French-Style Bière de Garde Style
- Color: Light amber to chestnut brown/red
- Clarity: Chill haze is acceptable. These beers are often bottle conditioned so slight yeast haze is acceptable.
- Perceived Malt Aroma & Flavor: These beers are characterized by a toasted malt aroma along with a slight malt sweetness and/or toasted malt flavor.
- Perceived Hop Aroma & Flavor: Low to medium from noble-type hops
- Perceived Bitterness: Low to medium
- Fermentation Characteristics: Fruity ester aromas are medium to high. Whereas fruity ester flavors are low to medium. Diacetyl should not be present. Bière de Garde may have low levels of Brettanomyces yeast-derived flavors that are slightly acidic, fruity, horsey, goaty and/or leather-like. Beers displaying more pronounced levels of Brettanomyces derived attributes are categorized as Brett Beers. Alcohol may be evident in higher strength beers.
- Body: Low to medium
- Additional notes: Earthy and/or cellar-like aromas are acceptable.
French-Style Bière de Garde Vital Statistics
- Original Gravity (°Plato) 1.060-1.080 (14.7-19.3 °Plato)
- Apparent Extract/Final Gravity (°Plato) 1.012-1.024 (3.1-6.1 °Plato)
- Alcohol by Weight (Volume) 3.5%-6.3% (4.4%-8.0%)
- Bitterness (IBU) 20-30
- Color SRM (EBC) 7-16(14-32 EBC)
2020 Brewers Association Beer Style Guidelines used with permission of Brewers Association.