For: Bayou Teche Brewing, 1106 Bushville Hwy, Arnaudville, LA 70512.
Contact: Karlos Knott, (337)303-8000
BAYOU TECHE BREWERY’S LA-31 BEER REVIEWED IN NATIONAL MAGAZINE
Arnaudville, March 17, 2010 – Acadiana’s Bayou Teche Brewing’s first beer, LA-31 Biere Pale was recently given glowing reviews by two of the world’s most respected beer experts in the April issue of All About Beer magazine. Said Bayou Teche’s brewmaster Karlos Knott, “The editors of the magazine noted that LA-31 is crafted to compliment traditional Louisiana cuisine such as red beans and rice, jambalaya, sauce piquant, shrimp Creole, chicken and sausage gumbo, fried seafood platters, crawfish bisque and ettouffe.” Knott was pleased that the magazine recognized this, saying “Brewing a beer that pairs with Cajun and Creole cuisine was our little brewery’s original intent.”
In his review for the article, Garrett Oliver, who is an on beer, brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery and author of The Brewmaster’s Table observed: “This beer has an attractive orange-amber color underneath a tight, off-white foam. The aroma is earth, nutty, and musty, with mild notes of fruit and mint. The bitterness stands up front on the palate, broad and brash, before the full-bodied malts pull the beer back into balance. Hop bitterness lingers after a long finish.”
Roger Protz, a highly respected beer authority and author of The Complete Guide to World Beer and 300 Beers to Try Before You Die wrote that LA-31 is “A pale gold beer with a big fluffy collar of foam, it has a nutty and fruity nose with hints of caramel, butterscotch and spicy hops. Intensely bitter hops burst on the tongue, along with tart orange/citrus fruit and sweet malt. The well-balanced finish has creamy malt, tangy fruit, a continuing hint of butterscotch and bitter hops resins. This is a quenching and complex beer – I wish it were available in curry-mad Britain as it would be the perfect companion for spicy Indian and Bangladeshi dishes.”
Knott was surprised at how quickly Bayou Teche Brewing’s first beer was reviewed by such a renowned national magazine, as his beer is only sold in the Acadiana area. “A story about our petite brewery appeared in a Belgian newspaper and now we have been favorably reviewed by an English writer and New York based brewmaster who are respected authorities on beer.” Knott reflected that he read Oliver’s The Brewmasters Table once a month and everything that Roger Protz wrote while he and his family were planning their Arnaudville brewery. “When I was not brewing or drinking beer, I was reading about brewing or drinking beer.” Knott said he is pleased that his family brewery’s first beer has been recognized by two beer experts whose writings had inspired him to open Bayou Teche Brewing.