PUCKER UP, DANNY DEVITO. THIS CAN'S FOR YOU!

How ‘Bout A Can of Wine

Brewery: Call To Arms

Style: Mixed Culture Wine Hybrid

Location: 4526 Tennyson St, Denver

ABV: 7.4 percent

Ingredients: Pilsner, Wheat, Bravo Hops for Bittering, 50 percent Sangiovese Grape Must, House Mixed Culture.

Wine inspired brew draws inspiration from hit tv show

By Thirst Colorado Staff

The uber-competitive world of producing new beers can spin one’s mind.

Trying to keep up with the latest and greatest isn’t for the faint of heart, however, the gents at Call To Arms Brewing Co. have at least made it more fun to enjoy new creations.

While keeping taste at the fore, co-owner Chris Bell said pop culture references bring some pizazz to the cans at the popular Berkeley Neighborhood haunt. Visitors will find beers such as La Clawsuit, No Touching, Oh My Gatos and Shirtless Putin Catchin’ Rays. We decided to check out the background of one of the newer brews that has been in the hopper for a few years: How Bout a Can of Wine. Here are some details and a bit of humor about the beer from Mr. Bell himself.

What was the background and process of developing How Bout a Can of Wine?

My brain. But, more seriously, before my wife and I got married we had spent a couple weeks in Italy the year before and had some incredible sparkling Rosés. Dry, full of flavor, light tannins, single varietal. When we were planning on getting married, I wanted to emulate that experience with a beer. Of course, the beer tells you when it’s ready and it was about a year after we got married. 

Provide the root of the idea in which the name and beer was born?

We have always had the mantra of, take the product seriously, but not ourselves. Funny pop culture references have been a part of CTA for as long as we have been open. Starting to can this year has really opened up the possibilities by adding a visual aspect to what is generally a deep cut reference. In this case, we referenced “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.” Frank Reynolds wants to be inconspicuous by drinking wine out of a can. Now, while I don’t recommend drinking this beer out of the can, or drinking in public in a soda can, the reference was too perfect to not use. This beer was an extremely time-consuming process and I am really proud of how it turned out. So, we took it seriously, but the name? Who can’t laugh at an 18-month, oak-aged beer-wine hybrid named, How Bout a Can a Wine? 

You seem to have fun thumbing your nose at big brands without truly going over the line. Explain where this comes from?

Yeah again, this is just us having fun. I wouldn’t say we are thumbing our nose at big brands per se, in fact only one of our SKUs is referencing another brand, and it’s not even an alcoholic brand. Almost all of them are pop culture references. Ultimately, we just want people to remember that beer is always supposed to be fun. It should be enjoyed in a social atmosphere, with friends and family, during a celebration, as a gift, during the holidays, and most importantly with a few laughs. We work hard to make them funny, be thoughtful about the nuances of the label (look closely) without overstepping the boundary. If a TM felt like we were really pushing too hard, we would stop. It’s not about press or C&Ds, or claiming that a big brand is pushing us around. If we can put a good product inside a package that makes people laugh then I think we’ve succeeded in what we set out to do. And I think everyone could use a good laugh now, more than ever.