GABF Gold: Southampton Abbot 12
Note: The past two days we’ve “strip searched” the bronze and silver medal winners in the Belgian-Style Abbey Ale category at the 2005 Great American Beer Festival. Today we go for the gold.
Just two weeks ago, Southampton Publick House brewer Phil Markowski was quoted in this space about the use of sugar in brewing Trappist/Abbey beers. In part because his Abbot 12 earned a nice mention in the New York Times.
Then this past Saturday Abbot 12 (the 2003 vintage) won a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival.
Makes me think Phil should have written BLAM, and - in fact - he provided wonderful insights.
Discussing Abbot 12 he said he intended it to hold up to years of aging, as well as to be approachable upon release. “I wanted a moderate level of attenuation to leave sufficient residual sugars to balance the high alcohol content,” he said. “I wanted that classic ‘rummy’ dark candi sugar character, so I used a good amount of dark candi sugar (as well as white sugar) to achieve that flavor.”
Southampton Abbot 12
Original Gravity: 1.096 (23 ºP)
Alcohol by Volume: 9.9%
Apparent Degree of Attenuation: 78%
IBU: 22
Malts: 2-row pale, Pilsener, Special “B”
Adjuncts: Sucrose, dark candi sugar
Hops: German Perle, Styrian Goldings
Yeast: Proprietary strain
Primary Fermentation: 74 to 76 ºF (23 to 24.5 ºC)
Secondary: 2 weeks at 2 ºC
Also Noteworthy: Filtered, re-yeasted, cork-finished, and bottle-conditioned. Conditioned 4 weeks at 68 to 72 ºF (20 to 22 ºC)
