Brewery / taproom
Unclaimed profileFermentery Form
Philadelphia, PA · $$
Inebrious
Beverage Program Score
The editorial take
Fermentery Form makes beers exclusively by mixed fermentation, using house-maintained mother cultures of yeast and bacteria rather than lab-purchased yeast. Every beer ferments and ages in wine barrels, stays in contact with oak, and gets its carbonation from bottle- or cask-conditioning. The oak barrel stack holds beer of various ages and oak types for blending. Named releases include Vieux Selection, a three-year oak-barrel-aged blend inspired by Belgian Lambic and Geuze, and Origins / Grenache, which blends two-year-old barrels with 400 pounds of Grenache given a week of carbonic maceration.
- What should I order?
- Origins / Grenache, a barrel-aged golden ale with wine grapes, is a clear starting point at $21 for a 750ml bottle. For a different angle, SLO-MO 2020 adds cherries and blackberries to a Solera-barrel blend, also $21. Vieux Selection offers the three-year oak-aged lambic-inspired blend in bottles and draft.
- Who will enjoy this place?
- Drinkers who follow wild ales, sour beers, and mixed-fermentation programs will find a focused body of work here. The wine-grape and fruit refermentation series gives lambic and Gueuze enthusiasts a local reference point, while the bottle-conditioned format suits anyone building a cellar.
- When should I go?
- Bottle-conditioned beers are described as safe to keep and enjoy for years, so a visit can be about selecting bottles for later as much as drinking on site. Draft options like Vieux Selection and Informal #5 are available when you want to compare before committing to a 750ml.
- What should I expect to spend?
- Named 750ml bottles include Formation at $18 and Origins / Grenache and SLO-MO 2020 at $21 each. The bottle format and barrel-aging approach put this in a range where a single bottle is a considered purchase rather than a casual round.
- What makes the beverage program distinctive?
- The combination of house-maintained mixed cultures, universal oak contact through wine-barrel fermentation and aging, and a production model built around an oak barrel stack for blending sets the program apart. Bottle- and cask-conditioning via a short re-fermentation is applied across the range, and the Origins series explicitly blends wine and barrel-aged beer.
Beverage categories
We only score what a venue sets out to do. Categories a venue doesn't attempt are left unscored rather than penalized.
Beer
A mixed-fermentation brewery where every beer is co-fermented with house-maintained yeast and bacteria, aged in wine barrels with oak contact, and conditioned in bottle or cask. The range covers lambic-inspired blends, wine-grape hybrids, and fruit refermentations, with named releases including Vieux Selection, Origins / Grenache, SLO-MO 2020, and Informal #5.
Menu strengths
- — All beers are made by mixed fermentation with house-maintained mother cultures rather than lab-purchased yeast.
- — Every beer is fermented and aged in wine barrels and remains in contact with oak.
- — Bottle- and cask-conditioning via a short re-fermentation is standard across the range.
Standout selections
- — Origins / Grenache: barrel-aged golden ale blended with 400 lbs of Grenache given a week of carbonic maceration; 750ml, $21.
- — Vieux Selection: three-year oak-barrel-aged blend inspired by Belgian Lambic and Geuze; 7.5% abv; bottles and draft.
- — SLO-MO 2020: barrel-aged golden ale with cherries and blackberries, blended from 2-year-old Solera barrels; 6% abv, 750ml, $21.
- — Informal #5: strong Saison on leftover grape must, refermented on New Jersey cranberry honey and blended with a cask of 3-year-old barrel-aged golden ale; 8.5% abv.
Pricing: Formation 750ml $18; Origins / Grenache 750ml $21; SLO-MO 2020 750ml $21
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