Brouwerij Van Eecke's Poperings Hommel Ale - Beer Review and Food Pairing

Inspired by Taras Boulba, I wanted to review another reportedly hoppy Belgian, so I chose to do a tasting and food pairing of Poperings Hommel Ale from Brouwerij Van Eecke. Hommel is the Flemish word for the hop plant. It also means bumble bee in the same language, which is appropriate because of the beer's sweet floral notes. The label promises the essence of the hop flower, but with a distinctly European take, as it features an idyllic scene of beautiful hop yards with castles and cathedral tops rising from the background. I paired this beer with the peppered salame from Columbus Salumeria of San Francisco. The pepper crust was aggressive, but the Hommel Ale brought everything together.

The Hommel Ale was decanted into a goblet from an 11.2 oz bottle. I took it out of the refrigerator and let it warm up for about 20 minutes before opening and pouring it.

Appearance:

Generously primed; foam begins collecting in the neck as soon as the cap is removed. Pours initially with a luxurious white head of dense, symmetrical bubbles. A continual stream of small bubbles feed the head from the sides of the goblet. Retains a 1/4" head against the wall of the glass; shallower in the center. A quick swirl easily froths head up to 1/2". Initially poured clear; negligible amount of sediment. Opaque, but not too cloudy; I withheld the bottom 1/4" of beer while decanting to cut down the turbidity. SRM is that of a pale ale; approximately 6 or 7 on the scale, a shade lighter than amber.

Aroma:

Slightly sweet malt nose; hint of white grape juice. Gentle floral quality of hops comes through. Polleny notes; fruity and muffiny.

Body and Texture:

Sweet, but not cloying or syrupy. Small effervescent bubbles quickly dissipate on the tongue, making room for rich flavor. Fair head retention, although I beat a lot of the gas out of the beer with frequent twirls of the goblet (sometimes I can't help it; snifters demand a swirl!).

Aftertaste:

Slight grass and Meyer lemon flavor up front. Clean, mildly bitter finish rests on the tongue. Slightly metallic. I'm not sure if honey was part of the fermentable sugars, but I wouldn't be surprised because of the jasminey, floral linger in the aftertaste. Very balanced; just enough hop presence to cleanse away the sunny sweetness and demand that you take another sip.

Overall Impressions:

Balanced and very drinkable; hoppy for a Belgian ale, but not very hoppy by American craft beer standards. Floral enough for spring, clean and spritzy enough for summer, and rich and flavorful enough for autumn. Really carries the terroir of its region by featuring hops grown locally to the brewery. I'm utterly shocked that it has a 7.5% ABV because it tastes deceptively light. Some candi sugar was likely used to accomplish that feat. Not exactly sessionable, but flavorful and brilliant for food pairings.

Food Pairing:

The Columbus Peppered Salame is tallowy, irony, and alive with the fermented tang of black peppercorn. Springy and dense in texture; flesh is deep magenta with thick white ribbons of fat. The wall of spiciness lingers and increases as you enjoy slice after slice.

 

The bloody, ferrous flavor of the meat and the bite of the black pepper brings out the metallic notes of the beer; different, yet pleasant. Brings the hops to the party as well. The Hommel Ale is sweet enough to stand up to the savoriness of the sausage, but hoppy enough to pull the oils from the black peppercorns off of the tongue, as well as deglaze the fat and salt. A compelling pairing that you won't forget.

If you like this beer, a similar domestic product is Brewery Ommegang's Fleur de Houblon. It has a slightly coriander witbier quality that is absent in Poperings Hommel Ale, but it has a similar summery spirit and features the floral side of hops as well.