Origin: Belgium
Type: Witbier
Color: Pale yellow
Alcohol content: 6%
Recommended serving temperature: 8ºC/46ºF
Summer is traditionally the season I do wheat beers. Fresh, citrusy and with a moderate amount of alcohol, they're the perfect companion for a warm summer morning... err, evening. Last year it was German Weissbier, this year however it's Belgian Witbier's turn.
Witbier is much more elusive in your average bar or pub than Weissbier. You may find several different brands of Weissbier in your run of the mill bar (Paulaner, Franziskaner, Erdinger, to name but a few), but you are lucky to find a couple of brands of Witbier outside of specialized bars and stores. Most often you will find yourself with just one choice, Hoegaarden. This is a shame, not because Hoegaarden is a bad beer, it's a fabulous beer, but because this robs thousands of poor thirsty Spaniards of the chance to enjoy the phenomenal Grimbergen Blanche.
This beer is pale yellow in color with a significant amount of haze to it. It develops a moderate amount of foam, much less than the Hoegaarden.
Its smell is pretty much in keeping with the traditional aromas of witbiers. Very citrusy right off the bat, as your nose gets used to the lemon and orange peel, you start making out other less intense but largely complimentary smells like wheat, coriander, flowers and pine trees and a very mild alcohol end.
The taste is also dominated by lemon and orange peel, which basically invade your mouth with the first gulp and only start to die down as you swallow. At that point you are left with a wheat, flowers and coriander end and a slightly acidic aftertaste.
The biggest merit of this beer for me though is how well it masks its alcohol. Witbiers usually range between 4.5% and 5% ABV and their relatively light and fresh flavor makes it hard for it to integrate more alcohol than that into the taste. The Grimbergen Blanche, however, boasts an impressive 6% ABV and, other than a slight alcoholic end to its smell, it is practically unnoticeable.
I personally think that the nice people at Grimbergen have basically taken their recipe for the Grimbergen Blonde and just added some wheat, coriander and orange peel... and to be frank, the result is incredible, much better in my opinion than the Blonde they began with. I might even dare say it is my favorite of all the Grimbergens and even my favorite witbier, although that's a very tall order.
What it definitely is is my favorite beer for this summer and, as such, one that I pair with most of my fresher summer cooking. The mix of a solid alcohol content and its fresh taste make it a good accompaniment for mostly everything, but I especially enjoy it with a salad with crispy bacon, almonds and brie.
Now the only thing missing is for this fantastic beer to become readily and widely available and this will truly be a great summer.
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