CorkBillyBeers #16: Craft with Red Ale by Ballykilcavan, 9 White Deer, O'Hara's and Rascals

CorkBillyBeers #16

Craft with Red Ale by Ballykilcavan,  9 White Deer, O'Hara's and Rascals

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Ballykilcavan Brick Yard Red Ale, 4.2% ABV, 440 ml can, 

A fine introduction to red ales and bound to please anyone who is a fan of the style! That’s how Ballykilcavan introduce their Brick Yard Red Ale. And it is indeed a very fair representation.

Colour is an attractive mid red, bright, with a light off-white head that doesn't linger too long. Not too much in the aromas; aside from the malt influence, you may note perhaps a hint of mint and honey. The body is medium sweet, the rich malt doing the business. The hops, Fuggle and Golding, aren’t exactly there just for the ride and they, with their woody and grassy contributions, come on more towards the dry lip-licking finalé. The finish itself has a moderate bitterness (IBU number is 25)

This traditional Irish red ale is brewed by Ballykilcavan using malts and water from their own farm in County Laois.

Ballykilcavan is a 440 hectare block of beautifully landscaped farmland and forestry in the heart of Ireland. We are very fortunate that our ancestors loved the look of the farm and left in almost all the landscape features, particularly the hedgerows and trees in the fields. We also still have our original 18th century stone farmyard, 19th century stable yard, walled garden and gardener's tunnel as well as the champion black walnut tree of Ireland.

Its barley is renowned: “We have won a Boortmalt barley grower award, and won the first ever Best Barley Cup for Waterford Distillery growers. With the opening of a brewery at Ballykilcavan, we are now able to use our award-winning barley to produce our own beers.”

Highly Recommended

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9 White Deer Stag Rua 4.2% ABV, 500ml bottle

“Easy going malt focussed beer, using a mix of ale, crystal ad chocolate malts resulting in a deep ruby red colour.” 

A very deep ruby with an off white head. Indeed at first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking that a glass of stout was on the way to you.

Darker but with the same ABV as the Ballykilcavan. Chocolate and crystal malts have been used liberally here and there is quite a presence of chocolate, caramel and toffee on the palate (though some fruit notes reveal themselves too). But nothing drastic, nothing too extreme, the balance is good. The beer is a good one with a fine finish.

Stag Rua is a beer with big malt flavours and it’s our impression of a perfect Irish Red Ale. Can’t argue too much with that.

Very Highly Recommended.

Is Red Ale an Irish style? In the 1970s, beer writer Michael Jackson is credited with giving the tag to Smithwicks. According to World Atlas of Beer, American beer competitions started awarding prizes for the category and smaller Irish breweries started to “launch highly-hopped higher strength or even barrel aged versions”

The recent Brew Dog books mention only the American Red, in fact they barely mention the Irish scene at all. Sláinte (2014) acknowledges that there is some “dissent” about Red being an Irish style but say some local breweries have “evolved the style”.

Looks like the style is still evolving.

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O’Hara’s Nitro Irish Red 4.3% ABV, 440ml can CraftCentral

Smooth and creamy says the label and that is accurate, after a good pour by yours truly. 

Colour is one of the deepest ruby reds you are likely to see and the head is white and steady. Aromas come from the malt including a hint of biscuit. The late addition of Mt. Hood hops is credited with adding an “unmistakable fruity and almost herbal quality” to the aromas. And the flavours come mostly from the same source as the aromas, the malt bringing its sweet caramel and that biscuit again. Really smooth in the mouth on the way to a comforting finish.

Not too much experience of Nitro but I’m thinking it adds more to a red ale than to a stout. 

Highly Recommended.

The brewers note: The wonderful malty caramel notes and flavours found in our Irish Red come from a healthy addition of caramalt to the mashing process.The sweetness generated is balanced with dryness of the crystal malts. Visually the Red colour is intensified by the finest roast barley, while subtle hop additions in the kettle give just the right bitterness and aroma to craft this distinctive Irish Red Ale. The nitrogenation process subtly mellows the flavours together and compliments with a smooth creamy texture.

