Posts Tagged ‘craft beer’

Get to know a Belgian-style: Witbier

Wednesday, 22 June 2011 09:13 Written by beersomm 1 Comment

Witbier, White Beer

Proper Flemish pronunciation is “vitt-a” but is usually pronounced “wit” or “white” beer here in the states.  Most American beer drinkers have had a tasty Hoegaarden or even a far-from-original Blue Moon from that “Blue Moon Brewing Company” no one can actually locate.  These are good “gateway” beers introducing people to craft beer and the complex styles of other Belgian ales like Trappist and Abbey ales.

A typical Belgian-style witbier is a yellowish, unfiltered ale with a large, dense, white head brewed with 30%-60% wheat (malted or unmalted) in the grist with the remaining grain usually consisting of malted barley, and sometimes oats.  Coriander seeds and orange peels (usually Curacao) are most often used to season the beer giving it a refreshing bite.  Wheat beers are usually very popular in the summer due to the quenching effects of the wheat grain and the citrusy flavors.

The story of the Belgian witbier is a great one told over and over by beer writers.  Brewed for hundreds of years in the Flemish Brabant province of Flanders, Belgium, an area that produces the best wheat farms because of its rich soil. Although the style was popular for most of the past 400 years, the Witte seemed to disappear in the 1950′s. Pierre Celis is often deemed the man responsible for reviving the style in 1966 in the Belgian town of Hoegaarden.  After Interbrew (now InBev) purchased the Hoegaarden brewery, Celis moved to Austin, Texas and revived the style once again in the United States at his Celis Brewery.

Variations on the style are common with additions of different spices, fruits and grains with exceptional examples produced in many different countries including Belgium, France, the United States, Italy and even Japan.

This style is usually our go-to beer on hot, summer days.  Some of our favorites include:

Jan De Lichte – KleinBrouwerij De Glazen Toren

Bianca – Birrificio Brùton

White Rascal – Avery Brewing Company

Allagash White – Allagash Brewing Company

St. Bernardus Witbier – Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV

Blanche De Bruxelles – Brasserie Lefèbvre SA

Blanche de Chambly – Unibroue

Blanche De Namur – Brasserie Du Bocq

Pigeonnelle Loirette – Brasserie De La Pigeonnelle

Come to Get Real “Belgian Fest” and try some great examples of Belgian-style witbiers!!
http://www.grbfny.com/brewers/

La Trappe, A Different kind of Trappist

Saturday, 26 March 2011 17:52 Written by beersomm 0 Comments


La Trappe: A Different Kind of Trappist

Dutch Monk brewers La Trappe just do things different than their 6 monastic brethren. The Abbey was founded in 1881 by monks fleeing the hostile French religious atmosphere. Several Trappist monasteries sent members to find refuse abroad. Sebastianus Wyart was the chosen trappist scout who found a heather field in the country side of the Netherlands. By 1884 “The Konnigshoven” or “The Royal Farms”became an abbey with a brewery to help support the newly relocated monks. This history is pretty much in step with many other monastories that had to flee France.

For the next hundred years Konnigshoven’s growth was stalled twice by two world wars. After each war the brewery comes back bigger and stronger. In 1950, they began producing lemonade and opened a laboratory. In 1968, the monks invited local brewers to help with innovation and production. At this time, the brewery was producing several styles including; dark, Pilsner, Dortmunder, Super and Bock’s.
In 1980 the friars decidedto establish the name “La Trappe.” At this time, the monastic brewers decided to return tothe brewing practices of the 50′s and use archived recipes. The winter ale Quadruple hassuch a high demand the brewery decided to produce it year round. In 2001, they releasedthe first Trappist Witte or white wheat beer based on a recipe from the 1950′s. Continuingtheir innovation, La Trappe produced something no other Trappist brewery had ever released: a lager. In 2003, La Trappe’s “Bockbier” was released and received high ratings from the beer community. In 2009, the friars decided to release a 125th anniversary ale called “IsiD’or” named after the first brewmaster. IsiD’or is a pale ale and all proceeds goto the construction of a new abbey in Uganda.

In 2009, the monks decided to return to the practice of oak-aging the Quadruple. Manyold world and craft brewers oak-age beers but La Trappe is unique in that it blends the Quad into several different new and used barrels. The first batch is a split into 4 barrels;18% new oak with heavy toast, 9% new medium Acasia, 36% used burnt port barrels,and 36% toasted port barrels. After maturing for 12 months, the beer is blended and bottled. The beer stands alone in complexity and innovation. These Trappists’ prizes are very rare and meant to age for up to 20 years. The oak-aged Quads are bottle conditioned and have cork and cage closures.I was able to get my hands on Batch 3 of the oak-aged Quad. The 10% dark ale was stillin its youth but the complexity and smoothness even at this early stage was something special.

La Trappe “Quadrupple” Barrique-Batch 3
Notes; Kirsch, Olorosso sherry, toasted vanilla, apple skins and cumin
Pairings; Lamb couscous, chocolate cake, but probably best drank on its own.
ABV 10%

Here is a list of the different oak blends for each batch as provided by http://www.latrappe.nl.
The 5th batch is aging in 20% heavily toasted new oak and 80% used white wine barrels.
BATCH 1 (blended on June 1, 2010).  

Type % in batch
New Oak Heavy Toast 18.2
New Medium Acasia 9.1
Port Medium Burnt 36.4
Port Medium Toast 36.4

BATCH 2 (blended on July 26, 2010).

