Category 7, Amber Hybrid Beer

This Classes Beers

(The below descriptions are from the May 2008 version of the style guide, For the latest style information always check the Style Center)

Bock

7A. Northern German Altbier

Please get your sample of 7A. Northern German Altbier ( Alaskan Amber ) and evaluate it. Remember, first pass without the style guide, and then score this beer. IMHO scoring these beers without the style guide is critical to your learning curve and it better prepares you for the tasting portion of the exam. After you have scored the beer check the style guide and see if you would have changed anything, not during or before. You have a pretty good idea of what these, and other, styles are about.

Now listen to a Master Judge as he/she evaluates this same beer.

Note: even though it is the same beer, it is NOT from the same bottle and may exhibit some different characteristics than yours. Also, we all have different palets, and perceive different flavors at different thresholds so your perceptions may be somewhat different than that of our judge. It is important to your learning process to evaluate and score this beer before you listen. Save some beer to evaluate along with our Master after you have performed your own evaluation.

Now Download the Masters Scoresheet and compare to your own.

Listen to 7A North German Altbier - The Jamil Show 08-11-08 on The Brewing Network

Overall Impression: A very clean and relatively bitter beer, balanced by some malt character. Generally darker, sometimes more caramelly, and usually sweeter and less bitter than Düsseldorf Altbier.

Comments: Most Altbiers produced outside of Düsseldorf are of the Northern German style. Most are simply moderately bitter brown lagers. Ironically “alt” refers to the old style of brewing (i.e., making ales), which makes the term “Altbier” somewhat inaccurate and inappropriate. Those that are made as ales are fermented at cool ale temperatures and lagered at cold temperatures (as with Düsseldorf Alt).

Ingredients: Typically made with a Pils base and colored with roasted malt or dark crystal. May include small amounts of Munich or Vienna malt. Noble hops. Usually made with an attenuative lager yeast.

7B. California Common Beer

Please get your sample of 7B. California Common Beer (Anchor Steam), and evaluate it. Remember, first pass without the style guide, and score this beer.

Now listen to a Master Judge as he/she evaluates this same beer.
It is important to your learning process to evaluate and score this beer before you listen. Save some beer to evaluate along with our Master after you have performed your own evaluation.

Download the Masters Scoresheet and compare to your own.

Listen to 7B California Common - The Jamil Show 07-31-06 on The Brewing Network

Overall Impression: A lightly fruity beer with firm, grainy maltiness, interesting toasty and caramel flavors, and showcasing the signature Northern Brewer varietal hop character.

Comments: This style is narrowly defined around the prototypical Anchor Steam example. Superficially similar to an American pale or amber ale, yet differs in that the hop flavor/aroma is woody/minty rather than citrusy, malt flavors are toasty and caramelly, the hopping is always assertive, and a warm-fermented lager yeast is used.

History: American West Coast original. Large shallow open fermenters (coolships) were traditionally used to compensate for the absence of refrigeration and to take advantage of the cool ambient temperatures in the San Francisco Bay area. Fermented with a lager yeast, but one that was selected to thrive at the cool end of normal ale fermentation temperatures.

Ingredients: Pale ale malt, American hops (usually Northern Brewer, rather than citrusy varieties), small amounts of toasted malt and/or crystal malts. Lager yeast, however some strains (often with the mention of “California” in the name) work better than others at the warmer fermentation temperatures (55 to 60?F) used. Note that some German yeast strains produce inappropriate sulfury character. Water should have relatively low sulfate and low to moderate carbonate levels.

7C. Düsseldorf Altbier

This style is also significant as a potential style for the Three Cities Question.

Please get your sample of 7C. Düsseldorf Altbier (Zum Uerige), and evaluate it. Remember, first pass without the style guide, and score this beer.

Now listen to a Master Judge as he/she evaluates this same beer.
It is important to your learning process to evaluate and score this beer before you listen. Save some beer to evaluate along with our Master after you have performed your own evaluation.

Download the Masters Scoresheet and compare to your own.

Listen to 6C, 7C Kolsch and Dusseldorf Altbier - The Jamil Show 06-19-06 on The Brewing Network

Overall Impression: A well balanced, bitter yet malty, clean, smooth, well-attenuated amber-colored German ale.

Comments: A bitter beer balanced by a pronounced malt richness. Fermented at cool ale temperature (60-65?F), and lagered at cold temperatures to produce a cleaner, smoother palate than is typical for most ales. Common variants include Sticke (“secret”) alt, which is slightly stronger, darker, richer and more complex than typical alts. Bitterness rises up to 60 IBUs and is usually dry hopped and lagered for a longer time. Münster alt is typically lower in gravity and alcohol, sour, lighter in color (golden), and can contain a significant portion of wheat. Both Sticke alt and Münster alt should be entered in the specialty category.

History: The traditional style of beer from Düsseldorf. “Alt” refers to the “old” style of brewing (i.e., making top-fermented ales) that was common before lager brewing became popular. Predates the isolation of bottom-fermenting yeast strains, though it approximates many characteristics of lager beers. The best examples can be found in brewpubs in the Altstadt (“old town”) section of Düsseldorf.

Ingredients: Grists vary, but usually consist of German base malts (usually Pils, sometimes Munich) with small amounts of crystal, chocolate, and/or black malts used to adjust color. Occasionally will include some wheat. Spalt hops are traditional, but other noble hops can also be used. Moderately carbonate water. Clean, highly attenuative ale yeast. A step mash or decoction mash program is traditional.