Franconian Beer Message Board
Mark's Homebrew |
| Posted by Jeff Romain on 2017-03-06 09:23:20 |
| Yep, befriended Michael in Colorado years ago. I was born in Indiana, actually. Well, I'd argue that German hops are ideal for saison and Belgian goldens, in general, so perhaps we can agree to disagree. While Styrian Goldings remain my favorite for Belgian ales, the Hallertau famaily, in particular, is very hard one to top if you ask me. But if you're looking for an American-brewed ale with German hops, yeah, it'd be rare to find one that I'd enjoy. The art of hopping seems to be something that most American brewers have very little interest in learning about. They manage to screw up anything with noble hops (or any hops, for that matter) by overusing them and bringing out the raw, resinous qualities-- two characterstics that leave my palate feeling repulsed. I am puzzled by the whole "craft" thing and murky IPA trend as much an anyone, so don't blame me. ;-) These so-called "hazy" IPAs are anything but hazy, as some have taken to calling them. This worries me. Beer with some haze can be an absolutely beautiful thing, as you know. But these beers are murky, and I've never known a murky beer to be anything but chalky/paintlike with a very muddled flavor profile and thus undrinkable. I hope there won't be a backlash one day, where beer drinkers become so disgusted by murk, that anything other than a crystal-clear beer will be considered an abomination. But in a land of duality and extremes, it wouldn't surprise me. I fear the next trend will be dry-hopped pilsners with American hops, or aging them in wine barrels or something like that; basically doing anything but brewing a traditional pils and then branching out from there, once the foundation of the style is understood. |