White Weddings and Cherries in Beer

The White ale for the Lairdalee wedding is in the Kegs, and I know I promised pictures of it, but believe me, pictures of kegging aren't really that interesting. They didn't come out that well, anyway. Maybe next time.

I'll let you know how the White Ale went over after we drink it next weekend. (It was kegged 2 weeks ago, and I am just now getting around to writing about it. I know. I'm lazy.) Right now, it seems like it is going to be very good. It's a little dark, but I expected it, since I used "light" malt extract instead of "extra light." It will still be delicious, but it just won't look like a Hoegaarden.

In the works right now is another fine idea brought to you in part by The Thirsty Pilgrim. This time, it is an ale inspired by a tree on a farm in New Haven, MO. The bounty of this tree? Tart Cherries.

There are two major types of cherry beer that I can remember trying. The first is the kriek biers in Belgium, which are amazingly delicious, and have a style and flavor that you simply cannot duplicate without starting with a lambic bier. The tartness of the wild yeasts mixes extremely well with the tartness of the fruit, and the flavors blend amazingly well. The only real problem with making this kind of beer is getting a similar result using domestic yeasts. Of course, you can buy specific strains of Brett and Lactobacillus from commercial yeast producers, but that's cheating. Its result is also not as good as the real thing, in my opinion.

The second kind of beer I think about is hard to describe. It seems to happen all the time, though. The beer starts with a cherry flavor, and it seems like it will finish clean and dry, but then the malt and hops find it, and it finishes like a beer. The best are usually wheat-based beers, but even then they can be a little overwhelming for the poor cherries. I'm going to try and avoid this trap.

With a little meditation on the subject and some ruminations from the Thirsty Pilgrim, I've decided to avoid the trap of trying to create a lambic, and, more importantly, avoid the trap of trying to balance the beer aftertaste with the cherry flavor. I am trying to think of a way to have the powerful cherry presence, but make the beer finish very dry, with a clean mouthfeel.

The solution? Use two yeasts. I plan on brewing a clean American Ale, using the ever-reliable SafAle American Ale strain and a light malt bill. I'll use bittering hops only, to keep the hops out of the way of the cherries. the resulting base beer might seem bland by home brewing standards, but it's supposed to be that way.

The real flavor will come from the cherries, added in the secondary fermenter. I'll use a full 10 pounds for the 5 gallon batch, and it will be flavorful. In addition, I'll be pitching a champagne yeast to try and dry out the mouthfeel. With any luck, it will make for a full-on cherry flavor with a very clean finish.

I'll let you know how that works out for me.