Arrogant Blegian???
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Go for it!
That's what I was thinking as well.
smizak
Well-Known Member
I, for one, absolutely cannot wait for this Belgian yeast/American hop fad to end. I just listened to the BN podcast with Vinnie Cirlurzo of Russian River and he said the same. He described the two flavors as a "trainwreck" when they come together and I cannot agree more. I sort of feel vindicated because I thought my palate was messed up with everyone telling me how good these beers are. The Cali-Belgique tastes like burned rubber. It's just not right.
smizak
Well-Known Member
Oh and WTF is a Blegian?
weremichael
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I love visiting Vinny's booth at GABF every year, but I'm on the other side of the fence. I like playing with American hops with Belgian Abbey II (Wyeast 1762) fermented at around 67F (ramped up to 73F the last few days of fermentation). I get a really fruitiness with low levels of phenolics. I think that taste profile compliments a Simcoe/Amarillo hopped beer quite well. I can understand if one uses Wyeast 3538 or 3787 fermented in the upper 70s F. To my taste buds, high levels of clove and bubblegum really do clash with highly hopped beers (New Zealand, Asian, European or American hops).
The only thing that I don't like about playing with Belgian strains is that I find them lazier than my usual Pacman or 1056. Belgian yeasts can also require me to alter my typical hoppy ale recipes with less crystal malts (I love huge doses of Carastan) and adding more table sugar to the grain bill.
I don't know if IPAs with Belgian yeasts are a fad or not. I am not one to typically buy into following styles. I understand the heritage of styles and why they are a good baseline for experimentation. I've brewed some funky stuff while experimenting, but I've also developed recipes that are difficult to pinpoint into BJCP's Style Guide and they taste exceptional to my friends, my wife and me.
smizak
Well-Known Member
I'm all for experimentation with brewing, hell that's what has made Vinnie's beer famous. I'm just of the opinion that those Belgian yeast flavors clash terribly with American hop flavor and aroma. I agree it's more the phenolics than the esters too. There's a reason that it's peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, not peanut butter and mustard.
brewmasterjjfad
Member
Urthel Hop It and La Chouffe Houblon are great examples of Belgium beers with some American hops.
dunnright00
Well-Known Member
I was thinking more like the '09 Vertical Epic.
Martin2D
Well-Known Member
Houblon Chouffe is an awesome awesome beer.
I ended up not using the Belgian yeast cake. I am all for trying something. The biggest reason that i did not do it is that the tipple still has some more fermentation to do. The other reason is that I think the Chinook hops would have been too overpowering anyway and not made a good match.
I like doing experiments like this with recipes that I have made a few times because t it lets you see the difference that one ingredient makes. Even if the experimental batch comes out odd you will know what it is in the original recipe that made it good.
I like doing experiments like this with recipes that I have made a few times because t it lets you see the difference that one ingredient makes. Even if the experimental batch comes out odd you will know what it is in the original recipe that made it good.
