The timing on this release was a bit odd, in retrospect. I received this press release from Cigar City Brewing just over a week ago, and then two days later, the news broke that Monster Beverages was buying CANarchy Craft Brewery Collective—of which Cigar City is a part. So Cigar City will be owned by Monster (along with Oskar Blues, Deep Ellum, Perrin Brewing, Squatters, and Wasatch) and I wonder how much input the brewery had in the deal.

Anyway. Cigar City announced the release of its new mixed 12-pack of Jai Alai IPA and three variants based on the flagship beer: Pineapple Tangerine Jai Alai, White Oak Jai Alai, and Jai Low IPA (lower ABV session IPA). Here’s the press release:

Cigar City Brewing (CCB), the Southeast’s leading craft brewery, has announced the release of the Jai Alai IPA Mixed 12-Pack, a variety pack of four different iterations of its flagship beer in a single package. Offering three twelve-ounce cans each of Jai Alai IPA, Jai Low IPA, the highly sought-after White Oak Jai Alai IPA, and the much-anticipated new Pineapple Tangerine Jai Alai IPA, this new Mixed 12-Pack is poised to continue the formidable growth trajectory for the Jai Alai IPA brand family. The new variety pack is currently available in the Spruce Street Taproom and will see gradual distribution across Cigar City Brewing’s national footprint beginning in January 2022.

With the new release, CCB looks to continue the success Jai Alai IPA, a singular hop-forward ale that has become synonymous with American craft beer. Introduced in 2009, Jai Alai IPA helped reimagine American IPAs by eschewing the style’s piney bitterness in favor of vibrant notes of tangerine, clementine and orange zest. The brand has grown to become one of the best-selling craft brand families in the US, with twelve packs of the classic Jai Alai IPA becoming the best-selling craft beer item in Florida grocery stores and a top 30 craft beer item in grocery stores across the United States (IRI, YTD thru 11.21). The tropical fruit-forward IPA is now found in retail outlets from St. Petersburg, Florida to St. Petersburg, Russia and has earned Cigar City Brewing international renown at beer competitions and on draft lists across the world.

Three twelve-ounce cans of Jai Alai IPA serve to anchor the Jai Alai IPA Mixed 12-Pack, drawing in consumers with its familiar green and orange packaging. Complementing original Jai Alai IPA cans inside the 12-Pack are three variations on its iconic recipe. White Oak Jai Alai IPA uses the addition of oak spirals to impart coconut and vanilla qualities to match the base beer’s fruit notes, and has become one of the most coveted beers in the CCB lineup. Having not seen distribution in recent years, the fan-favorite White Oak Jai Alai is sure to be an allure to CCB consumers. Additionally, the Mixed 12-Pack introduces Pineapple Tangerine Jai Alai IPA, a new recipe that utilizes fruit additions that emphasize the hallmark tropical notes of Jai Alai IPA, proffering truly remarkable fruit flavors. Pineapple Tangerine Jai Alai is currently available exclusively within the Jai Alai IPA Mixed 12-Pack. Rounding out the pack is Jai Low IPA offering a lower alcohol, lower calorie interpretation of CCB’s flagship beer that utilizes the same hop varieties that make Jai Alai IPA so memorable.

We’re thrilled to offer hop heads a new way to enjoy their favorite IPA,” says Julia Stewart, Marketing Manager for Cigar City Brewing. “The Jai Alai IPA Mixed 12-Pack delivers new and familiar recipes inside the same package, all the while bolstering the profile of our flagship beer. The new pack develops Jai Alai as a brand that can meet the needs of every Jai Alai drinker.”

Select markets around the US will receive initial deliveries of the Jai Alai IPA Mixed 12-Pack in January 2022, with footprint-wide distribution arriving soon after. Cigar City Brewing’s Jai Alai Mixed 12-Pack will be available in the nation’s finest grocery stores, package stores, liquor stores and independent beverage retailers.

Visit Cigar City Brewing’s website [www.cigarcitybrewing.com] for more information on the Jai Alai IPA Mixed 12-Pack and the rest of its dynamic line-up of craft ales, lagers and seltzers.

The original Jai Alai is 7.5% ABV with 65 IBUs, and is brewed with Amarillo, Simcoe, Cascade, Motueka, Centennial, and CTZ hops. Pineapple Tangerine is 7% ABV, White Oak is 7.5%, and Jai Low is 4%. It would be interesting if a similar mix pack included the Spanish Cedar variant, perhaps in place of Jai Low.