Maltose Falcons
Home Brewing Society
brewing since 1974!

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Brew Style of the Month: Belgian Abbey Ale

by L. Grand Hydro

(Published in the August 1996 Brews and News)

FALL INTO THE TRAPP

A midsummer night's dream: I am a pilgrim traveling in Europe, in medieval times. The day's journey has been exhausting. I come across a monastery where I am provided lodgings for the night. One of the monks brings me a mug of beer, rich, strong and delicious, and all of my cares seem to melt away...

Sounds nice? You bet, and thus can we appreciate the appeal of the strong ales of the Belgian monastic brewing tradition, including the well-known Trappist Ales. Even through it's summertime, now is a good time to try your hand at brewing one, for at least four reasons:

1. These are strong ales, high in alcohol that is, and they have their greatest appeal as cool weather beverages. Since they take a few months to age into prime drinkability, start now and have your ale be ready by year's end.

2. The unique yeasts with which these beers are fermented are more warm-tolerant than most others in the beer world. If any kind of beer can be successfully fermented during summertime without resort to radical temperature control, it is strong Belgian ale.

3. There's an A.H.A.-sponsored club-only competition which includes these styles, called Belgian Blockbuster, which comes up in the fall--our club's entry is due in Charlotte, NC on December 2. We need your entry into the taste-off to determine the Falcons' hopefully winning entry into this competition.

4. Why not?

Let's deal with the Belgian Blockbuster competition for a moment. Here are the A.H.A. Style guidelines for the styles involved:

Belgian and French Ale:

a) Flanders Brown/Old Bruin--A light- to medium-bodied deep copper to brown ale characterized by a slight vinegar or lactic sourness and spiciness. A fruity-estery character is apparent with no hop flavor or aroma. Flanders Brown Ales have low to medium bitterness. Very small quantities of diacetyl are acceptable. Roasted malt character in aroma and flavor is acceptable at low levels. Original Gravity 1.044-56 (11-14 Plato), Final Gravity 1.008-16 (2-4 P.). Alcohol 3.8-4.4 % by weight, 4.8-5.2% by volume. International Bittering Units 15-25. Color 12-18 SRM, 30-50 EBC.

b) Dubbel--This medium- to full-bodied, dark amber- to brown-colored ale has a malty sweetness and nutty, chocolate, roast malt aroma. A faint hop aroma is acceptable. Dubbels also are characterized by low bitterness and no hop flavor. Very small quantities of diacetyl are acceptable. Fruity esters (especially banana) are appropriate at low levels. Head retention is dense and mousselike. O.G. 1.050-70 (12.5-17.5 P.), F.G. 1.012-16 (3-4 P.). Alcohol 4.8-6.0% b.w, 6.0-7.5% b. v. IBU 18-25. Color 10-14 SRM, 20-35 EBC.

c) Triple--Triples often are characterized by a spicy, phenolic-clove flavor. A banana fruity ester also is common. These pale/light-colored ales usually finish sweet. The beer is characteristically medium to full-bodied with a neutral hop and malt balance. Low hop flavor is OK. Alcohol strength and flavor should be perceived as evident. O.G. 1.060-96 (17.5-24 P.), F.G. 1.012-16 (4-6 P.). Alcohol 5.6-8.0% b.w., 7.0-10.05 b.v. IBU 20-25. Color 3.5-5.5 SRM, 8-15 EBC.

d) Belgian-style Pale Ale--Belgian-style Pale Ales are characterized by low, but noticeable, hop bitterness, flavor and aroma. Light to medium body and low malt aroma are typical. They are golden to deep amber in color. Noble-type hops are commonly used. Low to medium fruity esters are evident in aroma and flavor. Low caramel or toasted malt flavor is OK. Diacetyl should not be perceived. Chill haze is allowable at cold temperatures. O.G. 1.044-54 (11-13.5 Plato), F.G. 1.008-14 (2-3.5 Plato). Alcohol 3.2-5.0% by weight, 4.0-6.0% by volume. IBU

e) Belgian Strong Ale--Belgian Strong Ales often are vinous, with darker styles typically colored with dark candy sugar. The perception of hop bitterness can vary from low to high while hop aroma and flavor are very low. These beers are highly attenuated and have a highly alcoholic character--being medium-bodied rather than full-bodied. Very little or no diacetyl is perceived. Chill haze is allowable at cold temperatures. O.G. 1.064-96 (16-24 P.), F.G. 1.012-24 (3-6 P.). Alcohol 5.6-8.8% b.w., 7.0-11.0 % b.v. IBU 20-50. Color 3.5-20 SRM, 8-80 EBC.

f) White (or Wit)--Belgian White Ales are brewed using unmalted and/or malted wheat and malted barley and can be spiced with coriander and orange peel. These very pale beers are typically cloudy. The style is further characterized by the use of noble-type hops to achieve a low to medium bitterness and hop flavor. This dry beer has low to medium body, no diacetyl and a low fruity-ester content. O.G. 1.044-50 (11-12.5 P.), F.G. 1.006-10 (1.5-2.5 P.). Alcohol 3.8-4.4% b.w., 4.8-5.2% b.v. IBU 15-25. Color 2-4 SRM, 5-10 EBC.

g) Biere de Garde--Deep golden to deep copper/light brown. Medium to high malt flavor. Light to medium body. Medium hop bitterness. Light to medium hop flavor and aroma. May have light to medium fruitiness, esteriness. Lager yeast may be used. Earthy, cellarlike, musty aromas OK. Traditionally, a French-style beer that improves with some aging. O.G. 1.060-80 (15-20 P.), F.G. 1.012-24 (3-6 P.). Alcohol 3.5-6.3% b.w., 4.5-8% b.v. IBU 25-30. Color 8-12 SRM, 16-30 EBC.

