TThhoouugghhttss OOnn 11000000 BBeeeerrss DDaavviidd GGooooddyy Thoughts On 1000 Beers David Goody With thanks to: Friends, family, brewers, bar staff and most of all to Katherine Shaw Contents Introduction 3 Belgium 85 Britain 90 Order of Merit 5 Czech Republic 94 Denmark 97 Beer Styles 19 France 101 Pale Lager 20 Germany 104 Dark Lager 25 Iceland 109 Dark Ale 29 Netherlands 111 Stout 36 New Zealand 116 Pale Ale 41 Norway 121 Strong Ale 47 Sweden 124 Abbey/Belgian 53 Wheat Beer 59 Notable Breweries 127 Lambic 64 Cantillon 128 Other Beer 69 Guinness 131 Westvleteren 133 Beer Tourism 77 Australia 78 Full Beer List 137 Austria 83 Introduction This book began with a clear purpose. I was enjoying Friday night trips to Whitefriars Ale House in Coventry with their ever changing selection of guest ales. However I could never really remember which beers or breweries I’d enjoyed most a few months later. The nearby Inspire Café Bar provided a different challenge with its range of European beers that were often only differentiated by their number – was it the 6, 8 or 10 that I liked? So I started to make notes on the beers to improve my powers of selection. Now, over three years on, that simple list has grown into the book you hold. As well as straightforward likes and dislikes, the book contains what I have learnt about the many styles of beer and the history of brewing in countries across the world. It reflects the diverse beers that are being produced today and the differing attitudes to it. As well as giving you informed, if entirely subjective, recommendations on beers of every strength and type it will also inform – and hopefully even entertain. More than anything though, the book aims to reinforce the notion that beer is not a bland, fizzy drink to be downed in large quantities on a Friday night before the consumption of a kebab completes the process of feeling terrible the morning after. Beers can be savoured with each sip just as much as fine wine – and even the finest beers in the world can be acquired for perfectly reasonable prices. Writing and researching this book has taught me a lot about beer. With any luck it will teach you something too, whether you are a fully paid up CAMRA member or someone who just enjoys the occasional pint. Thoughts On 1000 Beers "! ! Order of Merit Order of Merit There’s no point beating around the bush. To start the book the only reasonable thing to do is to list some of the finest beers around, based on the author’s humble opinion. A top 10 seemed too limiting and a top 50 seemed to lack discrimination so instead there is an Order of Merit. Therefore here you find 24 beers, listed in alphabetically order, that have shown distinguished service in bars across the world and which represent the variety of beer that is on offer. Think of it as the ideal mixed case. This list will be far easier to taste your way through than Michael Jackson’s 500 Great Beers book. Even after 3 years of trying I’ve only got about half way through that list. As for Roger Protz’s 1001 Beers to Try Before You Die – let’s just say that I just hope I live a long and fruitful life. Since the beers cover most of the major beer styles it’s likely that at least one of the beers will not appeal to you at all, in fact you may actively dislike it. The Rodenbach Grand Cru and Schenkerla Aecht Rauchbier are most likely to provoke a negative response. Even if you don’t end up liking these beers they are ones that you should try at some point, if only to understand what beer can be – even if you decide that you think it would better if the brewery had never bothered. It’s not a trivial task to get hold of all of these beers. The likes of Hoegaarden and Duvel are available all over the world. However a number of beers are made by small breweries who have limited distribution. These may require you to travel to find them, or possibly to order them from a speciality beer shop on the internet. Some of them are only made seasonally and so you will have to show some patience as well. One will even require a trip to a Belgian monastery. This scarcity is part of the appeal of exploring new beers. You will need to head out into the world rather than waiting for it to come to you, which is no bad thing at all. ! "! Thoughts On 1000 Beers Beer 1: Anchor – Steam Beer The concept of Steam Beer nowadays is really no more than an inventive registered trademark that helps that San Franscisco beer stand out from the crowd. Even Anchor’s