Pairs well with baked and roasted main courses from the oven such as beef hotpot. Also excellent with winter soups. Delicious accompaniment to mature cheddar or soft goats cheeses.

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Rascals Big Hop Red, 5% ABV, 330 ml can CraftCentral

Lively. Piney. Zesty.Malty.

That’s how Rascals introduce this big hop red, an American Amber Ale, so an outlier in this quartet.

Colour is as much amber as red and the white head is gone as I start this sentence. Big Hop Red has been dry hopped to give it an extra kick of zesty hop flavour and piney aroma. 

Aromas are indeed piney and zesty from the hops and a whiff of sweetness from the malts. So pine and resin in the aromas and they continue their engagement with the malt in the mouth. It is an lively arena with the hops also offering citrus flavours, less of the exotic than might be expected (suits me fine!), and quite a balancing act being performed by the caramel and biscuit notes from the malts.

Hoppy and malty they say. Hoppy and malty, I agree. I admit I thought this might be a lightweight bit of fun. But it is more than than, quite enjoyable and something new in the red ale style.

Highly Recommended.

GEEKS!

Style: American Amber Ale
Malts: Pale, Munich, Caramalt, Crystal
Hops: Cascade, Citra, Ekuanot, Magnum, Chinook (all USA except for the German Magnum).
Bitterness: Low – medium
ABV: 5%

Available: All Year Round

CorkBillyBeers #15. Craft Stout with 9 White Deer, Brewmaster, and Whitefield

CorkBillyBeers #15

Craft Stout with 9 White Deer, Brewmaster,  and Whitefield

 

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Whitefield Traditional Series Irish Stout 7.5% ABV, 750ml bottle Bradleys

No nitro here, no need for it, just a beautiful smooth and creamy stout with the traditional black colour and tan head (one that hangs about). Aromas are toasty and smokey. And that smooth liquid flows creamily in and across the palate with marvellous toasted and roasted flavours (coffee included), mostly from the “special charring” of the oak barrel.

The alcohol, about 50% higher than usual, is  just about noticeable, pleasurably so, nothing extreme in the overall experience.The stout is, as promised, a wonderfully complex, balanced, smokey and surprisingly light stout, superbly balanced. And you are immediately thinking steak. The Templemore brewery also suggests strong cheese.

This stout is part of their Traditional Series that also includes their Red Ale, and geared for food pairings. Both of these beers come in a 750ml bottle and are aimed at the restaurant business. A very good aim indeed but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy one at home with your favourite steak! Easy to see why this is the winner of the 2016 Food Writers Guild of Ireland Drink Award.

And it is also a favourite at the brewery itself as Cuilan told me during our recent exchanges in advance of the blog post of Feb 21st last. “It represents everything we think here about traditional brewing from an Irish perspective.”

 And there could well be more superb stout in the Templemore pipeline: “We want to take Irish Stout up a notch in alcohol but I’m a sucker for balance. Too many beers have wonderful first, second and third sip-ability but completely lose their balance after that and become hard to finish. I think we still have a lot to learn from the wine industry in terms of balance, so we’ll tread carefully while developing this recipe.“  Watch this space!

Very Highly Recommended.

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9 White Deer Stag Stout 4.2% ABV, 500ml bottle

This gluten free Stag Stout, from Ballyvourney’s 9 White Deer, weights in at 4.2% ABV. It is a glossy black colour with a soft tan head. Aromas are rich and full of chocolate promise and that promise is fully delivered in the mouth. Here the chocolate and Madagascan vanilla play quite the most pleasing duet as the rich and smooth beer finds its way around. This is a must try chocolate “block” from the West Cork Gaeltacht; it is distinctive and delicious. Smooth and creamy, all without any nitro!

And Very Highly Recommended.

I first came across this black beauty in Blairs Inn (near Blarney) in the winter of 2017. Richard Blair, one of two brothers now running the pub, told me of a satisfied customer of a few days earlier. A coeliac, the man hadn’t drunk stout, his favourite tipple, for twenty years but, having sampled the Stag, left Blair's Inn with tears of gratitude.

