That Old Brown Magic...
Have you ever had one of those special moments when you experience something that makes a lasting impression? Did it seem dream-like or like a scene from a movie? Do you often replay it in your mind? Did a beer ever invoke one of these magical moments? It can happen?!?
In the small medieval town of Brugge, Belgium, is a smallish pub with a very large reputation, at least among cerevisaphiles. The t’Brugs Beertje is down a narrow side street in the old part of town. It boasts a beer list of over 250 beers!
A small group of beer aficionados found themselves in the back room of the t’Brugs Beertje one dizzily spring evening drying out, discussing the events of the day’s activities of site seeing and beer tasting and looking forward to another new beer experience. One of the group, a beer judge and sometime beer writer, thought to divert from the usual fair of lambics, triples and trappist ales and order something different. The choice made from the beer list was an oud bruin. These are dark malty complex beers whose brewing history goes back for hundreds of years. It’s not a style that the usual American goes to Belgium to experience.
The barman comes to take order. Swallowing his pride and exposing his ignorance, our friend asks, “which of these oud bruins is the best”? With his best look of pity for the clueless tourist, the barman retorts “sweet or sour”? Okay, a quick answer is required here so that he doesn’t blow his cover completely. “Sweet”, he says with all the bravado he can muster. “Very good then, Ichtengem’s it is”, says the bartender as he turns on a heel and disappears into the cellar.
The others order such favorites as Chimay Blue, Bell-Vue Kriek, Gulden Draak and a Rochefort 8. The server returns with the brown ale. Affecting a look not unlike that of a diamond cutter about to cut the Hope, he pours the beer into its glass. Belgian bartenders all celebrate this ceremony for every beer they pour with great solemnity and purpose. The bottle and glass are held at eye level, the glass tilted to 45°, the neck of the bottle 2.54 centimeters above the rim of the glass. Eyes focused on the on the beer its poured down the side of the glass producing a perfect, white, rocky head over the dark reddish brown brew. He places the glass on the table as if it was the Holy Grail and arranges the bottle so that the label is properly presented to the patron. With a nod of his head he is gone.
So this is an oud bruin. He recalls the style guidelines for his training. It’s supposed to be rich, malty and complex. Some are tart or sour as are many Belgian ales and they have a fruitiness from esters and from fermenting on berries. Lifting the glass and inhaling deeply, our hero is greeted with that multiple Belgian yeast character along with malty sweetness and esters. “Oh boy”, slips from his lips in a surprised whisper. The first sip, an ample draw, brings the confirmation of the malt sweetness balanced by the sourness on which Belgian ales have made their reputation. The profile is reminiscent of a trappist ale with notes of lambic. His thought was of the first Westvlettern 8 he experienced on his last trip to Belgium.
Then it happened. He noticed a hint of raspberry then caramel then prunes and then brown sugar. What’s going on. His tongue tingled from the tartness or was it the sweetness; confusing. He swallows and the kaleidoscope of flavors continues. Cherry cordial, maple syrup, brandy and sherry; finally after about 30 seconds it ends with an oaken barrel whisky finish. “Wow!”
Looking around to see if anyone noticed his total loss of cool, the analytical side of his brain took over. Was this just realized expectation or was this really that good? One way to find out weather or not he was “reading into it” was to offer a taste to an friend who has no such preconception. “ Jana, would you like a taste of this one?” The friendly offer was cheerfully accepted. A smell, a sip and then the show repeated itself. No need for words, the story was written on her face. First concentration, then a smile, then darting eyes; her face registering every nuance of the changing flavors and lastly a “Wow”. Amazing! His thoughts confirmed, he turns back to that magic bottle and lets it weave its spell.
The fact that oud bruins are as good as they are is no accident. They were first brewed in the 1600’s as a "provision beer"; a higher alcohol beer that would travel well in the hold of ships. The oud or old in the name refers to the type of yeast, ale, which is the old way compared to the use of lager yeast. Oud bruins brewed today are not as big as their forefathers are. They average around 5.5% ABV with Duchesse de Bourgogne, one of the biggest, at around 6.2%. They still maintain the sweetness and rich fruity flavors of old.
