Fruity Beers, or beers in which fruits are used during their production process, offer a series of nuances that will surprise you. Beer is one of the millenary beverages that generates the highest consumption. Hence, throughout history and with the aim of innovation, different formulas and mixtures have been tried with new ingredients far removed from barley. The components that have been added to beer during its manufacture are numerous, but so far and without a doubt, it is the fruits that have best combined in its production.
The official start of fruity beers!
It is in the 1930s when you can talk about an official version of fruit beers. Specifically in Belgium, the cradle of lambic beers or also called spontaneous fermentation, where the "Kriek" was born, a type of beer that arises from the fermentation of sour cherries. Hence its name "kriek", translated "cherry." The Kriek is the first fruit beer to be officially produced. A very complicated variety to manufacture both due to the production method, as well as the time and cost, which is too high, which only the most specialized brewers usually dare to.
With the rise of craft culture and microbreweries, these beers have become an essential and a common option for the most passionate and curious
The use of fruits in beer!
In this type beers, fruit is everything, marking both the aroma, color and flavor. It is usually added during the fermentation process, or with maturation (or second fermentation).
Red fruits such as blackberries and blueberries are often used for their purple pink color.
In addition to the aroma it brings to the beer, more delicate and with a lower alcohol content. Except for raspberry, one of the fruits that adds more intensity to the resulting character.
There are less frequent fruits for beer, but we must also take into account, plums or grapes whose touches provide complex and unique aromas; and the softness of flavor and exotic smells of tropical fruits, which are given by, among others, mango and guava. But without a doubt, its greatest exponent and fruit that is used the most in beer are cherries, since their flavor fits perfectly with the nuances of the malt. To create a good cherry beer it is necessary to mix several types to provide the perfect acidity, color and intensity, and carry out a longer fermentation. Its incorporation is rarer and more exceptional, but beer whose main ingredient is guanábana is also made.
