Quest for the Ginger Grail! (De Graal Gember)

Member Name: tange

Product:	De Graal Gember
Date:	20/02/06 (106 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Tasty, spicy and well balanced

Disadvantages: Awful if you don't like ginger beers

When we were last in Belgium I got to try another beer that I hadn't come across before. This one was from the De Graal Brewery and was called De Graal Gember. I mentioned it briefly in my review of Tim Webb's excellent Belgian Good Beer Guide and I think it is time to give it the full write up that it deserves.

~~~THE BREWERY.

The Brouwerij de Graal (De Graal Brewery) was set up in 2001 by a gentleman called Wim Saeyans. The brewery is based in the little village of Brakel ~ a quiet place that can be found just off the road from Tournai to Brussels in Belgium. The building that houses the brewery used to be the workshop of a Stone Mason and now has a lovely marble sign outside with the name in gold.

As well as the lovely Gember the brewery also produce a good range of bottled beers. These include De Graal Blond (a hazy pale yellow beer at 6.5% ABV), De Graal Dubbel (a chestnut brown beer also at 6.5% ABV) and De Graal Trippel (a strong light amber beer at 9% ABV). De graal beers don't seem to be as prolific in bars as some other beers, but I have found them in various regions of Belgium and they can also be ordered for delivery in the UK via specialist beer websites (a visit to the brewery is also a good way to get their beers a little cheaper).

~~~THE BEER.

***A Bit of Background***

De Graal Gember is a specialist bottled beer and is spiced using ginger to give it a kick! Unlike some ginger flavoured beers this beer isn't made from some sickly ginger syrup making a pop type drink. This one is a light, bitter tasting ale with a hint of spiciness. Like a lot of bottled Belgian beers this one has quite a lot of sediment in the bottom of the bottle ~ if you pour carefully it is possible to keep this in the bottle and have a clear beer, if not the beer will be slightly hazy.


***Vital Stats***

Gember weighs in at 8% ABV and is classed as a specialist spiced beer. It comes in a 330ml dark brown bottle and should ideally be served slightly chilled (but not TOO cold).

***Look, Aroma & Texture***

Looks wise, Gember is a light amber to golden coloured beer with a largish off white head, that settles down to leave a fluffy head and a good amount of lacing on the glass. I poured mine pretty carefully (with tuition from the friendly waiter) so my beer was pretty clear. Aroma was predominantly malty (giving the beer a slightly roasty, woody feel), but the ginger (giving a spicy smell) is evident even at first sniff! Also present are the scents of elderflowers, fruit (vaguely appley) and a prefume floral element. Texture is medium bodied, with a good amount of carbonation ~ this gives a nice smooth mouthfeel.

***Tange's Taste Test***

My first thoughts about this beer (appart from yum!) were that it was initially quite sweet and had a sugary flavour. This quickly gave way to a spicy ginger kick that balanced the beer out very nicely. These two elements prevented it from being either too cloyingly sweet, or too harshly gingery. Add to this a slightly floral perfumed flavour (a continuation of that present in the aroma), a dash of pepper, a toasty maltiness and nice rich fruit flavour, and you are left with a rather complex and tasty beer! This all builds up to a slightly bitter finish that is actually rather dry after the sweetness of the initial taste, and an aftertaste that leaves a tingly feeling of ginger on your tongue.

~~~WHAT TANGE THINKS.

This was a beer I ordered at random and wouldn't have known about it at all if it hadn't have been for the Belgian Beer Guide. I was quietly confident that I would like it as the dark brown bottle (a similar colour and shape to a Duvel bottle if you have ever tried it) arrived, precariously perched on the tray held high by the waiter (I love the way they serve beers in Belgium ~ rather like they are some sort of offering to a god!). I wasn't wrong on this occasion.

I was really impressed by the well balanced flavours, the nice mouthfeel and the nice aroma. I liked the combination of the sweet, bitter and spiciness and was pleased that I could taste the ginger without it completely dominating the drink as a whole. The flavours gave the beer depth, but it was also deceptively light and easy to drink despite its strength.

I tried my first bottle of De Graal Gember at De Torre ~ my favourite bar in a little seaside place a short ride away from Ostend. It cost me around £2.00 a bottle (which was around 2 EURO 95). I have seen at beer festivals in the UK and it is a trifle more expensive (as you would expect) at around £2.50 a bottle. I didn't think this was a bad price for a beer of this strength and complexity.

This is certainly a beer I would have no hesitation in recommending to anyone who likes a beer with a spicy ginger flavour. It may not suit everyone...but it certainly gave me a gingery tingle!

~~~BREWERY DETAILS.

Wim Saeyens
Brouwerij De Graal
Warande 15, B-9660 Brakel, Belgium
++32/(0)55-42-47-90

http://www.degraal.be/

Summary: A lovely ginger flavoured beer with a nice spicy kick!