I just got done drinking a glass of Rodenbach, a flemish sour ale. The beer has an incredible profile; dark cherry tart, hints of Dr. Pepper, fresh cut cedar, grape popsicle, and a crisp, dry, and subtle chocolate malt finish. Really, a unique experience.
I have had beers in America crafted along these same lines before, but what distinguishes this beer and many others from their American counterparts is the cultural history surrounding the breweries and their beers. The Rodenbach brewery has a history in the Roeselare region of Belgium pushing on 200 years. Blind and yet swooned by beer, Alexander Rodenbach instigated his families new heritage, purchasing the struggling St. George brewery in 1820. Drawing influence from brewing methods used in England, Eugene Rodenbach began using wood to develop acidity in their beer in the late 19th century. This process focused the breweries attention and propelled them to define the style of beer known as a Flanders Red Ale.
In an age where technology almost always trumps tradition, the Rodenbach brewery has bucked modernization, continuing the rigorous process of aging all their beer in oaken vats, 294 in all. This classic approach allows locals to identifying the brewery as part of Belgian history they can lay claim to.
In a rather young, and yet thriving artisan beer culture here in America, we lack the sort of ideologies they possess in places like Belgium that allow them to see beer and breweries as cultural institutions. We did have a beer culture in America that paralleled our history as a nation, but most of this knowledge has long been forgotten. Prohibition ravished our sense of identity, pushing our local beer from something to be proud of, to a taboo, or even worse, sin.
Sure, we can go to our local market and find beer from around the world or the newest twist on tradition our local breweries have come up with, but that doesn't make the ideology seep deep into our being. With just about 30 years of the new found "craft" beer under our belts, we are just beginning to see the opportunities we have with beer in America. With places like Seattle, Portland, Denver, and San Diego fighting to claim beer as a part of their local culture, I feel we have much more in store for us as it develops the respect and maturity it is capable of.
[this was for you Hunter, since it seems that you are either my only reader or the only one who cares what direction my writing goes. cheers, brother.]
Friday, February 01, 2008
Beer as a Cultural Institution.
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3 comments:
Honored. This is exactly the kind of stuff that attracts me to brewing, the preservation of techniques for the sake of taste and quality. Interestingly enough, I participated in a beer tasting a few months ago, and the one beer I remember was from Rodenbach. It is called Grand Cru (Top/Big Raw) and it started out like you were drinking balsamic vinegar, but finished very light and perfectly sweet. It was the first oak aged beer I had tried, of course unlike any beer I had ever tasted.
josh and i recently shared a Gueuze Cuvée René, my introduction to the world of sour. it's a beautiful thing.
Not true, Bob! I read this stuff. I could do a better job on giving feedback, though...
Your perspective on the young beer culture in America is very lucid. Great insight, Bob.
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