website admits that it doesn’t know where the term came from or how the 19th century steam beers were actually made. All that said, Anchor Steam Beer is a fine beverage, an initially sharp but lingeringly dry and bitter amber lager with a full taste. The brewery uses a handsome set of equipment that was made in Germany 50 years ago, and that creates a range of beers that are well worth trying. Beer 2: Black Isle – Scotch Ale Made by a “small intensely independent organic brewery in the heartlands of the Scottish Highlands” this looks from the outset to be like walking into a pub full of locals and being given a long stare whilst the conversation goes silent. Venture forth and you will find a bottle conditioned red ale made with peat smoked malt and bog myrtle that has the sour flavour of a Belgian gueuze. Slightly fruity and sharp with a very full flavour. The brewery operates out of an old farm building and bottles all their beers by hand. Tours of the brewery are possible, but only if staff aren’t too busy making the beer. "! ! Order of Merit Beer 3: Cantillon - Kriek Lambic More a working museum than a brewery, Cantillon are a small family business based in the outskirts of Brussels who use the same techniques now that they did in 1900. Their output is basically confined to spontaneously fermented lambic beers, all of which share a dry acidic taste with a distinct citrus edge. At first the taste is disconcerting, but once you’ve adjusted your preconceptions you discover something very rewarding. Their Kriek is a fruity and sharp beer with big hits of cherry and grapefruit going “zing, zing, zing” on your tastebuds, followed by a deeper interesting aftertaste. One to enjoy slowly but a very impressive cherry beer. Beer 4: Ellezelloise – Quintine Ambrée The Ellezelloise brewery was formed in 1993 after Phillippe Gerard spent 8 years converting an old farm and acquiring the required brewing equipment second hand. Its main range of beers are named Quintine after a witch who is meant to have lived in the local town of Ellezelles. Their beers are spicy, rustic, and without exception good. They all come in swing top bottles. The Ambrée uses caramel malts to give a gentle sweetness to the bitter spicy flavour. They also make a remarkable strong stout named after Hercule Poirot. ! "! Thoughts On 1000 Beers Beer 5: Fischer Brau – Weisses There are a number of brewpubs in Vienna that produce beers that German and Czech brewers would be happy to call their own. The wheat beer from Fischer Brau in the north of Vienna is possibly the best of the lot. It is a light yellow, cloudy wheat beer with a gentle lemon and banana flavour that is not very sharp and feels quite natural. Fantastically refreshing and with a surprising lightness for something with the mouthfeel of a typical wheat beer, possibly due to having a slight gassiness in place of the usual bready head. Incredibly drinkable, especially if you are sitting their pleasant beer garden. When in Vienna also try the Marzen from 7 Stern Brau. Beer 6: Girardin – Gueuze 1882 There aren’t many breweries that produce gueuze, the blended lambic beer produced using spontaneous fermentation, and even fewer that produce the traditional oude gueuze that is made solely from lambics. Girardin are the largest of the traditional brewers, making lambic during the winter and pils during the summer. They are still family owned and run after 125 years. Their Gueuze 1882 is a sharp and sour beer with a fruity note and little if any sweetness. Very impressive and very interesting. "! ! Order of Merit Beer 7: InBev – Hoegaarden Following the buyout of Anheuser-Busch, InBev have become the world’s biggest brewing company, making 25% of the beer drunk worldwide. Along the way they have attempted to buy up major beer brands in pretty much every country with a decent sized market for beer. One of the beers they snapped up was Hoegaarden and their (now abandoned) plans to close to original brewery created a lot of negative feeling towards the company. Despite all of this Hoegaarden remains one of the finest Belgian witbiers, and thanks to InBev it’s very easy to find. Beer 8: Hovels – Original German brewing is regulated based on a purity law that occasionally feels like it has stifled innovation somewhat. Whilst there are more dull German pils than you can shake a stick at there are some wonderful ales made there as well. Hovels Original is an alt bier with a flavour that is akin to an English bitter.