This is a guest post from my buddy Marty, who made these observations during his repeated trips to France. It’s a good read, and asks some pointed questions about how, even with two beer-crazy neighbors, France’s brew culture is relatively underdeveloped. -Mark

Work related trips to France have forced me to ponder a serious topic regarding beer.  That question is:  Why is the beer selection in France sub-par?  One might ask where I would get the time to look at the beer selection in France during a work trip.  I will answer that.  At every opportunity the French working force goes on strike.  The reasons are often unknown.  This allowed me the opportunity to go for runs in the afternoon and take a look at the beer selection in the evening.
Let me start by saying that I do appreciate sitting outside at a French café drinking a cold beverage.  The weather was perfect and the atmosphere was interesting.  I would also like to state that the beer available on tap is good but the selection from bar to bar is poor.  The same could be argued about a typical bar in the United States but you often find at least one or two random beers on tap if you feel the need to explore.
The typical selection at the bars and café’s we entered were:  Kronnenburg, Kronnenburg 1664 (tastes the same but is .20 cent Euro more expensive), Guinness, Stella Artois, and Leffe Blond.  I am not saying that any one of these beers is bad but this is pretty much all you get.  This forced me to ask the question:  Why?
I know that French wine from Burgundy and Bordeaux are some of the best in the world.  I have tried some and it is excellent, I guess.  I do not mind red wine but I am far from a connoisseur.   I am probably not even a beer connoisseur but I think I have a little more credibility in this arena.  The simple answer to why the beer selection is limited would be that the French have all this great red wine to drink.  Ladies and gentlemen, I say neigh.  Why would I then see everyone sitting outside with 10-12 ounce glasses of beer?  Everywhere.  Just about everywhere I went people were drinking beer or this disgusting liquor called Ricard.  These poor souls are left with such a limited selection.
Let us talk geography for a moment.  If I am not mistaken a country called Belgium is directly north of France.  I did not even have to Google that.  Why in God’s name would they not have more Belgian beers available at bars in France?  It is beyond me.  There are bars in America dedicated to Belgian beer.  Take the Public House in Boston for example.   Mark, I’m sure you could name 10 more of the top of your head.
The French do watch sports at the bar.  Mainly soccer and rugby.  The sort of have that part right.  But I am truly baffled why the beer selection is identical from bar to bar.  Again, it isn’t bad beer it is just extremely limited.

Due to their pastoral location and small operating scale, Keuka Brewing flies under most beer lovers’ radar. However, Rochester area BeerAdvocate beerfly guide John Schmitt popped in and liked what he discovered. Props to Keuka for elevating their game.

-Mark

Hefeweizen is the original summer ale
By Mark Tichenor and Bruce Lish.

Munich is a city of cobbled streets and grand squares. Medieval buildings (mostly reconstructed after World War II) dominate the town center, and the famous Munich beer halls loom over twisting alleys.

But just north of the city’s tourism and beer-swilling center sprawls the Englischer Garten, a huge municipal park offering green space for the Bavarians to do what they love best: hiking, sunbathing nude, and, of course, drinking Hefeweizen outdoors.

Indeed, all the cavernous beer halls of Munich have biergartens- sizeable outdoor areas for drinking in the fresh air. And as the weather warms, more drinkers switch from the heavy, malty Märzen and Helles biers over to refreshing, wheat-based Hefeweizen.

It’s the large proportion of wheat malt that gives Hefeweizen its light body and spritzy mouthfeel. The top-fermenting ale yeast, unusual in German brews, provides the characteristic banana, clove, and sometimes even bubblegum flavors.

Absent is the heavy malt sweetness so common in Bavarian beer styles, as well as all hop aroma and bitterness. By tradition, Hefeweizen is unfiltered, resulting in a cloudy complexion as the yeast swirls around in the lucky drinker’s glass.

The resulting beer is a delight to all the senses, with a tantalizing aroma, slightly prickly texture and unmistakable flavor profile that marries perfectly with a lazy summer afternoon.

Sometimes, we consume a little too much Hefeweizen and get into spirited debates about which is the best. No matter what anybody says, it’s unquestionably Paulaner Hefeweizen, with a darker russet color than most and more pronounced banana notes. But all the southern Bavarian makes: Ayinger, Weihenstefaner, Schneider, Hacker-Pschorr, Franziskaner etc, shine as exceptionally fine beers.

American brewers had a rocky introduction to the style; apparently it’s not that easy to recreate the result of 400 years of tradition within a couple decades. Wheat malt is a pain to work with and it’s tricky to coax the desired flavors out of the brew while excluding undesirable flavors and odors. The first wave of American Hefes frequently exhibited a ‘swampy’ flavor, the nastiness of which did nothing to dissuade American indie brewers from trying again and again. Damned if some of them didn’t start pumping out some pretty nifty Weizen.

Rooster Fish Hefeweizen from Watkins Glen is, to us, the American standout. Brewer Doug Thayer has created a beer that comes close to the Hefeweizen of Munich.

In the interest of padding this article out, we asked a couple of random Hefeweizen drinkers at the Tap and Mallet for their take on this style. “Fransiskaner is an all-year beer for me, but it’s especially excellent in the summer because it’s fresh and crisp. It cuts through any hot day,” says Ed Bizzari, a local sales and marketing executive.

His buddy, Dave Tillotson, only recently discovered the Weiss. “Having been a 25 year beer drinker, I feel like I’ve just discovered a new beer frontier. What’s great about these is you can turn a friend who’s not necessarily a beer drinker on to the style.”

Bruce is a certified beer judge and former commercial brewer. Mark owns a laptop and likes beer. For more on beer, check out the beercraft blog, updated regularly, at http://www.beercraftsite.com. Send your questions, suggestions, or comments to beercraft@rochester.rr.com.

It’s that time again! Come on down to Monty’s Korner this Thursday and sample beer from the Erie Brewing Company of Erie, PA. Brewery reps will be on hand to answer your beer questions as you sip your way to sweet oblivion. $5 gets you in, the party starts at 7:30.

-Mark