The popularity of premium and imported beers continues unabated. Bars and clubs, as well as pubs, now serve enormously diverse and exotic styles of beers from around the world in draught form as well as in a bottle. So what is the difference between the two methods of presentation and which one is the better beer I hear you say? Let’s ask the opinions of the experts.
Without question, every brewer agrees that draught beer is the closest route from brewing vessels to your lips. If all conditions are correct you can’t serve a better beer. According to Sean Prendergast InBev Regional Director Australia and New Zealand, “It’s the theatre of the pouring ritual with branded glass and proper coaster that meets our client’s requirements. We were the pioneers of the pouring ritual through our Belgian Beer Cafes which provided a new way of presenting our Stella Artois to the Australian market.”
James Tait, Corporate Affairs Lion Nathan Australia states that tap sales currently account for approximately 1/4 of the total beer market in volume terms. “Beer drinkers love the entire experience of tap beer from watching their drink being poured, to its presentation with the perfect head, to watching the rings appear down the side of the glass as they drink it. Increasingly we're identifying ways of making our beers available to as many consumers as possible on tap. An example is the innovative Heineken David System which is a portable 20 litre draught solution being used increasingly by smaller venues such as restaurants and premium cocktail bars. We're identifying ways of ensuring the attributes associated with these beers, including strong branding, can be transferred from the pack to tap offering. For example, at the Beck's Icon Bars we've installed special dishwashers to ensure glassware is as clean as possible and supplied branded glassware and coasters. In addition, staffs have been trained in the theatre of the pour to ensure the beer is presented in the best possible light. All of this adds value for the consumer while also giving them the experience associated with a tap beer.
Beck’s is the most popular German beer in the world: brewed in Bremen since 1873, and in strict accordance with the German Beer Purity Law of 1516. The success of Beck’s is based on a few important factors, including an emphasis on being a German ‘spitzen Pilsner von Welt’ or ‘world class premium pilsners’, and the inclusion of Hallertau hops of Bavaria, considered by some to be the finest pils hops in the world. The use of these hops may cause a few raised eyebrows due to the lightness in colour and put to question its strength and character, but after a swallow or two you will experience a clean crisp taste with plenty of back bitterness and a full rich flavour. Beck’s has a clear crisp white blond appearance with a creamy well-compacted head, subtly sweet aroma, with emphasis on lightness in style.
We spoke with Carlton & United Beverage’s Beverage Ambassador Dermot O’Donnell on the subject. “Without doubt, tap beer is the freshest beverage to the consumer, and provides us with an immediate test market situation. We can take their comments back to the office and act upon them to enhance the drinking experience. It’s a win-win for all concerned. The beer consumer is willing to pay for the ritual pour experience, while draught beer offers a better margin for the bar or club. It’s also allows for more places to dispense the product without the added costs of boxes, labels, and bottles which are a more costly investment” According to Brad Rogers Head Brewer for Matilda Bay Brewing “ Its all about visibility and point of difference. Seeing the beer font will influence drinker’s choice, no doubt. Beer drinkers want the whole package and literally ‘drink with their eyes.”
Japanese Asahi and French Kronenbourg 1664 and two imported beers in the CUB stable that have made quite a splash in the glass of recent times. Asahi draught was developed in 1987 by the demands from Japanese consumers who wanted a beer with similar attributes to white wine. A beer that was lighter, more refreshing, and compliments more varied food accompaniments. The resulting Super Dry was so popular the brewery couldn’t keep up with demand. Carlton & United Beverages has a tight and controlled distribution strategy which they intend to maintain. To ensure long term customer viability and consumer appeal. For those customers who have made the required investment and effort in extensive staff training and glassware reticulation there has been a positive return.
Kronenbourg 1664 is another success story on tap. It’s France’s #1 selling beer and #2 in the UK. The use of locally grown Alsace hop strisselspalt known as ‘the caviar of hops’ creates a flavour profile of a beer that’s more bitter than sweet with a distinctive tangy citrus taste at mid-palate. Kronenbourg 1664 was launched in the UK in 1952 to mark the Queen’s accession to the throne. On tap features the Head Injection Tap (HIT) that provides a tight smooth white creamy head that lasts to the bottom of the glass.
So are there any downsides to beer on tap? Most brewing people agree that areas of possible concern lie in poorly maintained dispensing systems and the lack of properly managed cellaring procedures would be the biggest concern. After that it’s lack of stock turnover leading to stale beer. Plus, bottles are more expensive to produce and perhaps less consistency According to Mr Predergast “If you’re not selling at least a keg a week you should be selling by the bottle.”
So are there any good points to bottled beer? Back to InBev “It allows the consumer to badge themselves to show others the experience.” And from my opinion, you have the ability to replenish the head to reinvigorate the aroma. Besides, very few households have the luxury of keeping a keg in the fridge. Plus, on the run and thirsty, nothing beats a coldie.
Thursday, February 17, 2005
Sunday, November 14, 2004
Carlsberg Elephant Beer
Beer drinkers around the world rely on lagers to quench their thirst. The similarity of taste aroma and appearance meet our needs, but sometimes we seek something else without having to venture to far out of our comfort zone. Carlsberg Elephant is just such animal, rich on the mouth but not overbearing, plus light on its feet for such a powerful beast at 7.2% Al./Vol. considering that the local brews are tiring at 4-5 A/V under the weight of the beer tax laws.
The Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen has been around for 150 years and along with Germany, developed the lagering style our palates rely on today. The founder J C Jacobsen build his famous brewery empire on new technology, research, and technique, and the Elephant is proudly displayed on the gates as their symbol of strength and character. After a stint working at the Spaten Brewery in Germany, Jacobsen assumed correctly that beer drinkers around the world would endear themselves to clean crisp Munich styled pilseners based on sweet pale malt with a hint of Hallertau hops. His vision and foresight helped Carlsberg become one of the largest international breweries worldwide.
Carlsberg Elephant is technically described as a German styled bock, or strong beer based on the high alcohol level, golden colour, with a sweet malt barley flavour. The smoothness of this delicious drop implies extended lagering for maturation. The elephant goes well with any game based dish or a spicy beef dish.
Carlsberg Elephant is available at most leading bottle shops and sell for $ X.XX per 330 ml. bottle.
The Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen has been around for 150 years and along with Germany, developed the lagering style our palates rely on today. The founder J C Jacobsen build his famous brewery empire on new technology, research, and technique, and the Elephant is proudly displayed on the gates as their symbol of strength and character. After a stint working at the Spaten Brewery in Germany, Jacobsen assumed correctly that beer drinkers around the world would endear themselves to clean crisp Munich styled pilseners based on sweet pale malt with a hint of Hallertau hops. His vision and foresight helped Carlsberg become one of the largest international breweries worldwide.
Carlsberg Elephant is technically described as a German styled bock, or strong beer based on the high alcohol level, golden colour, with a sweet malt barley flavour. The smoothness of this delicious drop implies extended lagering for maturation. The elephant goes well with any game based dish or a spicy beef dish.
Carlsberg Elephant is available at most leading bottle shops and sell for $ X.XX per 330 ml. bottle.
Sunday, October 24, 2004
On The Buses
We continue our beer tour of Europe from the last edition of B & C by concentrating on the nations to the north. In contrast to Britain, the northern European beers are dominated by the lighter lagers and seasonal specialty ales that highlight the sensational produce of the area. As the ‘Beer Bus’ finished up in Italy, it’s only natural we begin the second part of our journey in Germany.
Germany is the world’s greatest beer nation, and beer is an integral part of their customs and culture. In the Catholic south of Bavaria there is always a reason to celebrate with a different beer style for in any given season. It seems almost every village and hamlet has a brewery, even if only to refresh visitor’s palates. From these little breweries come the ancient recipes and special blends to create beers for all seasons and celebrations.
Germany can lay claim to making beer a civilized drink for two main reasons, the Reinheitsgebot Law or the ‘Pure Beer Pledge’, and the introduction of bottom fermented lagers. The pure beer pledge or German Purity Laws were enacted in the sixteenth century stipulating that beer can only be brewed with malted barley and wheat, hops, yeast, and water. Not only did this enforce cleaner beers, but essentially restricted imported beers from entering Germany allowing for local breweries to flourish. German brewers launched a campaign against imported ‘chemi-beers’ suggesting these beers as inferior to their own. This tactic assisted the small ‘hometown’ breweries who displayed plaques announcing their beers adhere to the Purity Laws. In Bavaria, the only change since brewing began is the switch from warm to cold fermentation. Munich or ‘the monks place’ became the major town along the salt route from Austria to Northern Germany. Being so close to the Alps, brewers began to store their beer in deep caves to withstand hot summers. The lower temperatures encouraged yeast to settle to the bottom of the fermenting vessel resulting in turning malt sugars to alcohol more slowly. The result is a cleaner, less fruity and more stable beer.
But what about the beers I hear you say, well here goes with a fairly condensed list based on geographical location. As Germany has 1500 breweries, we can only scratch the surface and describe a few drops available here in Australia.
