Monthly Archive for August, 2009

New Belgium Brewing's Biere De Mars

Published on August 31, 2009 in 2009 and Beer Reviews. 3 Comments

This is one is what is known as a Wild Ale.  Beers of this type have an advantage other brews do not, although it is typically Belgian yeast, it’s got a bit of a wild side. The yeast is what is known as Wild Yeast, that is it is not added in intentionally. It comes from  barrels that have previously been used for other purposes. Yeasts such as Brettanomyces are sometimes seen. You never know what you are going to get when this gets added in, so look out!

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Produced by New Belgium Brewing Co, as part of their Lips of Faith line. Starting off in 1989, they have made great strides since then. I’ll let them tell their story: ” As our aspiring young home brewer rides his mountain bike with “fat tires” through European villages famous for beer, New Belgium Brewing Company was but a glimmer in his eye. Or basement. For Jeff Lebesch would return to Fort Collins with a handful of ingredients and an imagination full of recipes. And then there was beer. Jeff’s first two basement-brewed creations? A brown dubbel with earthy undertones named Abbey and a remarkably well-balanced amber he named Fat Tire. To say the rest was history would be to overlook his wife’s involvement. Kim Jordan was New Belgium’s first bottler, sales rep, distributor, marketer and financial planner.” Unique for them is their addition of employee ownership to all employees upon completing one year of employment.

Poured a very cloudy straw colored yellow into a tulip glass, producing a small head but with decent lacing. Carbonation was minimal, but left a nice thin lacing that stuck well to the glass.

Aromas were interesting. Compared to Avery’s Brabant, another ‘wild ale’, this one I could place. Definite aroma of the Brett yeast, giving it a sour finish to the aroma. Spice and citrus are also present, with the standard malt finish.  Not as pugnant as I would have thought.

I expected more of a sour taste, but it was smooth. The malt came out more than anything, although I did taste some of the spice and citrus. What I didn’t get was a brett beer. The sour finish was so subtle I almost went through the entire bomber before I could taste it. I expected much more of the ‘wild’ come out in the yeast.

Mouthfeel was that of a medium bodied beer and somewhat crisp.

Overall, I wasn’t impressed. A good beer to be sure, but it lacked the very thing it was supposed to have: a brett character. For what this beer is supposed to do, it did not live up to it. I’m not sure I would classify this as a wild ale. Seems to be more of a pretty decent run of the mill ale with some spice. It went well with the goulash I made, as the spice and malt in the beer brought out the spice in the tomato sauce I used. It weighs in at 6% ABV, so it won’t bowl you over.

Duchesse De Bourgogne

Published on August 31, 2009 in 2009 and Beer Reviews. 1 Comment

I’ve had this one before, but never reviewed it. Recently a friend from San Diego had occasion to try this one and fell in love. As i had a couple of them in the fridge, I decided there was no better time to have and review one.

This one is labeled a a reddish-brown ale, although the overall style is known as a Flanders Red Ale. They are typically brews that range from red to brown in color. The style often uses a Lactobacillus yeast strain producing a high lactic acid and giving a sour taste, also sometimes a Tannic acid producing that lip puckering feeling. Often aged for long periods in oak barrels, aged batches are sometimes mixed with younger ones to balance them out. The often have distinct and sharp fruit flavors that that set them apart from other Belgians.

