Strong Belgian beers improve your microbiome

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by DogbiteWilliams, Aug 2, 2023.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. DogbiteWilliams

    DogbiteWilliams Zealot (647) Mar 28, 2015 California

    navi2022, tobelerone and dcotom like this.
  2. dcotom

    dcotom Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,637) Aug 4, 2014 Iowa
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Wonder if Trader Joe's Vintage Ale (Belgian Strong Dark, from Unibroue) would have similar yeast characteristics. I'd rather drink kombucha than Hoegaardweiser.
     
    Patrick_OKC and DogbiteWilliams like this.
  3. DogbiteWilliams

    DogbiteWilliams Zealot (647) Mar 28, 2015 California

    Thanks for bringing that beer to my attention, however I do not know if it's available at the North Hollywood branch. The description and the 87 score pique my interest.

    While we violently disagree about Hoegaarden, I was born in Ohio and root for Ohio State even though I moved to Arizona when I was 7.
     
    beergoot and dcotom like this.
  4. unlikelyspiderperson

    unlikelyspiderperson Grand Pooh-Bah (3,966) Mar 12, 2013 California
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I feel like this idea gets recycled every year or two. Doesn't seem to have saved Belgian beer sales in the US unfortunately
     
  5. DogbiteWilliams

    DogbiteWilliams Zealot (647) Mar 28, 2015 California

    I will estimate that 99% of Americans have never read this article.
     
    Rug and beergoot like this.
  6. bubseymour

    bubseymour Grand Pooh-Bah (4,800) Oct 30, 2010 Maryland
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Need a home brewer fact checker…. Article Says that Belgian beers are fermented 2x unlike I other beers and the 2nd fermentation uses a different yeast strain? That doesn’t sound right to me, I mean I’ve heard of bottle conditioning but I’ve got friends that homebrew Belgian beers and that 2x fermentation process And introducing a 2nd yeast strain has never come up in conversation.
     
    beergoot and sharpski like this.
  7. DogbiteWilliams

    DogbiteWilliams Zealot (647) Mar 28, 2015 California

    "The researchers found the two yeast species, the common ale yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the cold-tolerant wild yeast Sascharomyces kudriavzevii, crossed to form “medieval super yeasts” that have been used by Belgian brewers in their signature ales for centuries."

    https://www.courthousenews.com/the-...nd the two,their signature ales for centuries.

    I have never home brewed in my life and never will, but it's reasonable to conclude that brewing with just one simple yeast strain will never produce the requisite Belgian flavors and aromas.
     
    beergoot likes this.
  8. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    So, I'm thinking that this article is based on the fact that Belgian sour beers often involve lactic acid bacteria (like in yogurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi), as well as Brettanomyces yeast strains in some instances. The author is a moron that made a blanket statement to include all Belgian beers, and misunderstood bottle conditioning as being fermented twice.
     
  9. jmdrpi

    jmdrpi Grand High Pooh-Bah (8,989) Dec 11, 2008 Pennsylvania
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    They also called a <5% abv beer "strong".
     
  10. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    So far as introducing a second yeast strain for bottle conditioning, some breweries will filter out the original yeast strain and use a neutral yeast strain to bottle condition both to keep other brewers from culturing up their strain and give the appearance of a yeasty brew (many German Hefeweizen brewers do this with lager yeast), or to use an alcohol tolerant strain that only consumes the simplest of sugars once the original yeast has pooped out (British brewers often do this, homebrewers use CBC-1 for this). Adding an additional strain that could eat sugars the primary strain can't presents the possibility of explosive bottles. Homebrewers will sometimes bottle with an additional dose of Brettanomyces, but it's only considered safe if the terminal gravity is around 1* plato or less and has been stable for at least a week or so, and even then, after temperatures have been slowly increased to try to get the yeast to eat as much as it can.
     
    beergoot and LAFreeway like this.
  11. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    I doubt this article would change anyone's minds. Especially since it is both poorly written and factually incorrect.
     
    beergoot likes this.
  12. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    Yep, some of the Belgian strains are quite special, and have a lot in common with German Hefeweizen strains. Some are their own thing altogether. Did you know that the Rochefort strain is more genetically similar to most English ale strains than it is to any other Belgian Strain? Did you know that the Duvel strain is a mutated Scottish strain? That many saison strains are thought to be red wine yeasts that have a mutation making them able to process complex sugars? Making a blanket statement about Belgian yeast in a bite-sized article is a disservice to the wonder of Belgian brewing.
     
    beergoot likes this.
  13. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    Also, with the exception of lambics, most Belgian styles can trace their modern origins to the early 1900s at the earliest.
     
    beergoot likes this.
  14. LAFreeway

    LAFreeway Zealot (669) Aug 2, 2023 California

    The second fermentation would produce co2 and bottle condition the beer. Breweries do often use a dedicated yeast strain for bottle conditioning; but the article has it backwards, the acid producing yeast would be used for primary fermentation and a lager or neutral ale strain would be used for bottle conditioning. This is one way to keep unique yeast strains proprietary and also prevent over attenuation and gushing bottles that may sit on a warm shelf for long periods.
    I’ve heard that the alcohol in beer nullifies any of the probiotic benefits of bottle conditioned beer which makes sense to me, but I’ve been unsuccessful finding good literature on that subject.
     
    beergoot and MrOH like this.
  15. DogbiteWilliams

    DogbiteWilliams Zealot (647) Mar 28, 2015 California

    "No" to all.
     
    beergoot and MrOH like this.
  16. unlikelyspiderperson

    unlikelyspiderperson Grand Pooh-Bah (3,966) Mar 12, 2013 California
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    MrOH and beergoot like this.
  17. Todd

    Todd Founder (13,518) Aug 23, 1996 Finland
    STAFF Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah

    MrOH, Rug, beergoot and 1 other person like this.
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.