Ingredient Insight: Watch Bell’s Brewery use wild rice in its Eccentric Ale

Apparently (like we know), using wild rice in a beer really imbues a nice, nutty character to a recipe, and that works well with a lot of food pairings. Alas, it’s not that easy to use — as you have to boil it an extra 45 minutes just so it gets gelatinous so you can use it.

It’s still an ideal ingredient for Bell’s Brewery’s Eccentric Ale, which is the company’s spice/herb/vegetable/general food-focused beer brand. One year ago, Jace Marti of August Schell Brewing Co. brought this unique ingredient from his home state of Minnesota for Bell’s annual collaboration brew, and now you can watch him discuss it above.

The 2015 variant of Eccentric Ale will be released on Eccentric Day (December 9, 2016). The brew incorporates wild rice, sweet potatoes, molasses, ginger, brown sugar, maple syrup, coriander, juniper berries and caraway seeds, among normals like hops, malt, water and yeast. Maybe the coolest part about this beer is its shelf life, which Bell’s says is unlimited (these folks cellared older versions). Alas, Eccentric Ale is only available at the Eccentric Cafe and Bell’s General Store. Feel free to send us some, Bell’s.