Any discussion about German beer has to include Becks and Lowenbrau. . Beck’s is the most popular German beer in the world: brewed in Bremen since 1873, and in strict accordance with the German Beer Purity Law of 1516. Beck’s is one of the fastest growing International premium beers that arrived in Australia in 1906 and became their largest buyer within 3 years. As a lead-in to Beck’s being brewed here in Australia in 2005, two advertisements will be aired titled “Life beckons, choose wisely”. These high profile ads are an investment in a brand that has seen a 40% growth rise in the past twelve months The success of Beck’s is based on a few important factors, including an emphasis on being a German ‘spitzen Pilsner von Welt’ or ‘world class premium pilsners’, and the inclusion of Hallertau hops of Bavaria, considered by some to be the finest pils hops in the world. The use of these hops may cause a few raised eyebrows due to the lightness in colour and put to question its strength and character, but after a swallow or two you will experience a clean crisp taste with plenty of back bitterness and a full rich flavour. Beck’s has a clear crisp white blond appearance with a creamy well-compacted head, subtly sweet aroma, with emphasis on lightness in style.
Literally translated, Löwenbräu means Lion's Brew. It can be traced back to the medieval days of 1383 when an innkeeper brewed his own beer at the "Zum Löwen" or Lion's Inn. The lion is also the traditional symbol of Bavaria so Lowenbrau represents a traditional Bavarian-style beer. Lowenbrau Pure Bier beer is made from the highest quality ingredients giving it a superb natural head, golden colour, distinctive, refreshing flavour and a pleasant, enjoyable aftertaste. Limited to only 4 natural ingredients which include a special strain of Löwenbräu lager yeast, two-row barley, that’s malted with special technology to get its unique blend, a light Pilsner type malt of special composition and the finest aromatic hops from the world’s largest hops growing area, Hallertau, just 50 kilometres northeast of Munich Add to that their soft, clear and clean Bavarian well water and you’ve got a very special beer..
A classic of the Munich wheat beer style, Schneider Weiss is a delightfully spicy version that leaves a clean clove presence on the tongue. Traditionally brewed for Oktoberfest, the flavour profile is a balance of fruity sharpness with a sweet, clove infused hop maltiness. The lemony clove aroma gains richness as the beer warms.
Brewed in the small German Rhineland Lake District town of Bitburg since 1817, Bitburger is a Bohemian style pilsener, which uses the finest of locally grown spring barleys (Alexis, Arena, and Steiner); plus four hop additions (Hersbrucker, Huller, Perle, and Tettnang). In the past, the ice from nearby lakes was used in the lagering process. Today, Bitburger still has a three month extended lagering policy and is not pasteurised which helps to maintain the delicate balance of malt and hop flavours, while the export variety is sterile filtered. Rhineland Pilseners tend to be hoppier than those produced in the Bavarian South, but less dry and bitter from those of the Prussian influenced north. Golden straw in colour, Bitburger has a hop driven aroma with subtle tones of vanilla, mild caramel malty sweetness, and slightly floral hoppiness. As is the case with most pilseners, it’s moderately bitter on the palate with hints of smoky hop flavour and citric fruitiness.
Austria not only lost an empire but a beer style as well. Best known for the Vienna style based on red malt which master brewer Anton Dreher perfected in the Vienna suburb of Schwechat. The brewery went bust in 1930 and the style of beer became a fading memory. Today Austrian beers imitate the Bavarian styled lagers. In Vienna, Zipfer has a fine perfumed hop with well balanced malty mouth feel. The other major beer region of Styria is most noted for their hops where Gosser Pale and Dark Ale are brewed in Graz. The pale ale combines the sweetness of caramalt, maize and rice with noble hops Hallertau, Spalt, Styrian and Golding. Gosser Dark provides a malty mouth feel, mild hop bitterness with a smooth sturdy presentation and finishes with a nutty malty flavour.
The Czech Republic formerly referred to as Bohemia gave us the first cold fermented Pilsener. Monasteries dominated beer production until the thirteenth century, when ‘citizen breweries’ began suppling beer to the Moravian aristocracy. Regional hops go back to 850 AD and still held in esteem today. Pilsner Urquell is the flagship of the Czech brewing industry, and has been since 1842.Urquell means “original source” in German, the official language of Bohemia, once part of the Austrian empire. And as it says on the bottle, Pilsner Urquell is the original pilsner from the Pilsen, the birthplace of the pilsner lager style. Adding to its mystique, the beer introduced the now famous conical pilsner style glass when the world was switching over from stoneware and pewter tankards. Pilsner Urquell is golden in colour with a rich, well-compacted creamy head. The flavour and aroma profile is driven by the use of Saaz hops, which provide a floral, spicy aroma and adequate back bitterness without going over the top. Equally important in its structure is the renowned Moravian barley malt, which provides a malty softness and overall balance to the beer.
Talk about beer from Holland and the word Heineken isn’t far behind. G.A. Heineken was so appalled at the depravity and drunkenness caused by gin drinking that he swore to his mother that he would brew for the people if she bought the Haystack Brewery for him. Now enjoyed in over 170 countries, Heineken's global success has been built on a passion for quality, a dedication to innovation and a respect for the world it lives in. Heineken lager contains no additives or preservatives, and only the purest natural ingredients are used in the six week brewing process. And thanks to three generations of the Heineken family, the Heineken lager enjoyed all over the world today is still brewed to the original recipe, perfected in Holland in 1873.Another popular Dutch beer treat is Grolsch premium lager. Grolsch has been producing superb beers since the early 1600’s when Master brewer Peter Cuper established the brewery in his hometown Grolle (now Groenlo) in Gelderland. Considered a small independent brewery until recent times, Grolsch products have been synonymous with three major factors: extended lagering and fermentation, unpasturised beers, and that infamous swing-stoppered bottle. The swing top dates back to 1897, when other Dutch breweries started phasing them out claiming they were too expensive for mass production. A seemingly useless appendage for modern drinking habits, it provides a distinctive novelty factor and instant recognition for all Grolsch products. Grolsch Premium is a fresh hoppy pilsner style lager with plenty of Herschbruger and Hallbrtauer hops for aromatics and Yakima and Golden Nugget hops for bitterness. All natural and triple cold filtered, the lager is well balanced with rich malty yeasty sweetness and a subtle bitter finish. The extended lagering provides that distinctive European flavour and classic golden colour.
The image of drunken Vikings marauding the countryside is as much a part of Scandinavia as the land itself. They brewed a barley based beer they called aul and handed down the method of top fermenting ales to all of Europe. And similar to Holland, the beers are dominated by two breweries, Carlsberg and Tuborg. Carlsberg has been brewing in Copenhagen since 1847 and remains a popular favorite around the world. Its light hoppiness compliments a dry malty mouth feel, with a sweet malty finish. Carlgerg’s slogan on the side of a building in Copenhagen’s city hall says it all “Probably the best beer in town”.
If Carlsberg Lager is noted for its light refreshing nature, then their Elephant Malt Liquor would be infamous for its unexpected stampede on your brain. Carlsberg Elephant is named for the life-size carved granite elephant that flank the breweries arched entryway. Golden-hued it starts off with a crisp floral character followed by a malty, yeasty aroma. Strong wheat like presence takes over and remains in the background Carlsberg Elephant is technically described as a German styled bock, or strong beer based on the high alcohol level, golden colour, with a sweet malt barley flavour. The smoothness of this delicious drop implies extended lagering for maturation.
Tuborg was first brewed in 1873 at Aktieselskabet Tuborgs Fabrikker in Copenhagen, and joined forces with the household named and well loved Carlsberg Breweries in 1970’s.Exquisitely presented and worthy of the Danish crown on the logo, this quality, full bodied, refreshing beer offers all the complexity of its Carlsberg brother, with the ice cold bite of a clean, smooth lager. A low astringency and yeast tone leaves a carbonated, smooth tasting mouthfeel, rich in body. Equal dry & warm characteristics with less bitterness than the well known Carlsberg Green label; leave an enjoyable after taste on the palate. Independent Distillers in Melbourne are now the proud wholesalers for Tuborg and Carlsberg.
Where Germany brought civility to beer, the Belgians brought the passion. It’s hard to take in that such a small country could produce so many fantastic styles of beer. This revival worldwide of Belgian ales is nothing short of phenomenal. They give us pale ales, golden ales, brown, red, and white ales plus the fruity iambics and abbey ales, not to mention their ‘specialty ales’. The list is seemingly endless, but for the everyday drinker the people in Belgium consume vast amounts of lager like the rest of the world. Brewing giant Interbrew’s Stella Artois was first brewed as a Christmas beer in 1926, and was so popular that it became an all year round beer. The name ‘Stella’ also comes from the Latin word for star, probably linked to the traditional star atop the Christmas tree. Stella Artois has a bright crystal clear pale gold appearance and a delicate hop aroma that requires pouring into a glass to truly appreciate. The pilsener lager has a pleasing hop flavour leaving the palate with a combination of grainy malt flavour, moderate hop bitterness and a slight citric sourness in the finish.
Hoegaarden White Ale has become a bit of a cult drink with the younger Belgian set, and with good reason. Its creamy light lemony taste is an ideal refresher beer, with hints of coriander and curacao. Its history goes back to 1445 employing a secret recipe, the purest of ingredients, and locally grown wheat.
