CANAL WINCHESTER, Ohio (COLUMBUS BUSINESS FIRST) — Some of BrewDog’s most exclusive beers are getting a wider release.

NanoDog is a sub-label beer brand for Canal Winchester-based BrewDog USA and the brainchild of brewer Nick Manos, who successfully pitched BrewDog co-founder James Watt on the “boutique” idea in 2019.

Since then, Manos has been brewing small-batch stouts, IPAs and other creations that routinely sell out both because of the limited amount of production and the reputation the beers have garnered among the beer cognoscenti.

“This is pre-R and D – the chance to use high quality, expensive ingredients that don’t make sense on a larger scale,” he said.

How small is it? The BrewDog brewhouse can produce approximately 170 barrels of beer. The company’s smaller pilot system creates 15 to 20 barrels.

But even that is too big.

Manos brews on a comparatively minuscule two-barrel system tucked away inside the 100,000-square-foot facility.

BrewDog is giving the beers a bigger stage in April, turning over several taps at its Short North bar to NanoDog beers. It also will sell some four-packs for carryout.

Among the beers that will be available are:

• Ska-klava, a 13% alcohol-by-volume milk stout brewed in collaboration with Lebanon’s Dysfunctional Delights meadery. It is made with caramelized Meadowfoam honey and conditioned on toasted walnuts, Indonesian cinnamon and toast phyllo dough.
• Infinite Scoops, a 12% ABV milk stout made with Dayton’s Branch and Bone Artisan Ales, conditioned on Ghanan and Guatemalan cacao nibs, candied walnuts and and mint.
• Lil Chuggy, a 3.5% “faux” lager fermented with Norwegian Lutra yeast.
• Froot Bats (Freshfast Bowl), a 4% ABV oak-aged smoothie sour conditioned on blackberry, blueberry, granola and oat milk.

“A lot of what we’ve done are those big, imperial stouts that are difficult to produce in large amounts because of the cost,” Manos said. “Smaller batches give us more control over the product, too.”

NanoDog not only affords the opportunity to experiment with ingredients, but also with technique and other aspects of brewing.

Manos said he has particularly enjoyed toying with different water profiles in some of the IPAs. He’s also developed three separate stout bases that will go into bourbon barrels as soon as the brewery starts its barrel program.

Some of his personal favorite creations include a lemon meringue stout; Happy Happy Joy Joy, an Almond Joy-inspired stout; and $$$$$$$$$$$$$ (aka Thirteen Dollar Signs), an imperial milk stout with cocoa powder, cacao nibs, vanilla beans and cold Costa Rican honey-process Geisha coffee from Columbus’ Thunderkiss Coffee.

Manos also said he’s excited for several collaboration beers coming soon, including multiple beers with Central Ohio’s Dankhouse Brewing and Derive Brewing, and with out-of-state brewers Monochrome Brewing and Arclight Brewing.

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