Then Richard’s mother Anne guides us to our fireside table. We begin with some stout infused brown bread! Delicious stuff and, of course, the Stag is one of the ingredients. Then I get to enjoy a pint with my Venison Casserole and it proved a great match for the rich dish of Wicklow venison. That ritual would be repeated in some form or other almost every winter up and including the current one.

They say: Stag Stout is a medium bodied traditional dry Irish stout at 4.2 % ABV. It is designed to appeal primarily to traditional stout drinks, who remember how creamy the pints used to be. The complex recipe we developed brings back to life characteristics that are long forgotten. However this stout is like no other, Stag Stout also happens to be gluten free, the first of its kind anywhere in the world.

This is a double chocolate and Madagascan vanilla stout, with cocoa and vanilla in the ingredients list, also green barley and oats. 

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Recent features on micro-breweries Ballykilcavan, 9 White Deer, Whitefield

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Brewmaster Nitro Stout, 4.2%, 440 ml can, 

Dundalk Bay Brewery are confident, to say the least, about this one: Do you dream of Nitro Stout that is as good, if not better than what’s out on the market? Then look no further and join us in a toast to our very own Brewmaster Nitro Stout. … Our unique widget technology in-can gives the most superb cascade effect on pour and a creamy head with richness and body synonymous to draught.

It settles down well, after the recommended vigorous pour, with a smooth black body and a slightly tanned tight head that does hang about for a long while.

After that smooth pour, aromas  speak of coffee and fresh bread. And those toasted warming malt flavours come through as you sip, full-bodied and smooth, full of flavour enhanced by notes of chocolate, honey and hops. 

An excellent stout indeed, very elegant and smooth but lacks that little bit of depth, of devilment, that would propel it to the very top of the list.

As was the case with the Left Hand nitro, I like the theatre at the start and like the finish but the overall experience is all a bit moderate. Nitro is certainly an interesting angle, a comfortable drink,  and well worth a try and I fully understand why quite a few drinkers rave about it.

Highly Recommended.

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CorkBillyBeers #11. Craft with APA style beers by Western Herd, Ballykilcavan, West Cork Brewing, Larkins

CorkBillyBeers #11

Craft with APA style beers by Western Herd, West Cork Brewing, Ballykilcavan, Larkins

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Western Herd Spanish Point APA, 5.9%, 440ml can, The Cru

In September 1588, the Spanish Armada came to grief on the Clare coast in a savage storm. The legend lives on in the name of the place and in the name of this American Pale Ale (APA) from the Western Herd brewery. 

The pungent aromas of the all-American hop quartet make their presence felt at the outset, even as you pour this mid-golden American Pale Ale with its white head that doesn’t hang around too long. Notes of pine and citrus shine in the dank background of the palate. Good thing! (I’ve been listening to Roland Gift recently). The impression has been building, time to sit back and enjoy (and put away the notebook and maybe play the FYC on YouTube).

The Western Herd brewery stands on a picturesque Clare hilltop farm in a converted shed built over 80 years ago “by our great-grandfather”.

“We are a brother and sister team brewing beer the way nature intended.  Our great, great, great, great, great, grandfather farmed the land where our brewery now stands.  Every time we would visit the farm growing up we would think ‘if only we could bottle this’!!!  We aspire to brew beers that embody the charm and character of this idyllic hilltop farm on the west coast of Ireland.”

The brother and sister are Michael Eustace and Maeve Sheehan and the brewer, who just turned up and walked in one day in 2018, is Bridger Kelleher from Montana.

Geek Bits

Style: American Pale

Hops
Colombus (Dank, pepper, pungent), Centennial (blossom, orange, resinous), Chinook (Grapefruit, pine, spice), Simcoe (pinem grapefruit, berry)

Malts
Stout Mix, Crystal

Very Highly Recommended.

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West Cork Brewing Beacon of Hops American Pale Ale, 4.1% ABV, 500ml bottle Ballymaloe Craft Fair

Sherkin Lass has been a favourite with West Cork Brewing customers since they opened in 2014. Now the long standing favourite is reportedly under pressure from this relative newcomer.