Belgian beers, styles are often hard to pigeonhole. Some sources list oud bruin as Flemish Red ale or Flemish brown ale or by the more general term Belgian sour ale. Oud bruin is a brown ale and it does have added fruit, which makes it a red but the color is not the defining characteristic. The difference between red and brown ales is regional terminology. The "red ale" name probably came from Rodenbach, a clear, red oud bruin made with lighter grains and fermented on cherries. Even though it’s clear and red, it’s still in the character of the old browns. The differences are fewer than the similarities. Ichtegem’s Oud Bruin, the example our friend tried, is a rich dark brown but the flavor profile is similar.
Blending is the key to the complex flavor of the oud bruins. Brewers blend young and well-aged beers to produce a more mellow the beer. The big malt character tends to sour a bit as it ages which makes the older beers quite tart. The young beers are still malty sweet when blended. For example, Ichtegem's is a blend of 30% old to 70% young beer. Old browns are made with Munich and Vienna malts with smaller amounts of crystal malts, fermented with ale yeast and lambic-like microflora. This produces a very “Belgian” flavor profile. Long boils account for much of the color along with the crystal malts and dark candy sugars. The soft water of the region balances the acidity of the dark malts and reduces the lactic sourness a bit to produce a beer that is wonderfully balanced for all of its complexity. The base flavor is malty, with fruity complexity and some caramelization characteristics. A slight sourness may be present with some sherry-like flavors and some oak character may be present in well-aged examples. Aromas are usually malty, tart, fruity and floral, but clean of diacetyl and no hop aroma is evident. They exhibit good clarity with average to good head retention. Other examples are Oud Zottergem's, slightly tart, with a bready sweetness, Liefman's Goudenband, more tart than sweet, and Rodenbach Grand Cru, which is very tart, clean and fruity.
These should not be confused with Dutch oud bruins, which are low alcohol malty session beers. Nor should they be confused with Belgian brown ales like Gould Carlus or Kasteel Brown which are huge beers with a distilled spirits character and very sweet. That being said, Oud bruins can vary quite a bit from any official style guide. Belgian brewers are based in tradition but the Belgian tradition allows for a great deal of innovation. There are many good examples of the old browns, each one different from the next. Each one an experience worth your time.
Maybe you won’t have a magical experience when you try your first oud bruin (old brown) ale. The style forged over the years by those wonderful Belgian brewers will have you in its spell.
By Robert Beckwith
Originally Published at www.northamericanbrewers.org August 28, 2000
Bardenay: America's First Distillery Pub
In Boise’s Historical District, Kevin Settles and Dave Krick have established America’s first distillery pub in December 1999. Bardenay Restaurant Distillery, confirmed by the BATF as the first in the country, opened its doors for the new millenium with the focus on high quality cocktails, and great food.
Bardenay’s name comes from a term used by sailors for the ship captain’s cocktail hour, when the work stops and the fun begins. Cocktails and fun is what this pub is all about. They not only make their own spirits but also stock the back bar with top of the line products from around the world and employ a fun and knowledgeable staff.
Attention to detail is their hallmark and it starts with the best of the world’s gins, vodkas and other spirits and continues down to the freshest quality garnishes.
The building, a turn of the century brick edifice situated at 6th and Grove in the refurbished Basque block of Boise, offers an upscale décor rich in wood, brass and chrome that is nicely balanced by the old wood roof trusses and vintage brick. The centerpiece of the interior is the gleaming brass and chrome German pot still ensconced behind an octagonal glass partition at the back. The glass partition is not only eye-catching but also functions to separate the restaurant from the distillery which is a necessity to obtain a license from the BATF. The distillery is kept totally separate from the restaurant and bar by law. No spirits go into the distillery room and no products leave without the proper tax stamps.
The still produces a trio of products for the bar; vodka, gin and rum. The rum is unremarkable. It is made for mixing in cocktails and does as good a job as most. The vodka is a work in progress although all of the components for good vodka are there; long legs, a robust burn in the nose and palate and a good long finish. However it suffers from an oily, sweet nose with a noticeable aroma of vanilla. Owner Kevin Settles says, “The vodka is still in the process of refinement; we are working on cleaning up the nose”. The latest test batch was noticeably cleaner and is very promising.