When Trappist monks were hounded out of France during the Revolution, they took their brewing skills north. Chimay is by far the most famous Trappist brewery. The local water is soft and acidic, and the malts are considered a blend of caramalt with candy sugar. Add some Hallartau and American Yakima hops, then prime it with sugar and you have a beer with great depth of complex flavours with fruit and spice from the hops. Chimay has three beers, Red (Premiere), Blue (Grande Reserve), and White. Leffe is Belgium’s original abbey beer, with origins back to 1152. The Blond is made with clear malt of medium strength which provides a dry, fruity, lightly spiced beer that’s full, creamy and delicately sweet. The Leffe Brun is sweetened with brown sugar and balanced with a slight bitterness from roasted malts. And finally the lambic fruity beers whose most famous face in the beer world is Belle Vue Kriek. Kriek is the Flemish word for cherry, and along with its spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts, and a long fermentation in oak barrels, provide a sweet and sour explosion in your mouth.
Germany is the world’s greatest beer nation, and beer is an integral part of their customs and culture. In the Catholic south of Bavaria there is always a reason to celebrate with a different beer style for in any given season. It seems almost every village and hamlet has a brewery, even if only to refresh visitor’s palates. From these little breweries come the ancient recipes and special blends to create beers for all seasons and celebrations.
Germany can lay claim to making beer a civilized drink for two main reasons, the Reinheitsgebot Law or the ‘Pure Beer Pledge’, and the introduction of bottom fermented lagers. The pure beer pledge or German Purity Laws were enacted in the sixteenth century stipulating that beer can only be brewed with malted barley and wheat, hops, yeast, and water. Not only did this enforce cleaner beers, but essentially restricted imported beers from entering Germany allowing for local breweries to flourish. German brewers launched a campaign against imported ‘chemi-beers’ suggesting these beers as inferior to their own. This tactic assisted the small ‘hometown’ breweries who displayed plaques announcing their beers adhere to the Purity Laws. In Bavaria, the only change since brewing began is the switch from warm to cold fermentation. Munich or ‘the monks place’ became the major town along the salt route from Austria to Northern Germany. Being so close to the Alps, brewers began to store their beer in deep caves to withstand hot summers. The lower temperatures encouraged yeast to settle to the bottom of the fermenting vessel resulting in turning malt sugars to alcohol more slowly. The result is a cleaner, less fruity and more stable beer.
But what about the beers I hear you say, well here goes with a fairly condensed list based on geographical location. As Germany has 1500 breweries, we can only scratch the surface and describe a few drops available here in Australia.
Any discussion about German beer has to include Becks and Lowenbrau. . Beck’s is the most popular German beer in the world: brewed in Bremen since 1873, and in strict accordance with the German Beer Purity Law of 1516. Beck’s is one of the fastest growing International premium beers that arrived in Australia in 1906 and became their largest buyer within 3 years. As a lead-in to Beck’s being brewed here in Australia in 2005, two advertisements will be aired titled “Life beckons, choose wisely”. These high profile ads are an investment in a brand that has seen a 40% growth rise in the past twelve months The success of Beck’s is based on a few important factors, including an emphasis on being a German ‘spitzen Pilsner von Welt’ or ‘world class premium pilsners’, and the inclusion of Hallertau hops of Bavaria, considered by some to be the finest pils hops in the world. The use of these hops may cause a few raised eyebrows due to the lightness in colour and put to question its strength and character, but after a swallow or two you will experience a clean crisp taste with plenty of back bitterness and a full rich flavour. Beck’s has a clear crisp white blond appearance with a creamy well-compacted head, subtly sweet aroma, with emphasis on lightness in style.
Literally translated, Löwenbräu means Lion's Brew. It can be traced back to the medieval days of 1383 when an innkeeper brewed his own beer at the "Zum Löwen" or Lion's Inn. The lion is also the traditional symbol of Bavaria so Lowenbrau represents a traditional Bavarian-style beer. Lowenbrau Pure Bier beer is made from the highest quality ingredients giving it a superb natural head, golden colour, distinctive, refreshing flavour and a pleasant, enjoyable aftertaste. Limited to only 4 natural ingredients which include a special strain of Löwenbräu lager yeast, two-row barley, that’s malted with special technology to get its unique blend, a light Pilsner type malt of special composition and the finest aromatic hops from the world’s largest hops growing area, Hallertau, just 50 kilometres northeast of Munich Add to that their soft, clear and clean Bavarian well water and you’ve got a very special beer..
A classic of the Munich wheat beer style, Schneider Weiss is a delightfully spicy version that leaves a clean clove presence on the tongue. Traditionally brewed for Oktoberfest, the flavour profile is a balance of fruity sharpness with a sweet, clove infused hop maltiness. The lemony clove aroma gains richness as the beer warms.
Brewed in the small German Rhineland Lake District town of Bitburg since 1817, Bitburger is a Bohemian style pilsener, which uses the finest of locally grown spring barleys (Alexis, Arena, and Steiner); plus four hop additions (Hersbrucker, Huller, Perle, and Tettnang). In the past, the ice from nearby lakes was used in the lagering process. Today, Bitburger still has a three month extended lagering policy and is not pasteurised which helps to maintain the delicate balance of malt and hop flavours, while the export variety is sterile filtered. Rhineland Pilseners tend to be hoppier than those produced in the Bavarian South, but less dry and bitter from those of the Prussian influenced north. Golden straw in colour, Bitburger has a hop driven aroma with subtle tones of vanilla, mild caramel malty sweetness, and slightly floral hoppiness. As is the case with most pilseners, it’s moderately bitter on the palate with hints of smoky hop flavour and citric fruitiness.
Austria not only lost an empire but a beer style as well. Best known for the Vienna style based on red malt which master brewer Anton Dreher perfected in the Vienna suburb of Schwechat. The brewery went bust in 1930 and the style of beer became a fading memory. Today Austrian beers imitate the Bavarian styled lagers. In Vienna, Zipfer has a fine perfumed hop with well balanced malty mouth feel. The other major beer region of Styria is most noted for their hops where Gosser Pale and Dark Ale are brewed in Graz. The pale ale combines the sweetness of caramalt, maize and rice with noble hops Hallertau, Spalt, Styrian and Golding. Gosser Dark provides a malty mouth feel, mild hop bitterness with a smooth sturdy presentation and finishes with a nutty malty flavour.
The Czech Republic formerly referred to as Bohemia gave us the first cold fermented Pilsener. Monasteries dominated beer production until the thirteenth century, when ‘citizen breweries’ began suppling beer to the Moravian aristocracy. Regional hops go back to 850 AD and still held in esteem today. Pilsner Urquell is the flagship of the Czech brewing industry, and has been since 1842.Urquell means “original source” in German, the official language of Bohemia, once part of the Austrian empire. And as it says on the bottle, Pilsner Urquell is the original pilsner from the Pilsen, the birthplace of the pilsner lager style. Adding to its mystique, the beer introduced the now famous conical pilsner style glass when the world was switching over from stoneware and pewter tankards. Pilsner Urquell is golden in colour with a rich, well-compacted creamy head. The flavour and aroma profile is driven by the use of Saaz hops, which provide a floral, spicy aroma and adequate back bitterness without going over the top. Equally important in its structure is the renowned Moravian barley malt, which provides a malty softness and overall balance to the beer.
Talk about beer from Holland and the word Heineken isn’t far behind. G.A. Heineken was so appalled at the depravity and drunkenness caused by gin drinking that he swore to his mother that he would brew for the people if she bought the Haystack Brewery for him. Now enjoyed in over 170 countries, Heineken's global success has been built on a passion for quality, a dedication to innovation and a respect for the world it lives in. Heineken lager contains no additives or preservatives, and only the purest natural ingredients are used in the six week brewing process. And thanks to three generations of the Heineken family, the Heineken lager enjoyed all over the world today is still brewed to the original recipe, perfected in Holland in 1873.Another popular Dutch beer treat is Grolsch premium lager. Grolsch has been producing superb beers since the early 1600’s when Master brewer Peter Cuper established the brewery in his hometown Grolle (now Groenlo) in Gelderland. Considered a small independent brewery until recent times, Grolsch products have been synonymous with three major factors: extended lagering and fermentation, unpasturised beers, and that infamous swing-stoppered bottle. The swing top dates back to 1897, when other Dutch breweries started phasing them out claiming they were too expensive for mass production. A seemingly useless appendage for modern drinking habits, it provides a distinctive novelty factor and instant recognition for all Grolsch products. Grolsch Premium is a fresh hoppy pilsner style lager with plenty of Herschbruger and Hallbrtauer hops for aromatics and Yakima and Golden Nugget hops for bitterness. All natural and triple cold filtered, the lager is well balanced with rich malty yeasty sweetness and a subtle bitter finish. The extended lagering provides that distinctive European flavour and classic golden colour.
The image of drunken Vikings marauding the countryside is as much a part of Scandinavia as the land itself. They brewed a barley based beer they called aul and handed down the method of top fermenting ales to all of Europe. And similar to Holland, the beers are dominated by two breweries, Carlsberg and Tuborg. Carlsberg has been brewing in Copenhagen since 1847 and remains a popular favorite around the world. Its light hoppiness compliments a dry malty mouth feel, with a sweet malty finish. Carlgerg’s slogan on the side of a building in Copenhagen’s city hall says it all “Probably the best beer in town”.
