Fruits of the cellar: CSU brewing class to tap artisanal French ale ‘Biere de Garde’

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Colorado State University fermentation scholars are ready to share with the public the tasty product of their learning. There will be a ceremonial tapping of Monsieur Jean-Luc’s REALLY GOOD Bière de Garde on Thursday, April 21, 4-6 p.m. at the Odell Brewing Co. Tap Room.

This semester, the CSU Brewing Science and Technology class brewed a variation on a traditional Bière de Garde artisanal ale from Northern France. The ale is typically brewed in early spring and kept in cold cellars for consumption in warmer weather. The students brewed with Odell owner Doug Odell and brewer Tony Rau at Odell Brewing in Fort Collins all day Saturday, April 2. Their original test was brewed by the same class of students on campus on Feb. 12 in the New Belgium Brewing Fermentation Science and Technology Laboratory in the Gifford Building.

In the Brewing Science and Technology class, offered in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, students apply the science they learned in class to the commercial technology required to actually process ingredients from the farm into fermented beverages for the table.

The Odell Brewing Co. tapping party tops off the course and students will be publicly recognized at 5 p.m. by Jack Avens, professor in Food Science and Human Nutrition. Also in attendance will be the CSU instructor team that currently teaches the course along with Avens: Jeff Biegert, Harmonie Akers, Andrew Yourick and James Macdonald. Odell brewer Tony Rau will make a toast to the student brewers. The brewing class, which was founded by Avens, is currently in its 19th semester.

As part of this three-credit course, students brewed three ales on campus: the aforementioned Bière de Garde test batch, Habanero Hefeweizen and Close Out Porter. They also brewed Near Miss IPA at Equinox Brewing Co. on Saturday, March 5. Near Miss is currently on tap at the Equinox Tap Room, The Mayor of Old Town and the CSU Ramskeller.

In addition, the class brewed a Chardonnay Barrel Aged Saison at Funkwerks on Saturday, March 26. It is currently aging and will be available in the Funkwerks Tap Room for sample this summer.

After the tapping party, Monsieur Jean-Luc’s REALLY GOOD Bière de Garde will be available on tap at the Odell Brewing Co. Tap Room and the CSU Ramskeller until the end of the batch.

Playing at the tapping party will be The Painters, a band composed of five CSU students led by Kyle Jones.

The Fermentation Science and Technology program is part of the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition in the College of Health and Human Sciences at CSU.