beer style

Belgian Beer Series Part 4: Beer Menu Integration

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I developed a new categorization system for Belgian style beers. I’m following up with a four-part series to explain it in more depth. For previous articles in this four part series… one, two, three

What follows is a brief introduction of the Belgian style beers we’ll carry on the menu at Tryst Coffeehouse Bar & Lounge.  Each beer will represent a portion of the hierarchal system I developed.  Before we get into the beers, there is one more thing worth mentioning…

Friday Nights Just Got Awesome(r)

     Starting on March 1st we’ll be featuring all of the Belgian beers listed below for 33.33% off every Friday night from 7pm to close. It certainly won’t be the same $5 rail drinks Adams … Continued

Belgian Beer Series Part 3: Belgian Style Café Beer

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I developed a new categorization system for Belgian style beers. I’m following up with a four-part series to explain it in more depth. For previous articles in this four part series… one, two

In the previous section we talked about Belgian strong ale and some of the unique differences amongst those various sub-categories.  Now we turn our attention to a category that I’ve identified as Belgian café beer. belgiancafebeer

Belgian Style Café Beer

     Belgian cafés are famous the world over for their unique atmosphere and wonderful cuisine.  Not all Belgian beers are of great alcoholic strength.  These may sometimes become known as ‘food beers’ for their ease of pairing and drinkability.  From … Continued

Belgian Beer Series Part 2: Belgian Style Strong Ale

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I developed a new categorization system for Belgian style beers. I’m following up with a four-part series to explain it in more depth. To see the first article in this four part series go here.

In the previous section we talked about beer, beer style, and this new categorization system that we’re implementing at Tryst.  What you really need to know are the linking principles behind this system. Let’s take a closer look at the definitive Belgian style strong ales… belgianstrongale

Strong Ales

     Belgians have always retained a bit of a reputation for drinking very strong, high ABV beers.  ABV is a measurement of the alcoholic content or Alcohol By Volume in … Continued

Belgian Beer Series Part 1: Belgian Style Beer

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I developed a new categorization system for Belgian style beers. I’m following up with a four-part series to explain it in more depth. This is the first installment in the four part series.

Beer style is a funny term. We all seem to know what it means yet nobody could tell you exactly what beer style is. Lets looks at an example: three major beer nerds are given the same beer. One calls it an American IPA, the other calls it an Imperial IPA and the third labels it as hoppy American amber ale. beergeeks      Are any of these three nerds right or wrong? Probably not, with beer style comes a high … Continued

Belgian Beer Styles: A New Categorization System

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That’s right kids, I re-imagined a new way of looking at some old classics: Belgian style beers.  Words don’t do this justice, so I’ll just show you a graphic instead… belgianbeerstyle

My Defense

     If you’re not an Über beer geek, you’re looking at the above graphic and thinking to yourself “WTF?”  If you are an Über beer geek, you are undoubtedly trying to find shortcomings with my breakdown of Belgian style beers.  Truth is, I don’t think I have it all figured out.  Nobody does.  Beer and beer style are totally subjective in that no beer ever perfectly matches any beer style.  Beer style only helps us to better understand beer in … Continued

Limitations of Beer Style: Broken Concept of the Past?

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As you may (or may not) know, I’m in the midst of studying for the BJCP judging examination and the Certified Cicerone® examination.  I have to be well versed in beer style to pass either of these exams.  In theory, I can identify a porter from a pilsner much like a seasoned wine professional can identify a pinot gris from a cabernet.  That shouldn’t be too difficult; the real “professional” part lies in identifying the nuanced differences between a Southern English brown and a Northern English brown.  These can be quite hard to differentiate for an untrained palate.  I believe beer style and its rigorous study has a purpose in the universe.  In fact, I’ve been studying beer style since … Continued