While evaluating a beer, it’s important to keep the brewer's intentions in mind. If the brewer’s goal is to create something light and mildly sweet, you can’t bash it for lacking hop bitterness and tons of flavor. There’s a lot of domestic beer bashing in the craft beer world, of which I am plenty guilty. But that’s more about bashing a giant corporation with a death grip on the market than how the beer they produce tastes. America’s taste buds may be shifting toward more flavorful craft beer, but that doesn't mean adjunct-filled beer doesn't have a place.
My typical drinking style is having between 1 and 3 flavorful craft brews in a sitting. But if you’re at a party and you're in for a session, I guarantee you’re not going to want to sling back double IPAs all night. It's hard on the taste buds, and on the wallet. Plus, there’s nothing worse than bringing really good beer to a party and having it disappear from the fridge before you can grab a second bottle. It’s fine if you intended to share, but it still makes that bud light you have to grab instead taste so… untasty.
Speaking of brewer's intentions, it's absolutely necessary that you drink from beer specific glassware if you want the best experience from your beer. Each style delivers best from a specific matching glass, and some brewers even create a glass style for a specific beer. The best beer bars will only serve beer in the appropriate branded glass, and some won't serve you that beer if they don't have any matching glasses available at the time. If you're interested in why using proper beer glassware is so important, check this out.
I mentioned a few posts ago that I love thrift shopping. Today I was out looking for a halloween costume and came across a Leffe glass. Exciting! Good thing my next stop was a thrift store right next to a liquor store. I grabbed a Leffe to enjoy later in my new Leffe glass before continuing my costume hunt, which was successful. Time to celebrate!
BG Poured from an 11.2 fl oz bottle (330ml) into a Leffe chalice, 6.6%ABV, Best before 11/17/2015
A Straw in color and brilliantly clear. Two fingers of snow white foam rest on top with great retention. The lacing is even and coats the glass like frost. It’s quite beautiful.
A Bubblegum, uncooked bread dough, wildflowers, light berries
T Honey, more bubblegum, cracked wheat, yeast phenols, clove, a dash of nutmeg, a little bit of adjunct
M Medium carbonation, light body, some creaminess
A Sweet honey and the slightest hint of bitterness
C This is an ideal blonde. There’s not a lot going on here, but there’s enough to keep me interested. I can’t say it would be my go-to beer, but I would certainly consider it after a few stronger Belgians when I want to give my taste buds a rest. There’s a lot of sweet bubblegum character from the yeast, and a little breadiness, too. Did I mention how pretty it looks in its own specific glass?
FP Lightly fried mozzarella sticks with marinara dipping sauce, chocolate covered pretzels, squid salad with herb vinaigrette
Last thing - it's pronounced "Leff". The second "e" is silent. =)
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