Italy

"Italian craft brewing is a hotbed of creativity and has advanced massively this century. Despite, or perhaps because of, not having any historic beer styles to revive, and despite, or perhaps because of Italy having…"

Italian craft brewing is a hotbed of creativity and has advanced massively this century. Despite, or perhaps because of not having any historic beer styles to revive, and despite, or perhaps because of Italy having an advanced wine culture, the expectation has always been that the country’s brewers would eventually invent their own classic styles.

Italian grape ale (IGA)

A new Italian specialty that may well last the distance is one brewed with up to 40% whole grapes in the mash, and may be fermented with a wine yeast. IGAs are work in progress and variations include the use of grape must, grape flowers, grape juice and occasionally wine itself. The base beer may be made from different grains and fermented by lager, ale or wine yeast. The grape variety is perhaps more important. Sub-styles already exist, as Red, White and Sour varieties, which do appear recognisably different. A good example will show features of both wine and beer, with neither drink dominant.
EBCU workshop “All About… Italian Grape Ale” on Youtube

Italian barley wine

Can a single beer be said to constitute a style? If so, then Xiauyù and its variants, from Baladin brewery, is such a style. Its production involves three cycles of fermentation leading to it ending virtually free of carbonation. Its character is much like that of a fortified wine, such as Marsala or a Colheita port, except made solely from malted grain. Despite its strength (15.0-18.0% ABV), it remains in technical terms a beer.

Birra alle castagna (Chestnut beer)

Craft beer (birra artigianale) in Italy has always followed a different path to success, being designed more for the table than the bar. One trait has been the addition of unusual ingredients. An early success was the use of chestnut flour to create rounded, sweet, nutty, but earthy back tastes. We include this more as an example of the genre than as an example of chestnut power.

About the Author

Tim Webb

The lead author and curator of The Beer Styles of Europe and beyond is Tim Webb, co-author of The World Atlas of Beer.

Belgium is the mothership of craft brewing, a part of the world that has exerted more influence over the development of modern brewing than anywhere else in Europe. The extent of this is so great that to read about the best known Belgian styles, see : Blond, Dubbel, Flemish Red, Grisette, the Lambics, Belgian saison, Saison Légère, Spéciale, Strong dark, Strong golden, Tripel, Witbier

Finland

The legendary rye beer of southern and central Finland is by tradition a home-brew like no other. Impossible to export for its absence of hops, specifically excluded from Finnish Prohibition in the early 20th century, avoiding extinction as often and deftly as the Giant Panda, no beer is more regional and more special than this one.

Germany

When Bavaria joined greater Germany in 1871 one of the conditions of the deal was the adoption across the whole country of the Bavarian Beer Purity Order – known popularly but incorrectly as the Reinheitsgebot. This brought largely unintended homogeneity to German brewing, which had previously being quite regional in its approach.

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