Throughout the short history of the craft beer boom certain styles have come and gone, some have stayed, and some have continued to evolve. Remember when Brut IPAs were the future of craft beer? Now you don't see them on any brewery's draft menu! New England IPAs were supposed to be fad and look at them now. It's hard to find an IPA that isn't hazy. IPAs in general were supposed to be a passing trend of the beer industry, but over the years they developed new hop varieties and other ingredients, breathing new life into this permanent trend.
So whats next? What's going to take the world by storm? Doesn't look like the Cold IPA will be taking over any time soon, if you have even heard of it (it's an IPL rebranded). Within the last year or so lagers have made a huge comeback. We are seeing Czech pilsners, doppelbocks, kolsch beers, and more taking local breweries by storm. We are even seeing some breweries in America devoted completely to lager production. Honestly, it is a nice changeup from menues dominated by 10 different (but almost the same) IPAs, heavily fruited sours, and sweet lactose infused stouts. Sometimes a crisp, clean pilsner hits the spot.
Seltzers were supposed to be shooting star, burning bright for a split second then fading away. Whether you like it or not seltzers are here to stay. They've cornered a nice little part of the market that won't really hurt the craft beer industry and you are also seeing local breweries put their unique twist on a seltzer, making it more appealing to the beer snob. Seltzeries" are even starting to pop up across the U.S.
So lagers will probably be around for a while and seltzers are looking like a permanent fixture, but sooner or later our palates will crave something new...
That's where Belgian beers take the baton!
Background of Belgians During the Craft Beer Revolution
Belgian beers (tripels, dubbels, quads, and so on) were some of the original beers you saw on a local brewery's menu over 10 years ago. Anyone reading this has had a Blue Moon, probably the most well know basic Belgian beer. Many of the craft beers early on in the U.S. were simply European styles made here which meant one major problem; they weren't very good. Breweries in Europe perfected their Belgians and other styles over many centuries or even millennia. That simply didn't translate for American craft brewers. Before IPAs, and New England IPAs in general, took over you may have ordered a flight with a simple pale ale, a west coast IPA, a pilsner, and more than likely a Belgian. At least that's what our flights mostly looked like!
After a few years of ordering a Belgian or pilsner in our flight we came to the conclusion that most weren't very good or even repulsive. Brewers in America just didn't have the knowledge to brew great Belgians and other European styles. Over the years these beers started disappearing from menus at many local breweries. There weren't even many options at your local bottle shop anymore.
Why are Belgians the Next Big Thing?
There are a few major reason why I feel Belgians are set to take the craft beer stage within the next couple years. Number 1 is brewing knowledge. Like I mentioned earlier lagers have seemed to have a resurgence in North America with many brewers going over seas to learn about the brewing culture there. Not only that, but some of the brewing programs have been brought to this country. Appalachian State, San Diego State, and even the Ivy League university of Cornell have brewing programs along with hundreds more of colleges and universities. Add to that valuable brewing experience over the last decade and brewers handing that down to various assistant brewers who then become head brewers somewhere else!
The second reason is process. We now see many breweries dedicating certain equipment (or sometimes entire brewhouses) to the lagering process. These specialized processes will only contribute to the higher quality of Belgian beers when they inevitably take over. You are also seeing specialized equipment across the board from temperature control, brewery cleanliness, and canning/packaging processes.
The third reason is ingredients. Now brewers, and even homebrewers, have access to some of the highest quality yeast strains which are obviously very important to the Belgian beer brewing process. It's not like 20 years ago where there was one or two widely available yeast strains. These yeasts gave you the Belgian essence, but didn't go that extra mile like today's yeast strain do. Science has come a long way in producing strains that give off amazing fruit or flower phenols and even strains that eliminate those phenols all together. Even the grains we use have come a long way with many small malt houses developing a unique blend of grains that gives the beer we drink a little extra character.
Lastly, and most importantly, is taste! Belgians have a very unique taste that makes you say, "Yep. That's a Belgian." The unique flavor profile of a Belgian beer is what sets it apart from all other style beers. Like lagers, Belgians have so many different variations that allow for traditional flavor profiles and any American twist we may put on them. I discussed earlier about craft beer drinkers needing a palate reset every few years and a brewery fresh Belgian dubbel or barrel aged quad may be what they need.
Prediction
So what's THEbreweryauthority's prediction on Belgian beers? Simple....it's going to take time. Much like the lager revolution, Belgians will slowly gain a footing over the next two or three years as more and more breweries realize the advantage of having a well made Belgian beer (or two?) on draft. On our brewery travels we are slowly seeing this. Some of the more experimental breweries who are out in front of the trends are starting to have traditional style Belgians available. Look for these in breweries in the bigger cities then slowly trickling into the suburbs and maybe 5 years down the road every small rural brewery will have a Belgian!
Unstandablely, this type of beer is not for everyone and may even turn a few stomachs at first sip. But I've met PLENTY of people who religiously drank only Miller Lite or Coors Light only to discover a hazy IPA and never go back to those corporate beers. At the same time I have watched those same people transition from a juicy IPA to a foeder aged Czech pilsner or strangely crushabke maibock. So who is to say they won't transition again to a zesty Belgian tripel on a warm spring day or partake in a high ABV Belgian Quad by the fireplace in December? No one can be certain, but I'm going all in on Belgians over the next few years and suggest you do the same!
Thanks for reading. Cheers!
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