To the Popular Mind
April, 1999To the popular mind, beer is golden or yellow in color. Like most stereotypes, there is a basis for this notion. From the Czech Republic to Japan, by far the majority of the world's beers are indeed golden, transparent lagers. Yet this is a relatively recent development in the history of brewing: Until 1842 and the invention of pilsner, most beers made were ales of various shades of brown. The color of beer came then (and still does today) principally from the color of the grain used to brew it.
Although wheat, oats, and rye have been used for centuries to make beer, barley gradually became the grain of choice in Northern Europe. For brewing, barley was processed into malt - kernels separated from the chaff, seeped in water to sprout, then dried with heat to preserve natural starches. When heated in water, malt produced the sugary wort that transformed by yeast fermentation became beer.
Malt was usually dried by the use of wood or peat fires, which resulted in brown malts that must have sometimes been smoky as well. The high -temperature kilning required for the production of pale malts came about later in the history of brewing by the discovery of coal, which started the so-called industrial revolution. Suddenly The consistent production of lighter-colored beers became fashionable.
The first known reference to brown ales in England, according to Ray Daniels and Jim Parker in their new book Brown Ales (Brewers Publications, Boulder, CO, 1998), was in 1741. The authors maintain that there was much confusion about beer terminology in those days: the same brew might be variously called brown ale, dark mild, or porter. With the invention of the malt roaster and high-kilned black malt by Daniel Wheeler in 1817, however, porters and stouts went their separate ways. Evidence strongly suggests that "mild" became the preferred term for brown ales in the years that followed, right up to the release of Newcastle Brown Ale in 1927.
But today's brown ales, which range in hue from medium amber to very deep mahogany brown, cannot really be categorized by color at all, since amber ales, strong ales, and barleywines have similar hues. The definition of just what is a brown ale is still something of a moving target. In general, however, although there are some notable variations, what makes these beers unique is their malt character - a blend of toffee and caramel flavors that sets them apart from less rich bitters and pale ales and more chocolaty, roasted porters and stouts.
As such, brown ales are very drinkable beers. With much more malt flavor than pilsners or pale ales, they are well matched to many foods, especially "pub grub" - burgers, chili, and pizza. It's no wonder that nearly every American brew pub produces a brown ale these days. They also are a good accompaniment to stews, meat dishes, even (according to Daniels and Parker) sushi and sashimi. The versatility of brown ales with food has no doubt guaranteed their survival. Even in the UK, where other styles like Porter have faced extinction in the last fifty years, brown ales have never really gone out of fashion, even if they were also known by other names.
While there are many variations of "best brown" today, most fall into three basic styles. Northern English Brown Ale, as defined by the archetypal Newcastle Brown, is generally deep amber to light brown, with a light malt and sometimes a slight hop aroma. These beers have some caramel and toffee flavors, and a generally dry finish with a light to medium hop bitterness (O.G. 1.045-50, 25-35 IBUs, 4.5-5% a.b.v.). Southern English Brown (or London Brown), on the other hand, is heavier, maltier and often darker, with lower carbonation and hops and a sweet finish (O.G. 1.035-40, 12-20 IBUs, 3.5-4% a.b.v.) American Brown ales (sometimes called Texas Brown ales), besides often using American (Northwest) hops, are more robust than their British cousins, with an obvious hop character (although it does not dominate the malt) and a dry, tangy finish. (O.G. 1.455-1.055, 24-45 IBUs, 5.0-6.0% a.b.v.)
Besides the ubiquitous Newcastle Brown Ale, one of Britain's top exports, other Northern English Browns often available in the U.S. include Vaux Double Maxim (oddly named for a machine gun used in the Boer war) and the elegant, richly malty Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale (O.G. 1.048, 34 IBUs). Southern Browns are best represented abroad by King and Barnes Dark Brown Ale.
The best-known of all American brown ales is undoubtedly Pete's Wicked Ale, which could be said to have defined the style for most consumers. It is a dark red-amber brew with a medium hop bitterness and a slight roastiness in the finish, Company founder Pete Slosberg says that American brown wasn't recognized as an "official style" until the category was added to the Great American Beer Festival competition in Denver in 1992 (when Pete's Wicked won a gold medal, naturally). In his autobiography, Beer For Pete's Sake, (Siris Books, 1998), he credits his success with the beer to the freedom and sense of experimentation brought by American homebrewers to the making of ales.
In the Northwest, there are now many brown ales to choose from. Pyramid's Best Brown is a good, well-balanced example of the American style that has been popular for many years. Hale's Irish StyleNut Brown Ale, recently introduced in bottles, is a dark mild "session beer" with a soft, dry finish. Redhook also makes a seasonal and satisfying Nut Brown with a toasty malt taste that is surely one of the company's best beers. Among the smaller breweries, Skagit Brown (formerly dubbed Steelie Brown ) from Skagit River Brewing of Mount Vernon, WA, is malty and rich in the Southern English style. Winthrop brewer Dan Yingling's Grandpa Clem's Brown Ale, for all its folksy name, is a sophisticated blend of malt and hop flavors in the Northern English tradition that begs for another pint.