The gin is a delightful, well-crafted example of a London dry style. The gin smiths for this spirit were the proprietors Kevin and Dave and the authors of “Shaken not Stirred”, the martini guide book, Anistatia Miller, and Jared Brown. “We are all martini drinkers and were very careful in formulating this gin”, says Kevin “Its too easy to make a gin with a hole in it.” In a head-to-head taste test with some fine English gins, Bardenay fit nicely between Beefeater’s London Dry and Corney & Barrow London Dry. It is a crystal clear gin with long thin legs whose aroma is a well-balanced combination of juniper and citrus. It has a nice alcohol burn both in the nose and on the tongue without overpowering the flavors and aromas. The finish is clean with just a hint of juniper and lingering notes citrus. Barman, Patrick says, “It’s liked by people who are sometimes put off by gin’s bitterness. Some gin tastes like sliding your tongue down a pine tree they’re so bitter. Bardenay Gin is not bitter, it’s well balanced.”
Bardenay prides themselves in offering “drinks you can’t find anywhere”. The innovative bar staff is continually formulating new cocktail recipes. The very nice house martini, garnished with frozen, blue cheese stuffed Maytag olives, proves the house gin is as good as advertised. Drinks such as the Iguanabana, a concoction of Bardenay rum, fresh lime and guanabana juice proves the creativity of the bartenders.
Beer drinkers fear not, Bardenay has two dozen taps with selections ranging from Guinness and hand pumped cask conditioned ales to domestic micros and major brands.
The restaurant features a full menu that should please anyone from brunch to dinner. Prices are competitive with other restaurants in this trendy area which is just three blocks from the state capital.
With a wide ranging selection of drinks, spirits produced on premise, pleasing décor and fine foods, Bardenay is a don’t miss stop in Boise.
Bob E. Beckwith ©2002
Originally Published at
Cider Styles, a Primer
by Bob Beckwith
Cider styles are hard to pin down because historically, styles had little value to the cider maker. The cider they made was the only cider they had the resources to make. It's not so different today. But to understand it you have to go back to cider’s roots.
Cider is an ancient drink though no one is quite sure when it was first made because of the geography of its main component, the apple. Apples were historically confined to the cooler climes of Western Europe and Britain where civilization was slow to develop record keeping. When Julius Caesar and his legions took their tour of the British, they found cider being made from the crab apples, ancestors of the bittersweet and bittersharp apples used by today's English cider makers. They brought the "new" beverage back with them and, of course, wrote it all down for us.
Cider styles, not unlike beer styles, were developed based on: the methods used, the apples available and local tastes. Production techniques developed, as with most technology, by trail and error. In fact the variables were nearly too widespread to track, including: spontaneous fermentation, the type of vessels used, atmospheric conditions and the apple varieties. Refinements came much later when cider making became a profession and the process was better understood. However, as the popularity of cider grew, styles began to emerge. The French developed a sweet low alcohol ‘cidre’ taking advantage of the sweeter apples and the keeving process. The English too developed a cider, but theirs was a higher alcohol ‘dry’ version, using open fermentation vats and bittersweet crab apples. These are the roots of the styles we know today.
The re-emergence of cider as a popular drink has spurred an interest in cider styles as a means of understanding and evaluation. When you purchase a bottle of wine or beer you would like to know how it stacks up to the others on the shelf. In the same manner, understanding basic style profiles can enhance your cider experience.
Style profiles are also tools for judging ciders in competition. A number of organizations hold competitions for ciders both commercial and home made. Without guidelines, the ciders are all thrown in together and may not get a fair shake.
Styles can be broken down in many ways. It can be done as simply as
the cider arm of CAMRA, ‘APPLE’, identifies cider styles. They have but two categories "real cider" and all others. They promote traditional cider that is made of 100% apple juice, fermented to dryness, cask conditioned and served from the wood. No adjuncts, nor cutting with water or juice, nor anything else that would artificially change the character of the apples’ natural flavors is allowed.
The BJCP (Beer Judge Certification Program) breaks cider into three basic categories: standard, New England and specialty. Although more comprehensive than that of CAMRA, areas remain open for interpretation. To more accurately describe cider styles Annie Proulx and Lew Nichols, in their book "Cider, Making, Using & Enjoying Sweet & Hard Cider", have identified four styles of "hard" cider. (Five if you count the unfermented "sweet" cider.) The four types are; old fashioned or barrel cider, New England cider, French cider and flavored cider. Most all ciders fit in these categories but some experts break the styles down further.
Noted cider writer, Cézanne Miller, includes seven styles on her list. In addition, the North American Brewers Association TM has published style guidelines for judging. Both of these are similar and are based on research and personal expertise.
