Choc Beer Company
Krebs, OK
Combining premium pilsner malts, Belgian-style yeast, and caramelized malts , this summer Seasonal Belgian-style Blonde is refreshing yet complex.
ABV: 5.0
ABW: 4.0
COLOR: 3
BITTERNESS: 21
ORIGINAL GRAVITY: 1042
AVALAIBLE: AL, AR, FL, OK
This “Belgian-style Blonde Ale,” to quote the label, is brewed with Pilsner and caramel malts, and a Belgian yeast culture, it has an appetizing gold color, a herbal and spicy hop nose and light peach/mango fruit. The palate has tart hop bitterness and a dry note from the malts but with only a gentle malt character. The finish is dry, with some fruit, earthy hop resins and light malt. It’s all a bit muted for a Belgian blonde, but it would go well with a dish of Belgian fries and mayonnaise.
It’s an odd color, this beer—hazy honey-orange with a faint suggestion of pink. The aromatics show some caramel, some tangerines and a little smoke, but the overall impression is fairly musty. The malts are sweet, and that sweetness dominates as the hops step in to provide just enough bitterness to balance things out. Though it says “Belgian-style Blonde Ale” on the label, this beer is pretty much doing its own thing. A good foil for barbecue with sweeter sauces.
Author of Complete Guide to World Beer and 300 Beers to Try Before You Die. Respected beer authority and editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide. and www.protzonbeer.co.uk.
Garrett Oliver is the brewmaster of The Brooklyn Brewery, the Editor-in-Chief of The Oxford Companion to Beer, the author of The Brewmaster’s Table, and a veteran host of more than 800 beer dinners in 15 countries.
