Great Crescent Beers

Great Crescent Brewery
Aurora, IN

The Great Crescent Brewery uses all malt and fresh hops in every beer we create. Every beer is hand-crafted in small batches using traditional brewing methods.

Descriptions of our beers are listed below. We package our beer in Pint Cans (16 oz), half-gallon refillable bottles (know as Growlers), 1/6 barrel (5 gallons) kegs and 1/2 barrel (15.5 gallons) kegs that can be used in commercial and home draft systems.

We are a production brewery that sells beer right from the premises. Please visit our tasting room where we offer samples in order to help you decide which beer to purchase.

Beers Brewed on a Regular Basis:

Aurora Lager

Aurora Lager is crafted as a tribute to the brewing traditions from the past and it is based on a Dortmuder Export Style lager. This beer uses only Perle hops, all malt base and our house lager yeast to create a beer that has unique flavor from the malt and yeast and has a pleasant hop finish from the use of Perle hops for bittering, flavor and aroma.

ABV: 5.7%
IBU: 27.5

Dark Lager

This beer is based on the very first comercially brewed beer in the state of Indiana.

ABV: 5.7%
IBU: 22.7

The name of the brewer was George Bentel. His house is still standing in New Harmony. The Harmonist brewer and cooper, George Bentel, was born November 3, 1781 in Iptingen, the same village in the Swabian kingdom of Württemberg where George Rapp was born. Bentel lived at the northeast corner of Brewery and Grainery streets, where his house remains today, as upright as when Indiana's first brewer marched out to make his beer almost two centuries ago.

The German utopian communalists in New Harmony were Indiana's first significant brewers. Beginning in 1816, the Harmonists eventually brewed enough to sell all the way up to what is now West Virginia and down into lower Illinois. From the historical record, it appears the Harmonists brewed a porter-like dark beer. It must have been pretty good beer: An educated German, Ferdinand Ernst, stopped in New Harmony during his journey through the frontier region. “They served me a stein of beer,” Ernst wrote, “and I was not a little astonished to find here a genuine, real Bamberg beer.” He gushed that the Harmonists “must be happiest people of entire Christiandom.” A Louisville agent for the Harmonists reported, “Mr. Breeden, the most celebrated porter seller in the place says the strongest part of it would almost pass for porter and is the best beer he has ever seen in this country…

    Great Crescent Blonde Ale

Great Crescent Blonde Ale is clear, slightly malty with medium hop aroma and relatively low bitterness and has a somewhat sweet, dry finish. Our Blonde Ale is based on a German Kolsch style beer using British Ale yeast for the fermentation.

This beer was created as an easy-drinking, approachable, malt-oriented craft beer and the style is being produced by many American microbreweries. This style is usually designed as the entry-level craft beer, however Great Crescent Blonde Ale is well appreciated by people who are already familiar with and enjoy many other styles of craft beer.

ABV: 5.3%
IBU:   22.2

  Great Crescent India Pale Ale (IPA)

The beer that was created to make the ocean voyage to India when it was a British Colony lives on today in many interpretations - all hoppy, some a lot more than others. Great Crescent IPA is made in the classic British style and maintains some balance between the malt and the hops. There is a moderate hop aroma with a carmel malt presense. Hop flavor and bitterness come through very cleanly in the finish.

ABV: 6.2%
IBU:   60.5

Great Crescent Coconut Porter

This beer is brewed as a traditional English Style Porter. We use the best malts and hops to create a distinctive American interpretation of this classic beer style. Our Porter stands on its own as a great beer, then we add one more ingredient to make it truly unique. Coconut is added during the boil to give this beer a nutty flavor that blends perfectly with the style.

ABV: 5.6%
IBU: 32.9

Bourbon's Barrel Stout

This beer is a slightly bigger version of our regular stout that is aged in fresh oak Bourbon barrels. This stout is crafted to blend perfectly with the delicious aroma and flavor imparted by the bourbon and oak from the barrels.

ABV: 8.0%
IBU:   67

Seasonal Beers:

    Great Crescent Witbier (Available May-September)

Great Crescent Witbier is refreshingly crisp wheat-based ale with a slightly dry, tart finish. It has moderate sweetness with spicy aroma’s and a hint of coriander and citrus. This beer is very light in color with a dense, white head and some cloudiness from a special yeast strain. Witbier has been around for over 400 years and originated in Belgium. The style died out about 60 years ago and has gained favor by many beer drinkers over the past 10-15 years.

ABV: 5.1%
IBU:   13.6

    Great Crescent Cherry Ale (Available in the Fall)

Great Crescent Cherry Ale starts out as a lightly hopped all malt ale that receives a load of tart cherries in the secondary fermentation. This produces an exceptionally flavorful beer that is balanced and not overpowering with fruit.
Our cherry ale uses tart cherries from the orchards of the American Midwest that are along the same variety as the cherry’s used for Belgian Kriekbiers. This beer is highly refreshing and exhibits the best qualities of craft-brewed ale - fresh and natural.

ABV: 5.7%
IBU:   17.6

Brewmaster Limited Releases:

Chocolate Robust Porter - Winter 2013
Brewed with traditional British hops and made in the Robust style - then cocoa nibs are added during fermentation. Dark and rich, balanced malt and hops and a definite flavor and aroma of bitter chocolate in the finish.

