Robin Shepard
Gathering Place Brewing Company, a small operation in Milwaukee’s Riverwest neighborhood, has been distributing its 16-ounce cans to Madison liquor stores on a more regular basis — about every other week. (Its Milwaukee tap room is currently closed.) A good way to get to know Gathering Place is by picking up its flagship and best-selling beer from a store. It’s a German-style kölsch called Treffpunkt.
What is it? Treffpunkt by Gathering Place Brewing Company of Milwaukee.
Style: The kölsch is a very effervescent straw-colored to bright yellow ale. It is light- to medium-bodied, often with light fruity and herbal notes from the use of German noble hops. Kölsch comes from Cologne, Germany, where it’s brewed to strict standards, with 10 to 20 percent wheat. It finishes between 4.8 to 5.3 percent ABV.
Background: The Gathering Place started making beer in 2017. “We are still a small brewery and don’t have the resources to expand very quickly,” says owner Joe Yeado. The brewery has been increasing the number of Madison-area outlets that carry its product. “We’re building our brand by word of mouth,” says Yeado.
Yeado, a native of Kansas City, Missouri, came to Milwaukee to attend Marquette University. After graduating in 2007 he bounced from Chicago to Washington, D.C., where he picked up homebrewing as a hobby. After winning a number of homebrewing awards, including regional competitions sponsored by Samuel Adams in 2013 and 2014, Yeado returned to Milwaukee to create his own brewery. He chose the name Gathering Place not just as a nod to the tradition of getting a beer with friends, but as an homage to the origin of Milwaukee’s name (“gathering place of the waters”) and location, where the Menomonee and Kinnickinnic rivers meet at Lake Michigan. Treffpunkt means “gathering place” in German.
Corey Blodgett handles Gathering Place’s seven-barrel system. He’s from Waterford, Wisconsin, and got several years of brewing experience in the Pacific Northwest before returning closer to home to take this brewmaster job. Treffpunkt is a beer that he has been working on throughout his career. The connection is personal: part of his family came from an area near Köln. He makes Treffpunkt with a core of pilsner malt to keep it light and crisp. It gets its spicy herbal accents from Hallertau Mittelfrüh and Saphir hops. It’s fermented with a traditional kölsch yeast strain. The beer finishes at 4.6 percent ABV and 28 IBUs. It’s available in Madison liquor stores for around $11/four-pack.
Other Gathering Place beers in Madison are Murdered by Crows, a coffee rye stout; Arrivederci Roma, an Italian pilsner; and Friendly Debate, an IPA.
Tasting notes:
- Aroma: Light herbal hoppy notes with subtle fruitiness.
- Appearance: Light yellow-golden color with a thick bubbly white head.
- Texture: Light-bodied, bubbly and crisp.
- Taste: Crisp, with dry spicy herbal hoppiness. There’s also light fruitiness in the background, with notes of pear.
- Finish/Aftertaste: The dry herbal spiciness lingers lightly on the palate.
Glassware: A kölsch is traditionally served in the German stick or stange (a tall, clear cylinder of about 6-7 ounces, with no taper).
Pairs well with: baked fish, light lunch sandwiches, salads and mild buttery cheeses.
The Verdict: Treffpunkt is a light crisp kölsch with distinctive hoppiness. It’s not bitter like a pale ale or IPA; however, it does have a sharp, spicy hop character that becomes dry and lingers in the finish. I like this take on the style — a hoppy edge that stands out among milder, more traditional versions of the style.
