A broadcast of sorts, of thoughts, on beer, cocktails and beer cocktails
Beer – An alcoholic liquor obtained by the fermentation of malt […] flavoured with hops or other aromatic bitters[i]
Cocktail – An alcoholic mixed drink […][ii]
Beer Cocktail – No dictionary entries found for ‘beer cocktail’[iii]
Mons, Belgium – Travelogue Beer Appreciation Trip #0623
[…] If you like piña coladas
And gettin’ caught in the rain […][iv]
The other day I had a beer which was like no other beer I had before. It was light, yet really powerful. It poured a slightly hazy golden, with an off-white head. Once you held the glass anywhere near your face, you got full on piña colada vibes – bright pineapple and coconut, followed by a gorgeous heavy vanilla note, faint honey character…
…I’m pretty sure I could hear The Beach Boys in the background…
[…] Aruba, Jamaica, ooh I wanna take ya
Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty mama
Key Largo, Montego
Baby why don’t we go […][v]
On the palate, it was complex and rich, oaky, heading towards vanilla and some coconut, soft and sweet whiskey notes, followed by a grainy sweetness with vibrant effervescence, yet very smooth. Medium bodied, with a kiss of pineapple and citrus in the finish – all rolled into this unassuming 6.5% ABV Belgian Blond / Golden Ale, called L’Amboise-Temps, brewed by Le Brasse-Temps.
The husband and I were sitting in a beer garden of sorts in a Belgian business park and were enjoying the beer as part of a flight of 4 25cl beers. Alongside this oaky number, we had a 3.5% ABV lemon Blond Belgian Ale – brewed like a shandy, a 7% ABV Blond Belgian Ale and a 5.5% ABV Belgian Amber Ale.
If you’ve followed along, you might recall that the husband’s tipple of choice at the moment is a golden ale. In that respect, the 4 glasses in front of us ticked the right boxes style wise, but we were in Belgium, and those Belgians are crafty when it comes to brewing.
Having such an oak-forward Blond Ale was a new experience for me. I’ve had plenty of beers which tasted like piña coladas, but they were meant to taste like the Puerto Rican cocktail, and actually used similar cocktail ingredients.
I’ve enjoyed an IPA brewed with coconut shavings and pineapple puree called If You Like Pina Coladas by Beer Hut Brewing Co., clocking in at 5.3% ABV. I had a 6.5% ABV Milkshake IPA by Siren Craft Brew and Basqueland Brewing called Hawaiian Shake, which tasted like coconut, passionfruit and a touch of vanilla. And, I had BrewDog’s 3rd iteration of Zephyr – V3 Pina Colada Edition a 4.6% ABV Fruited Sour, which presented itself with zesty lime, juicy pineapple, and creamy coconut.
I also had hop-forward beers, which smelled like pineapple, lime, and coconut, and tasted like that too. But this little unassuming Blond was different: it wasn’t brewed to be like a cocktail. It simply presented itself like one, due to the influence of the oak. It was brewed and aged with wood chips creating this unique oaky ale. It could have been a bold red wine for the amount of Château 2 x 4 it showcased… and like a wine, it changed with time and temperature.
It was refreshing (as in a new and unknown, not necessarily a thirst-quenching way) to be able to drink something as confusing as this. I’ve had plenty of barrel-aged stouts – who doesn’t love a BA stout – but never an oaked blond ale, and admittingly, it showed.
If you use any of the beer rating apps, or have been drinking with someone who does, you probably are familiar with this:
After maybe spending a nearly ungodly amount of time studying the menu or taproom board, and checking whether one has had the beverage before, the, let’s call them Untapper for ease (other apps are available!), may spend another unearthly amount of time, photographing, reviewing, logging and rating the beer, comparing it to others of the same style, or from the same brewery, recalling previous experiences, truing to isolate flavours and aroma compounds.
Do I like this? Don’t I like this? Back and forth, and back and forth. 10 minutes elapse.
I may perhaps, potentially, theoretically, probably, supposedly, hypothetically, possibly, allegedly be said Untapper. Maybe.
Neither the husband nor I were too sure about it at first, but once the liquid had warmed up, both of us warmed up to it too, at least a bit.
I mean, I do like piña coladas, and incidentally, I was caught in the rain on the way to the taproom, it is Belgium after all, but the warmer the beer got, the more like bourbon it became, and I’m not a huge fan of bourbon finding it often bordering a bit too much on the sticky sweet… but happy to be educated if anyone is offering to teach me?! *wink*
Even though, L’Amboise-Temps was like no other beer before. It was so unique in its aroma and flavour profile, that I almost wished I had first sampled it blind. I knew what the liquid looked like, so I unconsciously assigned certain flavour and aroma notes to it, only to be thrown of guard by it.