ABV: 7.5%
IBU: 33

Great Power House Brew - Belgian Style Dubbel 2012
This beer was originally brewed in 2009 and we brought it back in 2012. Jon Meyers of Power House Brewing Company in Columbus, IN and Dan Valas at Great Crescent Brewery collaborated to create a special brew for Fall. The beer is a Belgian Style Dubbel that uses pure, sweet Indiana honey in place of the Belgian candy sugar. The 2012 edition is hopped with German Tettnanger Hops and malt includes Patagonia Malt Co. Especial is a 140L crystal malt. This brew uses the classic yeast that originates from the Chimay brewery in Belgium.

ABV: 8%
IBU: 24.5

Great Crescent Oktoberfest Lager 2012 (available September 2012)

Brewed in the classic Oktoberfest Style - this beer is brewed with Pilsner Malt, Munich Malt and German Perle and Hersbrucker hops. Rich, malty and delicious with just the right amount of hop bitterness, flavor and clean finish from authentic German Hops. Available on draft and in Pint Cans for 2012.

ABV: 5.7%
IBU: 25.2

Great Crescent IPA-DHGlacier
This is a dry-hopped version of our IPA we crafted for American Craft Beer Week 2012. We start with Perle (bittering) and Glacier (aroma) hops, then 1 lb/bbl of Glacier hops are added in the conditioning tank at cold temperatures for 2 weeks. The Glacier hops provide the last layer of aroma and flavor in a more suttle way that really compliments this beer. This beer was available on draft only at the brewery.

ABV: 6.2%
IBU: 60.5

Great Crescent IPA-DHCentennial
This is a dry-hopped version of our IPA we crafted for American Craft Beer Week 2012. We start with Perle (bittering) and Glacier (aroma) hops, then 1 lb/bbl of Centennial hops are added in the conditioning tank at cold temperatures for 2 weeks. The aggressive aroma and flavor of the Centennial hops really comes through from start to finish with floral and citrus tones. This beer was available on draft at the brewery and a limited number of growlers.

ABV: 6.2%
IBU: 60.5

Brown Ale (January 2012)
Great Crescent Brown Ale was crafted to fall between our Mild Ale and Porter in respect to flavor and bitterness. This beer stands on a base of genuine British brown, crystal and chocolate malts with bittering provided by 17%aa Summit Hops. The maltiness and bitteness blend together perfectly and the blend of U.K Fuggles and Goldings for flavor come through in the finish.

ABV 5.5%
IBU 36

Frosted Fields Winter Wheat (January 2012)
Frosted Fields was created to celebrate those cold Winter days when the frost lays heavy across the fields. In addition to the usual 2-row malted barley Frosted Fields uses a blend of white and red wheat malt. If we could put this one in a category, it would best fit the double-wit style, but has the addition of high alpha Summit hops to enhance the bitteness and flavor. The citrus flavors of the corriander and the sweet and bitter orange touch on the times when we sit warm inside munching on nuts and some fresh citrus fruits to take the edge off the cold outside. We will be tapping the first keg on New Year's Eve at the brewery and it will then be available in Pint Cans, Growlers and Kegs.

ABV: 6%
IBU:   25

Steamboat Common - Available Fall 2011 until sold out

"Steamboat Common" is a play on the words "Steamboat Comin' " and is a collaboration between Great Crescent Brewery and New Albanian Brewing Company. Steamboat Common was created to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the first steamboat trip on "Western Waters" back in 1811. Steamboat Common is based on recipes that would have been typical for the 1811 timeframe and is best described as a lightly smoked brown ale. The addition of molassis and sorghum give this beer a slight haze and the flavors come through in the finish.

ABV: 5.8%
IBU:   33.2

Link to the Wiki Page

Link to the Madison Festival page

Oktoberfest 2011(available September 2011 on draft only)

Brewed in the classic Oktoberfest Style - this beer is an Amber Lager, malty and delicious.

ABV: 5.4%
IBU:   25.2

  Great Crescent Stout 2012 (Available in the Winter)
Great Crescent Stout is crafted using American hops and is the same stout we use in the Bourbon's Barrel Stout; we pull some off before it goes into the barrels. This beer is created using dark roasted malts and exhibits full flavors of chocolate, coffee and has a full bitterness from the black malt that balances with the sweetness from the 2-row malt. If you already enjoy stout this one will impress you.

ABV: 8%
IBU: 67

Great Crescent Mild Ale (English-Style Mild Ale)

Great Crescent Mild Ale is a Midwest interpretation of a classic English-style Mild. This beer has moderate malt aroma with biscuit, caramel and lightly roasted malt flavors. The bitterness of this beer is kept low and most people appreciate that there is a lower alcohol level without compromising on malt balance and flavor. The Great Crescent Brewery uses 5 different malts to create this beer. Our mild ale is mahogany color, clear and unfiltered to so we can maintain the fresh natural flavors craft beer drinkers are seeking.

ABV: 4.2%
IBU: 25.7

Dark Ale - Winter Seasonal 2012

This Dark Ale is brewed using 6 malts including Dark Chocolate Malt, Dark Carmel, Roasted Barley and a touch of Cherry-wood Smoked Malt. It is very well balanced; the hops and a light smokiness come through in the finish. This is our version of a recipe developed by the fine team at New Abanian Brewing Co. in New Albany, IN and has historical roots in Indiana brewing.

ABV: 8%
IBU: 58