FAIRFIELD, Calif. – When candy makers at Jelly Belly Candy Company set out to create a beer-flavored jelly bean, the question wasn’t how; it was what. Ale or Lager? Stout? Lambic? Pilsner? In the end, the company opted to pay homage to its German ancestry with a Hefeweizen-inspired ale flavor, and Draft Beer Jelly Belly jelly beans took shape. The new flavor will debut at Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco.

“This took about three years to perfect,” said Ambrose Lee, research and development manager for Jelly Belly Candy Company, in a press release. “The recipe includes top secret ingredients, but I can tell you it contains no alcohol.”

Beer has been a highly requested flavor by consumers for decades. Jelly Belly is known as much for flavor innovation as perfection. The research and development team wanted to get it just right before announcing the new flavor to the world.

“Usually the factory has a sweet and fruity aroma, but when we’re making this flavor it’s just like being in an ale house,” said Jeff Brown, vice president in charge of manufacturing for Jelly Belly Candy Company. The new flavor will be available at candy counters throughout the world in early 2014.