Americans launch wine-beer hybrid

It comes in a wine bottle and should be served in a classic wine glass, but the latest trend in alcoholic beverages isn't actually wine. Instead, the folks at Blue Moon Brewing Co. have created a hybrid of sorts, that melds two of the most popular adult dinnertime drinks — wine and beer.

Blue Moon Brewing Co. is known for its Belgian White Ale, with the iconic blue moon right on the front of the bottle. However, founder Keith Villa is also a wine enthusiast. Wine was only a hobby for Villa; he originally kept winemaking as a home project while he used his Ph.D. in brewing from the University of Brussels to create his successful beer business.

But now, Blue Moon is releasing a fusion beverage that encompasses both of Villa's passions, beer and wine. Called the Vintage Ale Collection, the two new members of the Blue Moon family are Proximity, "wheat ale brewed with the juice of Sauvignon Blanc grapes" and Impulse, "wheat ale brewed with the juice of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes."

While the beverages are marketed more as wines and the flavors are meant to reflect different wines with just a hint of beer, they are still technically classified and brewed as beers — and they are both effervescent. The alcohol by volume for the wine-beers is 8.5%, with 51% coming from the wheat and 49% coming from the wine grapes. That slightly higher percentage from the wheat allows the hybrid to still be considered a beer, despite its wine-like flavor.

The Delish team got a chance to sample The Vintage Ale Collection, and the new wine-beers taste exactly as they're described — as a combination of wine and beer. They both encompass the smoothness and bubbly mouth-feel of a Blue Moon ale, but they also clearly have an underlying flavor of the grapes with which they were brewed. The Vintage Ale Collection is available in stores now, but with limited availability.