He gets herbs within biking distance of his brewery, which includes the gardens at the French Laundry, from which he has made several thyme-geranium gruits. Zacherle sources locally for his gruits, going so far as to make some of his own malt. вЂњThe freedom to use what is available and see what it does, spending time and interacting with other farmers to discover new ideas, as well as making a beer that doesnвЂ™t taste like anything else, is certainly inspiring,вЂќ says Nile Zacherle, owner of Mad Fritz Brewing in Napa. Erik Castro/Special to The Chronicle 2020 Helena makes several different gruits using local botanicals, including herbs from the French Laundry gardens. Using local botanicals, like MoonlightвЂ™s Santa Rosa redwood tips or WoodsвЂ™ Napa Valley honey, is also a way for brewers to convey a sense of place. The Morpho tastes tart with hibiscus, leaning more tropical. The Local Honey is herbaceous and almost resiny, with floral aromas and just enough honeyed sweetness to balance a slight, verdant bitterness. The function of botanicals in gruits is not to mimic the taste of hops but to add new flavors. He produces two gruits: Local Honey, flavored with eucalyptus, lavender and yarrow, along with honey from Marshall Farms in Napa County and Morpho, brewed with yerba mate, bay leaves and hibiscus.

вЂњI figured it was only a matter of time until the American craft brewing scene embraced these unconventional ingredients,вЂќ says Jim Woods, CEO at Woods Beer & Wine Co., which has taprooms throughout the Bay Area. It has a levity to it that is difficult to parse out, but the interplay of malt and redwood are perfectly balanced. Working for Tips tastes like beer, with evergreen and citrus flavors common in hopped beers, and yet it doesnвЂ™t. вЂњThe little tips are perfect about the end of May, otherwise it tastes more like a Christmas tree,вЂќ says Hunt, who says the redwood gives the gruit a citrusy taste. Staying true to the spirit of the gruit beer that uses whatвЂ™s available nearby, Hunt scouted for botanicals near the brewery in Santa Rosa rather than order spruce tips from elsewhere. Having some Scandinavian heritage, Hunt set out to explore this concept. He knew that evergreen foliage, specifically spruce, was used in place of hops in Scandinavia. Working for Tips evolved after Hunt learned that miners in California used pine trees to flavor their beer when they couldnвЂ™t get hops. вЂњWhat if we had 100, or even 50 different species to play with? Can you imagine what explosions weвЂ™d have in flavors?вЂќ Moonlight makes a gruit with redwood branch tips called Working for Tips. вЂњIf you look at the demand that we have in our beers today, itвЂ™s all one plant,вЂќ says Brian Hunt, owner and founder at Moonlight Brewing, of hops. Ramin Rahimian/Special to The Chronicle 2018 The resurgence of gruits now seems poised to join these trends expanding the scope of what beer can taste like.Д«rewer Brian Hunt of Moonlight Brewing in Santa Rosa started experimenting with gruits based on an interest in beer history. Even established varieties like the IPA have seen the emergence of new sub-categories, like milkshake, hazy, brut and New England. Craft brewing has already seen a vast number of novel styles in recent years, like pastry stouts and smoothie sours. They may taste beer-like with a subtle citrus flavor, like an herbal iced tea or something closer to wine. Without having to build a recipe around one ingredient, hops, these beers can go in many more directions. ItвЂ™s easy to imagine that these gruits will taste medicinal, like a fermented green juice, but whatвЂ™s harder to visualize is the subtlety of flavor and depth they can have. Local brewers are forgoing hops in favor of redwood tips, yerba mate, chamomile tea, even herbs from the French LaundryвЂ™s famous gardens, resulting in beers that can express their places of origin while introducing a whole new range of flavors.

Though they fell into obscurity, gruits are now making a comeback among Bay Area craft breweries.

Obscurity brewing