How do you stand out?
The rise and growth of craft beer make it harder and harder to stand out. There are different ways to be creative, but it is getting harder to do so. I think Heaving Brewing likes to push the envelope without losing what the particular style should be.
Mexican Lagers like Donkey Show from Heavy Brewing are more popular than ever. They are made with Pilsner malts and some corn, which provides a unique flavor with a kiss of sweetness. For those looking for a smooth, light, refreshing beer, they are the perfect choice!
The history of the Mexican Lager starts with German and other European migrants who arrived in Mexico with a love for brewing. The only problem was access to the barley malts they were used to brewing with. What would be widely available when trying to figure out what to supplement the lack of malts? That would be good old corn! The amount of corn used can vary as much as from 10 - 40% of the grain used in the beer. It is amazing that the lack of one ingredient caused innovation!
Spirit Infused Oak Spirals
Many people are familiar with barrel-aged beers. You put a beer into a wet barrel to extract the spirit's flavor. Most often, we think of bourbon barrel-aged stouts. There is an art and science to determining how much spirit booziness you want in your beer.
I like a hint of the spirit to be present, but not enough to overpower the beer's flavor. In addition, I enjoy the oak notes that appear with barrel-aged beers.
So besides putting the beer into barrels, is there another method to provide the experience? This is where spirit-infused oak spirals come into play.
I have piqued your curiosity as to how this relates to Mexican Lagers. To understand this, you must enter Jeff Gude's mind!
So How Did It Turn Out?
Jeff Gude, owner and brewer, took me through the process of using the spirit-infused oak spirals. He selected some tequila blanco spirals and was ready to use them in a batch of the Donkey Show Mexican Lager. The question was how long the infusion process would take. The guidelines are between 10 and 14 days.
After 14 days, the lager seemed ready to keg and put on tap. Jeff told me it was ready, and I couldn’t wait to try it! The color was a bit deeper golden than the base Donkey Show. The oak notes appeared and provided a richness to the Mexican Lager. The tequila notes were very subtle.
The venture into spirit-infused oak spirals seems like fun yet challenging. What does it take for the beer's body to accept the notes you desire? How do you get the right balance of spirit and oak notes? Well, I can’t wait to see what Jeff tries next!
Venture out to Heavy Brewing in Gretna, Nebraska, to experience this wonderful Mexican lager and all the great beers!
I highly recommend enjoying some of their pizza while you are there, too!
Cheers!