Greenwarden: Foraging Spruce Tips with Banded Brewing Co.
From Spruce to Suds
I love turning the incredible Maine craft brews into craft beer soaps. My process of using underfilled cans of beer (commonly called shorts or low-fills) instead of water isn’t just about sustainability; it’s about harnessing the skin-soothing nature of hops and the moisturizing power of brewer’s yeast. But this spring, I had an experience that took my love for local collaborations to a whole new level - and I am taking you along for the ride!
I'm thrilled to announce an exciting new soap, made with Banded Brewing Co.'s seasonal specialty, Greenwarden - a spruce tip ale of mythic proportions! And this year, they invited me to be part of the magic from the very beginning: the spruce tip harvest…
The Start of an Adventure
On two glorious, scorching May mornings – a rare treat amidst all the rain in Maine this year – I met up with the Banded Brewing crew at their brewery in Biddeford. Ten of us, along with Flo, the lovable (if slightly shy) Bernedoodle, squeezed into cars and the instantly recognizable "Stynax." You may have spotted Stynax around town before if you are a Biddeford local. This iconic 1987 Ford Econoline (with a 351 Windsor engine) has become a beloved symbol of the Banded brand, and riding in it made our foraging expedition even more memorable.
A quick ride out to Dayton, Maine soon had us arriving at Pierson Nurseries where the staff there directed us to the fields ready for foraging. Rows upon rows of small evergreens awaited us. I hadn’t known what to expect as someone new to harvesting spruce tips. I quickly discovered that the gloves I had brought as protection from sharp needles were completely unnecessary…
Image from Instagram @bandedbrewing
What Exactly Are Spruce Tips and Where are They Found?
Unlike the older, darker, and tougher needles, spruce tips are still soft to the touch. They're the vibrant, tender new growth that sprouts from the very ends of spruce tree branches. The spruce tips come off easily with a pinch and a twist. Despite this, they were not as fragile as you might expect. The spruce were so loaded with tips that we often grabbed them hand over fist, still never stripping a tree.
You might wonder why we'd pick spruce tips at a nursery instead of foraging in the wild. The Banded Brewing team has been picking at Pierson Nurseries for the past 10+ years because of the symbiotic nature of the exchange. The nurseries need to prune their trees regardless, so when the spruce tips are foraged by the Banded Brewing crew, the nurseries get some pruning labor. Picking from a nursery also ensures we’re picking from healthy, young trees that are loaded with tips. In the wild, spruce trees can grow too tall for humans to easily reach the new growth.
Why Put Spruce Tips in Beer?
While once a common bittering agent used in making beer, spruce tips have since taken a backseat with hops becoming the more widely used ingredient. That’s not to say spruce tips no longer offer benefits. In addition to being packed with vitamin C, they have a bright, distinctive flavor. Ian McConnell, the owner and founder of Banded Brewing, described the complex flavor of eating fresh spruce tips as "very citrusy...there's a little bit of lemon in there...maybe some grapefruit. But they're also pretty bitter and a little bit medicinal." While I noted that subtle medicinal undertone in the finished Greenwarden beer, Ian explained that the flavor that comes through the most is a "sweetness from the spruce tips...it tastes kind of like candied citrus peel." He compared the contrasting flavors of the fresh spruce tips with the spruce tip beer, saying the fresh tips carry a “light sweetness” while the finished beer carries a “dark sweetness.” Spruce tips are delicious, not only in beer, and can also be used in several other foods like syrups, jellies, or even salads.
Brewing Greenwarden
Over two days, we filled dozens of 5-gallon buckets until we had 400-500 pounds of spruce tips. Despite the scorching sun, the days were filled with friendly chatter, plenty of pets for Flo, and–of course–beer. Bucket after bucket was weighed, bagged, and loaded into Stynax before we returned to the brewery with our haul.
Back in Biddeford, we quickly spread the tips out on mats to cool and dry. This step is crucial to prevent the spruce tips from heating up and beginning to compost in the bags. The very next day, the brewing began. The fresh spruce tips were added to the brew kettle with the hops where they imparted their flavor and aroma to the wort. Just two weeks later - after fermenting, carbonating, and canning - Greenwarden was ready to serve!
Greenwarden Beer Soap
After receiving the short-fills leftover from canning day at Banded Brewing, I got to work creating the Greenwarden beer soap. I wanted the scent to perfectly capture that bright, complex flavor of the fresh tips along with the darker, fruity sweetness of the beer. But don’t worry - as always, you won't smell the beer. You will love the early notes of evergreen and candied fruit followed by subtle herbal undertones. Because summer is such a humid time of year, I added sea salt to this recipe! Sea salt is excellent for mattifying and purifying oily skin and providing a refreshing cleanse. As an extra benefit, I also used shea butter, rich in fatty acids and vitamins A and E, to soften and moisturize skin while preventing dryness.
Part of what makes Greenwarden (both the beer and the soap) so special is knowing that the key ingredient was harvested just down the road in Maine. There’s something incredible about going into nature and gathering directly from the source. It really doesn’t get any fresher or more local than that!
Cheers,
Elaine
Greenwarden Spruce Tip Ale is available seasonally at Banded Brewing Co.
Greenwarden beer soap is available seasonally in the online shop, at my market events, and at Banded Brewing Co.
