For a brewery that positioned itself on salted caramel pastry wank, we certainly seem to have a lot of historic styles in production at the moment. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy not selling beer as much as the next ASD brewer that doesn’t understand the market. But that ode to the lineage of this product that we adore is both personal and deeply satisfying.
One beer that came out of barrel this week is our Bière De Garde. A “beer for keeping” this French style falls under the poorly understood farmhouse banner. I find “farmhouse” to be an intentionally vague definition, which can have a litany of interpretation, being simply a philosophy to generate a drinkable product from the idiosyncrasies of your local environment.
Unlike its Saison cousin, Bière De Garde was generally made with a sacch strain that didn’t produced a strong phenolic flavour. Clean, malty but dry is the go. Cellared to create a smooth, musty, complex character. And what better, controlled environment to age a beer than Brisbane in summer. I hate this place.
Our second run through our Foeder program. Malt focused, but dry, where the hops are restrained, allowing the Slovenian oak to deliver layers of vanilla and cinnamon. A little brett c tickle gives the softest of funk, pineapple and that dryness we were after. Complex but smashable, just like the French.
A beer for keeping.
Barrel Aged Beer
