Petite Blanche - Galaxy/Apricot

The Nord region of Northern France was an active brewing center around the year 1900. Around this time, breweries in this region were producing traditional top-fermented ales. When I first started reading about the beers of this era, all the hallmarks of a beer I wanted to brew and drink popped out at me when I came across Bière Blanche. Blanche beers were fermented with ale yeast (which, given the time, meant a mixed culture of bacteria and/or other yeasts such as Brettanomyces). Although the hopping rates were on the higher side, the hops were not boiled and therefore some acidity was allowed to develop. This beer was bottle conditioned and drank relatively fresh. All this makes for an interesting pale beer - light acidity, low gravity and hop flavor but not so much bitterness. We have revisited these traditional brewing techniques (along with some new world hops) and introduce to you Petit Blanche – Galaxy/Apricot. We first rinsed the grains prior to mashing to remove as much color as possible, followed by a short boil without hops added. We then add a generous dose of Australian Galaxy hops at flameout for the whirlpool. The resulting wort is then fermented using our house mixed culture of souring bacteria, native wild yeasts and saison yeasts. Before packaging, we dry-hopped the batch with another charge of Galaxy, and added 1 pound per gallon of locally foraged apricots and allowed to referment to dryness. We hope you enjoy this fun and highly sessionable table beer. Show Less