Thornbridge, Mr Smith Gose To

Here’s your cheat sheet for Mr Smith Gose To… by Thornbridge Brewery. This is the fourth winner of the Great British Homebrew Challenge brewed by Josh Smith. It’s even made its way into Waitrose – not bad for a homebrew recipe! So, let’s see what all the fuss is about then.

Thornbridge Brewery, Mr Smith Gose To… / Gose / 4% ABV / IBU not available

Featured in main subscriber box on 26 April 2018.

Find the brewery on Twitter at @thornbridge and on Instagram at @thornbridge.

Serving temperature

Serve this beer at 4°C to 7°C; stick it in the fridge by 6pm so it has time to cool right down.

As ever, be wary of over-chilling your beer. More chill means less flavour. To learn more read my post on recommended serving temperatures.

Flavours to expect

[pullquote cite=”Thornbridge Brewery” type=”right”]”Juicy watermelon flavours combine perfectly with the lemony Gose. Brilliantly refreshing and fruity with a salty sharp twang, this is a fantastic twist on this traditional German style.”[/pullquote]

A gose, for those who don’t know, is a traditional German style of beer made with wheat and flavoured with salt and coriander. Classic examples are light and refreshing, with a tart citrus note from the wheat further soured by lactic fermentation and then balanced out by the salt for a gentle, almost maritime character. Which is a little odd as the style originated in Leipzig, which is nowhere near the coast!

If salt in beer sounds weird, don’t worry. It’s subtle but makes the beer very moreish and easy-drinking. The further addition of watermelon here sounds perfect, suggesting a light fruity thirst-quenching beer that will most likely disappear very quickly.

Food pairings

A light beer calls for light food, with fresh flavours. Fried whitebait, with a salad of pickled radishes and cucumber. Light cheese, such as a cream cheese or sharp goat’s cheese – perhaps avoid the funkier earthier ones though. Feta should be good, and green olives too – so perhaps a greek salad would work well. Light chargrilled chicken dishes too – perhaps a chicken caesar salad.

Further info

Read more on this beer from BeerBods. There isn’t really anything to point you towards on the brewer’s site this week. So instead here’s some further reading on the history of the style.