserve No. 2, a blend of two batches of ale, one made with an ale yeast and the other with a Belgian yeast, should be available by the end of February. Wagner promises to double the next batch.

Until then, reliable sources have told me there are few bottles of No. 1 still to be found in Austin. If you are too late to get one, don't be angry with me.

Where to buy a bottle: Whip In, 1950 S. I-35.

Where to drink one: The Ginger Man, 304 W. Fourth St.