Colour is a hazy orange with a soft white top that soon sinks down too to a slim disc. It’s got quite an attractive aroma, citrus and malt. And that sets the scene for the palate where the flavours are citrus led with the malt  (with a slight hint of caramel sweetness) again providing the balance so it turns out fruity and just mildly bitter. Excellent body feel and a lip smacking finish. The brewers recommend pairing it with fish, white meats, mild cheese and salads.

Like all of their beers, this is brewed using their own spring water, is bottle conditioned, unfiltered and vegan friendly. The 2014 brewery is the first Brew-Hotel to set up in Ireland.

Highly Recommended

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Ballykilcavan Line Blocker Hazy Pale Ale, 4.9%, 440 ml can, CraftCentral

Ballykilcavan tell us this New World hazy pale ale “is packed with Citra and Amarillo hops”. By the way, did you know Citra is one of the top three most grown hops in the world and is also in the US top five? 

The Line Blocker was one of first ever canned beers at Ballykilcavan. A hazy pale ale, double dry hopping helped promote the aromas and flavours of citrus and tropical fruits that you’ll find.

Colour is a murky amber/orange with a white head that soon runs out of depth. Hops are certainly evident in the aromas with exotic fruits (mango, pineapple, grapefruit and guava) fighting with citrus for space. And it is much the same on the packed palate with mango getting its nose in front of the hop posse. A good stiff drink though (with a resinous backbone), strong lip-drying finish too, thanks to all those hops.

The other ingredients are Malted Barley, oats, water, and yeast. IBU is  54.

If you'd like to join visit the brewery, they’d love to show you around. “You'll hear the family stories from the more than 380 years that we've been at Ballykilcavan, and see the 18th century farmyard behind the brewery. Weather permitting, we'll bring you to the old stable yard, the champion black walnut tree of Ireland and the remains of the walled garden. Then we'll bring you into the brewery itself to find out how we make our beers.”

A few tips here from suppliers CraftCentral

• Refrigerate on delivery. Especially the hoppy ones.
• Store beers upright
• Avoid light
• Enjoy with friends!
• Do not age for too long - hoppy beers are very sensitive!

The Line Blocker is Highly Recommended.

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Larkins Hustler Pale Ale 4.5% ABV, 440ml can CraftCentral

Larkins tells us this is their “classic best-selling pale ale rebranded for the new range. Hoppy but low in bitterness this beer has been a craft beer favourite since 2018.”

Pale it is, almost lemon in colour, and also very hazy, certainly not see through. The bubbly white head sinks slowly. Aromas are of the hoppy citrus kind and the hops are also in charge of the refreshing palate. For all that though, the finish is not as grippy as you might expect. Not a bad balance at all and a decent refreshing drink indeed.

Recommended

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CorkBillyBeers #10. Craft journey with Brown Ales from Ireland and Belgium: Ballykilcavan, Whiplash, Bacchus, and Chimay

CorkBillyBeers #10

Craft journey with Brown Ales from Ireland and Belgium: Ballykilcavan, Whiplash, Bacchus, and Chimay

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Bacchus Flemish Old Brown, 4.5% ABV, 375 ml bottle The Cru

Bacchus introduce Old Brown (Oud Bruin) as “A typical Flemish beer with a pleasant taste of wine...and a rich past. Partially matured in oak barrels, this dark brown beer has moderately fruity aromas and a slightly acidic aftertaste.” This type of beer has been brewed in West Flanders since the 17th century.

Colour is brown as you’d expect with a slight tan head that barely says hello before its fades, leaving just a trace on top. It is indeed a mild one and the first taste indicates a tart wine-like acidity (somewhat similar to what you’ll find in the Basque wine Txakoli) but that moderates soon enough. That fresh sweet-sour taste is, the producers say, typical for this type of beer. The sweetness, nothing mega, comes from the touch of caramel from the roasted malt while the sourness is “is less pronounced than the sourness of other Flemish red-brown beers”.

And another odd thing is that there is no label,  no info at all on the bare bottle, but it comes on the unusual paper wrap! It informs us it is a mixed fermentation beer with sugar and sweetener and that the ingredients are water, barley malt, sugar, wheat, hop, spices, aromas, sweetener. That sweetener is steviol glycosides, aneis around 150-300 times sweeter than sugar! Check it out here,  if you are inclined!

