Robin Shepard
Schroder and the four Belgians.
One Barrel Brewing has a new brewmaster: Peter Schroder is making his mark early with a series of Belgian beers at the small Atwood Avenue nanobrewery. Among those initial beers are a blonde, a saison, a tripel and a dark strong ale called Belgian Delight. The latter offers rich maltiness accented with sweet earthy yeastiness that Belgian fans will appreciate.
What is it? Belgian Delight from One Barrel Brewing.
Style: The Belgian dark strong ale is amber to black in color, medium- to full-bodied, with malty and complex fruity aromas. They can be intensely rich in caramel and chocolate maltiness with creamy and sweet dark fruit accents from Belgian yeast strains. They are often brewed with Belgian candi sugar, which bumps up their strength and lends light sweet roasted notes to the background flavors. A Belgian dark strong is similar, but not as robust in sweetness, yeasty character or strength as the Belgian Quad. Regardless, the word “strong” in their description means a high alcohol content of 7 to 11 percent ABV.
Background: Peter Schroder took over One Barrel’s brewhouse in December from Matt Gerdts, who moved to Bayfield to start his own small brewery, Adventure Club Brewing. Schroder has been making a name as a brewer for the past few years, from Madison to Milwaukee. He’s a past president of the Sun Prairie Wort Hogs Homebrew Club and has won several competitions, some of which have turned into commercial releases like MobCraft’s Señor Bob and MisTah Tea. He also helped create the beers in the “Droids Attack” series for the band of the same name, working with local breweries Ale Asylum, Rockhound, Dead Bird and House of Brews.
Schroder is originally from the Netherlands. He moved to Wisconsin in 2004. Not long after, his wife, Becky, told him that he needed a hobby and bought him a homebrew kit. After a making a few batches, Schroder never looked back. “I will not stop thinking about beer,” he says. “I’m somewhat of an experimental brewer while keeping [style] guidelines in mind. A nice thing about One Barrel is that it’s kind of like homebrewing, but scaled up.”
Schroder decided to make a series of Belgian beers for his first release party, which took place January 24, because his wife loves Belgian styles. One Barrel hasn’t offered many in the past, so it’s a good way for Schroder to let folks know he’s now in the brew house.
Belgian Delight starts with a Pilsner base malt, to which Schroder adds chocolate malt and Midnight Wheat for body and dark color. As with traditional dark strongs, a little Belgian candi sugar is used to bump up the strength. The beer is fermented with a Belgian abbey yeast that lends dark fruit sweetness and rich complex, earthy spiciness.
This is Schroder’s strongest beer so far in the One Barrel brewhouse. Belgian Delight finishes at 8.9 percent ABV. It sells over the bar in a 10-ounce glass for $7. It is expected to rotate with the other three Belgians in the taproom over the next month.
Tasting notes:
- Aroma: Light malty notes of bready caramel, chocolate and earthy yeastines.
- Appearance: Deep reddish-amber color with a medium bubbly off-white head.
- Texture: Medium-bodied, bubbly, with roundness.
- Taste: Chocolate maltiness with a touch of roastedness. Dark fruit sweetness in layers of flavor.
- Finish/Aftertaste: A spicy sweetness, accents of dark fruit and earthy yeastiness. Warm and spicy in the end.
Glassware: A chalice or wine glass. A glass with a straight lip, or even a wide mouth, is fine to allow the sweet floral and musty aromas to expand under nose, while encouraging slow sipping and appreciation of the attributes of the Belgian yeast.
Pairs well with: roasted meats, fruity sweet desserts and soft buttery cheeses. These go nicely with the dark fruit sweetness. Unfortunately, One Barrel’s taproom menu is limited, so if you’re looking for a great pairing, you’ll need to plan ahead to bring something along.
The Verdict: This beer really showcases how Belgian yeast plays with the dark chocolate and caramel flavored malts. There is a rich harmony of flavors, with depth and spicy complexity. The Belgian candi sugar also lends a light accent of roasted caramel sweetness. However, it’s the abbey yeast that gives it dark cherry sweetness and a spicy warmth. It’s a very approachable Belgian beer; just be aware that its strength is a little deceptive because the sweetness tends to mask the warmth of its 8.9 percent ABV.