Pike Brewing of Seattle has recently produced Bootleg Brown Ale, a soft, malty, Northern English - style brew with an American twist (Northwest and British malts, Bullion, Willamette, and Liberty hops.)
In Oregon, Full Sail's Nut Brown Ale is the benchmark Northwest American brown - deep brown, with a rich caramel flavor and a spicy hop bitterness. Introduced as a seasonal brew, it became so popular that the brewery now produced it year round. Rogue Ales in typically iconoclastic fashion has its Hazelnut Brown Nectar, an ale to which a hazelnut essence is added. This beer is based on a recipe from homebrewer Chris Studach in 1993, whose likeness is on the bottle, and uses Oregon's state nut (not a person, where the competition would likely be fierce). Elsewhere on the Oregon Coast, brewer Darron Welch makes a fine American Brown at the Pelican Pub & Brewery at Pacific Beach. His "Doryman's Dark" won a silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 1998.
Alaska's Midnight Sun Brewing Co. of Anchorage makes an easy-drinking Kodiak Brown Ale (somewhat belied by the image of the fierce beast on the label), which has light caramel and hop flavors. It is contract-brewed in "the lower 48" by the Portland Brewing Co.
Other good west coast examples include Downtown Brown, from the Lost Coast Brewery of Eureka, CA. Dark and chocolaty, almost a porter, this beer (strangely called "light brown ale") is fairly full-bodied but finishes smooth and satisfying. It has been the brewery's flagship ale from its first release in 1990. "People who tell me they don't like beer usually change their minds when they try this one," says Barbara Groom, Lost Coast's Master Brewer. With its funky Picasso-style label designed by Duane Flatmo, Downtown Brown has become a big hit regionally. The brewery also makes a raspberry brown and a Winter Braun strong ale.
For those interested in organic beers, there is now an organic brown ale available - Wolaver's Brown Ale. Contract-brewed for the Panorama Brewing Company by North Coast Brewing Co. of Fort Bragg, CA, (and the Goose Island Beer Company of Chicago for fresh distribution in the Midwest) it is a lighter version of the American style, with a clean, dry, somewhat spicy hop character. North Coast also makes Acme Brown Ale, a light, toasty brew that emulates the flavor of one of California's former classic brands.
Anderson Valley Brewing of Boonville, CA has just released their Bootjack Brown Ale on draught. Meant to be lighter and less hoppy in the Northern English style, it actually seems more American in character, with a fruity, hoppy nose, light to medium body with some caramel flavor, and a medium-bitter hoppy finish.
Aside from British and American style brown ales. Belgium has produced its own unique beers. The brown ales of Oudenaarde in East Flanders, best typified by Liefman's Oud Bruin or "Old Brown" and Goudenband (gold label). The latter is an incredibly complex, sweet raisiny brew, with a distinct sourness to match. Goudenband is made from a blend of old and young beers and emerges at a strength of about 8% alcohol by volume. The brewery's famous kriek (cherry) and framboise (raspberry) ales use brown ale as a base for the fruit, which gives them more malt flavor complexity than the famous Lambic fruit ales. Other Flemish browns available here include Roman Oudenaards, drier and not as strong as Goudenband, Vondel, and Corsendonk, a brown abbey ale.
In the Midwest, Goose Island Beer Company of Chicago offers their popular Hex Nut Brown Ale, available in draught and bottled versions. Kalamazoo Brewing Company is proud of their Bell's Best Brown. K-Zoo's head man Larry Bell tells us that his goal for Bell's Best Brown is a luscious "caramelly" malt flavor. This is a winter beer, designed to go well with the hearty foods of the season. It's a rich, satiating beer. Larry feels that this year's Best Brown is the best ever. Larry said, "As our brewing system becomes more sophisticated and our young brewers mature, this beer improves. This is the toughest of our beers to brew."
Another Michigan brewer, Roffey Brewing of Holland, MI, has recently begun offering a very tasty brown ale, at present simply named Roffey's Brown Ale. Current availability is in kegs and Party Pigs only.
New Glarus Brewing uses a sour brown ale in the Flemish style as the base for their famous "Belgian Red Ale". It's not available at this time, but brewmaster Dan Carey has made threatening noises about releasing this as a stand-alone product. We'll keep you posted.
If the best things in life are not to be seen as black and white, but shades of gray, the same philosophy ought to be applied to beer. As true beer lovers know, great beers are not simply golden or black, but also come in many shades of brown.
