Jack's Abby Partners With Weihenstephan, World's Oldest Brewery, On Collaborative Beer

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Jack's Abby has deep roots in Framingham, but the brewery is relatively new in the world of beer. This month, however, the brewery adds to its legacy by teaming up with the world's oldest brewery for their latest collaboration.

Jack's Abby's latest lager — the Festbier Lager — was created in partnership with the legendary German brewery Weihenstephan. The brewery was founded almost 1,000 years ago by Benedictine monks and has paved the way for modern brewing.

To work with Weihenstephan at all is a positive mark on a brewery's legacy, but especially so for an American brewery. This collaboration marks only the third time Weihenstehpan has collaborated with an American brewery, the other two being Samuel Adams and Sierra Nevada.

"It’s a remarkable honor to have the opportunity to brew a collaboration with one of the most iconic names in the world for lager. I’ve always looked to Weihenstephan for inspiration over my career and this marks a milestone for the brewery," said Jack Hendler, Jack’s Abby co-founder, in a post on the breweries blog.

A historical lean toward European brewing staples is what built the relationship between the two breweries, according to company officials. So it makes since that this new lager honors "historical brewing methods while infusing it with modern innovations."

Perhaps most notably for beer nerds and connoisseurs alike, the Research Center Weihenstephan BLQ of the Technical University of Munich shared the TUM 34/70 yeast strain with Jack’s Abby as part of this collaboration. The yeast is famously known as the original Bavarian lager strain.

The beer will be available in Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire and Southern Maine starting Aug. 18 for a limited time.

The release also comes with a global party, according to officials. Jack's Abby will travel to Germany for Volksfest in early September, and the team from Weihenstephan will be returning to Massachusetts to celebrate with a series of events from Sept. 14 – 17.