rare beers

[Ken Gargett]

from the gear patrol site.

 

 

A Taste of Belgium

A Drinker’s Guide to 9 of the Rarest Beers in the World

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Drinks By AJ Powell Photo by Henry Phillips

 

Named for legendary Belgian cyclist Eddy Merckx, The Cannibal is New York’s only first-rate purveyor of beer, meat and cycling gear. Some come in for a spread of lamb liver pâté, smoked kielbasa and steak tartare; others come for a post-rode debrief and a cocktail on the patio (owner Christian Pappanicholas’s primary aim is to “foster the NYC cycling community”). We went for the selection of more than 450 beers from around the world, in particular the selection of Belgian beer, which is one of the best in the city. Hard-to-find bottles line the shelves and a private cellar houses a treasure trove of once-in-a-lifetime brews.

“When I think about beers that will end up on my ‘five beers to take to the desert island’ list, a lot of these beers would go in it,” Pappanicholas said, referring to his collection of Belgians. They were on ours, too. During our tasting, Pappanicholas oroduced a rare and wonderfully aged bottole of Cantillon Classic Gueuze from 2012 — a bright and delicious beer from the producer of the best Belgian lambics in the world — as well as Pannepot Reserva and Trappist Westvleteren XII, two of the best Belgian quadrupels to hit a bottle. We drank them with chef Francis Derby’s duck rillettes and the chicken liver pâté and vowed to put in a few extra miles on the weekend ride.

In the Cellar

A Flight of Belgium’s Finest

Brouwerij Westmalle Westmalle Trappist Dubbel

Style: Dubbel
ABV: 7%
Tasting Notes: Plum, raisin, biscuit, some caramel notes

Learn More: Here

De Brabandere Petrus Aged Pale

Style: Belgian Pale Ale
ABV: 7.3%
Tasting Notes: Light on the palate, fresh, sour

Learn More: Here

Brasserie d’Orval S.A. Orval Trappist Ale

Style: Belgian Pale Ale
ABV: 6.2%
Tasting Notes: Some dark fruit, balanced sour note

Learn More: Here

KleinBrouwerij De Glazen Toren Saison D’Erpe-Mere

Style: Saison
ABV: 6.9%
Tasting Notes: Bright, Spice, Clove

Learn More: Here

Brouwerij Westvleteren Trappist Westvleteren XII 2014 Vintage

Style: Quadrupel
ABV: 10.2%
Tasting Notes: Sweet chocolate, hint of hops, alcohol warming

Learn More: Here

Brouwerij De Ranke XX Bitter

Style: Belgian IPA
ABV: 6.2%
Tasting Notes: Slight hoppiness, hint of sour

Learn More: Here

Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V. Bacchus

Style: Flanders Oud Bruin
ABV: 4.5%
Tasting Notes: Hint of sour, dark fruits

Learn More: Here

De Struise Brouwers Pannepot Reserva 2008

Style: Quadrupel
ABV: 10%
Tasting Notes: Plum, cherry, warming alcohol, some barrel notes

Learn More: Here

Brasserie Cantillon Classic Gueuze 2012 Vintage

Style: Gueuze
ABV: 5%
Tasting Notes: Bright, slightly tannic, green apple

Learn More: Here

[Zigatoh]

Not sure about 'rarest beers in the world', you'd think limited editions or those from specific years would come under that heading.

Westmalle Dubbel is the most obvious example, I can buy that in a supermarket a few minutes away -

http://www.waitrose.com/shop/ProductView-10317-10001-294335-Westmalle+trappist+dubbel

Another four I found on the first site I checked, Beers of Europe (admittedly the pannepot is 2012 not 2008...).

Don't get me wrong, good beers, but rarest?

Also 'Guide'? More a list really.

Erm... Sorry!

