Microbrewed Adventures (21 page)

I have had the pleasure of joining the prince on several beer occasions, including stops at many of his brewpubs around the world. Truly wonderful beer. Truly wonderful company, and truly a gentleman of beer passion and a smile.

I
F YOU ARE
an adventurer and embrace the unexpected, you will discover beer in the most unlikely of places. But I have found “unlikelihood” to really be a matter of prejudice. Microbrewed adventures are everywhere. They can be discovered on remote islands of the South Pacific, in the mountains of Tibet or Japan, on the seashores of the Middle East, in the fjords of Scandinavia, in the jungles of Africa, in the casinos of Las Vegas and in the old cities of Latin America—and if you are lucky, around the corner at your local pub. Beer is ubiquitous. But the microbrewed adventure often lies just beneath the surface. One must be free of assumptions and virtually tuned in to the invisible wavelengths of nearby fermentation. I have encountered brewpubs and microbreweries on the side streets of Madrid and Athens. I stumbled on a small microbrewery sitting on the green horizon while driving the wine country of South Africa. At a brewers' convention in Hanoi I came across the business cards of several local brewpubs, and in my wife's hometown of Natal, Brazil, there is a brewpub just above the seaside.

While the French, Italians and Swedes may have a culture of high-profile wines and distilled spirits, there are many individuals in these countries who have embarked on their own microbrewing adventures. I have been fortunate to share their passion for beer on their terms.

My Paris—My Beer
Frog & Rosbif

M
Y PARIS
is not the typical Paris most people come to see. I was invited there in 1995 to brew a batch of beer. I was excited. It was to be my first-ever commercially brewed beer.

I arrived in Paris at 8:30 in the morning. Taking a train into the city center, I emerged randomly from the Métro and miraculously found myself within two blocks of my hotel and on time for my 10:30
A.M
. rendezvous at the Frog & Rosbif at 116, rue St. Denis, four blocks away.

Owners Thor Gugmundson and Paul Chantler and friend David Bruce (formerly of London's Firkin brewpub empire) had schemed to bring me to Paris. “Well, Charlie, what shall we have you brew?” I didn't have a clue what their customers would enjoy. This was my first trip to Paris, and most people here drank wine rather than enjoying the delights of craft microbrewed beer.

I was about to ask who their customers were when they apologized that the brewpub was closed for the day. Being one of the very few English-style pubs in Paris, they had inadvertently attracted soccer thugs, who the night before were handing out trudgeons and knives in preparations for “cheering” their team's match against Spain. Thor and Paul didn't want any part of that, so they had shut down for the day.

With this one exception, the pub is quite civilized, with a mixed clientele of tourists, British expats and local Parisians who appreciate the ambience and British-style ales. What was I to brew? “Whatever you brew, Charlie, it should be unusual, so that we mustn't forget you were here,” was the sentiment. “Does it have to be a traditional style?” I asked. They unanimously agreed that it should have flair, be creative and be remembered in Paris.

I was scheduled to brew the next morning. We tossed about some ideas. Well, actually, I asked a few leading questions. “Can I use spices?” I sensed that Thor and Paul were exchanging nervous glances, but David, always the adventurer and joker, charged forward, not hesitating to encourage my direction. “How about casket-conditioned veal ale?” he shouted, his eyes squinting with laughter.

“Could you find some whole coriander seed?” I asked. There was an Indian specialty store in the neighborhood, so we had that problem resolved. I had decided that this was Paris. I was American. The brewpub was thematically English. The owners were Icelandic. Why not create a hybrid with an artistic flair. Ah, Paris in the springtime!

Brewing in Paris

I had decided to make somewhat of a light brown wheat ale, lightly yet flavorfully hopped, with the addition of freshly crushed coriander seed. The ale was a combination of pale lager malt, crystal malt, wheat malt and chocolate malt. Czech Saaz and German Hersbrucker Hallertauer hops were used rather than British hops in order to create a more continental European character. I used 1.4 kilograms of crushed coriander seed to remind the French of the rich Belgian beer culture to their north.

It took the better part of the next morning, as we hand paddle-stirred the mash to perfection and dosed the boiling kettle with hops and coriander at my prescribed times. Tasting the unfermented wort, I was satisfied that it was what I had imagined it to be. If there were any complaints about the beer, I would take full responsibility. Quite frankly, I was very nervous about how my first professionally brewed beer would be accepted.

I learned later that even at Parisian beer prices of $8 a pint, it had been popular enough that they brewed a second batch. It made me feel quite accomplished as a novice professional. Since that time, Thor and Paul have successfully opened up six more “Frog &…” brewpubs in France and Lisbon (www.frogpubs.com).

Poetic Justice in Italy
The Microbrewers of Italy

A
GOSTINO ARIOLI IS
a craft brewer who continues to serve time as an accused criminal. At first this may be of passive interest to most of you, but his customers aren't likely to dismiss Agostino's crimes against Italian beer drinkers. His brewery, Birrificio Italiano, in Lurago Marinone (a suburb of Como), produces over 700 hectoliters of craft-brewed lagers a year for his successful brewpub. He is accused by his customers of crimes against beer drinkers: “You are a criminal, Agostino. I cannot drink any other beer but yours now.”