Produced by the Brouwerij Verhaeghe Brewery in Vichte, Belgium. “The brewery Verhaeghe was established in 1875 in the castle-farm in Vichte, West Flanders. Today it’s still a family owned & run company.”  Started by two brothers, Adolf Verhaeghe and Paul Verhaegh, the brewery has seen quite a history. As their site says “The brewery-malting Verhaeghe was established in the vicinity of the railway, Kortrijk, Oudenaarde and Brussels built with bricks from the brick Adolf Verhaeghes. De gerst die als basisgrondstof dient voor de aanmaak van het mout werd betrokken uit de opbrengst van de eigen landerijen. The barley as a base raw material for the production of the malt was involved from the proceeds of the private lands. Het geëste mout diende naast water, hop en gist als belangrijkste grondstof voor het brouwen van bier. De eerste klanten die de basis vormden voor de initiële afzetmarkt van de bieren van de brouwerij werden in niet onbelangrijke mate gevonden in de boeren en de personen met wie de Verhaeghes zakelijke relaties onderhielden. The clergy was beside water malt, hops and yeast as the main raw material for brewing beer. The first customers were the basis for the initial market for the beers of the brewery were found in an appreciable number of farmers and the people with whom Verhaeghes the business relationships maintained.” With World War I, came the end of the brewery. The Germans briefly took it over introducing Pilsner to the area. However,  after the war, the brewery resumed it’s production with the founders sons, Victor and Leon.

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This one has quite an appearance. Similar in some ways to new Belgiums La Folie, poured into a tulip glass, it has a deep brown, almost molasses, color with a faint hint hint of red when held up to the sunlight. Very cloudy and with a modest amount of carbonation, it produced a small, but sustainable thin head. The lacing left behind was nice and lite, perfect for this style.

Take a whiff of this one and you are immediately overpowered with the scent of caramel, banana, bread and a faint hint our sour apple. The caramel malt mixed with the banana is what served to really balance out the apple and bread.

As I took my first sip, I immediately tasted the sour apple I smelled earlier with the banana not far behind. Another sip brought the bead and caramel malt and this time a hint of a as yet to be determined spice. Works well with the bread, banana and apple. I felt like I was being treated to dessert! The Lactobacillus yeast really works well on this one, as it was sour, but not too tart and not overpowering.

I really liked this one overall. Not only does it do what the style intends, it just down right pleases! Don’t get me wrong, this one is all beer, but may also be one that can pull those who usually shun beer over to the dark side! I had some cheesecake cake around, and really enjoyed the Duchesse as it complimented the cheesecake perfectly. Since it weighs in at around 6% ABV, if you want another you can.

Bear Republic Brewing Co's Hop Rod Rye

Published on August 1, 2009 in 2009 and Beer Reviews. 0 Comments

This one is and example of an An example of an American IPA , or India Pale Ale.  Color can range from pale golden to red and often are cloudy. The American IPA is typically big on hops and often a little herbal or citrus flavor. If you get a good one, bitterness will be present. They tend to be medium in body with a mild malt character.

Bear Republic Brewing Co hails from Healdsburg, California. Tucked away in Sonoma County, which is known for it’s wine, Bear Republic is opening a new facility in Cloverdale, California. I wasn’t able to find much about the history of Bear Republic, but they appear to have begun as a modest brewpub in Healdsburg, with some ties to mountain biking. In fact, their website boasts that another of their brews, Red Rocket, is the brew of choice for mountain bikers.

bear_rep_hoprod_rye_600Poured a cloudy medium copper color into a pint glass. Minimal bubbles produced a small half finger head that quickly dissipated to a paper thin one. Lacing left on the glass was mice though and stuck to the glass well after I was done.

The aroma was definitely full of hops on the first sniff. Another smell gave a definite scent of rye malt with some fruit, citrus perhaps?  There seemed to be a lot of it though. The hops kept coming back though, as well a caramel flavor and just a hint of spice.

The taste was quite nice indeed. Hops, hops and more hops. Rye, rye, caramel and spice! A little alcohol flavor on the back end and possibly just a hint of….banana? Nah, couldn’t be..This one definitely bucks the trend of American IPA’s being lower on the malt, as the rye comes out nicely to balance the fruity hops of the brew.

Mouthfeel was very crisp. Easy on the palate. Felt medium in body and minimal amount of bubbles was just right.

I liked this one overall. Weighs in at 8% ABV, but you wouldn’t know it. Very subtle, so it could sneak up on you. It went well with the onion soup flavored burgers topped with asiago cheese that I had.