[Ken Gargett]

posted it just out of interest. rarest would be very hard to prove (i guess because so many beers would be so rare that they are effectively unknown and if these are able to be exported to the states, which i think they all were, then they can't too rare). guide or list hardly matters.

but i would suggest that the two issues you have are merely semantics to do with the headline. the writer would have had nothing to do with that. it would be some junior sub-editor (are there any of them left nowadays?) or possibly the site's editor. i know from experience how frustrating headlines can be and how they can have absolutely nothing to do with the contents.

i was more interested in what people thought of the actual beers - other than the Orval, i am not familiar with them at all.

 

[Zigatoh]

I think Orval and Westmalle are the only two I've had (a few times anyway, I think I've had Petrus and BAcchus too), I wouldn't say either are great examples but both seem popular and widely available.

Orval I find very hard to drink as it seems really sort of drying, like you drink it and your mouth dries up, which is weird!

[Blazer]

A few years ago the Wall Street Journal voted Westvleteren 12 as the best beer in the world. So of course I had to track it down and try it. It was an excellent beer no doubt, but best I've ever had, not hardly.

[TypicalSituation]

I think Orval and Westmalle are the only two I've had (a few times anyway, I think I've had Petrus and BAcchus too), I wouldn't say either are great examples but both seem popular and widely available.

Orval I find very hard to drink as it seems really sort of drying, like you drink it and your mouth dries up, which is weird!

Orval is a beer that changes over time. It's a very dry beer that is bottle conditioned with brettanomyces. Fresh, you cannot taste the brettanomyces (lots describe it as horse blanket, funky, barnyard, etc) . 6 months in you begin to taste it as the residual sugar is eaten by the brettanomyces. That barnyard flavor builds overs the years.

Orval has bottling dates on their bottles. Grab with different dates and try them side by side. You'll swear they are different beers.

[Ken Gargett]

49 minutes ago, TypicalSituation said:

Orval is a beer that changes over time. It's a very dry beer that is bottle conditioned with brettanomyces. Fresh, you cannot taste the brettanomyces (lots describe it as horse blanket, funky, barnyard, etc) . 6 months in you begin to taste it as the residual sugar is eaten by the brettanomyces. That barnyard flavor builds overs the years.

Orval has bottling dates on their bottles. Grab with different dates and try them side by side. You'll swear they are different beers.

thanks for that. mine must have been fresh as i recall no brett. it has been the bane of the wine industry and any hint will have the wine marked down. horse blanket is a good term. band-aid and mouse nest are two others.

i appreciate the suggestion to try the different dates but i know what brett is like. i will definitely pass. amazing they have not rid the brewery of it.

[TypicalSituation]

thanks for that. mine must have been fresh as i recall no brett. it has been the bane of the wine industry and any hint will have the wine marked down. horse blanket is a good term. band-aid and mouse nest are two others.

i appreciate the suggestion to try the different dates but i know what brett is like. i will definitely pass. amazing they have not rid the brewery of it.

The addition of Brett is actually intentional. They brew a clean beer and add it at bottling time.

I love lambic, gueuze, and American wild ales. Orval is still perhaps the best example of intentional Brett usage in a brewery.

[Ken Gargett]

6 minutes ago, TypicalSituation said:

 

The addition of Brett is actually intentional. They brew a clean beer and add it at bottling time.

I love lambic, gueuze, and American wild ales. Orval is still perhaps the best example of intentional Brett usage in a brewery.

some winemakers have told me there are two types (probably many types). one does as you suggest, grow and increase in intensity in the bottle. the other sticks to about the same as when it goes in. perhaps that might be a better choice. still, obviously many people like it.

[TypicalSituation]

some winemakers have told me there are two types (probably many types). one does as you suggest, grow and increase in intensity in the bottle. the other sticks to about the same as when it goes in. perhaps that might be a better choice. still, obviously many people like it.

There is a huge host of Brett. Brett lambicus, brux, and cloussini are the e typically seen in the brewing world.

