The label for Bit o’ Balsam IPA, featuring one of Chuck Gangas’s fine photos, to be launched at a celebratory event at Mad River Glen on June 17.
It’s hard to imagine a more rewarding (and palate-pleasing) combination than sipping a craft-brewed Vermont IPA while simultaneously supporting VCE’s ongoing conservation research on Bicknell’s Thrush. A new partnership between VCE and award-winning brewer (and longtime VCE friend) Sean Lawson of Lawson’s Finest Liquids (LFL) will soon make that possible.
Join us at Mad River Glen on Saturday, June 17 for a celebration to launch Bit o’ Balsam American IPA, LFL’s brand new beer featuring wild-crafted Balsam Fir tips harvested at high elevations in the Green Mountains, with citrus and piney hops. Lawson’s Finest will donate a portion of all proceeds from Bit o’ Balsam IPA sales to VCE to benefit our conservation efforts on Bicknell’s Thrush, one of North America’s highest conservation priority migratory songbirds.
The June 17 festivities will kick off with a 10:30 am to 2:30 pm guided hike led by Sean Lawson (a seasoned Mountain Birdwatch volunteer), Chris Rimmer and other VCE biologists. We’ll meet at the Mad River Glen base lodge for a hike to the summit of Stark Mountain, hoping to encounter Bicknell’s Thrush and to learn about songbirds that inhabit both the mountain’s northern hardwood and high-elevation fir-spruce forests. Later that afternoon from 3-6 pm, Mad River Glen will host a celebration and fundraiser for VCE, featuring a full pub menu (including prime rib starting at 4:30), quenching drinks and rocking music by Peace in the Valley. Suggested donations of $10 will go directly to VCE. Needless to say, Lawson’s Finest will debut Bit o’ Balsam IPA, which will also be available in 22-ounce bottles and on draft at selected locations in the Mad River Valley and beyond.
We hope to see you on June 17 for what promises to be a lively, thirst-quenching celebration!
The award-winning LFL Dream Team — brewers Sean and Karen Lawson — with their silver medal at the 2012 World Beer Cup.
