Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - In collaboration with the Buffalo Museum of Science, Big Ditch Brewing Company is set to release their special "WNY Eclipse" Black IPA Beer this Friday, March 1.
The beer, meant to commemorate the once-in-a-lifetime Total Solar Eclipse over the Buffalo area on April 8, will only be available for a limited time.
Big Ditch Brewing Company President, Matt Kahn, explained the importance of working with the Buffalo Museum of Science to create such a unique beer.
"This is a once in over 100 years type event, so it's not going to happen again anytime soon. This is what our brewery does is we create beers to celebrate events or occasions," said Kahn in an interview with WBEN. "In this particular case, we also thought it was important to partner with someone to provide some education about the event in regards to what it is, the science, [and] the safety. So, we partnered with the Buffalo Museum of Science to help provide some of that education and they were nice enough to help us acquire some solar viewing glasses, which we placed in every six packs of the beer."
Each six-pack of WNY Eclipse Black IPA contains one pair of eclipse viewing glasses, as well as a scannable QR code on the package that directs customers to the Buffalo Museum of Science’s eclipse information webpage.
Big Ditch Brewing will no longer be selling the beer after April 9, however, Kahn says they're not sure if it will still be available by then.
"Even if it sells really fast, we'll save a little bit back for that day so people can still buy them, get their last bit of beer and glasses for the total eclipse. Then, by April 9, it will definitely all be gone. We won't have any left," said Kahn.
The official release for WNY Eclipse Black IPA will be Friday at “Science After Hours: Eclipse” at the Buffalo Museum of Science, and at Big Ditch Brewing Company’s tap room at 55 East Huron Street in Downtown Buffalo.
The beer can also be found at craft beer retailers and supermarkets in Western New York, leading up to the eclipse on April 8.