Italy, a country that seems forever planted to the horizon with vineyards, enjoys a beverage culture deeply immersed in wine and food. However, Italians are drinking a lot more beer these days than one would imagine. More than 25 percent of the beer consumed in Italy is imported from all over the world. Brewpubs and microbrewery numbers have increased from six to more than 50 in less than two years. Estimates in 2004 reveal the numbers of microbrewers has grown to more than 120. On a trip I made in 2000, I discovered a new world of beer and a small but growing number of Italian craft beers.

I traveled with members of
Unionbirrai Microbirrifici
(Italy's microbrewery association) through north-central Italy to visit five microbreweries and
brewpubs. There I learned that the poets of the beer world have coalesced and emerged, expressing the traditions of Italian food and beverage. Through their creative combination of American, German, Belgian and British beer traditions, they poetically express themselves with uniquely Italian beers worthy of all beer enthusiasts' attention. They have truly immersed themselves in their own microbrewed adventures.

La Baladin

T
HE BEERS I
tasted at La Baladin (http://www.birreria.com) in the tiny hilltop medieval village of Piozzo were nothing short of magnificent. Teo Musso, owner, troubadour, world music producer and brewmaster, blends his knowledge of Belgian brewing techniques with Italian creativity to skillfully brew a balanced selection of top-fermented beers. His knowledge of brewing, he says, comes from watching. Having spent more than a year working at the Silly Brewery in Belgium, not as a brewer or even as an assistant brewer, he intently observed and digested all he experienced.

Teo Musso with son Isaac and beer

La Baladin opened in 1985 as a non-brewing café. The brewery, Teo's brainchild, was installed in 1996, and beer sales increased 40 percent once his beer was on tap. In his 5-hectoliter brewhouse, Teo continues to provide draft beer for his pub and bottled specialties for fortunate beer sellers around the world.

The Beers of La Baladin

Isaac—Birra Bianca,
a Belgian-style wheat beer made with unmalted wheat grown by Teo's mother and father, with the unique addition of whole sweet oranges and coriander. It's well-balanced, with low hop flavor and a refreshing lemon-orange-citrus theme complemented by a lively yet subtle coriander aroma and flavor. Bottle-conditioned in uniquely styled champagne bottles,
Isaac
is named after Teo's then two-year old. What makes this beer uniquely Teo's is homegrown unmalted wheat, whole sweet oranges, English ale yeast and bottle conditioning.

 

Super Baladin
—The brewpub's strongest seller. Beer sales jumped 300 percent after its introduction. At 8 percent alcohol, this bottle-conditioned ale is reminiscent of a Belgian-style Dubbel, but as all Teo's beers are made with English-style ale yeasts, Belgian fruitiness is minimal, resulting in a smooth, clean taste with accents on malt and hops rather than on fermentation esters and fruity alcohols.

 

Niña
—On draft, this brew has a similar profile to an English-style bitter, with a twist—the hop aroma is floral and German in origin! It is dispensed with nitrogen. The result represents an extraordinary combination of traditions.

 

La Blonde du Baladin
—A well-attenuated golden ale with high drinkability and the inviting floral character of German Hersbrucker Hallertau and Spalt hops. The wort is caramelized by a very long boiling time, resulting in a rich, caramel-like malt character that is suggestive of butterscotch but is rather toffeelike. A beer judge could easily mistake this toffee character for diacetyl, but it isn't so. Travel the world and you'd be hard pressed to find this light ale's equal.

 

Brune du Baladin
—Actually, what I might call “Italian Stout.” It has a profile similar to that of Guinness but, as Teo emphasized, with milder inten
tions. Deep, dark and complex, it's brewed with a combination of five different malts yet with no roasted barley. You think stout, but then who cares—it goes down smoothly.

 

Noel
—Teo's wonderfully complex creation that defies categorizing. Bottle conditioned at 9 percent alcohol, it presents a complex and interwoven balance of cocoa and fruitiness, while maintaining its relative dryness on the palate. This is a very special brew with very special packaging. Remember: this is strong brown ale with English ale yeast.

Birrificio Italiano

J
UST EAST
of Turin (
Torino
), in Marinone outside of Como, Agostino Arioli and his brother Stefano founded the Birrificio Italiano brewpub and restaurant in 1997 with eight other partners. In two years, production grew from 400 hectoliters to 700 hectoliters. All beers are sold only from the pub and restaurant. Most are bottom-fermented. Agostino designed and had his
original 3 hectoliter brewhouse built locally. A new 6 hectoliter system has been installed since then. All his beers are uniquely Italian—they are variations on traditional themes. Most beers at Birrificio Italiano are lagers with nicknames and a story, served on draft or bottled (some bottle-conditioned).