Lead Photo Credit: Upslope Brewing
Assuming you don't live under a rock, you know that it's Earth Week and that Thursday is Earth Day. For folks in the outdoor industry this is always a huge deal. The survival of the industry itself depends on keeping our beloved planet green. But it's not just about the survival of the industry, it's about the survival of mankind. If Earth fails, then what? It's this mantra that has prompted so many outdoor brands go above and beyond the call of duty.
The year-round focus on conservation from companies like Helly Hansen, Patagonia, Picture Organic and more enables the survival of our planet. Not to be outdone in all of this is our favorite après everything brewery, Upslope Brewing. On top of being a Certified B Corporation, this year for Earth Day Upslope is giving us even more cause to celebrate with their new highly sustainable brew, Kernza Kolsch.
As a Certified B Corporation, Upslope prides themselves on leaving their mark on the planet with their beer and not their footprint. It's why they package all of their craft beers and hard seltzers in cans that are 100% recyclable. However, it goes far beyond just canning their beers. From the water in their products to the energy they use to make them, Upslope is as sustainable a company as they come.
Partnering With The Land Institute and Fresh Energy
This year, one of the many great projects they are working on is their new Kernza® Kolsch. Brewed with solar grown honey, this is one seriously sustainable beer. Roughly a year ago, Upslope began chatting with a nonprofit organization called The Land Institute. Founded in 1976, they have always been at the forefront of researching and developing food production that maintains the land. One such product is Kernza®. Kernza® is a cousin of annual wheat that's a domesticated perennial grain originating from a forage grass called intermediate wheatgrass.
If I'm being honest, I don't really know what that means but if The Land Institute is producing it and Upslope is using it in their beer then it must be good for the environment. So too is the solar grown honey made in conjunction with Fresh Energy that they are using.
Photo Credit: Fresh Energy
What Fresh Energy does is also a bit above my pay grade. Nonetheless, the gist of it is that they are experts on solar sites that produce the food to feed bees and other insects that are necessary to our environment. The solar grown honey for this beer comes directly from the apiary (a place where bees are kept) Fresh Energy connected Upslope with through the Center for Pollinators in Energy.
Kernza Kolsch Is Coming Soon
With grains from The Land Institute, honey from Fresh Energy and a little help from Upslope's own solar partners Namaste Solar, Kernza® Kolsch is the very definition of a sustainable beer. With Earth Day being 4/22 this very special craft beer won't be ready. Hey, good things like this take time. Don't worry though Upslope has plenty of other tasty brews for you to enjoy après whatever your Earth Day activity of choice is. Cheers!
When it comes to Earth Day, there is no better example of what I want the Earth to continue to look like than our Just Chillin' T-shirt. Hanging on the dock, breathing in the clean air all while taking in the site of clear blue water and the beautiful mountains. Now that's living.
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