If Carlsberg Lager is noted for its light refreshing nature, then their Elephant Malt Liquor would be infamous for its unexpected stampede on your brain. Carlsberg Elephant is named for the life-size carved granite elephant that flank the breweries arched entryway. Golden-hued it starts off with a crisp floral character followed by a malty, yeasty aroma. Strong wheat like presence takes over and remains in the background Carlsberg Elephant is technically described as a German styled bock, or strong beer based on the high alcohol level, golden colour, with a sweet malt barley flavour. The smoothness of this delicious drop implies extended lagering for maturation.
Tuborg was first brewed in 1873 at Aktieselskabet Tuborgs Fabrikker in Copenhagen, and joined forces with the household named and well loved Carlsberg Breweries in 1970’s.Exquisitely presented and worthy of the Danish crown on the logo, this quality, full bodied, refreshing beer offers all the complexity of its Carlsberg brother, with the ice cold bite of a clean, smooth lager. A low astringency and yeast tone leaves a carbonated, smooth tasting mouthfeel, rich in body. Equal dry & warm characteristics with less bitterness than the well known Carlsberg Green label; leave an enjoyable after taste on the palate. Independent Distillers in Melbourne are now the proud wholesalers for Tuborg and Carlsberg.
Where Germany brought civility to beer, the Belgians brought the passion. It’s hard to take in that such a small country could produce so many fantastic styles of beer. This revival worldwide of Belgian ales is nothing short of phenomenal. They give us pale ales, golden ales, brown, red, and white ales plus the fruity iambics and abbey ales, not to mention their ‘specialty ales’. The list is seemingly endless, but for the everyday drinker the people in Belgium consume vast amounts of lager like the rest of the world. Brewing giant Interbrew’s Stella Artois was first brewed as a Christmas beer in 1926, and was so popular that it became an all year round beer. The name ‘Stella’ also comes from the Latin word for star, probably linked to the traditional star atop the Christmas tree. Stella Artois has a bright crystal clear pale gold appearance and a delicate hop aroma that requires pouring into a glass to truly appreciate. The pilsener lager has a pleasing hop flavour leaving the palate with a combination of grainy malt flavour, moderate hop bitterness and a slight citric sourness in the finish.
Hoegaarden White Ale has become a bit of a cult drink with the younger Belgian set, and with good reason. Its creamy light lemony taste is an ideal refresher beer, with hints of coriander and curacao. Its history goes back to 1445 employing a secret recipe, the purest of ingredients, and locally grown wheat.
When Trappist monks were hounded out of France during the Revolution, they took their brewing skills north. Chimay is by far the most famous Trappist brewery. The local water is soft and acidic, and the malts are considered a blend of caramalt with candy sugar. Add some Hallartau and American Yakima hops, then prime it with sugar and you have a beer with great depth of complex flavours with fruit and spice from the hops. Chimay has three beers, Red (Premiere), Blue (Grande Reserve), and White. Leffe is Belgium’s original abbey beer, with origins back to 1152. The Blond is made with clear malt of medium strength which provides a dry, fruity, lightly spiced beer that’s full, creamy and delicately sweet. The Leffe Brun is sweetened with brown sugar and balanced with a slight bitterness from roasted malts. And finally the lambic fruity beers whose most famous face in the beer world is Belle Vue Kriek. Kriek is the Flemish word for cherry, and along with its spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts, and a long fermentation in oak barrels, provide a sweet and sour explosion in your mouth.
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
Euro Beer Tour
An interest in imported beers will always require a journey back to Europe, and I find it best to begin with England and Ireland, then over to the mainland. The British Isles including Ireland are the sacred site of top fermented ales that are bitterly hopped, malt driven brews providing a plethora of popular styles which include bitters, milds, porters, stouts, strong ales and seasonal beers. Walk into any English public house (pub) and chances are your draught will be brown, cask conditioned and drawn from hand pumps. Until the Industrial Revolution of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the use of coke in kilning malt, all beer was brown as the malt was cured over wood fires. So let’s have a look at a couple of these beers that are available here in Australia.
The southern county of Suffolk, a rural flatland area once known as East Anglia is the largest growing region for malting in England. The dominant brewery, Greene King is based in Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk. Anglia’s King Edmond was murdered by the Vikings and buried at the local abbey. When Henry VIII dissolved abbeys in the 1500’s the monks hid in the tunnels which more than likely became the brewery cellars. A brewer called Greene acquired the brewery in the 1700’s and along with a partner; Greene King has become one of the largest independent breweries in the UK. Among many products my favourite is their Strong Suffolk Ale. A remnant of a bygone era dating back to the eighteenth century, Suffolk Strong employs the ancient practice of blending old and young beers. The ‘old’ brew is aged in wooden tuns then blended to achieve sweetness and acidity. The two blends settle down to 6% A/V, tawny in colour, with hints of passion fruit and chocolate.
Manchester’s most famous beer, Boddingtons Draught is classified incorrectly, but befits the image of the working class centre of textiles in north-western England. Two hundred years ago the brewery was erected north of town by Thomas Carsten and Thomas Fry to provide parched palates after work with dry bitter ale, and to avoid the excessive tax on grain. Manchester is synonymous with the industrial revolution of the 18th century, and the logo employed on the Boddington cans, a barrel keg and two bees, represents the “hive of industry”. The Christmas bonus for brewery workers during the era was two days pay and a quart of strong ale.
Locals demanding an assertively dry, pale bitter style of beer provided Boddingtons popularity and international fame. Changes to the style occurred with the takeover of the brewery by Whitbread Brewing Group in 1989 and the introduction of the widget in the can in 1992. To reach a larger target audience, the bitterness was toned down to create a smoother thirst quencher. The typical Manchester pub draught is hand pulled for a thick creamy ‘Queen Anne’s lace” head. To recreate this appearance, the widget was introduced to the Boddingtons can which injects liquid nitrogen to assist in compacting of the carbonated beer bubbles.
In North-east England, brown ale has been as important as shipbuilding and mining and was developed as a rival to the pale ales of the eastern midlands. Newcastle Brown was created by Colonel Porter in the 1920’s as another blend, this time a dark brown beer and a 3% A/V Amber Ale. The recipe is made up of pale and crystal malts, brewing sugar and a touch of caramel. Hallertau, Northdown, Northern Brewer and Target hops provide mild back palate bitterness. ‘Newky Brown’ as we call it is the biggest selling bottled ale in Britain and exported to over 40 countries. Tradition has it that Newcastle Brown should be served in small glass that’s constantly ‘topped up’. Sounds good to me.
Just the mention of Ireland and the words stout or pubs usually follow. Other than the Czech Republic, Ireland is the smallest nation to impose a major beer style into the consciousness of drinkers around the world, and since 1759 that word is Guinness. Arthur Guinness was shrewd enough to know that his stout would be a winner and took out a 9000 year lease on his newly acquired St James brewery. Other than the city of Cork where Beamish and Murphy’s stouts are brewed, just an order from the bar for a glass of stout will bring you a Guinness. The ‘dryness’ of an Irish dry stout is achieved by deep roasted barley and generous hopping. The original recipe was actually a scam to avoid tax which in those days was assessed on the amount of malt, not alcohol. Arthur Guinness 11 experimented with using unmalted, therefore untaxed, barley in the grist. The heavily roasted blend provided colour and a slightly charred taste to the brew, making it darker, drier, and more bitter than the English styled porter of the day. When first exported to Australia, the recipe was tinkered with to add more alcohol. This brought on the continual criticism of our Guinness not tasting the same as it did in Ireland. This anomaly was amended two years ago when the company went back to the original 4.1% A/V levels.
Crossing the pond to the mainland we land in France and Italy, places not usually associated with the consumption of beer. Over here, the beers of choice are lagers and seasonal wheat beers with their noble hopped fruitiness and moderate to low bitterness making them popular. In France beer is drunk throughout the country in bars and cafes called Brasseries-breweries. Over half of the countries total beer production is achieved by Kronenbourg located in the northern region of Alsace-Lorraine, an area under German rule from 1871-1919. Kronenbourg 1664 began along the banks of the Rhine, and gained fame for the aromatic hoppy fruity citrus notes plus a sweet smooth malty full bodied lager. The title K1664 was introduced in the 1980’s and the label and bottle were jazzed up in 2003 to help it compete on the international beer stage.
It was the Romans who brought the concept of beer to Europe from the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. But as we all know, the vino was the go at toga parties and has dominated the preferred drink category since. Brewing transplanted from the Austrian Alps wasn’t introduced until the nineteenth century. It took the youth and fashionable Italians of the 1960’s to re-launch beer into modern times. Wine was their parents and the peasant to drink; they wanted English-styled pubs and Bavarian Beer halls. Market leader Peroni’s main brand Nastro Azzuro is the ‘Blue Ribbon Italian Pilsner’ which includes 20% corn maize to sweeten the brew and then hopped with Saaz to spice it up. At 5.3% A/V Nastro Azzurro is quite a refreshing well balanced lager for its sweetness.
