Brewing Rustic French Ales
The modern tradition of French bière de garde was a reboot of an older, more rustic beer dating to the early twentieth century, also called, confusingly, bière de garde. That earlier line may have been severed, but memory of it was not. As Belgian saisons — themselves barely rescued from extinction — began to revive themselves across the border in Belgium, brewers at breweries such as Brasserie Thiriez and Brasserie Au Baron wondered about France’s farmhouse history. Was there a way to reconstruct the French farmhouse tradition without just importing it wholesale from Belgium?
The result was a melding of old and new. The French tradition of laying down strong ales in a manner similar to lager had become a point of national pride (there was even talk of an appellation d’origine contrôlée), and this element is a fixture of brewing in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France. What changed was the emphasis on yeast character and a more florid flavor palate. Rustic French ales are fermented warmer with wilder yeasts than traditional bières de garde to produce layered flavors of esters, phenols, and funkiness. French brewers have also rediscovered their love of herbs and spices, as well as rustic grains. These hybrid bières de garde are not as offbeat as Belgian saisons; they still aim for the smoothness and balance of the older ale-brewing tradition. They have taken a middle way, a road that may well lead to the future.
Understanding Rustic French Ales
If rustic French ales are just a move back toward older forms of farmhouse ales, aren’t they just a version of the Belgian saison? Yes and no. Brewers such as Daniel Thiriez of Brasserie Thiriez in the town of Esquelbecq admire the Belgian tradition enormously. Indeed, the French are enamored of the beers of their smaller neighbor, sometimes to the exclusion of their own ales. Daniel Thiriez cites saisons, abbey ales, and gueuze as his central influences.
But brewers of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais see themselves as very much part of the French tradition. Even when they don’t brew classic French bières de garde, brewers acknowledge their debt to them. Hence rustic French ales are typically conditioned (or garded) at cool temperatures. This has the effect of smoothing the beers and softening the edges. The French seem more interested in hops than the Belgians as well. Together, the slightly less vivid yeast expression and more insistent hopping place them closer to the American palate. If you’re looking for the “French” in a saison, experiment with cool conditioning times. Thiriez recommends a relatively short period, but aging a month or more will produce subtly different results.
Thiriez’s range includes a line of hoppy, characterful farmhouse ales. In addition to sporting herbal bouquets, they are earthy and etched with a trace of lemony-to-lavender esters and just a hint of wild funk. They seem the very definition of “farmhouse” but feature approachable flavors that give them broad appeal. Breweries in the United States have agreed, and although everyone acknowledges Dupont’s primacy in the world of saisons, Thiriez’s are actually the kind of rustic beers American brewers more often emulate. When you see a “saison” on the menu at your local brewery, it may owe a greater debt to Thiriez than to Dupont.
Thiriez’s Yeast
Daniel Thiriez is a name known to very few Americans, yet he has nevertheless had substantial influence on American brewing. His yeast was the source of Wyeast’s 3711 strain, one of the first commercial saison strains available, and one that brewers love for its familiar citrus esters. It has changed somewhat since it was cultured by Wyeast, and Thiriez points out that the commercial strain is hugely attenuative, unlike his. (Some brewers have reported seeing their saisons approach 1.000 terminal gravity.)
He nevertheless recognizes it. “Some flavors may be rather close,” he acknowledges. As Americans have developed a taste for saison, they are more attracted to the esters that are like those in the 3711 strain than in Dupont’s much funkier phenolic yeast.
Brewing A Rustic French Ale
Rustic French ales form a continuum, not a style. Three things to consider are strength, color, and hop use. The classic French ales are amber or “ambrée,” but you also find blonds and browns. Traditional bières de garde are strong (6.5–8.5%), but rustic ales are occasionally less so (some are as low as 5%). Finally, rustic ales typically exhibit at least some hop character and may be quite bitter. Other variations include the additions of spice or mixed yeast strains that include Brettanomyces. The one thing that links all these various elements together is cold conditioning followed by bottle conditioning.
The recipe included on page 80 is similar to Thiriez’s Blonde d’Esquelbecq. France is home to some of the world’s best barley and wheat, and Thiriez recommends using it if you can find it. (It’s so good, even Germans sometimes use it.) He is less finicky about using French hops, but you might consider substitutions if you can find them; French hops display a unique herbal terroir that accentuates the Frenchness of these ales.
Thiriez recommends French spring barley for the Pilsner base malt. He prefers French-grown Brewer’s Gold hops and Strisselspalt from Alsace for the ambrée. Since these are hard to source, substitute English Brewer’s Gold for the French and Mt. Hood for Strisselspalt, with adjustments to proportions depending on alpha acids. (If you can source any French-grown hop varieties, consider those as well. Thiriez is much impressed with Alsace-grown Triskel and Aramis.)