By far the most common category of commercial ciders are the draft ciders. Draft ciders are usually produced in large quantities and are sold, quite incongruintly, in bottles. These ciders are quite diverse but all are produced by essentially the same process. The juice is fermented in large vessels to dryness, that is to say all sugars are converted to alcohol, these fermentations are then blended, cut and flavored. In general, draft ciders have water, apple or pear juice added to lower the alcohol content to not more then 6%. Apple or pear aroma and taste should be crisp and evident with some esters, alcohols and sulfur present in low levels in the aroma. It may be dry or sweet, still or effervescent. Warming alcohol may be present at the upper end of the alcohol range. They have a light body and are clear, bright and are usually pale yellow in color. Astringency, which is a fault in beer, is a sign of a well-made cider, but it should only be present in the finish as a drying sensation. They are both naturally and force carbonated.
Draft ciders come in a number of varieties. Apple only cider is made with and cut with apple juice or apple juice concentrate only. No water is used to dilute and lower the alcohol level of the cider. This gives them a sweeter, full apple taste and aroma. Some draft ciders are made with adjuncts. This cider has been cut with sugar water, carbonated water or a combination of these and may also include some juice or concentrate. These are less expensive and a bit more sweet and effervescent. The alcohol levels are at the lower end of the scale.
Another low alcohol cider is the French style cider or Cidre. This is cider that has had its fermentation arrested by the process of keeving (defecation) or subjected to SO2 for the purpose of keeping the alcohol content low. A crust is allowed to form on the surface of the must (the un-fermented juice) as it ferments. This reduces the oxygen levels in the must that shuts down the yeast to stop the fermentation short of dryness. This produces a light, sweeter cider with an alcohol level usually between 2-5%. No additives are allowed in this category and the cider may not be cut with anything. French style cider may be effervescent or still. A case can be made for including French style in the farmhouse category if it is produced in a totally natural manner and nothing is added.
Farmhouse style, AKA traditional or natural or "real" cider, is the oldest style. It is a cider with an alcohol content between 5 and 12%. This wide band is because nothing is done to control the alcohol content. The aroma should have floral, alcohol notes with some other fermentation byproducts such as esters or higher alcohols. Their apple flavor is more aggressive with a complex to unsophisticated flavor profile because wild yeasts may have been used. They may be still or sparkling and are usually dry. The color can range from pale yellow to nearly amber. The cider is clear and bright but may contain apple pulp that should not be confused with haze. Any carbonation is natural. They are often astringent but this is best only when in the finish
Farmhouse styles can be categorized into dry cider in which nothing is added or removed and the alcohol levels are usually high. This is natural or real cider. Sweetened farmhouse cider has been sweetened with whole apple juice or sugar. New England style is an effervescent or still cider with an alcohol content between 8-14%. Adjuncts such as raisins, molasses and sugars are commonly added for flavor and color. They are naturally carbonated. There are very few commercial examples of New England style but it is a favorite of many home cider makers.
The next category, specialty ciders, covers a lot of ground. These are ciders with alcohol content usually under 14%. Any and all adjuncts are allowed in this style. It is sometimes cut with water or juice and can be spiced or flavored with most anything the cider maker's imagination can conjure up. The total of unfermented juiced added must be at least 75% apple or pear juice. Apple or pear aroma dominates the nose. There may be some other esters and alcohols and low levels of sulfur may be present. They may be still to very effervescent and are usually pale yellow in color. The flavor profile should include any adjuncts that were added but they should be balanced with the apple or pear flavors. Dry to sweet, these have warming alcohol but should not be harsh. The sweet and acidic characteristic should balance in the flavor profile. Some writers include cyser in this category, a cider to which honey is the only adjunct. In most references the name cyser is used for a mead or honey wine with apple juice added for flavor.
Perry is a special case cider. It is a beverage made of primarily (50% or more) pear juice. These are not pear ciders that are mostly apple juice with pear juice added as a mellowing agent. Pears are less acidic and therefore takes away some of the apple bite. Perries are made in styles similar to draft and farmhouse ciders substituting pear juice for apple juice. In competitions these are often included in one or more of the cider categories.
These style guidelines are just that, guidelines. There is no great consensus on cider styles in the industry or among cider makers. Our discussion should help you appreciate each of the styles on their own merit. But remember, cider makers still hold to the old adage "make what tastes good and sells well".
Bob Beckwith © May 18, 2000
Originally Posted at www.northamericanbrewers.org May 20, 2000