We’ll continue the beer tour in the next issue when we look at Northern Europe and how this region has affected the beer consciousness of drinkers around the world.
The southern county of Suffolk, a rural flatland area once known as East Anglia is the largest growing region for malting in England. The dominant brewery, Greene King is based in Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk. Anglia’s King Edmond was murdered by the Vikings and buried at the local abbey. When Henry VIII dissolved abbeys in the 1500’s the monks hid in the tunnels which more than likely became the brewery cellars. A brewer called Greene acquired the brewery in the 1700’s and along with a partner; Greene King has become one of the largest independent breweries in the UK. Among many products my favourite is their Strong Suffolk Ale. A remnant of a bygone era dating back to the eighteenth century, Suffolk Strong employs the ancient practice of blending old and young beers. The ‘old’ brew is aged in wooden tuns then blended to achieve sweetness and acidity. The two blends settle down to 6% A/V, tawny in colour, with hints of passion fruit and chocolate.
Manchester’s most famous beer, Boddingtons Draught is classified incorrectly, but befits the image of the working class centre of textiles in north-western England. Two hundred years ago the brewery was erected north of town by Thomas Carsten and Thomas Fry to provide parched palates after work with dry bitter ale, and to avoid the excessive tax on grain. Manchester is synonymous with the industrial revolution of the 18th century, and the logo employed on the Boddington cans, a barrel keg and two bees, represents the “hive of industry”. The Christmas bonus for brewery workers during the era was two days pay and a quart of strong ale.
Locals demanding an assertively dry, pale bitter style of beer provided Boddingtons popularity and international fame. Changes to the style occurred with the takeover of the brewery by Whitbread Brewing Group in 1989 and the introduction of the widget in the can in 1992. To reach a larger target audience, the bitterness was toned down to create a smoother thirst quencher. The typical Manchester pub draught is hand pulled for a thick creamy ‘Queen Anne’s lace” head. To recreate this appearance, the widget was introduced to the Boddingtons can which injects liquid nitrogen to assist in compacting of the carbonated beer bubbles.
In North-east England, brown ale has been as important as shipbuilding and mining and was developed as a rival to the pale ales of the eastern midlands. Newcastle Brown was created by Colonel Porter in the 1920’s as another blend, this time a dark brown beer and a 3% A/V Amber Ale. The recipe is made up of pale and crystal malts, brewing sugar and a touch of caramel. Hallertau, Northdown, Northern Brewer and Target hops provide mild back palate bitterness. ‘Newky Brown’ as we call it is the biggest selling bottled ale in Britain and exported to over 40 countries. Tradition has it that Newcastle Brown should be served in small glass that’s constantly ‘topped up’. Sounds good to me.
Just the mention of Ireland and the words stout or pubs usually follow. Other than the Czech Republic, Ireland is the smallest nation to impose a major beer style into the consciousness of drinkers around the world, and since 1759 that word is Guinness. Arthur Guinness was shrewd enough to know that his stout would be a winner and took out a 9000 year lease on his newly acquired St James brewery. Other than the city of Cork where Beamish and Murphy’s stouts are brewed, just an order from the bar for a glass of stout will bring you a Guinness. The ‘dryness’ of an Irish dry stout is achieved by deep roasted barley and generous hopping. The original recipe was actually a scam to avoid tax which in those days was assessed on the amount of malt, not alcohol. Arthur Guinness 11 experimented with using unmalted, therefore untaxed, barley in the grist. The heavily roasted blend provided colour and a slightly charred taste to the brew, making it darker, drier, and more bitter than the English styled porter of the day. When first exported to Australia, the recipe was tinkered with to add more alcohol. This brought on the continual criticism of our Guinness not tasting the same as it did in Ireland. This anomaly was amended two years ago when the company went back to the original 4.1% A/V levels.
Crossing the pond to the mainland we land in France and Italy, places not usually associated with the consumption of beer. Over here, the beers of choice are lagers and seasonal wheat beers with their noble hopped fruitiness and moderate to low bitterness making them popular. In France beer is drunk throughout the country in bars and cafes called Brasseries-breweries. Over half of the countries total beer production is achieved by Kronenbourg located in the northern region of Alsace-Lorraine, an area under German rule from 1871-1919. Kronenbourg 1664 began along the banks of the Rhine, and gained fame for the aromatic hoppy fruity citrus notes plus a sweet smooth malty full bodied lager. The title K1664 was introduced in the 1980’s and the label and bottle were jazzed up in 2003 to help it compete on the international beer stage.
It was the Romans who brought the concept of beer to Europe from the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. But as we all know, the vino was the go at toga parties and has dominated the preferred drink category since. Brewing transplanted from the Austrian Alps wasn’t introduced until the nineteenth century. It took the youth and fashionable Italians of the 1960’s to re-launch beer into modern times. Wine was their parents and the peasant to drink; they wanted English-styled pubs and Bavarian Beer halls. Market leader Peroni’s main brand Nastro Azzuro is the ‘Blue Ribbon Italian Pilsner’ which includes 20% corn maize to sweeten the brew and then hopped with Saaz to spice it up. At 5.3% A/V Nastro Azzurro is quite a refreshing well balanced lager for its sweetness.
We’ll continue the beer tour in the next issue when we look at Northern Europe and how this region has affected the beer consciousness of drinkers around the world.
Thursday, June 17, 2004
Sacred Ales
An interest in imported beers will always require a journey back to Europe, and I find it best to begin with England and Ireland, then over to the mainland. The British Isles including Ireland are the sacred site of top fermented ales that are bitterly hopped, malt driven brews providing a plethora of popular styles which include bitters, milds, porters, stouts, strong ales and seasonal beers. Walk into any English public house (pub) and chances are your draught will be brown, cask conditioned and drawn from hand pumps. Until the Industrial Revolution of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the use of coke in kilning malt, all beer was brown as the malt was cured over wood fires. So let’s have a look at a couple of these beers that are available here in Australia.
The southern county of Suffolk, a rural flatland area once known as East Anglia is the largest growing region for malting in England. The dominant brewery, Greene King is based in Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk. Anglia’s King Edmond was murdered by the Vikings and buried at the local abbey. When Henry VIII dissolved abbeys in the 1500’s the monks hid in the tunnels which more than likely became the brewery cellars. A brewer called Greene acquired the brewery in the 1700’s and along with a partner; Greene King has become one of the largest independent breweries in the UK. Among many products my favourite is their Strong Suffolk Ale. A remnant of a bygone era dating back to the eighteenth century, Suffolk Strong employs the ancient practice of blending old and young beers. The ‘old’ brew is aged in wooden tuns then blended to achieve sweetness and acidity. The two blends settle down to 6% A/V, tawny in colour, with hints of passion fruit and chocolate.
Manchester’s most famous beer, Boddingtons Draught is classified incorrectly, but befits the image of the working class centre of textiles in north-western England. Two hundred years ago the brewery was erected north of town by Thomas Carsten and Thomas Fry to provide parched palates after work with dry bitter ale, and to avoid the excessive tax on grain. Manchester is synonymous with the industrial revolution of the 18th century, and the logo employed on the Boddington cans, a barrel keg and two bees, represents the “hive of industry”. The Christmas bonus for brewery workers during the era was two days pay and a quart of strong ale.
Locals demanding an assertively dry, pale bitter style of beer provided Boddingtons popularity and international fame. Changes to the style occurred with the takeover of the brewery by Whitbread Brewing Group in 1989 and the introduction of the widget in the can in 1992. To reach a larger target audience, the bitterness was toned down to create a smoother thirst quencher. The typical Manchester pub draught is hand pulled for a thick creamy ‘Queen Anne’s lace” head. To recreate this appearance, the widget was introduced to the Boddingtons can which injects liquid nitrogen to assist in compacting of the carbonated beer bubbles.
In North-east England, brown ale has been as important as shipbuilding and mining and was developed as a rival to the pale ales of the eastern midlands. Newcastle Brown was created by Colonel Porter in the 1920’s as another blend, this time a dark brown beer and a 3% A/V Amber Ale. The recipe is made up of pale and crystal malts, brewing sugar and a touch of caramel. Hallertau, Northdown, Northern Brewer and Target hops provide mild back palate bitterness. ‘Newky Brown’ as we call it is the biggest selling bottled ale in Britain and exported to over 40 countries. Tradition has it that Newcastle Brown should be served in small glass that’s constantly ‘topped up’. Sounds good to me.
Just the mention of Ireland and the words stout or pubs usually follow. Other than the Czech Republic, Ireland is the smallest nation to impose a major beer style into the consciousness of drinkers around the world, and since 1759 that word is Guinness. Arthur Guinness was shrewd enough to know that his stout would be a winner and took out a 9000 year lease on his newly acquired St James brewery. Other than the city of Cork where Beamish and Murphy’s stouts are brewed, just an order from the bar for a glass of stout will bring you a Guinness. The ‘dryness’ of an Irish dry stout is achieved by deep roasted barley and generous hopping. The original recipe was actually a scam to avoid tax which in those days was assessed on the amount of malt, not alcohol. Arthur Guinness 11 experimented with using unmalted, therefore untaxed, barley in the grist. The heavily roasted blend provided colour and a slightly charred taste to the brew, making it darker, drier, and more bitter than the English styled porter of the day.When first exported to Australia, the recipe was tinkered with to add more alcohol. This brought on the continual criticism of our Guinness not tasting the same as it did in Ireland. This anomaly was amended two years ago when the company went back to the original 4.1% A/V levels.
