The month of February is short but with us it will be very intense because for the Spain Beer Subscription we have prepared a spectacular selection of beers! And it is that Castilla y León goes a long way. We all know its Aqueduct of Segovia, its magnificent cathedrals such as Burgos or Salamanca among others, the wall of Ávila, etc. In addition, its gastronomy is one of the best we have: suckling pig, blood sausage, legumes, garlic soups, Iberian sausages, hornazo... mmm so hungry.
Well, if all this isn't enough for you, Castilla y León is also a land of craft beer and, in addition to good, good. It has some of the first craft breweries in Spain and throughout its provinces we can find breweries with incredible products that have been recognized in national and international championships.
Here is a selection of 8 of them that will leave you speechless:
Mica
“We are from the Ribera del Duero, and here, in addition to being viticulturists and winemakers, we grow cereals”. Mica is a mineral characteristic of the mountains, in the town of Fuentenebro (Burgos), since it is practically the only place in the Iberian Peninsula where it can be found. Mica is a silicate of alumina, iron, calcium, magnesium, which is characterized by having flexible, elastic and very bright sheets. In addition, the Sierra de Fuentenebro has a height of more than 1,300 meters, so with this height and these minerals, the land provides barley of excellent quality, and with which Mica Beers are made, 100% Natural and Craft. “With intense and exclusive flavors, in which we incorporate only natural ingredients, such as a surprising range of various malts, hops, yeast and water. And the distinctive touch of our fresh natural barley, harvested every year on our land”.
From Cerveza Mica we have selected its two beers several times awarded, the Imperial Stout and the Rabiosa American Pale Ale:
- Mica Imperial Stout: beer from Ribera del Duero, made with local products (fresh barley macerated in our barrels Ribera del Duero and mixed with Ribera del Duero Reserve 48 months wine). Imperial Stout type beer character from the Ribera del Duero, with the connotations of French oak barrel and the acidity of the Ribera fruit.
- Mica Rabiosa American Pale Ale: with light toasted touches, natural super fruity aroma of an American Pale Ale but with a perfect balance. In the mouth we immediately notice the intense touches of hops of an authentic American Pale Ale. Delicious flavor that will hook you.
Eighth Art
Octavo Arte is a small brewery from La Lastrilla, a town near Segovia, which began its career as a nomadic brewer (that is, it did not have a factory, but good ideas to brew beer in collaboration with other breweries in its factories). In 2017 they took their project a step further and opened their own factory, from then on they began to produce, in addition to 'Mañanas de Domingo' (their first beer), 3 other new references: Vol.1, 1521 and Amarillo Limón. In 2018 they took the next step and set up their Brewpub, offering fresh beers straight from their brewery's taps.
From Octavo Arte we have chosen two beers, their award-winning Amarillo Limón American IPA and Guerrera Segoviana Rye Ale:
- Yellow Lemon American IPA: is an American IPA style beer, a decidedly hoppy beer, in this case it has hops of the yellow and citra varieties, from which it takes its name .Here we have a beer with a certain flavor of tropical fruits: for some pineapple, for others passion fruit and even peach. It is very easy to drink but beware! which has 7 degrees. Awards: Gold at the European Beer Challenge 2020. Gold at the Frankfurt International Trophy 2020.
- Segovian Warrior Rye Ale: inspired by the women who work in the Segovian countryside. It is a Wheat & Rye Ale style beer, a hybrid style that contains barley, wheat and rye malts that give it freshness and a spicy touch. Medium bodied, easy to drink, refreshing, with 4.8% alcohol (good drinkability).
Yesta
“Soul of the cerrato”. Yesta Beer (yesta is a word that names the edges of barley in botany) is a creative and disruptive bet to take the product from the field to the glass, always looking for the flavor of the Cerrato Palentino to be on the palate of all those who want try the craft beer. Cerveza Yesta has been active since 2018, collecting experience and feminist brewing activism, supporting the Pink Boots association, this year being one of the sponsoring breweries of Collaboration Brew Day 2022.
For the selection of the month we have chosen their Churra Blond Ale and Cencella Winter Ale:
- Churra Blond Ale: Blond Ale beer, that is, Belgian-style blonde, but 100% Castilla y León, since it is made with cereal from the Cerrato Palentino and cultivated hops in Leon. This beer is a tribute to a symbol of the region: the churra sheep. A moderate strength lager that has a subtle fruity-spicy Belgian yeast complexity, some sweet malt flavor and a dry finish.
- Cencella Winter Ale: Winter beer, dark, warm and liqueur thanks to its malty character, very low bitterness. hints of cinnamon, cloves and honey. With 9% alcohol, it is a seasonal beer, since as the name of the style says, a Winter Ale is a beer made to warm our palate during cold days.
San Frutos
“We are an independent, family-owned craft brewery located in Segovia, at the foot of the Sierra de Guadarrama”. Since 2013 the brewery has been active and is committed to producing quality beers, with a great variety and balance, growing and spreading the beer culture in Spain. In addition, SanFrutos collects awards and recognitions, such as the 2018 “Entrepreneur” award from the FES, as well as multiple medals in national and international competitions such as the Barcelona Beer Challenge and Barrilito de Oro, among others.
For the selection of the month we have chosen their Vikingathor Indian Dunkel and Invasión Doble IPA:
- Vikingathor Boris Brew Indian Dunkel: an original recipe by Boris de Mesones brewed by Cerveza SanFrutos, here we have a toasted beer , intense and very hoppy. Intense aroma with notes of roasted malt, caramel, ripe fruit, resin and aromatic herbs. Refreshing drink with a lot of fresh hop flavor. Gold in Barcelona Beer Challenge 2017 - Experimental Beer Category.
- DIPA Invasion: a classic American Double IPA with an elegant aroma of hops with notes of orange, resin and citrus and a malty touch. Intense and dry bitterness, with a slight sweetness and balanced alcoholic warmth (with 8.1% alcohol content, almost an imperial Double IPA).