This Beer in Florida Used Butterflies in the Brewing Process

No, they did not kill the butterflies. They merely swabbed the little creatures.

Thanks to the frosted elfin butterflies in the area, Gainesville’s First Magnitude Brewing now have the Frosted Elfin England-Style Session Pale Ale, brewed from the yeast they gathered from the butterflies.

The beer was a collaboration between the brewery and scientists at the Florida Museum of Natural History, who netted the butterflies and gently swabbed them for yeast before releasing them back into the forest. Those yeast samples were multiplied in petri dishes to produce what was needed for brewing.

That flowery-smelling yeast was part of what resulted in a tropical, fruity, hoppy and hazy pale ale that went on sale at First Magnitude’s tasting room on May 17 for $12.50 per four pack. The beer is also being sold in some stores around Gainesville, including Lucky’s Market. The brewery will hold another release event at the Brass Tap in Tallahassee on May 25.

Jaret Daniels, a professor at the University of Florida and director of the museum’s Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity told U.S. Fish & Wildlife he was looking for a way to engage a new demographic, specifically beer drinkers, in conservation.

A portion of the proceeds from every can is going directly to butterfly research. The researchers also hope the exposure raises awareness for the frosted elfin.

Both beer enthusiasts and the frosted elfins would benefit from this new beer, so I guess they hit two birds with one stone.

This isn’t the only beer made with the help of butterflies. Check out the others as well on the video.

(Video Credit: Florida Museum/ YouTube)

(Image Credit: First Magnitude/ Medium.com)