Beer in is simplest form is water, malt, yeast and hops.
Some beers have adjuncts added, some forgo hops. Some are brewed gluten-free, others vegan. Some use stale donuts, some use lactose. Some are hazy, some are crystal clear. Some beers are traditional, others are craft. But in its perhaps truest form, beer is a fermented grain porridge, which is why I am so fascinated by it. Humans have been drinking it for a long time, and yet, we are still captivated by it.
To widen our beer horizon, each year, the husband and I set forth on a journey through time and space[vi], typically to Belgium or the Netherlands, to pay homage to the backgrounds of brewing by enjoying some beers in and of the Low Countries. Hence our trip to the Wallonian city of Mons. After all, what better place to be than in countries with a long brewing history and traditional beer styles.
And exactly those elements of tradition, heritage and history threw me twice on this educational trip, first we had the oak chips in my Blond, and then, on another day, I was looking at the beer menu and found what I can only describe as an anomaly of sorts:
The menu listed 29 Belgian beers in bottles, a somewhat acceptable yet rather small number considering there are roughly 1500 beers brewed in Belgium[vii], a further 8 draught beer options, one draught cider, as well as 8 international beer[viii] options consisting of 4 mass-market lagers and 4 mass-produced ciders[ix]. But the cider-is-listed-as-beer-conundrum wasn’t said anomaly, as the beer menu continues with the following options under draught beers:
Black Velvet 25cl – 3.70€ 50cl – 7.20€
Snakebite 25cl – 3.60€ 50cl – 7.00€
And just like that, without any forewarnings, my pommelier quest into the alcoholic cider-beer mixture had emerged back on the scene.
Excitedly, I showed the husband: “Look, look, look! You can get a snakebite here!” whilst tpping my index finger repeatedly on the printed word.
The husband’s reaction? “No.” followed by a “you are in Belgium and they have awesome beer”. He knows me well. So slightly tetchy, I order a Blanche instead, promising myself I will order Snakebite when the right time comes.
The Blanche was good – soft hazy light straw, creamy white head, gentle effervescence; on the nose citrus recalling orange and lemon, followed by a yeasty spiciness; on the palate clean and refreshing, herbaceous coriander and lemon and orange peel; light to medium bodied, medium finish with a lingering citrus and yeasty aftertaste – so I can’t complain, but the idea of a beer mix cocktail stayed with me.
“What’s a Black Velvet?” I ask the husband trying to appear as casually as possible.
He looks up from his phone on which he was planning our cycle route for the next day, and gives me the I-said-no-look I had last seen a few days ago when my 1-and-a-half-year-old niece didn’t get her way in the paddling pool and my baby sis raised one eyebrow staring right at her, daring her to be stroppy again.
Message received. A quick check online provides the necessary details regarding the mixture:
Mix one-part sparkling wine or champagne with one-part stout, serve in champagne flute[x]
I have to admit, I’m intrigued. Not interested enough to order the stuff this time around, I admit, but I’m firmly placing the beer cocktail on my “to drink” list.
And then a question arose: why do we mix beer with other drinks?
Granted, a Radler, or Shandy, on a hot day is bliss, whether it is made with lager or wheat beer, lemonade or juice. I personally prefer a lemonier Pilsner-based one, but orange and grapefruit, or even yuzu notes are amazing! I’ve ordered a Bitter-Shandy, I’ve drunk enough Cola Bier, also known as Diesel, to fill my nieces’ paddling pool, but then I grew up in Germany, and had a few Banane-Weizen, Cola-Weizen and the perhaps lesser-known Frucht-Weizen, mixed with fruit juice – I like cherry or peach. To this day I’ve never had a beer and energy drink mixture, but I would assume it’s like an Irish Coffee on steroids à la I’m drunk- I’m awake– I’m drunk- I’m awake… I’ll leave this to the crazy kids of today.
Germans have the most beautiful word for this mixed beer sorcery – Biermischgetränke, literally beer mixed beverages. And it applies to beer you mix yourself as well as store-bought ready-made mixture. Thought I’d just throw this information in for good measure.
Oh, and yes, I had a DIY snakebite in a pub, but I’ve never really spent too much time wondering why I drink or mix beer with other ingredients.
Thinking about it, all those mixtures complement each other: the dry character of a German lager plays beautifully with a citrussy note. The acid in Cola balances the malty sweetness of the Pilsner.
A yeast-forward Weizen already hints at banana and clove, so why not accentuate this with banana puree? Equally vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon of a Cola sing in harmony with the spices of the Weizen.
