What is a seasonal beer?
Before talking about a style of craft beer that is perfect for the month of May, we want to tell you what the seasonal beers are. These beer recipes are those that are made uniquely and specifically for a time of the year. They can be beers that are brewed in the fall and will be drunk at Christmas, or beers that will be stored in winter to arrive in the spring.
This type of brewing not only creates recipes associated with important festivities, such as the harvest or the arrival of spring, but also served as a way for brewers to suddenly empty their warehouses, thus making room for the new season.
For all this, these styles of beer are very popular. And it is that, few things we like more than having a good excuse to try delicious craft beers!
Maibock: the beer to celebrate the month of May
Traditionally, the inhabitants of Central Europe celebrated the end of winter with important popular festivals. After the harsh winter, these celebrations were necessary. Furthermore, these festivities were not solely intended to welcome the good weather; They also served to make room for the new shipments that would begin to be made with the cereals that were being harvested at that time of year.
In Germany, the spring festivals were celebrated in the Maibock style, literally “Bock de Mayo”
The surprising origin of the Maibock
As we already told you here , the Bock style became one of the most popular in Germany for various reasons, but one of them was that, due to its hoppy recipe, this style of beer endured long journeys well. So this beer was a favorite at the German court. And here the story begins, with a nobleman tired of paying to bring his favorite drink from Lower Saxony.
And it is that Duke Maximilian I of Bavaria, in 1612, no longer wanted to pay so much for the Bocks that were sent to him from Einbeck. So he convinced a producer from that city to move his activity to Munich. There, the first thing the brewer noticed was that the water was very different. And as we tell you here, the pH of the water is essential for this recipe. Surely he could also see how good the beer was, maturing in refrigerated cellars with ice brought from the nearby Alps, a common practice in the region.
So uniting the best of each region, the Munich Bock style was born, and a little later, the seasonal style associated with the month of May.
style features
With a significant alcohol content and the traditional malty character of Bavarian bottom fermentation, the main differences of the Bock de Mayo with other Bocks lie mainly in its light color -it can range from gold to copper- and in its cleaner taste, being able to appreciate the noble varieties of German hops, especially in the fresh and dry finish.
Celebrating May Maibock Style
At Beer Sapiens we love to toast all the good things in life. And what better toast than for the most beautiful month of spring? Also, it seems that this year the temperatures will be higher than normal, so we advise you to stay hydrated with some good craft beers ;)
In our store you can find 2 delicious beers of this Maibock style (which, as we have already told you, is a seasonal style and is not always available):
- Dawat 7 Maibock Lager 33cl : we advise you to start with this delicious recipe created by Dawat. Her low body and golden blonde color follows the rules of the Maibock style perfectly. You can accompany it with a snack of unctuous cheeses.
- Maibock Peninsula 44cl : a true Maibock, that is, a lager-type beer but with a higher and darker graduation. Its dark orange or copper color and its notes of bread and cereal will accompany hearty dishes, such as fried chicken or roast pork. That, in addition, will prepare the stomach before the high graduation of this beer: 7.5%