Bacchus Oud Bruin was launched in 1955, making it their oldest beer. The Bacchus Kriek (in my queue) and Bacchus Raspberry are brewed on base of Bacchus Oud Bruin. Once I settled in to it, I found it quite a lively and refreshing beer with a pleasant finish, perhaps more suited to the garden in summer.

This beer was not designed to be a culinary or gastronomic beer, unlike some other beers within the extensive Van Honsebrouck range. When Oud Bruin was developed in the 50s as a beer style, no thought was given to gastronomy when brewing beer.

More about the brewery here.

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Chimay Red “Brown Ale”, 7.0 % ABV, 330 ml bottle Bradleys

The Chimay Red is the oldest of the Chimays. It gets its name from the the colour of the label. The colour of the beer is a multi-hued copper tinted brown (from copper to deep ruby) with a tan head that sinks down to a thin disc without too much delay.

Malty aromas, fruity and toasted, invite you on to the palette where you meet them again in the flavours. Fruits such as orange, peach and apricot now meld with sweet honey, nougat and baguette from the malt. And yet, there’s a delightful balance from first to last, minerality, aromas and flavours all combining in bringing a super conclusion as the aftertaste lingers

The Authentic Trappist Product label certifies that this ale is brewed in a Trappist abbey and that the majority of sales income is intended for social aid. Chimay Red was brewed for the first time in 1862.  

The perfect pairing for the Chimay Red is with Chimay cheeses but particularly with the Grand Chimay.

Trappist beers are among those that age gracefully. Brew Dog's Great Beer for the People list three requirements: high ABV, low hops, and bottle conditioned. Trappist beers tick those boxes and “they get softer, sweeter and fruitier.  …… They age beautifully.”

Ingredients: water, barley malt, sugar, wheat starch, hop, spices, yeast, 

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Ballykilcavan Bambrick’s Brown Ale, 5.8%, 440 ml can, The Cru

"Possibly the beer we're best known for! A beer to savour all year round, but it does really suit these shorter, cooler Autumn evenings. Enjoyed all the way from Laois to Lombardy," says David Walsh-Kemmis of Ballykilcavan.

This Bambrick’s Brown Ale is brewed with barley and water sourced from the family farm in County Laois. It is named after Joe Bambrick who worked on the farm for sixty years. And, believe it or not, the Walsh family have been farming here through 13 generations, since 1639!

Not a Belgian style beer this time but a Brown Ale based on the rich and malty American style. The ingredients are simple: malted barley and wheat, water, hops and yeast.

It is a dark brown colour with a tan head that slinks away rather quickly. Aromas are modest with a little fruit (including slight cherry notes) coming through the chocolate and toffee. Superb on the rich and malty palate, just a soft touch of hops, roasted coffee and burnt toffee all the way through to the dry lip-smacking finish.

IBU of this one is 26. It seems to be quite a successful style for Ballykilcavan and, in a recent post, brewery co-founder David Walsh-Kemmis indicated that they may well have another example or two during 2023. They already make an Export Bambrick’s with an 8% ABV so I must watch out for that!

Very Highly Recommended

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Whiplash Quiet Crowd Robust Brown Ale 5.0%, 330 ml can Whiplash Online

Colour’s more black than brown and there’s a silky and tight knit tan foam that hangs about a bit.  The aromas, of modest intensity, are on the malty side, caramelised and toasty, with prominent coffee notes. And so too are the roasty flavours (not too modest now though!) and there’s quite a depth here with chocolate, caramel and bread. Really impressive. 

Malt certainly has the upper hand, yet there is a very satisfactory lip smacking finish with enough bitterness to allow the malt shine without having it too sweet, that balance coming despite the heavy use of caramel and aromatic malts.

Not sure the 5% would qualify it as robust though! According to the Beer Bible, you are more likely to find these nowadays in Chicago rather than on this side of the Atlantic.

Very Highly Recommended

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CorkBillyBeers #9. Craft journey with Belgian Abbey Beers and similar strong ales, Mescan, Orval, St Bernardus and Duvel

CorkBillyBeers #9

Craft journey with Belgian Abbey Beers and similar, Mescan, Orval, St Bernardus and Duvel

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Not all strong Blonde and Tripel Belgian ales are Trappist, mostly because that label can only be attached only to beers produced in Trappist abbeys (not all of which are in Belgium!). But most of the beers will have high carbonation and powerful aromas from the yeast. 

