→ Kölsch
→ 4.7% ABV
→ Low bitterness
→ Crisp, Clean, Toast
→ Colour: Straw
Brewed for our 7th Birthday, kölsch is one of those top tier party beers. Although it is an ale, it is conditioned like a lager and exhibits a very clean -yet subtly fragrant - finish and superb drinkability. Ours is brewed with German malts, yeast and hops, and is conditioned for 8 weeks minimum.
Kölsch is the traditional beer style from Cologne (Köln), Germany. And for such a simple sounding beer, this blonde beauty is refined and subtley complex with a unique history and traditions behind it. Every beer fan should make the pilgrimage to Cologne and go to a kölsch hall where kölsch is served out of unpressurised barrels opened within the hour and served in 200 mL tall straight-edged pole-shaped “stange” glasses. You’ll likely be served by a blue-clad “köbesse” who will replace your glass as soon as it is empty and tick it off on your coaster. Just don’t forget to put your coaster on top of your glass when you’ve had your fill!
Kölsch as it is today exists thanks to a localised protection racket in Cologne back in the 17th century when local councils were trying to protect the brewers in Cologne from the evil threat of lagers which were just emerging. The local breweries still had to compete with lagers though and so over the next 200 odd years, their beers became more lager-like - brewers would even cold-condition their beers just like lagers.
The first official “kölsch” was arguably brewed in 1906, but it was not called that until 1918 and then the style could have easily become a casualty of WWII as 38 out of 40 kölsch breweries were destroyed during the war. It survived though, and really hit its stride in the 60s and 70s before peaking in 1980 when Cologne was producing 3.7 million HL a year. Today 11 breweries are still producing about 2.5 million HL a year.
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Price includes a $2/bottle deposit. Return your bottles to the brewery to receive credit for future purchases. Learn more here.