Type
% in batch
New Medium Oak Toast
9
Port Medium Burnt Toast (American Oak)
64
Port Medium Burnt Toast (French Oak)
9
Port Medium Toast (French Oak)
18

BATCH 3 (blended on September 17, 2010).

Type
% in batch
New Oak Medium Toast
18
Port Medium Toast (French Oak)
55
La Trappe Q. Medium Toast (French Oak)
27

BATCH 4 (blended on 5 November 2010).

Type
% in batch
New Oak  Medium Toast
27
Port Medium Toast (French Oak)
9
La Trappe Q. Medium Toast (French Oak)
18
La Trappe Q. Medium burnt (American Oak)  

New Oak Heavy Toast
36  

10

 

Beer Brandy? It’s Coming

Friday, 25 March 2011 06:33 Written by beersomm 1 Comment
Distilled Beer
Wunderbar breweries Schneider and Uerige are set to release their beer brandies in NYC. Pure, distilled versions of Aventinus “Edelster” and Dopplesticke “Stickum Plus” are awaiting NY state label approval and should be available within weeks. Schneider and Uerige will be joining Kiuchi who already produces a 43% version of Hitachino Nest White for sale though MHW distributors.
Making beer brandy is similar to producing whiskey. After the beer has beer brewed, it’s then taken to the a distillery where it is placed in a pot still. In the pot still the fermented ales are heated above 212′ F – the temperature in which water boils. While the water is boiling Vapors and esters evaporate resulting in a condensed base spirit. At this point, Schneider pitches a little more Aventinus into the pot still and the process is repeated. After this second distillation, the ale has been converted to a potent 40% beer brandy. The more you distill, the more you remove original esters and volitiles from the brew. Uerige and Schneider only distill twice to keep the purest from of the ale in the Beer Brandy.

Uerige is aging the “Sticktum Plus” in different used oak barrels. The first in the series is aged in Cognac barrels for 18 months, the second is aged in Pinot Noir barrels from the Jura on the border of France and Switzerland. Oak aging adds secondary and tertiary flavors and aromas. This practice has been perfected in Scotland with whiskey as the scotch producing country always ages in used oak barrels. Glenmorangie has been experimenting aging their Scotch in used barrels Port, Sauternes and Pedro Ximenez. The result have lead to another world in complexity with their Whiskey’s.

I wonder when will the Craft brewers of America start will brining their brews to their local distillery? Can you imagine Goose Island  Bourbon County Stout aged in Napa Cab barrels or how about Bear Republic Ryevalry Rye aged in Wild Turkey casks?

Schneider Aventinus “Edelster”
Style: Beer Brandy; Weizenbock
Notes: Banana, clove, basil, pear, vanilla and black pepper
ABV: 40%

Uerige Dopplesticke “Stickum Plus” Cognac Barrels
Style: Beer Brandy; Doppel Alt
Notes: Plum, toasted oak, cinnamon, tangerine and pistachio
ABV: 45%

Kiuchi No Shizuke “Hitachino nest”
Style: Beer Brandy; White Ale
Notes: Coriander, lemon and brioche
ABV: 43%

Get Real NY – Taking NYC by Storm!

Wednesday, 23 March 2011 18:40 Written by beersomm 0 Comments

Get Real NY Craft Beer and Food Festival took place last weekend.  I was definitely excited to see how this would compare to last September’s first Get Real.  The Get Real Gang displayed over 100 casks from breweries all over the US and internationally.  Also available for the tasting was a wide selection of home brew beers.  Tons more food this time around including Sunswick 35-35 beer brisket, Fatty Crab’s pork belly tea sandwiches, Brother Jimmy’s famous pulled pork sliders, Murray’s Cheese selections, and much more.  Gianni and I worked Café D’Alsace’s table serving pate with duck, pork, fois gras and green pepper corns.  The pate was a hit and paired well with some of the hoppier and stronger beers.  The event was incredible.  I tasted at least 20 different cask ales and some notable cask included:

Dogfish Head 75 Minute IPA

Greenport Harbor Disorient IPA Dry-hopped with Citra

Greenport Harbor Triton Barleywine Dry-hopped with Fuggle

Greenport Harbor Belgian IPA Dry-hopped with Tettnanger

Kelso Quad Bock Aged in Jack Daniels Barrels

Sixpoint Diesel

Two Brothers Resistance IPA

Congratulations to Patrick, Andy, Mary and Chris for throwing an amazing event showcasing great food and incredible beer.  I can’t wait to see what’s coming up next.

Here are some photos of the event:

A Cool Beer

Wednesday, 23 March 2011 07:33 Written by beersomm 0 Comments

Cigar City- Guava Grove

Style: Saison/Sour/Fruit
Truly a unique beer from Tampa’s Cigar City brewery.  Bottle conditioned and brewed with local Guava. Although this beer is classified as a Saison it really tastes more like a Flanders Red Ale. The tart vinaigrette taste and funk from Brettanomyces aromas are often found in Belgian Sours or Red Ales.

Notes: Apple vinegar, Cassia, Guava and Brettanomyces.
Pairings: Seafood risotto, Duck L’Orange and Pork chops

Saison’s
Originally brewed in the Wallonia farmlands of Belgium, Saison means season in French. During the harvest farm hands were entitled to 5 liters of beer a day and this refreshing style was the brew of choice. Also known as Farmhouse Ales Saison’s are similar to French Bière de Garde’s in that they are both bottle conditioned and aged or held for extended periods. The beers take on funky autolytic characters while aging in the bottle.

Other similar brews : Rodenbach Vintage 2007,  New Belgium La Folie and Petrus Oud Bruin.

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