So how did Gadsden's Back Forty Beer get into a frozen dinner?
This fall, Nestlé Prepared Foods Co., the maker of the Stouffer's frozen foods brand, is introducing its Urban Bistro line of single-serve, culinary-inspired meals, using one of Back Forty's signature brews.
Beer Glazed Meatballs is described as beef meatballs simmered and reduced in Back Forty Beer Co.'s Truck Stop Honey Brown Ale, served atop cheddar mashed potatoes.
Back Forty supplied about 500 gallons of beer for the product for starters, which is quite a bar tab. And with any tab, it pays to know somebody.
As Tripp Collins, chief operating officer of Back Forty explained, the project began with a personal connection.
"We had a former intern who went to work for Nestlé," Collins said. "When they began to look a different dishes for this product line, beer was one of the things they wanted to create with. And our former intern mentioned that she used to work for a brewery."
Still, it took more than a year before Back Forty was shipping beer. Nestlé audited Back Forty's brewing process, gathering information on standard procedures, learning as much as they could about the product.
"It was probably 18 months," Collins said. "At first, they asked for five, 10, 15 gallons. We knew they liked the beer. They just wanted to see how we did everything."
Stoffer's Urban Bistro has seven other meals, including Aged Asiago Lasagna, Cheddar & Goat Cheese Mac, Kentucky Bourbon Glazed Chicken, Chicken & Cheddar Grits, Smoked Gouda & Chorizo Mac, Spiced Chicken & Couscous and Spicy Tortellini Arrabbiata.