BJCP class week 7
This past week the class covered the Amber Hybrid and Belgian ale styles. I forget now but at the time, I remember contemplating whether or not I should go to class. I am very glad that I decided to go as the Belgian ale portion of the class was really enjoyable. Talk about complexities! There’s a lot of beer going on in the Belgian ales. You could, literally, take an entire college semesters going over just Belgian ales. While there are a few broad categories, the sheer number of variations within those categories is staggering.
We’re talking about a country where beer is as much a part of the national diet as soda is for the United States. Sure, Germany has long been known for being the “beer capital” of the world but I think the ales that Belgium produces have so much going on and are consistent. There’s the subdued malts and hop flavors, the fruity esters and spiciness, the aromas and flavors… wow. Good stuff.
I know I used to do do individual beer reviews but they took a lot of time and effort. I get… reviewed out by the end of class and by then, I just really want to crack open a cold one for the sake of enjoyment and not because I have to work on it. I’ll bring the individual reviews back after the BJCP classes are over but for now, here are my tasting notes from class.
| Style (Example) | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Mouthfeel | Overall Impression | Total |
| 7A North German Altbier (Alaskan Amber) |
10/12 | 3/3 | 14/20 | 3/5 | 6/10 | 36/50 |
| Notes: I remember writing about my own homebrewed altbier and calling it a Düsseldorf altbier. Well, I think the recipe I’m using is much closer to the North German altbier style and the Düsseldorf style. At this point, it’s all semantics and I can’t wait to bottle ‘em and crack them open. The commercial example we used wasn’t a true North German or Düsseldorf but I reviewed it against the North German style anyway. I knocked it down in the “flavor” category because the beer had subdued malt flavors when i was expecting more. The almost non-existent hop flavor or bitterness also caused me to take off points. The beer was also flat and I believe that affected it’s smoothness so I took off additional point there as well. Both those factors contributed to my overall lack of interest in this particular example. |
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| 7B California Common (Anchor Steam) |
10/12 | 3/3 | 17/20 | 5/5 | 7/10 | 42/50 |
| Notes: What I find incredibly funny about this style of beer is that there’s really only one commercial manufacturer and that’s Anchor Steam. Technically, the style of beer Anchor Steam beer brews is called steam beer and they’re the only ones able to use that name because they trademarked it, or something. To get around that, the California Common style was created. My allergies were affecting my nosebuds from working properly but this style is very similar to an American Pale or Amber. The main difference is the woody, rustic and/or minty characteristics you should find in the aroma and flavor of the beer. |
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| 18A Belgian Blonde (Leffe Blonde) |
11/12 | 3/3 | 18/20 | 5/5 | 9/10 | 46/50 |
| Notes: I find myself pleasantly surprised at how highly I rated this beer. Leffe Blonde is part of the “Best of Belgium” beer pack sold at Costco sometimes. The other two that make up the pack are Hoegaarden and Stella Artois. This beer has a lot of good things going for it. Subdued, bready malt aromas and flavors, floral, spicy and peppery hop aroma and flavors with very low hop bitterness. Lots of fruit on the nose and notes of apples and pears in the flavor. Effervescent, light and almost creamy in body. I would pour this out into a glass and let it warm up before consuming to let all the goodness come forth. |
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| 18B Belgian Dubbel (Grimbergen Dubbel) |
10/12 | 3/3 | 18/20 | 4/5 | 8/10 | 43/50 |
| Notes: Another great tasting Belgian ale. Unlike the blonde, this is a very clear, brown beer with a tan head. I wasn’t getting much hop aroma or flavor and bitterness but more grainy and bready malt characteristics with undertones of caramel and dark fruit in both aroma and flavor. There was some puckering in the finish that may have come from lactic acid (not good for the style) that I enjoyed. I also noticed some alcohol warmth as i drank. |
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| 18C Belgian Tripel (New Belgian Trippel) |
10/12 | 3/3 | 17/20 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 41/50 |
| Notes: As you go up the scale, one would expect the tripel to be darker and maltier than the dubbel but that just isn’t the case. The tripel we tasted had a lot of phenolic peppery spiciness in the nose with a light, biscuity malt profile. You also get a little bit of alcohol in the nose. These aromas are echoed in the flavor of the beer as well. |
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| 18D Belgian Golden Strong (North Coast Pranqster) |
11/12 | 3/3 | 18/20 | 5/5 | 9/10 | 46/50 |
| Notes: What an excellent example of the style. As I compared the sample I was tasting to the standard in the guideline, I couldn’t help but think about how this beer was meeting the criteria almost exactly. This is a beer that has soft malt and perfumey hop aromas going on. I thought the dubbel had a lot of fruit in the nose but I think this style trumps that. This beer tastes like it smells. |
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| 18E Belgian Dark Strong Ale (Homebrew) |
10/12 | 3/3 | 17/20 | 3/5 | 8/10 | 41/50 |
| Notes: Whenever I see a “dark” version of something, I get excited. Whenever I see “dark”, I expect good things to happen. In beer styles, that means a level of malt complexity that isn’t apparent or there in the regular version. In the Begian Dark Strong Ale, you have a rich, grainy, toasty malt character with caramel and dark fruit notes. The hop character is spicy, woody with the yeasts adding dark fruit esters to both the aroma and flavor. All of these from a homebrew! How much more exciting does that get! The only area I marked this beer down in was the “mouthfeel” section where I felt the alcohol was a little too noticeable. Tame in comparison to other styles, but strong for this one. |
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| 18E Belgian Dark Strong Ale (Chimay-Blue Label) |
7/12 | 2/3 | 14/20 | 3/5 | 5/10 | 31/50 |
| Notes: There comes a moment in everyone’s life where you have to pause and take inventory of yourself and your beliefs. A time where you have to stop and reevaluate everything you thought you knew. I had one of those moments this night. Drinking Chimay Blue has filled me with dread and an aching emptiness that I have never felt before when drinking a beer. I am completely and utter devastated by this beer. Sure, you could call me melodramatic, but you don’t feel this kind of disappointment until you’ve been let down by something you really love. I have often put Chimay in my pantheon of great beers but they have let me down tonight. The aromas were lacking, the appearance off and the flavor was uninspiring. Compared to John’s homebrew, I actually thought the Chimay was another homebrew, poorly executed. Hopefully I won’t be let down and this was an isolated case. I can’t help but think of how awkward I’ll be feeling when I walk into BevMo and see Chimay Blue sitting there on a shelf while I have a bottle of Rochefort 8 in my basket. Sure, we’ll exchange pleasantries, catch up a little and eventually part ways but not before vowing to “call each other next week and do lunch”. We both know the calls will never be made and that our lunches will be spent in the company of others. Still, I can’t help but yearn for the happier times. At least we’ll always have Fresno. |
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