Trappist ales may share a common style of home but the beers can differ. Our Orval for instance is an “oddball” according to the Beer Bible, “with wild yeast and fragrant dry-hopping, which seems to bear no resemblance to the other abbey ales”. Hard to be sure but picking beers with the designation “Recognised Belgium Abbey Beers” should help you on the abbey road!

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Beer vobiscum. Killian O'Morain Mescan co-founder.

Mescan Westport Extra 8.5% ABV, 330 ml bottle, No. 21

Mescan may not have had an abbey but he was St Patrick’s right hand man and personal brewer so may well have brewed up a potion that forced the snakes to hightail it out of Ireland. This one from the brewery on the slopes of Croagh Patrick is more likely to keep people here!

It is golden, of course, a slightly hazy gold, with a soft white head that is long on retention. Just stuck my finger into that head and found those fruity esters and spicy yeast notes that the brewers speak about. The hop bitterness promised is also confirmed and becomes even more pronounced as the first sip flows fully and gently across the mouth on the way to a long lingering finish. A superbly balanced beer, the highly alcohol smoothly controlled.

Carbonation is high too and you notice that immediately on the palate along with concentrated fruit and yeast, the merest hint of caramel also. Wave after wave of flavour all the way to the finish. Belgian style and Irish finesse earn a Formidable! 

It is more or less a head to head between the Mescan and Duval (neither a Trappist) in this quartet. The Belgian beer has many admirers including Mark Dredge who, in his Beer: A Tasting Course, declares that this Duvel, is “the world’s finest Strong Blonde Ale”. Just wonder if he has ever tasted the Westport Extra!

A lot of work and time goes into the production of this beauty. It takes almost a year from when it brewed before this strong, well-carbonated golden ale will be ready for punters to sip and savour. 

“Enjoy with white meats or seafood,  and fruity,  nutty desserts.” This robust beer is a real treat, and its warming alcohol is the perfect antidote to a bad weather day!

This Belgian style beer is extra in many respects, the label tells us: extra malt, hops and time to condition. So extra had to come into the name of this Strong Golden Ale and do give it the extra care it deserves. All Mescan beers are bottle conditioned and note too that the recommended serving temperature is a cold 3 - 6 C.

The brewery is situated on the slopes of Croagh Patrick and is owned and operated by Bart Adons and Cillian Ó Móráin, two Westport vets (veterinarians, not veterans!), who have been friends and colleagues for nearly 20 years. The pair spent four years perfecting their original recipes inspired by the beers of Belgium, Bart's homeland, before starting to brew commercially in 2013.

Very Highly Recommended.

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Orval Trappist Ale, 6.2% ABV, 330 ml bottle, The Cru

Dark amber/orange is the colour, hazy in the chalice with quite a foamy and long-lasting head. Aromas are complex, yeast and hops plus orange notes and herb-y hints also. 

Complex too on the palate but all’s in harmony as the fruity and hoppy elements smoothly amalgamate, a creamy feel in the mouth, sip it slowly and savour the complexity before the long and dry finish reaches a slightly bitter finalé. 

This amazing beer has been quite a while in the making, so take your time and contemplate its many pleasant qualities. Not too many like this around! By the way, the recommended serving temperature is unusually high: between 12 and 14 degrees.

The Brasserie d'Orval, located inside the Abbey, was created in 1931 to finance the huge construction site for the reconstruction of Orval. From the start, it hired labor, including the first master brewer, Pappenheimer and his assistant John Valheule.

Between the time the monks first arrived in 1070 and today, there are many tales. Jeff Alworth devotes a chapter to the abbey and the beer in The Beer Bible. Even more detail on both the abbey and beer here. 

The Guardian Angel (À l’Ange Gardien) restaurant/bar, with its  superb view of the still functioning abbey, is a quiet and welcoming place where time seems to have stood still. This tranquility is shared by visitors who come with family or friends to taste the two flagship products of Orval: cheese and Trappist beer. The cheese story started long before the beer. 

