Tallgrass Brewing will begin 2016 with three new brands (in tall boy cans)

Hey, next year (yea, we’re talking to you 2016), Kansas’ largest craft brewer has some cool new beer brands coming your way, so get ready. Among the updates planned for Tallgrass Brewing Co. are these three new brands into its core lineup of 16-ounce cans. Top Rope IPA and Songbird Saison will hit markets across Tallgrass Brewing’s distribution beginning in February as year-round offerings, while Half-Pipe Tart Pale Ale will begin shipping in late March as a seasonal release available through July.

This year (2015), Tallgrass Brewing had another kick ass 12 months. For starters, Tallgrass transitioned into a new $7 million, 60,000-square-foot brewery, opened a brewpub and launched its Explorer Series line of specialty beers. Apparently, they don’t plan on resting on their laurels. Tallgrass founder and CEO Jeff Gill explained the newest evolution of the brewery’s 16-ounce lineup is a natural outgrowth of the core purpose and values that Tallgrass has pursued since it was founded in 2007.

“Tallgrass was founded with the simple purpose to create and share,” Gill said. “That has always been at the core of our company as we’ve evolved into a regional brewery. As we continue to improve throughout our organization, we wanted to refresh our portfolio with beers and brands that are most closely tied to the creative and fun culture we have here at Tallgrass.”

In an effort to refresh its portfolio and usher in a new phase of exciting brands and styles, Tallgrass will withdraw five 16-ounce brands from the market in early 2016, tightening the brewery’s overall 16-ounce offerings from 10 brands to eight. Brands to be withdrawn include Ethos IPA, Velvet Rooster Belgian-Style Tripel and 16-Bit Double Pale Ale and seasonal releases Halcyon Unfiltered Wheat and Ginger Peach Saison.

Each of the new brands will be available in four-packs of 16-ounce cans and on draft in 1/2 barrel and 1/6 barrel kegs. Top Rope and Songbird Saison also will be included in Tallgrass’ year-round, eight-can mix pack with flagship brand 8-Bit Pale Ale and the available Tallgrass seasonal. Additional details are below.

Here’s a rundown on the new beer:

Top Rope IPA: A beer paying homage to the colorful, character-filled arena of 1980s and 1990s professional wrestling, with strong hop punch from Columbus, Chinook, Cascade, Amarillo and Bravo hops. (ABV 6 percent, 52 IBUs)

Songbird Saison: Tart and refreshing with citrus notes and a light, dry finish, this dry-hopped Belgian-style saison takes flight with unique hop aromas and flavors. (ABV 4.8 percent, 30 IBUs)

Half-Pipe Tart Pale Ale: Half-Pipe is soured with lactobacillus, twice-kettled and dry-hopped to make a totally rad American pale ale with a tart kickflip. (ABV 5 percent, 30 IBUs.)