Nut Brown Ale: How many contain nuts?

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by vortmaxx, Nov 9, 2013.

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  1. vortmaxx

    vortmaxx Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2010 Indiana

    How many nut brown ales actually contain or are brewed with any kind of nut or is it more a reference to color? Thanks!
     
  2. patto1ro

    patto1ro Pooh-Bah (1,998) Apr 26, 2004 Netherlands
    Pooh-Bah Society

    It comes from an old English song. Nothing to do with actual nuts:

    The nut-brown ale, the nut-brown ale,
    Puts downe all drinke when it is stale,
    The toast, the nut-meg, and the ginger,
    Will make a sighing man a singer.
    Ale giues a buffet in the head,
    But ginger vnder proppes the brayne;
    When ale would strike a strong man dead,
    Then nut-megge tempers it againe,
    The nut-brown ale, the nut-brown ale,
    Puts downe all drinke when it is stale.
     
  3. TruePerception

    TruePerception Initiate (0) Aug 30, 2013 California

    Color.

    Edit: And, I'm not sure that "song" came out before the expression. That sounds like more of a wives tale.
     
  4. dennis3951

    dennis3951 Initiate (0) Mar 6, 2008 New Jersey

    Does anyone know of any beer that is brewed using any kind of nut?
     
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  5. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,071) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    In the US, to get the Federal TTB label approval, a beer that contained nuts would be considered a "MALT BEVERAGE SPECIALTY - FLAVORED" since it falls under the TTBs rule that "...any class and/or type of malt beverage that contains or is treated with (other than those recognized in standard brewing practices) flavoring and/or coloring materials and/or nonstandard blending or treating materials or processes..." .

    As such, the label would have to note the use of nuts, usually with a phrase like "Brown ale brewed with hazlenuts" or "Ale with natural flavors added".

    There are a number of beers flavored with hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans and chestnuts (among others), the occasional "peanut butter" beer, etc.

    I checked the TTB COLA page and can't find a good example of a beer specifically labeled "Nut Brown Ale" that DOES contain nuts, though. Closest is usually something like Rogue's "HAZELNUT BROWN NECTAR" which is labeled "Ale with natural hazelnut flavor".

    Given the thousands of breweries in the US now, and the new fascination with "flavored" beers, that's not to say a Nut Brown Ale with nuts as an ingredient doesn't exist, but it should be so labeled according to the TTB regulations.
     
    #5 jesskidden, Nov 9, 2013
    Last edited: Nov 9, 2013
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  6. marquis

    marquis Pooh-Bah (2,301) Nov 20, 2005 England
    Pooh-Bah Society

    I had some Hazelnut Brownie recently brewed by Bateman's of Wainfleet, it was a very nice drink but IMO it wasn't beer! Would be a lovely way to finish off a meal but not to sink by the pint.
     
  7. BeerMeInStl

    BeerMeInStl Initiate (0) Jan 26, 2013 Missouri

    A St Louis brewery, Urban Chestnut, makes a beer called Winged Nut which is brewed with chestnuts.
     
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  8. tbaker397

    tbaker397 Initiate (0) Nov 9, 2013 West Virginia

    I live/work in Morgantown, WV and we have a uber small craft brewery here that brews a Nut Brown Ale. Right on the keg it says 'Brewed with real Walnuts'. For what its worth :slight_smile:
     
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  9. 82300sd

    82300sd Aspirant (295) Dec 24, 2012 California

    are you allergic to nuts?
     
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  10. patto1ro

    patto1ro Pooh-Bah (1,998) Apr 26, 2004 Netherlands
    Pooh-Bah Society

    You do realise that modern Brown Ale only dates from around 1900, don't you? That song is several hundred years older.
     
  11. Greywulfken

    Greywulfken Grand Pooh-Bah (5,731) Aug 25, 2010 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    W00tstout was brewed with pecans.
    [​IMG]
     
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  12. Danny1217

    Danny1217 Initiate (0) Jul 15, 2011 Florida

    Imperial Biscotti Break has almonds.
     
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  13. vnz

    vnz Initiate (0) Nov 9, 2013 Zimbabwe

    [​IMG] Southern Pecan
    Southern Pecan Nut Brown Ale is the first beer in the world, to our knowledge, made with whole roasted pecans. The pecans are used just like grain and provide a nutty characteristic and a delightful depth to the flavor profile. This beer is very lightly hopped to allow the malty, caramel, and nutty flavors shine through. The color is dark mahogany. Southern Pecan won a Bronze Medal in the 2006 World Beer Cup in the Specialty Beer category.
     
  14. tr9871

    tr9871 Initiate (0) Apr 14, 2013 Florida

    Lazy Magnolia's Southern Pecan is brewed with pecans, but I can't say they add much, if any, pecan flavor.
     
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  15. WTKeene

    WTKeene Initiate (0) Jul 13, 2013 New Mexico

    The 512 Pecan Porter is brewed with Pecans, and is absolutely fantastic. Lots of nutty, roasty flavor.
     
  16. sajaffe1

    sajaffe1 Initiate (0) Feb 16, 2013 Utah

    Lazy Magnolia makes a pecan brown ale, but there is not a whole lot of nuttiness. Abita makes ne as well, but I have no personal experience with one.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  17. TruePerception

    TruePerception Initiate (0) Aug 30, 2013 California

    Still doesn't mean that people weren't calling them "nut browns" before it became a style indication. I'm sure penman/bard didn't randomly decide to compare brown beer to nuts as the entire premise to the song without any cultural relevance. Could have, put probably not.
     
  18. TruePerception

    TruePerception Initiate (0) Aug 30, 2013 California

    Quote the Mosher:

    The beginnings of brown ale are lost in the mists of time. People have been brewing brown beers since the earliest days, but we pick up the story in about 1700,... The terms brown or nut brown had been loosely applied to beer for centuries, but it appears that the word didn't become anything like a style description or a trade term until the end of the 19th century.

    Edit: Page 159 of Tasting Beer (2009 ed.)
     
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  19. vortmaxx

    vortmaxx Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2010 Indiana

    yes, I am - I should have made that clear but I was in a hurry - First off, thanks EVERYONE for all of the replies. I'm having dinner tonight at the Flossmoor Brewery in suburban Chicago tonight and want to try the Pullman Brown Ale. The label says "Nut Brown Ale" and with my allergy better be safe than sorry. I of course will check with the restaurant manager .........thanks again for all of the informative replies! cheers all !!

    [​IMG]
     
  20. TruePerception

    TruePerception Initiate (0) Aug 30, 2013 California

    Best date I could find for that poem is 1812, but that is for a compilation that includes it.

    The British Bibliographer, Volume 2

    Edit: Wait, found it in the subscript. 1610. Close; could go either way.
     
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