(compliments of foodnetwork.com) Dissolve 3 cups of sugar in 1½ cups of water, then whisk in 1½ cups dark Dutch-processed
Five gallon recipe 7 pound light DME (9# pilsner malt for all-grain) 2 pound Munich or amber malt extract (3#
Every year during the World Beer Championships, we dedicate one session to specialty styles of beer that includes fruit-flavored beers,
Few of life’s simple pleasures are as evocative and savored as chocolate. Everything from strength and health to aphrodisiacal prowess
Four thousand miles away from Manhattan, in a northern Italian village, Birrificio Troll owner Alberto Canavese was celebrating because his
In 1994, Chicagoans were treated to an extraordinary beer created to celebrate the 1,000th batch brewed at the Goose Island
Brewery Ommegang Cave Hennepin (2000) Pale orange-gold, big frothy head with lace, yeasty bouquet with dried apricot aroma and trace
Belgian golden ales are pale to golden in color with a lightish body for their deceptive alcoholic punch, as much as 9 percent alcohol by volume. The benchmark example, Duvel (Devil) from Belgium, is quite heavily hopped to give a floral nose and a tangy, fruity finish. Typically, such brews undergo three fermentations, the final one being in the bottle, resulting in fine champagne-like carbonation, and a huge rocky white head when they are poured. Often such beers can be cellared for six months to a year to gain roundness. These beers are probably best served chilled to minimize the alcoholic mouthfeel.
Turning wheat beer into a cocktail has precedent in Europe, where alcoholic cordials or fruit syrups can be used to help beer slide down more easily. Flavored wheat ales are an increasingly popular specialty category, covering a number of flavoring options that brewers have adopted, particularly in the United States, the home of “throw-the-rule-book-away” hybrid beer styles. The two most significant additives are fruit and honey, usually employed separately. Raspberry is a common choice of fruit to flavor these styles and the best examples have faithful fruit essence and avoid any sweet cloying character. Honey can add richness to the palate and give a hint of sweetness. Herbs and spices are also encountered, but the possibilities are endless.
Wit beer is a style of flavored wheat. It is distinctly Belgian in origin and is still very closely associated with this lowland country. Wits employ a proportion of unmalted wheat in the mash, but also have flavor added in the form of Curaçao orange peel and coriander, among other ingredients. Their appearance is marked by a hazy white precipitate and these beers generally have some sedimentation. Typically, these are very refreshing summer thirst quenchers. Their popularity in the United States is growing, with some notable examples to be found.