The website by the way is well worth looking up and includes recipes made with the beer or designed to be eaten with it, like this Fish Soup. A fascinating story and a fascinating beer.  According to the Brew Dog book, Craft Beer for the Geeks, it should be "in the top five on any beer list".

Orval is an “oddball” according to the Beer Bible, “with wild yeast and fragrant dry-hopping, which seems to bear no resemblance to the other abbey ales”. But it does have the coveted “Authentic Trappist Product” badge. You’ll have to look hard to spot it on the narrow band neck label. Unlike many other abbeys, the monks at Orval never brewed but the 1930s brewery (Orval was first brew in 1931) was always under their control.

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St Bernardus Pater 6 Abbey Ale, 6.7 % ABV, 330 ml bottle Bradleys

St. Bernardus Pater 6, a Trappist ale, is brewed according to the classic dubbel style with a recipe that dates back to 1946. It is, like all dubbels, a dark beer (dark red to brown), while tripels are golden. The #6 at 6.7% ABV is within the style’s range of 6 to 8 per cent. 

Other similar Belgian examples that you may be able to get your hands on are Westmalle Dubbel Trappist Ale and Chimay Red and do also keep an eye out for the stronger St. Bernardus Pater 8 (the most characterful and interesting, according to the Beer Bible by Jeff Alworth).

The #6 has a dark brown colour, not quite the chestnut they say on the website, and the rich colour is an indication of quality. The foamy head is tan and it soon contracts to a very thin disc. A touch of hazelnut and coffee in the apple and pear aromas. And coffee hints too amidst the fruit on the palate, all wrapped up nicely in a duvet of malt. 

Time and again in these high abv Belgian beers - and this is far from the highest - you find a delicious harmony between flavours of specialty malt and the lively fruitiness, and that harmony here extends to the satisfactory slightly bitter dry finish.

They say: St. Bernardus Pater 6 is brewed according to the classic dubbel style with a recipe that dates back to 1946. The name of this beer has become a reference for its style, and it is commonly referred to as ‘een Paterke’.

As ever the Belgians recommend a food pairing: St.Bernardus Pater 6 is a great choice to complement pork recipes or contrast against zesty cheeses. It is bottle fermented and best to serve it at 8-12 degrees. More recipes. 

If you come across the Pater 6, and if you see The Bernardus Abt 12 on the same shelf, then don’t hesitate. The Abt 12 (10%) is a quadrupel, full of complex flavours, great fruit and with a superb finish. It is regarded as one of the best beers in the world. In this context, quadrupel means it is stronger than a tripel which is stronger than a duppel like Pater 6!

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Duvel Strong Blond, 8.5% ABV, 330 ml bottle Bradleys

Duvel is a natural beer with a subtle bitterness, a refined flavour and a distinctive hop character. Mark Dredge, in his Beer: A Tasting Course, declares that this Duvel,  is “the world’s finest Strong Blonde Ale”. 

The colour of the Duvel in your glass is a misty gold, a central spout of bubbles flying upwards towards the tight white head that stays around. Aromas are on the modest side. On the palate, it is silky smooth,  is immediately refreshing, fine-flavoured balance of fruity and hoppy, and the refreshment continues through a moderately bitter finalé.

They say and I’m not arguing: The refermentation in the bottle and a long maturation, guarantees a pure character, delicate effervescence and a pleasant sweet taste of alcohol….Each Duvel ripens for no less than 2 months in our fermentation and refermentation cellars and is perfectly balanced as a result…

The original yeast strain, which Albert Moortgat himself selected in the 1920’s, originates from Scotland. After maturing in storage tanks in which the beer is cooled down to -2°C, the drink is ready for bottling. Thanks to the addition of extra sugars and yeast, the beer ferments again in the bottle. This occurs in warm cellars (24°C) and takes two weeks. Then the beer is moved to cold cellars, where it continues to mature and stabilise for a further six weeks.

The hops used are Saaz and Styrian Golding. They recommended serving it at 5 degrees in the Duvel glass. I like the beer for sure but not a big lover of the “devil” glass!

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