Granted a snakebite may not be the best example of this beverage harmony, but, that could be just me. And for the sparkling white wine and stout? Let’s just say I’ll cross that bridge when the time comes, but nonetheless, my interest in beer cocktails is piqued. And why shouldn’t we mix to our heart’s content? We all have our own preferences, who are we to judge?
If you don’t belive me, search for a Radler or Shandy recipe online and you’ll be amazed how many variations exisit. The Germans make it one way claiming it is a German invention, the Brits do it another and claiming the same – it is a refreshing low alcoholic minefield out there. And I’ve not even mentioned the various names this beer cocktail is known under. I’ll leave some recipe suggestions at the end to get you started, you can thank me later.
The Oxford English Dictionary – the definitive record of the English language[xi] may not have an entry for beer cocktails, but Germany, Great Britain and the beer drinking and mixing world certainly know better.
So, all together now
If you like oaky Blond Ales
And getting caught in the rain …
Prösterchen – Santé – Proost!
xxx
Black Velvet[xii]
Ingredients: Stout
Brut champagne or sparkling wine
Method: Slowly pour ingredients into chilled glass and serve.
Classic Shandy[xiii]
Ingredients: Bitter Beer (5% ABV)
Lemonade
2 lemon slices
Method: Drop lemon slice into glass, pour over the beer and lemonade. Garnish the rim with second lemon slice and serve.
“Never seen lemon in it! That’s some modern fancy thing, not classic” The husband, 2023
Diesel (aka Colabier)[xiv]
Ingredients: German Helles
Cola
Method: Mix both ingredients in a glass
German Radler[xv]
Ingredients: German lager, classic is Munich Helles, but a Pilsner works too
chilled sparkling lemonade
Optional:
1/2 lemon, sliced thinly for garnish
1-2 rosemary sprigs for garnish
a couple of ice cubes for added sparkle
Method: Pour half a glass lemonade, top with beer, garnish lemon and rosemary and drop an ice cube or two (optional step, not traditional)
Shandy[xvi]
Ingredients: ginger ale or ginger beer
beer, such as lager
Method: Mix both ingredients in a pint glass
Snakebite[xvii]
Ingredients: Lager or Stout
Cider
Method: Fill a chilled beer glass halfway full with cider.
Top the cider with choice of beer—preferably lager or stout—and serve.
[i] OED Oxford English Dictionary, beer, n. https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/16986?rskey=Q5PZtC&result=1&isAdvanced=false#eid [Accessed 14/07/2023]
[ii]OED Oxford English Dictionary, cocktail, adj. and n. https://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/35499 [Accessed 14/07/2023]
[iii] OED Oxford English Dictionary,Quick Search Results https://www.oed.com/noresults?browseType=sortAlpha&noresults=true&page=1&pageSize=20&q=beer+cocktail&scope=ENTRY&sort=entry&type=dictionarysearch [Accessed 14/07/2023]
[iv] Escape (The Piña Colada Song), by Rupert Holmes, released 17 September 1979
[v] Kokomo, by The Beach Boys, released 18 July 1988
[vi] The Mighty Boosh, Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt, 2004–2007
[vii] Brasserie Brouwerij St Feuillien, The St-Feuillien Brewery at the Belgian Beer Weekend USA 2023,published 27/06/2023, https://st-feuillien.com/en/the-st-feuillien-brewery-at-the-belgian-beer-weekend-usa-2023/ [Accessed 11/07/2023]
[viii] Their words, not mine.
[ix] Come on people, cider is NOT beer! Beer is NOT cider!
[x] BBC Good Food, Black Velvet Cocktail https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/black-velvet [Accessed 11/07/2023]
[xi] OED Oxford English Dictionary homepage
https://www.oed.com/
[Accessed 14/07/2023]
[xii]Difford’s Guide for Discerning Drinker, Black Velvet https://www.diffordsguide.com/cocktails/recipe/237/black-velvet [Accessed 14/07/2023]
[xiii] BBC Good Food, Classic Shandy https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/classic-shandy [Accessed 14/07/2023]
[xiv] Gute Küche, Diesel https://www.gutekueche.de/diesel-rezept-3014 [Accessed 14/07/2023]
[xv] Craft Beering, Radler Beer Recipe https://www.craftbeering.com/radler-beer-sparkling-lemonade/#Recipe-card [Accessed 17/07/2023]
[xvi] Punch, Shandy – The British-born original. https://punchdrink.com/recipes/shandy/ [Accessed 17/07/2023]
[xvii] Thrillist Food, Snakebite – Crisp and refreshing, updated on 05/01/2021 at 2:57 PM https://www.thrillist.com/drink/nation/snakebite-drink-recipe [Accessed 13/07/2023]
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