Belgian in Bangalore Wit

Posted by mike on Jul 28, 2010 in Blog | 0 comments

Witbier is a barley/wheat, top-fermented beer brewed mainly in Belgium. It is unfiltered and hazy at serving temperatures due to suspended yeast and wheat proteins. It is a descendant of medieval beers that were not brewed with hops, but instead flavored with a blend of spices and herbs called “gruit”. The gruit of modern witbier contains mainly coriander, orange, bitter orange and hops. The taste is lightly hoppish and somewhat sour, making for a refreshing summer beer.

The Folksy Brews Belgian in Bangalore Wit is an amber Belgian wit flavored with Indian spices. I started with the traditional coriander and hops but then also added ginger, cardamom and rose hips.

Appearance – Medium amber in color and rather hazy. Light on carbonation with a thin, short-lived, creamy white head.

Smell – Cardamom and rose hips are certainly upfront with ginger and citrus behind it. Good Belgian wit aroma and solid yeast character.

Taste – The cola and citrus from the cardamom and coriander is more prominent in the taste than the ginger and rose hips. Pretty dry but with just a hint of sweetness and malt.

Mouthfeel – Good prickly carbonation, medium-light body.

Drinkability & Notes – As this beer aged the spices have become more integrated into the malt and yeast character, too bad it didn’t last long enough to see how it would age further. Will be brewing up a slightly improved batch this weekend.

Photo credit: planetc1