Crossing the pond to the mainland we land in France and Italy, places not usually associated with the consumption of beer. Over here, the beers of choice are lagers and seasonal wheat beers with their noble hopped fruitiness and moderate to low bitterness making them popular. In France beer is drunk throughout the country in bars and cafes called Brasseries-breweries. Over half of the countries total beer production is achieved by Kronenbourg located in the northern region of Alsace-Lorraine, an area under German rule from 1871-1919. Kronenbourg 1664 began along the banks of the Rhine, and gained fame for the aromatic hoppy fruity citrus notes plus a sweet smooth malty full bodied lager. The title K1664 was introduced in the 1980’s and the label and bottle were jazzed up in 2003 to help it compete on the international beer stage.
It was the Romans who brought the concept of beer to Europe from the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. But as we all know, the vino was the go at toga parties and has dominated the preferred drink category since . Brewing transplanted from the Austrian Alps wasn’t introduced until the nineteenth century. It took the youth and fashionable Italians of the 1960’s to re-launch beer into modern times. Wine was their parents and the peasant to drink; they wanted English-styled pubs and Bavarian Beer halls. Market leader Peroni’s main brand Nastro Azzuro is the ‘Blue Ribbon Italian Pilsner’ which includes 20% corn maize to sweeten the brew and then hopped with Saaz to spice it up. At 5.3% A/V Nastro Azzurro is quite a refreshing well balanced lager for its sweetness.
We’ll continue the beer tour in the next issue when we look at Northern Europe and how this region has affected the beer consciousness of drinkers around the world.
The southern county of Suffolk, a rural flatland area once known as East Anglia is the largest growing region for malting in England. The dominant brewery, Greene King is based in Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk. Anglia’s King Edmond was murdered by the Vikings and buried at the local abbey. When Henry VIII dissolved abbeys in the 1500’s the monks hid in the tunnels which more than likely became the brewery cellars. A brewer called Greene acquired the brewery in the 1700’s and along with a partner; Greene King has become one of the largest independent breweries in the UK. Among many products my favourite is their Strong Suffolk Ale. A remnant of a bygone era dating back to the eighteenth century, Suffolk Strong employs the ancient practice of blending old and young beers. The ‘old’ brew is aged in wooden tuns then blended to achieve sweetness and acidity. The two blends settle down to 6% A/V, tawny in colour, with hints of passion fruit and chocolate.
Manchester’s most famous beer, Boddingtons Draught is classified incorrectly, but befits the image of the working class centre of textiles in north-western England. Two hundred years ago the brewery was erected north of town by Thomas Carsten and Thomas Fry to provide parched palates after work with dry bitter ale, and to avoid the excessive tax on grain. Manchester is synonymous with the industrial revolution of the 18th century, and the logo employed on the Boddington cans, a barrel keg and two bees, represents the “hive of industry”. The Christmas bonus for brewery workers during the era was two days pay and a quart of strong ale.
Locals demanding an assertively dry, pale bitter style of beer provided Boddingtons popularity and international fame. Changes to the style occurred with the takeover of the brewery by Whitbread Brewing Group in 1989 and the introduction of the widget in the can in 1992. To reach a larger target audience, the bitterness was toned down to create a smoother thirst quencher. The typical Manchester pub draught is hand pulled for a thick creamy ‘Queen Anne’s lace” head. To recreate this appearance, the widget was introduced to the Boddingtons can which injects liquid nitrogen to assist in compacting of the carbonated beer bubbles.
In North-east England, brown ale has been as important as shipbuilding and mining and was developed as a rival to the pale ales of the eastern midlands. Newcastle Brown was created by Colonel Porter in the 1920’s as another blend, this time a dark brown beer and a 3% A/V Amber Ale. The recipe is made up of pale and crystal malts, brewing sugar and a touch of caramel. Hallertau, Northdown, Northern Brewer and Target hops provide mild back palate bitterness. ‘Newky Brown’ as we call it is the biggest selling bottled ale in Britain and exported to over 40 countries. Tradition has it that Newcastle Brown should be served in small glass that’s constantly ‘topped up’. Sounds good to me.
Just the mention of Ireland and the words stout or pubs usually follow. Other than the Czech Republic, Ireland is the smallest nation to impose a major beer style into the consciousness of drinkers around the world, and since 1759 that word is Guinness. Arthur Guinness was shrewd enough to know that his stout would be a winner and took out a 9000 year lease on his newly acquired St James brewery. Other than the city of Cork where Beamish and Murphy’s stouts are brewed, just an order from the bar for a glass of stout will bring you a Guinness. The ‘dryness’ of an Irish dry stout is achieved by deep roasted barley and generous hopping. The original recipe was actually a scam to avoid tax which in those days was assessed on the amount of malt, not alcohol. Arthur Guinness 11 experimented with using unmalted, therefore untaxed, barley in the grist. The heavily roasted blend provided colour and a slightly charred taste to the brew, making it darker, drier, and more bitter than the English styled porter of the day.When first exported to Australia, the recipe was tinkered with to add more alcohol. This brought on the continual criticism of our Guinness not tasting the same as it did in Ireland. This anomaly was amended two years ago when the company went back to the original 4.1% A/V levels.
Crossing the pond to the mainland we land in France and Italy, places not usually associated with the consumption of beer. Over here, the beers of choice are lagers and seasonal wheat beers with their noble hopped fruitiness and moderate to low bitterness making them popular. In France beer is drunk throughout the country in bars and cafes called Brasseries-breweries. Over half of the countries total beer production is achieved by Kronenbourg located in the northern region of Alsace-Lorraine, an area under German rule from 1871-1919. Kronenbourg 1664 began along the banks of the Rhine, and gained fame for the aromatic hoppy fruity citrus notes plus a sweet smooth malty full bodied lager. The title K1664 was introduced in the 1980’s and the label and bottle were jazzed up in 2003 to help it compete on the international beer stage.
It was the Romans who brought the concept of beer to Europe from the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. But as we all know, the vino was the go at toga parties and has dominated the preferred drink category since . Brewing transplanted from the Austrian Alps wasn’t introduced until the nineteenth century. It took the youth and fashionable Italians of the 1960’s to re-launch beer into modern times. Wine was their parents and the peasant to drink; they wanted English-styled pubs and Bavarian Beer halls. Market leader Peroni’s main brand Nastro Azzuro is the ‘Blue Ribbon Italian Pilsner’ which includes 20% corn maize to sweeten the brew and then hopped with Saaz to spice it up. At 5.3% A/V Nastro Azzurro is quite a refreshing well balanced lager for its sweetness.
We’ll continue the beer tour in the next issue when we look at Northern Europe and how this region has affected the beer consciousness of drinkers around the world.
Friday, May 14, 2004
Australian Beer Awards 2004
Judging from the results at this year's International Beer Awards, specialty beers and small breweries are certainly making an impression. The Grand Champion for 2004 is Pelican Pale Ale from a tiny pub brewery in Oregon, USA with population of less than 800.Last years winner was another pale ale Nor'wester PA from the little brewery Dux de Lux in Christchurch, New Zealand, and the year before that (2002), a specialty ale Samuel Adams Double Bock from the Boston Beer Company, USA was the big winner. The fact is the public hasn't had a chance to taste an Australian lager as Beer of the Year since 1999's Hahn Premium which also took out this yearís Champion Lager. Beer judges are brewers who we all know, have a serious hop addiction, but is that what the public wants as representative of their Grand Champion. From my observations at this year's Beer Festival, a limited amount of the beer drinking public who had the opportunity to taste the Pelican Pale Ale, which also won the trophy for Champion Ale, would rather have seen it get lost somewhere over the Pacific Ocean. I'm not having a go at the judges who do their job admirably, but are the judges judging only on what brewers find appealing, and not taking into consideration what will work for the average punter. Or perhaps it's a cyclical thing, as the previous five years 1995-1999 was dominated by the cold filtered brew. Philosophy aside, it gets down to selling more beer over the counter rather than some oblique product that nobody has either seen or heard of for the mug punter and the major sponsors alike I'd also like an old fashioned finale where we stand and toast the beer of the year, rather than finishing with an uncharged glass and retire to the back bar.
The Premier's Trophy for Best Victorian Beer went to the Mountain Goat Beer boys with their winter delight Surefoot Stout. According to brewer Dave Bonighton I think our appeal is the fact that we offer a different style of stout, a sweet English styled stout with chocolate, liquorice, and coffee notes as opposed to other dark, bitter styled stouts.î This could well be the case as the Champion Stout was a rich and complex Russian Imperial Stout from the Wig & Pen Brewery & Tavern in downtown Canberra. While speaking about stout, it's good to see the continuing success of Coopers Best Extra which was Grand Champion in 1994, and their Special Old Stout which is a beauty. South Australian Southwark Old Stout and Tasmanian Cascade Special Stout continue to impress the judges year in and year out.
