INSPIRATION, ART, & SOUR BEER

Sure, you’ve held a Blue Owl sour beer can time and time again. Maybe you could even point one out on the store shelf from across the room. But are you familiar with the poster art that goes with each style of our sour beer? With each variation, our artists have created artwork to tell a story and signify the feeling of that beer.

Starting with our core beers and highlighting a few of our favorites, here is a little glimpse into the artwork behind the sour beer at Blue Owl Brewing.

LITTLE BOSS

Inspired by the West Texas sunset and nights spent in the magical town of Marfa, this print’s colorful skies in pink and yellow hues overlook the Little Boss himself – a mechanical owl that would give Bubo a run for his money. Like our sour session wheat, sometimes the best things come in small packages.

 

 

SPIRIT ANIMAL

The art created for our Sour Pale Ale pays homage to Twin Peaks, David Lynch’s beloved series, and the fictional character Bob. “Bob” = Blue Owl Brewing. Coincidence? The tree-filled Pacific Northwest scenery nods to the beer’s curious-yet-balanced piney hops and refreshing sourness.

 

 

VAN DAYUM!

In the name and in general assertiveness, this beer is like getting kicked in the face by Jean Claude himself. The poster art, however, nods to more of the nuances of this special brew and features the Flemish painter Jan Van Eyck. His “I do as I can” mantra is one we have embraced, as well. The motto AlC IXH XAN (“I Do as I Can”), which appears on other Van Eyck paintings, is always written in Greek letters and includes a pun on his name.

 

 

PROFESSOR BLACK

A stately professor carefully examines a single cherry in a forest. The attention to detail and thoughtful approach to his craft is how the brewers of Blue Owl approach this sour cherry stout. The spine of one of the books on the ground features an equation created by Jeff Young during his nerdy math undergrad days as well as a mortar and pestle as a nod to his nerdy chemist career days. 

 

 

WILD BOSS

A wild fermentation version of Little Boss, this art continues to depict the Marfa desert in the soft glow of a hot summer’s sunset. Like Little Boss, this Wild Boss animal nods to the infamous Bubo owl with its inquisitive eyes. Sitting atop Ocotillo plants, this owl may be tinier than the eye can see but it still stands proud and bold.

 

 

WILD ANIMAL

A wild fermentation version of Spirit Animal, this art is a wild version as well. A mysterious owl-like animal is donning a sweater with a pattern that mimics our Spirit Animal sour beer can. This Wild Animal is seemingly larger than the dense woods behind it, that background represents the tree-filled Pacific Northwest scenery cohesive to our Spirit Animal art.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like each beer brewed, we take great pride in creating artwork that represents our brand and sour beer. Check out more of Blue Owl’s poster art on our website and let us know which ones are your favorites!