Beer 511

“Chicha de Mora”, from Lima’s Magdalena brewery, is described on the bottle as an “American Wheat Berry and Purple Corn Ale.” The name is a play on two traditional Peruvian corn brews – chicha de jora, which is fermented corn beer made from malted corn (jora), and chicha morada, which is made from boiled purple corn.

Despite the name and ingredients, the beer itself is not purple, but has a lovely orange amber color, with a slight blush of pink; no doubt contributed by the purple corn. It is slightly hazy, which is to be expected from a wheaten ale.

The beer presents a nice, initially rocky, head that soon subsides to a thin layer of small bubbles. There is plenty of lacing on the sides of the glass.

Mild hop aroma, smells “wheaty” but not like a heffeweizen – no banana, bubblegum, or citrus. Well, maybe a little citrus.

Midly effervescent, with moderate hop bitterness. Some pine notes, some grapefruit, both both very light.

In terms of mouthfeel, it is slightly tangy up front, giving way to a residual sweetness at the back end. Maybe an effect of the corn?

5.6% abv, 19 IBU

Sierra Andina is a craft brewery from the northern Peruvian Andean city of Huaráz, situated at 10,000 feet above sea level and near the foot of Mt Huascarán, which rises a further 12,00 feet from the valley floor.

In the past Sierra Andina has harkened to that Andean setting for the names and styles of their beers —Don Juan Porter, Pachacuti Imperial Ale, and so on– but this time I am trying a beer for which they have reached beyond the mountains, to the high jungles of Chachapoyas, at the edge of the Amazon basin.

“Chachapoyana” is the beer; a 4.5% abv, 26 IBU honey kölsch.

Chachapoyana is a of a yellow, golden color (4-6 SRM, I figure) beer; fairly hazy, but not thoroughly opaque. It has a medium but longlasting effervescence, with “strings of pearls” rising from the bottom for quite a while after serving.

In the nose, the honey addition is evident. There is a slight jora smell as well. In flavor, it is slightly fruity, but I can’t pick out any specific fruits. There is also a teeny tiny tang in the background.

It finishes effervescent, with a very slight mineral finish at the very end, as the beer passes the throat, that you’ll appreciate if you’re a fan of mineral water.

Chachapoyana is light, crisp, and refreshing, as is befitting of a kölsch. This beer goes down very easily.