In Greg’s homebrewing days Tyson, better known as Mr T, assisted in several brews

I suppose it had to happen. Those of you who know Greg Casey, the madcap brewer behind Afro-Caribbean Brewing Company, might know that he’s a bit of a fan of Rogue Ales. Most likely inspired by their Beard Beer, which was fermented using natural yeast collected from the brewer’s facial hair, Greg has brewed a similarly ick-inducing concoction. Except rather than using yeast dusted off his anatomy, he has turned to his most faithful companion for the yeast. No, not co-brewer Shawn Duthie. In fact, ACBC’s latest beer has been brewed using yeast collected from Greg’s dog, Tyson.

With help from UCT’s intervarsity brewing team, Greg has managed to cultivate a viable yeast strain from Tyson’s fur, probably thanks to all the time the dog has spent around fermenters. “I’m always keen to push the boundaries,” says Greg, “and I thought – no-one in South Africa has done this yet so why not give it a try?” He asked the Brewing UCT team for their help in isolating and developing this new strain of yeast. As a wild yeast, it gives a sour barnyardy tang to the brew, so Greg decided a saison was the best base for the new beer. “It’s really crisp actually,” Greg insists. “Quite a dry beer, with peppery spice notes and then this slightly sour, almost grapefruity flavour on the finish.” The other half of the ACBC team, Shawn, is known for his loyalty to the BJCP guidelines and wasn’t sure the beer would work. “It’s a totally different type of yeast – I thought we might end up with infected fermenters and filth that might taste a little like the part of Tyson’s anatomy that he’s fond of licking,” admits Shawn. “But it’s actually pretty drinkable. We did buy a new fermenter especially for it though, to be on the safe side.”

The brew is called Hair of the Dog and will be available from today at Banana Jam Cafe. I haven’t tasted it yet and don’t know if I want to. The Beard Beer grossed me out a bit, but as someone who’s not much of a dog-lover, this might be a step too far. Mind you, if you think this is gross, check out this failing crowd-sourcing appeal from some guys who want to ferment beer with yeast harvested from models’ ladyparts. Suddenly a beer containing literal hairs of a dog doesn’t seem quite so revolting.

N.B. This post was written on April 1st. It was an April Fool. Please do not rock up at the Jam asking for a Hair of the Dog. Unless you have a hangover and want to shift it with beer, in which case I recommend ACBC’s British Virgin Islands Ale.