The Kiwi's would certainly be pleased with their trophy haul this year including Champion Specialty Beer White Rock Wheat Beer from the Martinborough Brewing Company and Champion Reduced Alcohol Beer Steinlager Premium Light from Lion Breweries. From the Best in Class Winners, Auckland Pub Brewery Cock & Bull's Monks Habit won twice, with Monteiths Black and Speights Porter also posting winning scores along with the South Island's Lighthouse Brewery Classic Stout.
On a night of surprises, Paddy's Brewery at the Flemington Markets in Sydney earned the title of Champion Small Brewery. Other winners included an Eumundi Porter from Noosa Brewing, a Raspberry Wheat from a Redoak, Sydney, and a Chilli Beer from the Outback Brewery in 'outback Sydney' all of whom before the award night I'd never heard of. My confidence in kwowledge about Australian small breweries was restored with honours going to West Australia's Champion Australasian Brewery Swan Brewing along with Little Creatures Pale Ale, Matilda Bay's Redback & Dogbolter, plus Bootleg Brewery's Raging Bull all winning their Best in Class. Sydney's Malt Shovel Brewery got in the mix with their James Squire Porter and Victorian country favourites Grand Ridge heavyweights Moonshine (8.5% A/V) and Supershine (11% A/V) pretty well finished up the prizes for this year.
The National Liquor News was pleased to participate in the two day Australian International Beer Awards Festival held at the Convention Centre in Melbourne. Five 3 hour public taste testing sessions combined thirty breweries and fifteen industry sites with over 400 beers available for tasting. Seminars to inform the public on aspects of judging a beer, history of beer, plus beer and food matching were enjoyed by an audience up 25% on previous years. Our major breweries were well represented with terrific stands from Matilda Bay, Malt Shovel Brewery, Tooheyís and of course Coopers Brewery. Good to see the Victorian State Government supporting the small breweries in their state that joined forces to provide a super-stand for micro breweries including beers from Fitzroy, Mountain Goat, Grand Ridge, Jamieson , 3 Ravens, Buckley's, Stockade, and Holgate Brewhouse, while pub-breweries Gunn Island and Bell's Hotel offered samples of their craft. Representation by small breweries in other states certainly helped to round out the various styles available for tasting which included a South Australian Super Site including samples from Grumpy's Brewhaus, Holdfast Bay Brewing, Lawrence Victor Estate, and Port Adelaide Pub-Brewery. Newly established Bluetongue Brewery from the Hunter Valley, NSW offered samples of their premium lager and ginger beer along with Braidwood Traditional Ales located near Bathhurst. But without a doubt, the most popular stand was from the Belgian Beer CafÈ Bluestone in cooperation with Interbrew and Carlton & United who offered samples of Belgian waffles to munch on while sipping Stella Artois, Hoegaarden White Ale and Leffe Brun all poured from an authentic Belgian bar. Besides the beer, other attractions at the festival included stands highlighting malts, home-brewing equipment & advice, sports memorabilia, free samples of beef jerky, beer merchandise, and even a hangover remedy station. From our observations, the crowds were well behaved and enthusiastic who seemed to enjoy the opportunity to try different beers from around the world, including beers from Germany, Belgium, Austria, China, Thailand, Japan, Malawi, USA, and Canada.
The Premier's Trophy for Best Victorian Beer went to the Mountain Goat Beer boys with their winter delight Surefoot Stout. According to brewer Dave Bonighton I think our appeal is the fact that we offer a different style of stout, a sweet English styled stout with chocolate, liquorice, and coffee notes as opposed to other dark, bitter styled stouts.î This could well be the case as the Champion Stout was a rich and complex Russian Imperial Stout from the Wig & Pen Brewery & Tavern in downtown Canberra. While speaking about stout, it's good to see the continuing success of Coopers Best Extra which was Grand Champion in 1994, and their Special Old Stout which is a beauty. South Australian Southwark Old Stout and Tasmanian Cascade Special Stout continue to impress the judges year in and year out.
The Kiwi's would certainly be pleased with their trophy haul this year including Champion Specialty Beer White Rock Wheat Beer from the Martinborough Brewing Company and Champion Reduced Alcohol Beer Steinlager Premium Light from Lion Breweries. From the Best in Class Winners, Auckland Pub Brewery Cock & Bull's Monks Habit won twice, with Monteiths Black and Speights Porter also posting winning scores along with the South Island's Lighthouse Brewery Classic Stout.
On a night of surprises, Paddy's Brewery at the Flemington Markets in Sydney earned the title of Champion Small Brewery. Other winners included an Eumundi Porter from Noosa Brewing, a Raspberry Wheat from a Redoak, Sydney, and a Chilli Beer from the Outback Brewery in 'outback Sydney' all of whom before the award night I'd never heard of. My confidence in kwowledge about Australian small breweries was restored with honours going to West Australia's Champion Australasian Brewery Swan Brewing along with Little Creatures Pale Ale, Matilda Bay's Redback & Dogbolter, plus Bootleg Brewery's Raging Bull all winning their Best in Class. Sydney's Malt Shovel Brewery got in the mix with their James Squire Porter and Victorian country favourites Grand Ridge heavyweights Moonshine (8.5% A/V) and Supershine (11% A/V) pretty well finished up the prizes for this year.
The National Liquor News was pleased to participate in the two day Australian International Beer Awards Festival held at the Convention Centre in Melbourne. Five 3 hour public taste testing sessions combined thirty breweries and fifteen industry sites with over 400 beers available for tasting. Seminars to inform the public on aspects of judging a beer, history of beer, plus beer and food matching were enjoyed by an audience up 25% on previous years. Our major breweries were well represented with terrific stands from Matilda Bay, Malt Shovel Brewery, Tooheyís and of course Coopers Brewery. Good to see the Victorian State Government supporting the small breweries in their state that joined forces to provide a super-stand for micro breweries including beers from Fitzroy, Mountain Goat, Grand Ridge, Jamieson , 3 Ravens, Buckley's, Stockade, and Holgate Brewhouse, while pub-breweries Gunn Island and Bell's Hotel offered samples of their craft. Representation by small breweries in other states certainly helped to round out the various styles available for tasting which included a South Australian Super Site including samples from Grumpy's Brewhaus, Holdfast Bay Brewing, Lawrence Victor Estate, and Port Adelaide Pub-Brewery. Newly established Bluetongue Brewery from the Hunter Valley, NSW offered samples of their premium lager and ginger beer along with Braidwood Traditional Ales located near Bathhurst. But without a doubt, the most popular stand was from the Belgian Beer CafÈ Bluestone in cooperation with Interbrew and Carlton & United who offered samples of Belgian waffles to munch on while sipping Stella Artois, Hoegaarden White Ale and Leffe Brun all poured from an authentic Belgian bar. Besides the beer, other attractions at the festival included stands highlighting malts, home-brewing equipment & advice, sports memorabilia, free samples of beef jerky, beer merchandise, and even a hangover remedy station. From our observations, the crowds were well behaved and enthusiastic who seemed to enjoy the opportunity to try different beers from around the world, including beers from Germany, Belgium, Austria, China, Thailand, Japan, Malawi, USA, and Canada.
Saturday, April 17, 2004
Asian Sensations
There’s no surprise to me on the increased interest and sales of Asian beers. Walk down any ‘foodie street’ in Australia and you’ll experience a plethora of Asian take away shops, restaurants, and supermarkets dominating the horizon. The wafts of steam with exotic spices, tandoori ovens on the go, and flamed hot woks tossing fresh fragrant goodies in the air are a far cry from the traditional roast and three veg dinners of the past. We have always embraced ethnic diversification, and with beer it’s no different. The Asian influence in the past decade has created a distinctive palate change with lighter, dryer lagers that blend better with sashimi than salami. A fiery curry or chilli and coriander stir fry require extra hopped pale ales or well bittered pilseners. As a bonus, the lighter lagers also appeal to ladies looking for a pilsener with less of a bitterness punch. Now I’m sure there are a few blokes scratching their heads while they sip their middies and pots wondering where I’m coming from. But the reality is that in a very depressed beer market, imported beers have shown a slight increase of 6% in sales So let’s take a quick tour of the Asian beers on the market that are gaining an undercurrent support at fashionable bars and clubs.
Starting with our closest Asian neighbour, Bintang and Bali holidays at Kuta are as Aussie as a meat pie. Brewed in Jakarta, their umbrellas and roadside advertisements are as Bali as a massage on the beach and we’re starting to see those brollies on fashionable big city streets here in Australia. The Dutch influence on the region goes back to Colonial times and nowhere is it more apparent than in their brewing. Characterised by a hoppy bitterness with a grainy malty aroma, the Dutch pilsener lagers embrace the Asian light dry finish.
