Southampton Biere de Garde

So, what is biere de garde? That's a discussion that could take quite some time. In a nut shell, biere de garde (beer da gart) means beer for preserving or storing. A biere de garde is a French Farmhouse style with a long, debatable history. Southampton Biere de Garde is a tribute to this classic style.

Southampton Biere de Garde, 7.2% ABV:

Appearance is beautiful . . . Light amber in color. Stylistically correct spritzy carbonation. Delicate malt, ripe fruit, spice, and hints of apple in the nose. Medium bodied with nice malt and ripe fruit upfront that leads way to earthy spiciness. Finishes semi dry and clean with underlying apple flavor and hints of lemon. Coats the mouth with a nice malty slick that sticks around for quite some time. The coating left on your mouth is reminiscent of a high quality, lightly sweetened iced black tea . . . Very pleasing, very pleasant. I love the subtle apple flavor and spice that hangs out for minutes as the beer finishes.

Southampton Biere de Garde: Yet another outstanding beer from the boys at Southampton!! I challenge you to find another American brewer that brews a biere de garde that comes this close to this classic style. As a matter of fact, scratch that. Trust me on this one. Don't waste your time. There is not much room at the same table where Southampton Biere de Garde sits. Don't believe me? Then do some research. And while you're at it, find a bottle of Southampton Biere de Garde, buy Phil Markowski's book, "Farmhouse Ales; Culture and Craftsmanship in the Belgian Tradition," and prepare to digest the one literally and the other figuratively. . . . Now, doesn't that just taste and feel good? I know it does.

Like food with your beer? Roasted duck or pork, duck or pork confit, ostrich, game birds, and pasta with cream sauce are just a few things that will pair great with Southampton Biere de Garde.