New Braunfels Brewing, the central Texas brewery known for its generous use of wheat malt, has released two new sour beers certain to delight fans of the style.
First, we have HopfenStopfen. This is a dry-hopped version of New Braunfels Brewing’s own Blondine, a hefeweizen brewed using 85% wheat malt. Using Blondine as a base, HopfenStopfen is then infused with Cascade hops and undergoes primary fermentation for 6 days using house German yeast. After that, the beer undergoes secondary fermentation with New Braunfels own spontaneously-harvested mixed culture of local yeast and bacteria. The beer is also dry- hopped for 14 days using New Zealand Pacifica hops.
How does HopfenStopfen taste? Sources at New Braunfels Brewing say it offers a clean mouthfeel with flavors of wheat and tart lemon. The dry hopping with Pacifica hops adds new dimensions to the character of the beer, imparting the aroma and taste of orange marmalade zest. This version of HopfenStopfen, as fans likely already know, is the third version of the style. Each version features different hops. Blends 1 and 2 used Citra and Mosaic hops respectively. Blend 4, scheduled for August, 2017 release, will use a different hop, yet to be disclosed.
Next on the new sour release list is Saison de Clementine, a beer brewed with whole fresh clementines. This beer also borrows from Blondine, using it as the basis for the brew. The clemintines used to brew this beer were processed by first zesting the peel and then cutting the individual fruits into quarters. Following open fermentation with the fleshy fruit, the beer was pressed off of the fruit a total of three times, with reduced fermentation times after each press. The three presses were then blended and reserve zest was added back to the mixture.
Saison de Clementine is all about the fruit. This beer is clementine all the way, with a sour yet still refreshing and drinkable character.
Both HopfenStopfen and Saison de Clementine are available in limited release. The former will be released in a small batch consisting of about 25 kegs on April 2, 2017. In mid- April, New Braunfels Brewing will release additional quantities of HopfenStopfen in cases of 750 ml bottles. There will be a total of 60 cases released. Saison de Clementine will be even more difficult to find, with only 29 cases of 500 ml bottles released, starting in late March.
Look for New Braunfels brewing HopfenStopfen and Saison de Clementine at select Texas retailers or visit the brewery tap room for a tasting. This beer will be difficult to track down but the sensory pleasures will be worth the effort. Stay tuned to Great Beer Now for more release dates on future versions of these beers as information becomes available.
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