For decades Aussies have discovered the Singapore Tiger beer while visiting or waiting for a flight. In fact, it was the RAF pilots stationed at Butterworth AFB that first introduced me to this golden drop with a sweet caramel aroma and clean crisp flavour over twenty years ago. As of January brewery giant Heineken has become the sole importer and distributor in Australia. A comprehensive marketing program will invest over $5 million dollars over the next three years focusing on leading edge bars, fine dining, and traditional targeted areas within the off premise. Other promotions include sponsorship of the Shaolin Monks in March, hosting a design event/conference plus book launch of graphic artists hosted by Diesel of Italy in April, Tsubi at Mercedes Fashion Week in May, plus Tiger Nights in Sydney and Melbourne. According to Market Development Manager Craig Blesson, “With the Australian premium beer market thriving, particularly the imported segment, Australia offers an exciting opportunity for Tiger Beer to emulate its success across Asia.”
The Thai Singha Lager from the Boon Rawd Brewery has been around since 1933 and continues to be popular for its light golden flavour. Now anyone who’s been to Thailand knows that pure drinking water is rarer that 24 carat gold, and their 3 brewery locations are based on quality water sources that are thoroughly checked to make certain of its correct composition and meets brewing standards. The clear water used by Boon Rawd Brewery is pumped from wells deep underground. It is activated carbon filtered, sand filtered and treated to meet Singha standards of brewing water. Quality grains and hops sourced from Europe and Australia help create this delightful drop. Another beer from Southeast Asia proving very popular in Asian cafes around Australia is 333 Premium Export Beer from Vietnam. Its light smooth finish is Perfect for the Asian palate, and works well for younger and female Australians as well.
The history of modern brewing in Japan is as old as Australia. The government set up a brewery back in 1869 on the Northern island of Hokkaido and a decade later were brewing Sapporo Lager. At one time there were several dozen breweries around Japan including the ‘big 4’ Sapporo, Japan, Osaka (Asahi Brewery), and Kirin. The fierce battle for market supremacy in the early 1900’s led to the Japan Brewing Company merging with Sapporo. After the war, the DaiNippon Beer Company divided into two companies Nippon ( Sapporo) and Asahi. The three continue to battle worldwide to be ‘champion Japanese beer’.
If one aspect of brewing can be attributed to Japan it would have to be the ‘Dry’ lager style. To create this drying effect, the mash is brewed at a lower temperature to soak up every drop of residual sugars that become alcohol. The result desired requires an extraction process to get only the first liquid run- off from the sweet wort then a long slow fermentation.
Sapporo Imported Original Draught Beer has a distinctive 650 ml silver can exhibiting their high tech outlook to brewing. Using state of the art technology, including a ceramic filtration process, creates a smoother cleaner lager. The sculptured conical shaped steel can releases a golden maize coloured brew with very subtle grainy sweet aroma and taste with a well balanced malt flavour.
Asahi’s volume share of the Asian beer market isn’t huge; however it is growing at a rapid pace. Ranked in the top 20 Premium Imports, it appeals to urban leading edge consumers. Victoria and New South Wales continue to be the two key Asahi markets constituting over 80% of total volume. Due to significant signs of growth and demand over the last few years, CUB will be launching Asahi Draught in selected venues in Melbourne and Sydney from April. Asahi is a traditionally brewed Japanese dry beer, rich and full flavoured with a refreshing dry after taste. It is the perfect accompaniment to Asia and spicy foods.
The last but not least of Japanese beers is Kirin Ichiban, the only Asian beer to be brewed here in Australia at the Malt Shovel brewery in Sydney. Locally brewed in small batches under the supervision of an expert Japanese brewer assures freshness. The Kirin is an ancient mythical beast which foretells the coming of festive and joyful events. The word “ichiban” means “first” in Japan and Kirin uses a First Press Brewing Method where only the first liquid drawn from the mash is used followed by a long fermentation period. The use of noble saaz hops provide a floral aroma that’s complemented by a delicate fruity flavour. Full bodied with subtle sweetness and mild bittering notes, Kirin Ichiban is quickly gaining local support in trendy nightspots.
No report on Asia would be complete without a glance at the sub continent, and when visiting any Indian restaurant in Australia, I’ll bet my house on the fact you can order a Kingfisher lager to soothe than fiery vindaloo. Thankfully, it’s a great beer and worthy of your indulgence. A nice golden amber colour with white creamy head, Kingfisher is well balanced malt character and good solid back bitterness. As with any Asian beer, serve it icy cold, sit back, and enjoy.
Starting with our closest Asian neighbour, Bintang and Bali holidays at Kuta are as Aussie as a meat pie. Brewed in Jakarta, their umbrellas and roadside advertisements are as Bali as a massage on the beach and we’re starting to see those brollies on fashionable big city streets here in Australia. The Dutch influence on the region goes back to Colonial times and nowhere is it more apparent than in their brewing. Characterised by a hoppy bitterness with a grainy malty aroma, the Dutch pilsener lagers embrace the Asian light dry finish.
For decades Aussies have discovered the Singapore Tiger beer while visiting or waiting for a flight. In fact, it was the RAF pilots stationed at Butterworth AFB that first introduced me to this golden drop with a sweet caramel aroma and clean crisp flavour over twenty years ago. As of January brewery giant Heineken has become the sole importer and distributor in Australia. A comprehensive marketing program will invest over $5 million dollars over the next three years focusing on leading edge bars, fine dining, and traditional targeted areas within the off premise. Other promotions include sponsorship of the Shaolin Monks in March, hosting a design event/conference plus book launch of graphic artists hosted by Diesel of Italy in April, Tsubi at Mercedes Fashion Week in May, plus Tiger Nights in Sydney and Melbourne. According to Market Development Manager Craig Blesson, “With the Australian premium beer market thriving, particularly the imported segment, Australia offers an exciting opportunity for Tiger Beer to emulate its success across Asia.”
The Thai Singha Lager from the Boon Rawd Brewery has been around since 1933 and continues to be popular for its light golden flavour. Now anyone who’s been to Thailand knows that pure drinking water is rarer that 24 carat gold, and their 3 brewery locations are based on quality water sources that are thoroughly checked to make certain of its correct composition and meets brewing standards. The clear water used by Boon Rawd Brewery is pumped from wells deep underground. It is activated carbon filtered, sand filtered and treated to meet Singha standards of brewing water. Quality grains and hops sourced from Europe and Australia help create this delightful drop. Another beer from Southeast Asia proving very popular in Asian cafes around Australia is 333 Premium Export Beer from Vietnam. Its light smooth finish is Perfect for the Asian palate, and works well for younger and female Australians as well.
The history of modern brewing in Japan is as old as Australia. The government set up a brewery back in 1869 on the Northern island of Hokkaido and a decade later were brewing Sapporo Lager. At one time there were several dozen breweries around Japan including the ‘big 4’ Sapporo, Japan, Osaka (Asahi Brewery), and Kirin. The fierce battle for market supremacy in the early 1900’s led to the Japan Brewing Company merging with Sapporo. After the war, the DaiNippon Beer Company divided into two companies Nippon ( Sapporo) and Asahi. The three continue to battle worldwide to be ‘champion Japanese beer’.
If one aspect of brewing can be attributed to Japan it would have to be the ‘Dry’ lager style. To create this drying effect, the mash is brewed at a lower temperature to soak up every drop of residual sugars that become alcohol. The result desired requires an extraction process to get only the first liquid run- off from the sweet wort then a long slow fermentation.
Sapporo Imported Original Draught Beer has a distinctive 650 ml silver can exhibiting their high tech outlook to brewing. Using state of the art technology, including a ceramic filtration process, creates a smoother cleaner lager. The sculptured conical shaped steel can releases a golden maize coloured brew with very subtle grainy sweet aroma and taste with a well balanced malt flavour.
Asahi’s volume share of the Asian beer market isn’t huge; however it is growing at a rapid pace. Ranked in the top 20 Premium Imports, it appeals to urban leading edge consumers. Victoria and New South Wales continue to be the two key Asahi markets constituting over 80% of total volume. Due to significant signs of growth and demand over the last few years, CUB will be launching Asahi Draught in selected venues in Melbourne and Sydney from April. Asahi is a traditionally brewed Japanese dry beer, rich and full flavoured with a refreshing dry after taste. It is the perfect accompaniment to Asia and spicy foods.
The last but not least of Japanese beers is Kirin Ichiban, the only Asian beer to be brewed here in Australia at the Malt Shovel brewery in Sydney. Locally brewed in small batches under the supervision of an expert Japanese brewer assures freshness. The Kirin is an ancient mythical beast which foretells the coming of festive and joyful events. The word “ichiban” means “first” in Japan and Kirin uses a First Press Brewing Method where only the first liquid drawn from the mash is used followed by a long fermentation period. The use of noble saaz hops provide a floral aroma that’s complemented by a delicate fruity flavour. Full bodied with subtle sweetness and mild bittering notes, Kirin Ichiban is quickly gaining local support in trendy nightspots.
No report on Asia would be complete without a glance at the sub continent, and when visiting any Indian restaurant in Australia, I’ll bet my house on the fact you can order a Kingfisher lager to soothe than fiery vindaloo. Thankfully, it’s a great beer and worthy of your indulgence. A nice golden amber colour with white creamy head, Kingfisher is well balanced malt character and good solid back bitterness. As with any Asian beer, serve it icy cold, sit back, and enjoy.
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