Logo of the Stone Money Brewing Company ()
Colonia, Yap. On the far side of the world from its birthplace, a beer that is made in small batches on a remote Pacific island has won a Silver Medal in one of the most esteemed international competitions of its kind.
Every year in Lyons, France, the capital of French gastronomy, the Concurs International de Lyons Wine, Beer and Spirits Competition showcases the world’s top libations to decide which are the best of the best.
This year, Manta Ray Bay Resort’s Stone Money Manta Gold, a European lager made from malted grain and European hops, was among them. Brewed by Swiss brew master Fredy Gull in the climate-controlled microbrewery located in a corner of the hotel’s lobby, visitors from all over the world who come to dive among the resident population of manta rays end every day with a cold stein or two of the popular lager.
“We attract divers from all over the globe,” notes Bill Acker, Texas-bred founder of the award-winning resort. “Recently, we had some German guests who took a few bottles of our beer home and entered it in the competition. We were thrilled to get the news that it had won this prestigious award! Our beer was compared to hundreds of entries from the best breweries in the world. Mere words fail!”
“The ingredients are triple filtered pure aquifer water, 2 Row Moravian Malt, a small amount of Rice Flakes (used for coloring), Hallertau Mittelfrueh German Hops and Czech Saaz Hops imported from the Czech Republic,” explains Gull. “We ferment it for one week and keep it at a constant temperature of 15 degrees Centigrade and then cool it to 3° C and transfer it slowly to a maturation tank that is held at a constant temperature of 6° C for a minimum of seven days. After maturation, the beer is transferred to pre-pressurized kegs and held at 6° C for up to four months.
“These temperatures are critical to maintain the natural CO2 content of this fine Lager,” the Zurich native adds. “Manta Gold is naturally cloudy and takes a bit of time to dispense properly but our guests agree that the painstaking efforts used to brew this beer and the time that it takes to dispense properly, with just the right amount of head, is well worth it.”
The Lyon International Competition judges 70 categories of beer and, according to the event’s website, “meets strict organizational rules with storage conditions optimal, a classification of beers that takes into account many criteria, a blind tasting, a control of the selected tasters and a rating grid.”
Stone Money Brewing Company was launched more than 20 years ago and is named for the unique, traditional currency that is found throughout the 38½ square mile island. One of four island states in the Federated States of Micronesia, Yap attracts visitors who are looking for a place to dive amid some of the ocean’s rarest creatures in a place that is environmentally pristine and off the beaten track.
In addition to Manta Gold, the brewery offers Hammerhead Amber, “our dark beer that’s also a true Lager but with more of an American West Coast flavor,” says Gull. “Some of our customers order the Texas Two-Step, half Manta Gold and half Hammerhead Amber that’s named in honor of Bill.”
Operating since 1986, Manta Ray Bay Resort & Yap Divers is a small, family-owned, luxury hotel voted by readers of Diver Magazine UK as one of the top 25 dive resorts worldwide and the Reader’s Choice Award as #5 dive resort in the Pacific/Red Sea/Indian Ocean. Serving only 1,000 divers a year, the destination offers crowd-free dive sites and VIP service, spa treatments, a unique bar and dining experience onboard its 100+ year old Indonesian Schooner and, of course, its internationally recognized home-brewed beer.
