We’re proud to announce the release of Eric Johnson’s latest creation and our third beer*, Eschaton, releasing on draft-only (for now) in Athens and Atlanta/Decatur this week. Here’s a preview of the not-yet-government-approved bottle label:

Some places we hear that it will be available (we’ll keep updating this list thru next week) before this first small batch runs out:

DRAFT: Brick Store Pub, Cypress Street Pint & Plate, The Porter, The Fred @ Taco Mac-Prado, Taco Mac-Perimeter, Taco Mac-Metropolis, Taco Mac-Kennesaw, The Square Pub, Midway Pub, Thinking Man Tavern, Trappeze

GROWLERS (32 oz only): Ale Yeah!, The Beer Growler (Athens & Avondale), Hop City, 5 Points Growlers (Athens)

FESTIVALS: Hotoberfest (general tasting!), Athens Craft Beer Festival, Decatur Craft Beer Festival

Here’s the very juicy details:

Eschaton is a Belgian-style Quadrupel Ale Aged on Pinot Noir Oak Chips – 10.5% ABV, 20 IBU, 22 SRM
How about a big, malty beer that evokes a good red wine and with a drier finish than you’d expect at 10.5% ABV?

Eschaton is a one-of-a-kind oaked all-malt Quadrupel (or “Belgian Strong Dark” if you prefer) that abounds with dark fruit and pit fruit flavors as well as earthy spiciness. Vanilla oak and warm viniferous notes assert themselves as the beer warms to reveal additional layers of delicious complexity.

Eric’s suggested food pairings:  Lamb, rabbit, duck, Stilton cheese, Belgian chocolate, tart fruit desserts.

Follow us on Twitter or on Facebook to get up-to-the-minute updates when these very-limited first kegs go on tap at various establishments.

* Yes, we know technically this is our 4th beer if you count Ode To Mercy Special Winter Ale (which will return this winter again, draft only). But since we plan to bottle Eschaton as soon as we can make enough of it and keep it available year-round, it’s really the 3rd member of the roster. Whew!

We are thrilled to have been named “Best New Beer” by Creative Loafing in their 2011 Best of Atlanta issue!

We’re One Year Old! Not All Grown Up, But a Pretty Nice Start.

It was one year ago today that Wild Heaven sold our first beers….

(photo credit: Chris Rank for rankstudios.com)

We (Nick Purdy & Eric Johnson) had been working on the idea of launching a beer company since 2007, and last September 14th, at a party in the famous Belgian Bar at Decatur’s Brick Store Pub, our very first Ode To Mercy Imperial Brown Ales and Invocation Belgian-style Golden Ales were served to a crowd of friends, family and eager fans. Since that day, we’ve managed to sell beer in over 400 locations, which kinda blows our minds. More importantly, we’ve heard from so many that they simply love the beers, and that’s what means the most to us. Here’s a few highlights from the year:

October: Our first festival was Hotoberfest, and you can be we’ll bet back this year! Ode To Mercy was voted the Gold winner as the favorite beer at the fest, with Invocation just a few votes behind, earning Honorable Mention.

November: We launched the beers in Alabama cities Huntsville and Birmingham, where Georgia’s newest beers were welcomed with open arms at the best beer bars in the state. Those Alabamians particularly like brown ales so they were all over Ode To Mercy.

December: There wasn’t time to make an entire new beer for our first Christmas season but we managed to age a small batch of Ode To Mercy on bourbon oak instead of the normal toasted oak so that we could release Ode To Mercy Special Winter Ale. Look for it again later this year when it gets cold!

January: Around the beginning of the year, a lease was signed on an 8,000 square foot building in Decatur/Avondale that will serve as our future brewery. To say the building was an incredible find is an understatement.

February-April: Our expansion continued with new locations adding the beer all the time. Our ratings on the big beer sites tell us that folks REALLY like the beers.

May: In May we launched our packaged beers in 12oz 4-packs in Georgia. We started with a launch party at Decatur’s Ale Yeah! beer market and followed it up with a rooftop party in the Old Fourth Ward area of Atlanta. We were surprised the demand for the beer was so strong so quickly.

June: Wild Heaven hired it’s first salesperson, the lefty pitcher Will Palmer (we’ll post more about him soon). You may have already seen his smiling mug, but if not, you’ll see him soon enough!

July: Bottles launch in Alabama starting with the Rocket City Brewfest in Huntsville.

August: Federal label approval received for our 3rd beer, scheduled to launch late September, a Belgian-style Quadrupel Ale.

September: We didn’t throw a party today, but later this month we’ll announce the locations you can find our long-awaited third beer, the quad. And right here we’re telling you for the first time that the beer is called…..Eschaton.

Thanks for all your support! News on our brewery-in-progress coming soon!