Lagerboy Speaks – Gaffel Kölsch
Lagerboy doesn’t like to restrict himself, as any long-time readers will know – but if he did maybe he could do worse than become Kölschboy for a short while, he’d probably be very satisfied. There are fourteen producers of this highly specific category of lager in the Cologne area, with a few more scattered nearby – not to mention the breweries further afield who produce Kölsch-style beers. The 1986 Kölsch Convention made sure that only the city-based producers could market themselves as true Kölsches however, but even that many would take you a while to get through.
Gaffel Kölsch (4.8%) is one of those fourteen, and the brewery took their current form in 1908 when two brothers by the name of Becker took over a struggling brewing tavern in the shadow of Cologne cathedral. They renamed the enterprise ‘Gaffel’ after the medieval trade unions who controlled the various guilds (Gaffel meaning two-pronged fork). Today it’s still run by the same family, the fifth generation of Beckers to produce Kölsch for the local populace of Germany’s fourth-largest city. They only bottle 30% of their flagship product, as the rest is kegged for consumption in and around their home city.
For a Kölsch, this one is pretty much bang on the money. It has a delicate green hoppy smell, like (forgive me) an alpine meadow. Lightly carbonated, it has that distinctive straw yellow colour of the style. Nobody drinks Kölsches expecting punishing flavours, and Gaffel is no different. It’s mild and slightly sweet, but having said that it finishes with a small but noticeable dry aftertaste. It lacks the earthy bite of a good pilsener, but as a beer style all Kölsches do. They are uncomplicated gluggers designed and brewed to be refreshingly knocked back in tall thin glasses. If you want to experiment with that particular beer style, Gaffel Kölsch is one of the very best examples.
