Picobrouwerij Alvinne - Beers

Beers

• Alvinne Blond (6.0% ABV) A blond "Special" ale, this is brewed with Pilsner and wheat malt, crystallized sugar and English hops of the Fuggles Northern Brewer varieites. 33 IBU.

• Alvinne Bruin (6.5% ABV) A brown ale made with Pilsner and 5 specialty malts, light candi sugar and Goldings, Hallertau and Northern Brewer hops. 32 IBU.

• Alvinne Blond Extra (7.1% ABV) A dry-hopped strong golden ale. Brewed with Pilsner, wheat and caramel malts, crystallized sugar and English hops of the Fuggles, Target and East Kent Goldings varieties. 30 IBU.

• Alvinne Tripel (8.7% ABV) Brewed in the Abbey Tripel style, this dark gold ale is made with Pilsner, wheat, caramel and Vienna malts, light candi sugar and vanilla, and hopped with Fuggles, Challenger and East Kent Goldings to 33 IBU. This beer was launched in March 2005 at the Zythos Beer Festival.

• Balthazar (9.0% ABV) The first of three Christmas beers named after the Three Wise Men of Bible story. The choice of name reflects the popularity in Belgium of the pre-Christmas holiday of Epiphany, or Three Kings Day. Balthazar is a dark reddish-brown strong ale made spicy with the addition of coriander, cardamom and ginger. Brewed with Pilsner and 4 special malts, dark candi sugar and the spices listed above, it is hopped with Challenger and East Kent Goldings to 28 IBU. The spiciness is accentuated by the use of the commercial version of the Rochefort yeast strain.

• Melchior (11.0% ABV) The second of the Christmas beers. A very strong ale described by the brewery as being in the barleywine style. Made with Pilsner, wheat, Munich and aromatic malts, crystallized sugar and mustard seeds, this beer was released in 2005 at the popular beer café Pado in Tielt. Bittered to 60 IBU with Challenger and East Kent Goldings, it is fermented with a Belgian Strong Ale yeast.

• Gaspar (8.0% ABV) The third of the Christmas beers. An extremely bitter strong golden ale formulated to exceed 115 IBU. Brewed with Pilsner, pale, wheat and chocolate malts and hopped with Saaz hops, Hallertau and East Kent Goldings. Uses a Belgian Trappist yeast strain.

• Podge Belgian Imperial Stout (10.5% ABV) Brewed at the request of English beer connoisseur Chris "Podge" Pollard (a CAMRA activist and craft beer authority), this strong stout is black in color and has a rich, silky mouthfeel and slightly spicy flavor, but very low carbonation and no head at all "for the English taste". Made with Pilsner plus six other malt varieties, crystallized sugar and dark candi sugar, and hopped with English Challenger and East Kent Goldings hops. After taste-testing of multiple strains, the Wyeast Irish Ale yeast variety was selected for this brew.

• n Maurootje Lauwse Saison (7.0% ABV) This example of the Belgian Farmhouse Ale style began as a final project recipe created by one of Glenn Castelein's brewing students, William Roelens, who named it after his grandson Mauro, who lives in the town of Lauwe. The Alvinne brewers were so impressed by this beer that they added it to their lineup with Roelens' permission.

• Dertig (8.0% ABV) A limited-edition strong golden ale brewed to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Hotel Erasmus in Brugge and available only at the hotel restaurant's tap. The name means "thirty" in Dutch and Flemish.

In addition to marketing their products under their own names, the brewery also follows the Belgian practice of offering "label beers" (Etiketbieren) for pubs, restaurants and other establishments. In this practice batches of the beer are produced and given a special label with the name and design of the client. These are typically the same beer recipes as the regular line, merely issued under a different title. Brewer Glenn Castelein also teaches a noted annual brewing course.

Alvinne has made its brewing apparatus available for projects by selected acquaintances and others. This includes the "Kroegbier" line of brews made by the owners of the 't Kroegske craft beer pub in nearby Emelgem.