After the initial fermentation, ABV will be around 6.1% but will rise to 6.5% after secondary fermentation in the bottle. Because the 3711 strain is so much more attenuative, I’ve had some luck slowing down fermentation by racking after it has dropped to 1.015. Because the esters develop early in fermentation, you don’t lose much character by hitting the brakes at 1.010.
Next Steps
If you want to take the next step and try brewing a classic French amber, Daniel Thiriez suggests these substitutions: For the malt bill, 75 percent Pilsner malt can be combined with 12.5 percent light caramel (50 to 60 EBC/25–30 °L) and 12.5 percent medium caramel (100 to 120 EBC/50–60 °L), or 10 percent Vienna or biscuit malt along with 7.5 percent each of light and medium caramel. Mash and hopping schedules are the same, except Thiriez recommends Strisselspalt in place of Saaz for aroma. The target IBUs are 25 rather than 35. He does not personally use spice but suggests bitter orange peel, coriander, or cinnamon “in very limited quantities” to accentuate the flavors.
One of the typical amber bières de garde will taste especially smooth because of the caramel malts and long lagering time. With a rustic interpretation you’re going to add some yeast character that will nudge it in the direction of a saison. Keep in mind that caramel malts and rustic yeasts don’t harmonize especially well; start fermentation at 68 °F (20 °C) to inhibit the formation of esters and phenols. This is not an easy beer to brew well, but it makes for an absolutely wonderful autumnal tipple if you can pull it off.
Rustic French Ale
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.006
IBU = 38 SRM = 3 ABV = 6.1%
This recipe will create a French-style ale that is similar to Brasserie Thiriez’s Blonde d’Esquelbecq. Brewer Daniel Thiriez recommends using French Pilsner malt if you can source it.
Ingredients
9.5 lbs. (4.3 kg) French or Belgian Pilsner malt
1 lb. (454 g) wheat malt
9 AAU Brewer’s Gold hops (60 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 6% alpha acids)
4 AAU Czech Saaz hops (10 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 4% alpha acids)
Wyeast 3711 (French Saison) or White Labs WLP890 (French Saison Ale) or Lallemand Belle Saison yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
The is a multi-step infusion mash. Dough-in the grains at 113 °F (45 °C) in 10 qts. (9.5 L) of water, and hold this temperature for 15 minutes. Raise the temperature by infusion of 5.8 qts. (5.5 L) boiling water, to 145 °F (63 °C) for a beta-amylase rest. Raise mash bed by infusion or direct heat to 162 °F (72 °C) and hold for 20 minutes for an alpha-amylase rest. Sparge with 168 °F (76 °C) water until 6.5 gallons (25 L) of wort is collected. Boil the wort for 75 minutes, adding the hops at times indicated in the ingredients list.
Chill to 70 °F (21 °C). Oxygenate, then pitch the yeast. Ferment at 72 °F (22 °C) until fermentation is complete, about 5 days. Cool the beer to 54 °F (12 °C) for 2 weeks. Cool the beer to 40 °F (4 °C) and condition an additional week. Prime and bottle condition, or keg and force carbonate to 2.5 to 3 volumes.
Rustic French Ale
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.006
IBU = 38 SRM = 3 ABV = 6.1%
Ingredients
6.6 lbs. (3 kg) Pilsen liquid malt extract
0.5 lb. (227 g) wheat dried malt extract
9 AAU Brewer’s Gold hops (60 min.) (1.5 oz./43 g at 6% alpha acids)
4 AAU Czech Saaz hops (10 min.) (1 oz./28 g at 4% alpha acids)
Wyeast 3711 (French Saison) or White Labs WLP890 (French Saison Ale) or Lallemand Belle Saison yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Use 6 gallons (23 L) of water in the brew kettle; heat to 158 °F (70 °C) then turn the heat off.
Add all the malt extracts and stir thoroughly to dissolve the extract completely. You do not want to feel liquid extract at the bottom of the kettle when stirring with your spoon. Turn the heat back on and bring to a boil. Boil the wort for 60 minutes, adding the hops at the times indicated in the ingredients list.
Chill to 70 °F (21 °C). Oxygenate, then pitch the yeast. Ferment at 72 °F (22 °C) until fermentation is complete, about 5 days. Cool the beer to 54 °F (12 °C) for 2 weeks. Cool the beer to 40 °F (4 °C) and condition an additional week. Prime and bottle condition, or keg and force carbonate to 2.5 to 3 volumes.
