What beer are you drinking now? #4009

Good morning to all Advocates!
This weekend and the beginning of the week I was absent from the usual discussions as I participated in one of the two most important beer events in Italy ( https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/italia-eur-hop-beer-festival- 2023.674216/ ).
More than 250 beers were on rotation here.
From this list, as usual, I made one with a path to follow of 36 beers, marking a reserve for each beer chosen first and putting everything in tasting order.
Incredibly, in two days I managed to find them all and complete my list and I must say that it was quite satisfying.




I wanted to give an overview of at least the beers that most impressed me and which, in retrospect, I would recommend everyone to try.
I ask those who have the possibility to kindly combine the messages as I will certainly post more than two photos.

 

As for the path I followed, the first beer I drank that made me roll my eyes was the

Birrificio Altavia (Savona,ITA) - SCAU - Rauchbier (5.2%)
in my opinion the best Rauch of the Festival (I had put three on the list) I marked myself: copper colour, toasted and bacon scent, in the mouth: soft entry, light carbonation and splendid balance between sweet and smoky notes. The smokiness is ample, but not excessive: that's what I wanted to hear in a Rauch. Amazing.




More than the Rauch by Birrificio Bondai (Sutrio, ITA) - BEN FUMADE - Rauchbier (5.2%), where the smoky hints were lighter and more elegant, already in the aroma. In appearance it appeared much lighter and "cleaner" than the SCAU, while in the mouth compared to a full smoked one, you could feel the sweet honeyed/caramelous note accompanied by a lighter toast. Cereal finish.

 

Continuing the journey, after also stopping by Birrificio Italiano to hear what shape the legendary Tipopils was in (always sensational...), I wanted to try a festbier:

Hopskin - O' ZAPFT IST - Oktoberfest Marzen (5.8%)
My notes: beautiful, coppery colour/red highlights, compact foam, aromas of bread crust. Soft on the palate with hints of cereals and toasted bread crust. The finish is also soft and leaves a splendid cereal grist on the tongue, very pleasant.
After enjoying two glasses of Oktoberfest Marzen, I had marked one of the beers that impressed me the most on the list, so much so that I went and talked about it with the brewer who was present behind the taps:

Vetra Brewery (Varese, ITA) - BLACK COCCO - Dark Lager with coconut (4.6%)
It was born as a Nitro, even if a brief passage of CO2 from the system did it. It is a black beer, with brown reflections, creamy foam. In the mouth, classic sensation of stout with nitrogen carbide, soft but not excessively sweet taste: roasted, toasted coconut (or vanilla on impression). Slightly silky. Final in which a toasted taste remains in which the coconut reappears.

 

A moral obligation was to go and taste what in my opinion is the best Italian blache (the second is the FLEUR SOFRONIA by MC77 with Hibiscus flowers) and which is absolutely not easy to find.
Birrificio di Cagliari (Cagliari, ITA) - FIGU MORISCA - Blache with prickly pears (5.2%)
She is in extraordinary shape... If I hadn't already known her for years I would be surprised (and in love). In reality I only noticed that it was in a monstrous form: the body of a classic blanche, the taste pervaded by that delicate fruitiness which also lets a wild note shine through, creating a unique taste bouquet. That is... this must be tasted, simply calling it "blanche" is an understatement.

I drank several other things, among which the one deserves to be mentioned

Birrificio Amerino (Terni, ITA) - BLACKBERRY - Sour Fruit Ale (5%)
(Ruby colour, pink foam, scent of blackberry jam, light body, minimal carbonation. The sour/acid note is very light and elegant, cleans the tongue without dehydrating it, leaving berry flavors on the palate. Excellent, in my opinion, when put in right barrel could have an even more interesting evolution - something I reported to the guys at the brewery, leaving humility and discretion aside).


Then my list took me to the counter of what was absolutely my “beer of the festival.”

Maestri del Sannio (Cerreto Sannita, ITA) - SPACCARELLA 2022 - Fruit Sour Ale (5%).

Fresh hints of apricot on the nose as well as in the mouth where the sweetness of the fruit is splendidly smoothed by a spectacular woody roundness, the sour/sour note is of the perfect intensity so as not to erase anything. On the finish still woody hints on the tongue while on the palate still a taste of apricots.... So, I take my responsibilities: so far my favorite beer with apricots was the Fou' Foune. Now this spontaneous fermentation that took place in wood for two years has surpassed that lambic with fruit which has always been my No. 1 goal.
I'm honest... I was entranced by such elegance and pleasure of drinkability.

And to say that... I also tasted it

Klanbarrique (Rovereto,ITA) - FLOS ALBA (APRICOT VARIANT) - Sour Wheat Ale (5.7%)
Excellent, but less elegant than the SPACCARELLA 2022, the acid note is much more evident, even the wood gives a less soft and more "rancid" contribution (in the positive sense... fracic wood). A little more astringent and less fruity, still a very high level product.
Small note: Klanbarrique is a parallel project by Birrificio Italiano which deals with barrel aged beers and wood refinements. Even spirits are present in their offer.

 

It was an intense three days at those stands...


I end this mini-overview with two of the end-of-course beers that most positively impressed me:

Birrificio Liquida (Ostellato, ITA) -BLUE TORNADO - DDH Double IPA (7.9%).
Never drank it, but I know that this brewery is comfortable with hoppy beers.
As soon as it is poured, I am immediately struck by its splendid cleanliness: it is transparent, I expected it to be much denser and maltier, at least to the eye.
Instead, there are also malty hints in the mouth: tropical fruit (pineapple, mango) and summer fruit (ripe peach, melon). It slides down like a max 6% IPA. The bitterness is moderate and leaves ample space for the exotic flavors of the hops (like modern IPAs...). It is sensational how the heaviness of this style has been so well disguised: it is drunk with a unique simplicity.

I end this partial report with another of the beers that impressed me.

Birrifcio Amerino (Terni, ITA) - COCOMOOD - Peated Stout with coconut (7%).
Impenetrable black. Coconut and roasting scent (I don't smell peat). Full and dense body in the mouth: roasted and espresso taste with reflections of sweeter notes of coconut (and vanilla). the finish is soft, but not sweet, with a sensation of light silkiness... smooth. The peaty note is noticeable, but it is very hidden behind the toasted and roasted notes of coconut and coffee. Splendid balance.
I liked it more than the Barrel Aged Imperial Stout I've tasted since no alcoholic note emerges in this one and you can taste everything the beer promises to be.


Sorry for the linguistic imperfections, the space I took up and the many words typed on beers that only I drank...



Sláinte !
Cheers !