I was recently invited to attend an Ommegang tasting at Stateside restaurant in South Philadelphia. Not only would I be able to sample new brews and great food, but I even had the chance to meet Phil Leinhart, brewmaster at Brewery Ommegang. My answer to this invite was a no-brainer.
This event kicked off with Phil discussing Brewery Ommegang’s two newest brews, Duvel Rustica and XV – 15th Anniversary Ale, and everything that went into their creation. This talk was followed by a sampling of both of these unique beers and a tasting of Stateside’s food pairings. This alone made my day, but my night got even better when I found myself talking beer with Phil and Ommegang’s other extremely hospitable reps.
The first beer I tried was Duvel Rustica, a farmhouse interpretation of the classic Belgian beer Duvel. This beer was a collaboration between Brewery Ommegang and Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat (brewers of Duvel) brewed and bottled in Ommegang’s Cooperstown, NY brewery. This beer uses Duvel’s recipe but primary fermentation is achieved using Ommegang’s proprietary farmhouse yeast and secondary fermentation utilizes a second secret yeast. This results in a clean beer that perfectly showcases the amazing flavors that yeast can provide to a beer. The more phenolic yeast used by Brewery Ommegang gives this beer a funk that definitely sets it apart from other Belgian beers. The beer pours a hazy gold with a thick white head. The aroma of the beer is dominated by the citrusy, funky, almost sour smell of the yeast. Duvel Rustica’s flavor profile is grassy, citrus, orange, bready, peppery, with crisp hops, and finishes with the fruity ester filled farmhouse yeast flavor. Ommegang has taken an iconic beer and given it an added depth and complexity found in the rest of their portfolio, this beer is a must try for the Duvel and Ommegang fans out there.
The next beer I sampled was Ommegang’s new XV – 15th Anniversary Ale. This beer is a 9.4% Belgian dark strong ale that is fit for a Quindecennial celebration. Brewmaster Phil Leinhart set out to create a trappist dark ale on candi sugar steroids. This beer poured a deep black with a mild caramel colored head. One whiff of this brew brought out boozy aromas of toffee, brown sugar, raisin, fig, and molasses. XV tasted of brown sugar, raisin, caramel, molasses, dark candi sugar, anise, cardamon, and finished slightly dry. This full-bodied beer was dark and sweet without the acridity of many darker beers. This beer was brewed with no spices, yet the complex Ommegang yeast actually added some great spiced notes to this beer. This is a great beer deserving of its anniversary title. It was only released in very small amounts in the Philly area so if you get a chance grab a bottle before its all gone.
Stateside’s award-winning chef George Sabatino cooked up some great dishes to pair with these unique beers. My favorite dish was the Smoked Pork Rillettes cooked in a Korean BBQ sauce, accompanied by Stateside’s great house-made pickles. This dish was savory as well as sweet and it paired well with the anniversary ale. The Duvel Rustica paired well with Chef Sabatino’s Parmesan Croquettes. These bite sized morsels had a crispy crust with a soft inside. Each bite had a flavorful parmesan flavor, but not overpoweringly sharp. The slight funk of the parmesan complemented the yeast profile of the Duvel Rustica.
I highly recommend checking out the small plate menu at Stateside for yourself. This, of course, wouldn’t be complete without a glass of one of these limited Ommegang beers. And if you ever get the chance to attend an Ommegang tasting event, I’ll see you there!
For more information on Brewery Ommegang visit ommegang.com, follow them on Twitter nationally @BreweryOmmegang and locally @OmmegangPhilly and like them on Facebook. For more info on Stateside, visit statesidephilly.com, follow them on Twitter @statesidephilly and like them on Facebook.
