Microbrewed Adventures - Charles Papazian [68]
Printz Luitpold, 1987
Free beer for the elderly
Printz Luitpold and Papazian, 2004
Printz Luitpold’s home and brewery, Kaltenberg Castle, is in the quietly picturesque countryside. Here he brews his increasingly popular dark Dunkelbier, some of which is lagered in large, century-old oak barrels. It is also the site of his jousting tournament, an event attracting 200,000 thirsty people.
The media were visiting that day, covering a promotional story about the event. One beer led to another and the prince dressed me in a complete suit of armor for a photo opportunity with him, a fair maiden and, of course, a beer.
Later that day when we parted company, he told me, “If you are interested I can get you a custom-made suit of armor for about $1,500.” So far I have not taken him up on the offer, as it would seriously handicap my drinking style.
I have had the pleasure of joining the prince on several beer occasions, including stops at many of his brewpubs around the world. Truly wonderful beer. Truly wonderful company, and truly a gentleman of beer passion and a smile.
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PRINTZ HELLES GERMAN LAGER
This is one of my favorite styles of everyday drinking beer. Immensely quaffable, this German-style light lager is rich in the malty tradition of Bavarian beer. My addition of American Crystal hops at the end comes close to providing the authentic character of hard-to-find fresh German aroma hops. Give me a liter of this beer and my imagination quickly drifts to the pleasures I’ve experienced in German beer gardens and beer halls. The recipe can be found in About the Recipes.
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CHAPTER 8
An Underground Beer Culture: France, Italy and Sweden
IF YOU ARE an adventurer and embrace the unexpected, you will discover beer in the most unlikely of places. But I have found “unlikelihood” to really be a matter of prejudice. Microbrewed adventures are everywhere. They can be discovered on remote islands of the South Pacific, in the mountains of Tibet or Japan, on the seashores of the Middle East, in the fjords of Scandinavia, in the jungles of Africa, in the casinos of Las Vegas and in the old cities of Latin America—and if you are lucky, around the corner at your local pub. Beer is ubiquitous. But the microbrewed adventure often lies just beneath the surface. One must be free of assumptions and virtually tuned in to the invisible wavelengths of nearby fermentation. I have encountered brewpubs and microbreweries on the side streets of Madrid and Athens. I stumbled on a small microbrewery sitting on the green horizon while driving the wine country of South Africa. At a brewers’ convention in Hanoi I came across the business cards of several local brewpubs, and in my wife’s hometown of Natal, Brazil, there is a brewpub just above the seaside.
While the French, Italians and Swedes may have a culture of high-profile wines and distilled spirits, there are many individuals in these countries who have embarked on their own microbrewing adventures. I have been fortunate to share their passion for beer on their terms.
My Paris—My Beer
Frog & Rosbif
MY PARIS is not the typical Paris most people come to see. I was invited there in 1995 to brew a batch of beer. I was excited. It was to be my first-ever commercially brewed beer.
I arrived in Paris at 8:30 in the morning. Taking a train into the city center, I emerged randomly from the Métro and miraculously found myself within two blocks of my hotel and on time for my 10:30 A.M. rendezvous at the Frog & Rosbif at 116, rue St. Denis, four blocks away.
Owners Thor Gugmundson and Paul Chantler and