(ESCONDIDO, CA) – Calling all fangirls / fanboys, gamers, otaku, and simply anyone who truly appreciates rare, great-tasting beer. Beginning July 11, Stone Brewing is releasing the latest regeneration of its geekiest collaboration beer—Drew Curtis / Wil Wheaton / Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout—in 22-ounce bottles and on draft to retailers, bars and restaurants in select markets nationwide.

This is not a trap! The collaborative trio composed of Stone CEO & self-proclaimed beer geek Greg Koch, Fark.com creator & craft beer-loving Drew Curtis, and web celeb & actor Wil Wheaton (see “Stand by Me” and “Star Trek: The Next Generation”) developed a recipe that pulls from each of their individual backgrounds and predilections. This year’s release of Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout is an exact clone of 2013’s—a superhero-level imperial stout brewed with wheat, rye and pecans and partially aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels. The result is a beer bursting with a plethora of aromatics and flavors: cocoa, coffee, licorice, oak, nuts, vanilla and, of course, bourbon. One sip may fool taste buds into believing this beer bestows Jedi mind control powers.

“Each edition of Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout has been a little different, whether it’s adding an ingredient, featuring a new collaborator or bringing in a new comic book artist to design the bottle label,” said Koch. “Hardcore beer fans really loved our 2013 Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout recipe, so in honor of those beer geeks, we’re going back to a good thing. This time the bottle art features Wil, Drew and me in some…well…very clever characterizations.”

A famed illustrator celebrated for her characters Vampirella, Power Girl, Silk Spectre and Harley Quinn and comics “Gatecrasher” and “Gargoyles,” Amanda Conner embraced the term “Stone’s bearded leader” for this year’s bottle art design. She transformed the three collaborators into unique renditions of “Star Wars” characters, with Koch playing the woolly role of everyone’s favorite wookiee.

At 13 percent alcohol by volume and with the highest concentration of midi-chlorians seen in a beer, the Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout may be enjoyed fresh, or cellared for several months or years to give way for the deliciously rich flavors to mature and develop more prevalent dark cocoa, coffee and nut notes.

A beer with this amount of geekiness and grandeur deserves to be celebrated with a festival dedicated to the convergence of geek culture and beer culture. Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout will be honored on Wednesday, July 20, at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Liberty Station. Hop-Con 4.0: The w00tstout Festival is an annual celebration of nth-degree beer geekery, and attendees will enjoy:

A commemorative Hop-Con 4.0 glass for guests to keep

– 15 three-ounce beer samples per guest

– Unlimited plays in the HOP-CADE

– Complimentary gourmet food

– Lots of geeky good times!

– With each admission to Hop-Con, fans may purchase a signed litho of the bottle artwork designed by Conner, with 100% of proceeds going to Hero Initiative, a charity organization that provides financial assistance to comic book creators in need.

Five bars will serve more than 80 beers on tap, including all four vintages and six custom cask variations of 2016’s Drew Curtis / Wil Wheaton / Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout. Additionally, three collaboration beers were brewed exclusively for Hop-Con 4.0 with Liberty Station Brewing Manager Kris Ketcham and will be tapped that evening for guests to enjoy. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit stonebrewing.com/hopcon.

QUICK FACTS

DREW CURTIS / WIL WHEATON / GREG KOCH STONE FARKING WHEATON W00STOUT

Name: Drew Curtis / Wil Wheaton / Greg Koch Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout

Stats: 13% ABV, 65 IBUs

Availability: Limited 22-ounce bottles and draft, beginning July 11

Hop Varieties: English Target

National Distribution: AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA and Puerto Rico

International Distribution: Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand

Find Beer: find.stonebrewing.com

About Stone Brewing

Founded by Greg Koch and Steve Wagner in 1996, San Diego-based Stone Brewing is the 10th-largest craft brewer in the United States. Stone has been listed on the Inc. 500 | 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies list 11 times, and has been called the “All-time Top Brewery on Planet Earth” by BeerAdvocate magazine twice. The multifaceted company will be the first American craft brewer to independently build, own and operate a brewery in Europe, and is also building a production brewery and destination restaurant in Richmond, Virginia. Brewing at both locations will be underway in summer 2016. Known for its bold, flavorful and largely hop-centric beers, Stone has earned a reputation for brewing outstanding, unique beers while maintaining an unwavering commitment to sustainability, business ethics, philanthropy and the art of brewing. For more information on Stone Brewing, please visit StoneBrewing.com or the company’s social media sites:Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter and The Stone Blog