The Beers of Summer (Part 1)

Not a care in the world

… and I can tell you my love for you will still be strong, after the beers of summer have gone…

Now that the unofficial beginning of the summer season has come and gone, it’s time to focus on the legions of summery styles that you will start seeing at your local brewery and/or beer store. Each week in the “Beers of Summer” series, I will choose a different beer style that is generally associated with the summer months and dissect it, giving you some history, characteristics, flavor notes, fun facts, anecdotes, recommendations, etc. Hopefully, this will allow us all to better enjoy the beers we drink during the next few months.

So without further administrivia, let’s talk about…

Kölsch.

One of the most common questions I hear asked in breweries during this time of year is “What the heck is a kölsch?” It’s an understandable question, considering it’s not self-explanatory and big beer has nothing even close to a kölsch in their repertoire.

Kölsch, as the name might suggest, is a German style that hails from Cologne (Köln), Germany. It is clear with a bright, straw-yellow hue, has a prominent but not extreme hoppiness, and is less bitter that the standard German pale lager. Kölsch is warm-fermented between 55-70 degrees, making it an ale, but it is then cold-conditioned (or lagered). In other words, it’s a hybrid, or a mystery wrapped inside of a riddle and juxtaposed to conundrum. Or so I’m told.

The first mention of the term kölsch was in 1918 when it was used to describe the beer that had been brewed by the Sünner brewery in Cologne since 1906. Their beer had been developed from the cloudier variant on German bottom-fermenting beers (lagers) called Wiess. Prior to World War II, there were over 40 breweries in Cologne, but many were destroyed during the war. Kölsch didn't compete well with the lagers of Germany until around the 1960s when it began to rise in popularity. The Cologne brewers produced 50 million liters of kölsch in 1960, and by 1980, were producing 370 million liters. Due to the economic decline in more recent decades, Cologne production of kölsch has declined to 240 million liters, produced by 13 breweries.

Interestingly, kölsch is strictly defined by an agreement between members of the Cologne Brewery Association known as the Kölsch Konvention. This agreement was signed in 1986 and states that kölsch cannot be brewed outside the Cologne region. So while we make beer here in the states that we call kölsch, the Germans in Cologne would deny it is kölsch.

The biergarten outside of the Fruh Brewery in Cologne, one of the original and best-known brewers of the style

As you may have already guessed, the folks in Cologne take this stuff pretty seriously. Kölsch is sold and treated as a common man’s beer, and the use of words like “special” or “premium” in the beer names, a practice common in Germany, is discouraged. If you were to go to a pub or brewery in Cologne, the beer waiters would speak roughly and crudely at you, which is another common practice. The beers are served at 50 degrees in a tall cylindrical glass known as a Stange (pole), Reagenzglas (test tube), or Fingerhut (thimble). Not only that, the waiters will replace your empty glasses with full ones without you asking until you place your coaster over the top, indicating you've had enough.

This is how you say "no more" in Cologne

Kölsch is usually light to medium in body with a very pale color. The hop bitterness is medium to slightly assertive, and a somewhat vinous grape-like, dry flavor is present as well. They are generally between 4% and 6% ABV.

As for recommendations, I have never been to Cologne so I cannot recommend any “actual” kölsches, but the American pseudo-kölsch beers that I've had are quite good. Schlafly Kölsch and Saranac Kölsch are very good. The Sam Adams East-West Kölsch from a few years ago was very good as well. If you live in my neck of the woods, the Kölsch at Forge Beer Works in Lorton, Virginia and Bad Wolf Brewing Company in Manassas, Virginia really hit the spot on a warm late spring/early summer day.

So now you have the proper knowledge to support ordering a Kölsch at your local brewery this summer. It is an interesting style that is light, crisp and refreshing – perfect for the summer heat. Don’t be scared… just drink. You won’t be sorry.

Here’s to craft-brewed happiness… Cheers!