Beer lovers rejoice!
Phillips Brewing and Malting Co. put their acclaimed Space Case on sale on Monday, November 14th and announced its release to the public on Thursday.
The once a year, limited edition case of beer features 12 one-off beers crafted with care, enthusiasm and love.
“The thing I love the most about the Space Case is that it’s such a combination of creativity from all departments [at Phillips],” Samantha Beck, Marketing Manager for Phillips Brewing and Malting Co. told Victoria Buzz.
“It’s all a labour of love because every single thing in it is so hands-on. From development of the beers, to the artwork to the naming. The entire company just comes together and rallies to pack each Space Case.”
They aren’t just local to Victoria, they are shipped across the country, all the way to Manitoba.
For now the beers are top secret. But Beck did say that the brewing team tried to make them for craft beer lovers.
“[This year] it’s really coming from a place of technical experimentation rather than flavour experimentation,” Beck told Victoria Buzz.
“So there’s some pretty unique styles of beer this year that involve a unique process rather than just unique flavour combinations.”
Victoria Buzz tried to attain a list of the beers that will be included but they are top secret according to Beck.
Phillips’ art department also works hard to make fun, unique designs for the cans and their packaging.
“The art is just really cool this year. There are a lot of easter eggs in the artwork,” said Beck.
“There is always an element of space. I think that’s a big theme. There’s a really cool mix in of psychedelic, like 70s and 80s vibes.”
The art department and the brewing team work closely together to help the cans’ art reflect the beer and vice versa.
This year marks the fourth rendition of the Space Case but before it came to be, Phillips had the Snow Case up for sale in the holiday season.
“The Snow Case was more of a true advent calendar in a lot of ways,” said Beck. “Some of them were old school throw-backs, some were brand new and they were all bottles as well.”
The Space Case consists of all 500 millilitre tall cans ranging from 3.5% abv to 8.5% abv this year.
Unlike the Snow Case, the Space Case is a bit less of an advent initiative. Beck said there is no rhyme or reason to how people go about drinking it.
They don’t have to do it in order, they can do more than one a day if they like and they can open it whenever they want, regardless of the holiday season.
Even the packaging of the space case is unconventional as all the beers stand upright, making it appear as a flat large package.
“The Space Case doesn’t really fit in a typical beer fridge, it takes up a crazy amount of space and that’s where the name comes from,” said Beck.
“Every year we’ll get one or two people sending us a photo of it inside their beer fridge, but it only fits after all the shelves have been taken out.”
Not only will customers be able to buy their Space Case at Phillips, but their tasting room, which is attached to the brewery, will be doing a tap takeover with some of the Space Case beers.
“We’re going to be putting 10 of the 12 beers on tap in the tasting room,” Beck told Victoria Buzz.
One night only on December 1st, the Space Case tap takeover will be a space themed event for those who want a sneak peek at what is in their Space Case.
The Space Case will also be available in both private and government liquor stores, however the bulk of them are stocked at the Phillips tasting room.
“They typically sell out at Phillips tasting room within the first couple of weeks they go on sale, so I definitely wouldn’t sleep on it if I wanted one.”
