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A new venture is about to be launched in Barga
The first season for la Birra di Barga has been excellent. Although we are yet to receive the permission from the Dogana (Customs and Excise) to sell the beer commercially, we have nevertheless managed to arrange a series of special Barga Birra events which have received excellent local publicity thanks to Barganews.com and il Giornale di Barga.
Our project received an unexpected boost in May 2009 with a spectacular publicity coup! The Mayor of Barga, Prof. Umberto Sereni, has been a supporter of the project from the start and on the 27th May, to coincide with his birthday, a grand concert was arranged at the Teatro dei Differenti, a beautiful 17th century theatre in the centre of Barga. As he has been Sindaco (Mayor) now for 10 years he must stand down at the elections on 6th June. He requested (no domanded!) that the first bottle of la Birra di Barga be presented to him on stage during the concert. We quickly bottled and labelled a few bottles and the first was duly presented to him in front of the gathered citizens of Barga. There is a report on Barganews.com. A further step was taken on 3rd July when the Comune agreed to the label design. As the design was inspired by the "Stemma" or coat of arms of Barga, a ship in full sail with a mast of a living pine tree, permission was needed from the Comune. The story of the ship is interesting. Why should a small mountain town have a masted sailing ship as its symbol? As early as the 16th century (and probably earlier) the forest on the mountainside above Barga produced the huge pine trees which provided the masts and oars and frames for the ships built at the main dockyards of Pisa. The trees were cut and dragged along a track still known as the Via dei Remi (road of oars) down to the Arsenale (shipyard) on the River Serchio, just below Barga. There the wood was cut and prepared for the construction of the ships and, in winter when the river was full, rafted down to Pisa to be built into the galleys of the Pisan navy.
The first tasting of la Birra di Barga took place at Barga Jazz Club on the 6th June before their annual Cena Sociale. All the participants gave very favourable comments with 55% rating the beer Excellent and 45% rating it Good. The tasting notes recorded comments on the flavour, bitterness, head, mouth-feel (fizziness and texture) and colour. Many commented on the rich malty flavour and pleasant mouth-feel.
Limited supplies of Barga Beer have now been provided to L'Osteria in Piazza Angelio, Colordivino, next door to L'Osteria and to Scacciaguai in Via di Mezzo for trial tastings.
On 1st October we held a special dinner at the local restaurant "Scacciaguai" with an entire menu based on la Birra di Barga. All dishes were cooked with our beer which was also served to accompany the dinner. The antipasto was of duck breast braised in beer on a bed of salad leaves. The primo was a farrotto (like risotto but based on farro, a local grain similar to barley) with bacon and parmesan. The main course, beef braised in beer followed by a dessert of a muffin served with whipped cream flavoured with Birra di Barga malt liqueur! The evening, attended by 45 Barghigiani, was a great success.
To round off the year, on 20th December we will be serving Birra di Barga round the Lake Angels bonfire in Piazza Angelio, raising funds for a village in Rwanda.
Roberto and Wanda of la Gelateria who make the most fantastic ice creams in via di Mezzo, Barga, have introduced Birra di Barga flavour to their range. Wanda reports that it has been a great success.
Using the pure mountain water of the Appenine mountains, malted barley and aromatic hops, a microbrewery in the mediaeval hilltown will be producing lager, ale and special beers to traditional recipes. The Fontana Brewery has been established in Via del Pretorio in the heart of the mediaeval city. Barga Beer will be supplied to local bars and restaurants and will also be available for tasting at the Fontana Brewery in via del Pretorio
Until the 19th century most beer was brewed in the inn or alehouse where it was served, then industrial breweries became established and the craft of beer brewing was rapidly overtaken by industrial production. Now beer brands are global products and an alcohol factory in the US, Germany or UK will churn out tanker loads of "czech", "bavarian", "australian" or "belgian" beers, which are standardised throughout the world. The beer produced is generally pasteurised to extend the shelf life to several years and the "fizz" is produced by injecting carbon dioxide into the storage tanks. As a reaction to that globalisation a new type of small craft breweries has slowly grown up offering truly artisan produced, low volume beers. These beers are specific to their home and have not been shipped hundreds of miles to reach you. They are generally un-pasteurised and the "fizz" is a natural effect of the fermentation (just like true Champagne).
Ingredients
All beers have four basic ingredients: water, malted grain (barley or wheat predominantly), yeast and hops. The brewing process extracts the natural sugars from the grain and then in the process of fermentation the yeast turns the natural sugars to alcohol. The more sugars which are extracted , the stronger is the beer. The hops have two functions: the oils of the hops are a natural bactericide so protect the beer from going stale while also giving a flavour and aroma to the finished beer. The bitterness of beer is mainly determined by the type and quantity of hops used. Barga Beer uses the fresh pure water from the Appenine mountains, Italian grain and hops (pictured: fresh hops growing in Barga). The beer is un-pasteurised to maintain the fresh flavours and the "fizz" is all natural.
Progress Update: Italian bureaucracy is, justifiably, notorious and we are still waiting for formal approvals from the Comune and from the Dogana (Customs and Excise) to sell the beer commercially . Despite that we have progressed with the building works and on 8th May reached a significant milestone. We got drains! For several months we have had a good water supply but no drains so we were restricted in what we could do. Now with the equipment all in place we are progressing with regular brews.
We had our first hop harvest last September (the first ever in Barga) and harvested enough for our first production of la Birra di Barga. The fresh hops will be dried before being added to the "wort" while it is being bolied. This year we planted more hops in our Hop Garden and in September had a good crop of hops again.
We have found a great outlet for our spent malted barley which go to feed local pigs. The resulting pork and prosciutto, I am certain, is more succulent as a result!
Barga is a Cittá Slow, that is a place where food is appreciated and is prepared and cooked from the best quality ingredients, mostly locally sourced. It is appropriate that Barga should be the home for a new artisan brewery producing "Slow Beer".
site by Ron Gauld
