ASHEVILLE - An Asheville resident traveled thousands of miles to make a specialty beer that speaks volumes about history, inclusion and women's rights in the industry.
Last March, Kala Brooks, general manager for Thirsty Monk Brewery, was one of more than a dozen women invited to participate in an annual tradition to brew a limited-edition Delirium beer in Belgium.
The historic Brouwerij-Brasserie Huyghe, a fourth-generation family-owned brewery, was established in 1654 and later founded the Delirium brand and its award-winning Delirium Tremens in 1988. Each year, the company celebrates women's contributions and addresses the gender gap in the beer industry by hosting a women-led brewing day on International Women’s Day, March 8.
“After we planned out the recipe and tasted the grains, we physically did all the labor,” Brooks said.
Brooks said the other invited women representing the beer industry hailed from places including Los Angeles, Mexico and Canada, assisted by Delirium’s head brewer, who worked together to make Delirium's latest Deliria beer.
“Women can be just as strong, just as powerful, have just as good palates and can physically get in there and do the work,” Brooks said. “Deliria and projects like this are helping to break those walls down.”
Brewing experiences and education
Brooks, who’s worked at Thirsty Monk for 11 years, started with the Asheville brewery leading the opening of its downtown rooftop cocktail bar, Top of the Monk, but has gained extensive beer and hard seltzer knowledge.
Thirsty Monk's underground taproom downtown is dedicated to Delirum beer.
Brooks said most of Thirsty Monk’s beers are made in Trappist style, created by monks who brewed beer within Trappist abbey in Belgium.
“We have always been Belgium-influenced at Thirsty Monk. All of our proprietary beers and hard seltzer use a specific strain of Belgium yeast strain,” Brooks said.
Brooks said she spent 12 days in Belgium. Four days were spent working on projects outside of brewing Deliria at the brewery.
“I felt like I had a good understanding of beer when I got there but I realized pretty quickly I didn’t know as much as I thought I did,” she said. “Within four days in Belgium, I think I learned more than what people probably know in their entire lifetime.”
Deliria beer tasting
Shipments of Deliria arrived at Thirsty Monk ahead of the release party, and Brooks tasted the beer for the first time.
This year’s Deliria is a strong golden ale that’s 8.5% alcohol by volume.
“It doesn’t play around. That’s a pretty high ABV, but you can tell by the golden color it’s going to be light and approachable,” Brooks said.
She said rice is one of the base grains giving it an interesting tasting profile. Oats and three different kinds of hops are used.
She described the beer as light and floral with a light banana and coriander finish on the mid-palate and that comes from the yeast.
Huyghe, on its website, described the 2024 Deliria brew as having a “fine, mild bitterness in its aftertaste and a splendid, round feel in the mouth which evolves well.”
The aroma is noted as “very balanced with a fruity, flowery background and an initial Chardonnay impression which evolves into a spicy, mild aroma of hops.”
Brooks said the brew is what she imagined.
“You put it in the tank, but you don’t know. I had an idea of what it was going to be conceptually, but I didn’t get to taste it at all because it didn’t exist,” Brooks said. “I’m enjoying that champagne-y, floral notes on the back palate, as well.”
Deliria beer release party
The special, limited-release Deliria beer is available at Thirsty Monk taprooms at 92 Patton Ave. downtown and 2 Townsquare Blvd., Suite 170, at Biltmore Park.
On Aug. 15, Thirsty Monk will host a release party at the lower-level Delirium bar from 7-9 p.m. with global representatives from the Belgium-based brewery among the guests. The public ― ages 21 and up ― is welcome to attend the celebration.
Light snacks will be provided. Entertainment will include caricature artist Paul Choi from Baddrawingsok and live music by local artist Eli Kahn.
The Biltmore Park release party will be from 4-6 p.m. and will include a back-to-school supply drive.
Individual retail 11.2-ounce cans are $9 each or $11 on tap at both Thirsty Monk locations. Half pours are $8.
One dollar of each draft and canned beer sale will benefit the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.
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Tiana Kennell is the food and dining reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at tkennell@citizentimes.com or follow her on Instagram @PrincessOfPage. Please support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times .
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville resident makes craft beer at historic Belgium brewery, releases Aug. 15
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