There--can't say you weren't warned. Besides, it's nice to know that chill haze is allowable at cold temperatures. Now on to the Abbey beers of Belgium! These include the A.H.A. styles listed above of Dubbel, Triple and Belgian Strong Ale, but it's important to note that each brewery tends to have its own unique products, so identifying distinct styles is a bit tricky. These three are pretty well-known, through.

As a point of historical interest, the Abbey Ales (which include the Trappist Ales brewed by or under contract from Trappist abbeys, a legally-enforceable appellation in Belgium that has to do with who brews it rather than the actual style) date back to the days when the only travelers were pilgrims and the only hotels were monasteries. Of course, the beers served a purpose for the monks themselves as well as for supplicants. Most abbeys produced a beer for daily drinking with meals, of perhaps mid-1.040's original gravity, which can be thought of as a "single" in comparison to the Dubbel ("double") and Triple ("triple") styles at least where O.G. is concerned. The stronger, fuller-bodied brews played an important role of providing significant carbohydrate calories, and not just from the alcohol, for the Brothers and Fathers during the fasting of the Lenten season, when solid food was forbidden. Talk about being filled with the spirit! (Sorry, I couldn't resist that one...).

Keys to brewing Abbey Ales in the Belgian styles:

1. Yeast, yeast, yeast. Use an authentic yeast, and they are available from Wyeast, Brewers Resource, or some home brewers culture it up from bottle sediment. No other ingredient plays such a prominent flavor role in these styles, so feature it--give the yeast a broad, malty palate across which to display its wonderfully fruity-spicy flavors and aromas, and don't clutter it up with any hops. (see below).

2. Keep hops to a minimum. While Orval ale is something of an exception, in general these are beers dominated by yeast and malt, and the rule of thumb is to use just enough bittering hops to provide stability to the beer, no flavor or aroma hops. That's why the IBU numbers are so low in comparison to the high original gravities.

3. The Belgian malts which form the structure of these beers have a smooth but distinctively rich character all their own. For the darker styles, don't be afraid to use a variety of color malts, including some Munich malt and some of those weird Belgian malts like Caravienne or Caramunich, for complexity and character. They're available, they're good, so use 'em.

4. Candy sugar, a crudely-produced but very flavorful raw sugar, is characteristically used as a kettle adjunct, and provides a certain mineral flavor against the relatively soft brewing water. In the case of dark candy sugar for the Dubbel style, some caramelized sugar flavors come through that beer writer Michael Jackson astutely describes as "rum-like." Yes, many of the better brew shops, including the Home Wine and Beermaking Shop, now sell real Belgian candy sugar, so use it!

At last, it's time to brew some gruesome beer. From the 1993 Mayfaire Competition, here's the Second Place winner in the Belgian category:

"Abbey...Normal" Trappist Ale, by Paul and Carrie Wood

For 5 gallons:

Grains:

8 pounds pale malt

3 pounds Munich malt

Adjuncts:

1 pound brown sugar

Hops:

1.2 oz. Perle, boiled 55 minutes

0.6 oz. Golding. boiled 40 minutes

0.1 oz. Saaz, dry-hopped in secondary fermenter

Yeast: Wyeast #1214 Belgian Ale, from starter

Water: Studio City tap water with 1 teaspoon gypsum added

Procedure: Mash-in at strike 145 F. Adjust pH to 5.3. Raise to strike 152 F., rest 2 hours. Mash out at 168 F. Sparge with 5 gallons water at pH 5.7. Total boil time 70 minutes. Ferment 18 days in primary at 70-74 F., 12 days in secondary at 45-48 F. bottle condition with 3 oz. dextrose to prime. O.G. 1.080, F.G. 1.011.

For the malt extract-minded, here is the Second Place winner in Belgian ales from the 1995 Mayfaire Competition:

"Beer Abbey," by Steve Rittenhouse, Mar Vista

For 5 gallons:

Grains:

3 pounds Belgian Munich malt, 8 L.

1/2 pound domestic crystal malt, 40 L.

Extract:

6 pounds light syrup malt extract

Adjuncts:

1 pound raw sugar

Hops:

1.2 oz. Perle pellets, boiled 60 minutes

0.6 oz. British Columbia Goldings pellets, boiled 15 minutes

0.3 oz. Saaz pellets, dry-hopped

(Funny, I think Steve and Paul and Carrie were all reading the same recipe when it came to the hops!)

Yeast: Wyeast #1214 Belgian Ale

Water: tap water

Procedure: Steep grains in 1 gallon water at 153 F. for 1 1/2 hours, sparge with 1 1/2 gallons water at 170 F. for 20 minutes. Total boil time 60 minutes. Two stage fermentation at 65 F. Corn sugar for priming at bottling. O.G. 1.070, F.G. 1.020.

Well, that's all for now. Bring your Belgian Bockbluster (heh, heh) to the November meeting so we can do our taste-off and get the club's entry sent by 12/2/96. Until next time, go Trapp something and brew with it...

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