Any Brett will grow. It is capable of eating all types of sugars. It is also very very difficult to get rid of. I do an immense amount of brewing. Usually 300 to 400 gallons a year. From the fermenter on, I have separate equipment for everything. Hoses, fittings, racking arm, etc.

The wine world hates it because even in as small as 4 cells, it can grow and propagate. Brett is excellent at scavenging oxygen, and a few breweries have tried bottling with the lowest limits of Brett in their beers to help prolong shelf life (the idea was the Brett would eat the residual oxygen in the bottle). But even at 4 cells in the sealed bottle, the Brett was noticeable before the staleing effects of the oxygen was noticed.

Anyway, sorry to be long-winded. I love brewing and especially brewing wild ales and have read more books, articles, thesis papers, and studies than I should admit!

[Ken Gargett]

37 minutes ago, TypicalSituation said:

There is a huge host of Brett. Brett lambicus, brux, and cloussini are the e typically seen in the brewing world.

Any Brett will grow. It is capable of eating all types of sugars. It is also very very difficult to get rid of. I do an immense amount of brewing. Usually 300 to 400 gallons a year. From the fermenter on, I have separate equipment for everything. Hoses, fittings, racking arm, etc.

The wine world hates it because even in as small as 4 cells, it can grow and propagate. Brett is excellent at scavenging oxygen, and a few breweries have tried bottling with the lowest limits of Brett in their beers to help prolong shelf life (the idea was the Brett would eat the residual oxygen in the bottle). But even at 4 cells in the sealed bottle, the Brett was noticeable before the staleing effects of the oxygen was noticed.

Anyway, sorry to be long-winded. I love brewing and especially brewing wild ales and have read more books, articles, thesis papers, and studies than I should admit!

not at all. interesting stuff, even if i come at it from a wine perspective. i know how hard it has been for some wineries to get rid of it. and how expensive.

[TypicalSituation]

not at all. interesting stuff, even if i come at it from a wine perspective. i know how hard it has been for some wineries to get rid of it. and how expensive.

Very true. Some wineries are so particular about it, they won't allow Brewers who use wild yeasts in the brewery.

Lambic Brewers use old wine barrels and inoculate them with wild organisms because they can burrow as deep as a quarter inch into the wood saves. A wineries nightmare is a brewers heaven!

[demer]

Lambic brewers also keep cats in the brewery and the windows open to help get some nice bacteria in the brewery. As stated none of those beers are rare but they are all world class.

[Likuid]

I'd say the only 'rare' beer on that list is the Westy XII as it's only truly available at the abbey as far as I understand (although there are a few online retailers now). There are so many beers out now that you will more likely never get a chance to try; Kentuckley, Kentucky Brand, Ann... (unless you are willing to pay BIG bucks)

[ChanceSchmerr]

I found Westy XII in a shop in Central Brussels last year.  Not cheap, mind...

[Westside Threat]

Westy 12 needs a lot of age to really become special.  Fresh its a fairly straight forward quad but with ten years its divine.  

[ChanceSchmerr]

1 hour ago, Westside Threat said:

Westy 12 needs a lot of age to really become special.  Fresh its a fairly straight forward quad but with ten years its divine.  

This is really good to know. I will put mine on the backburner then and leave it for a while.

Works for me, St. Bernardus Abt 12 satisfies every time when I thirst for a Belgian beer!

[Westside Threat]

On 11/30/2016 at 4:54 PM, ChanceSchmerr said:

This is really good to know. I will put mine on the backburner then and leave it for a while.

Works for me, St. Bernardus Abt 12 satisfies every time when I thirst for a Belgian beer!

I've got a  St Bernardus Abt 12 60th anniversary buried somewhere in my cellar that I totally forgot about until now!  It was released ten years ago, time to go dig it up.

[Fosgate]

I'm actually sort of surprised that an Eisbock did not make the list. I'm planning on making some soon as it gets cold enough outside.