Krombacher is one of Germany's most renowned breweries with many fans across the world. Mixing modernity with tradition, the family-owned company is the largest private brewery in the country, committed to making the highest quality beer they can.
Named after the small town of Krombach, nestling in the beautiful Siegerland Hills of Westfalia, central Germany, the brewery has been making beer there since 1803. Towards the end of the 19th century, Krombacher created a Pilsner beer which quickly gained acclaim. Today, they produce a range of full-strength beers and two non-alcoholic ones, available in the UK.
* Mashing is the term given to the start of the brewing process. Crushed grains are mixed with water to form a porridge-like mixture called mash, before starches can be converted to sugars in order to kick-start fermentation.
Krombacher beers are made using the traditional decoction method of brewing. This involves removing a portion of the mash*, boiling it and returning it to the main mash. This method is typically used for German and Czech lagers and is believed to infer a richer, more full-bodied malty character to the resultant brews.
Krombacher beers are also defined by their use of the highest quality ingredients, including the famous Felsquellwasser®, the naturally soft water that comes from the village's rock springs and used as brewing water without any processing. Additionally, the beers are made with top quality Hallertau hops, premium malt from spring barley and the brewery's own yeast strain.
The brewery adheres strictly to the Reinheitsgebot, the traditional German purity laws. This cornerstone of the country's brewing heritage was introduced in 1516 by Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria. The decree allows only hops, barley, water and yeast to be used to brew beer.
Stephan Kofler, UK Sales & Marketing Director, comments further: "The German purity laws are pillars that our brewery and the German beer industry as a whole are built on. They set us apart from other international brewers and ensure we use only the finest ingredients plus time-honoured production methods with the core objective of producing the best beer."
While Krombacher beers are delicious drinking on their own, they lend themselves perfectly to food too. With summer sunshine beckoning and BBQ sets at the ready, now is the perfect time to stock up on your Krombacher favourites!
Here are my BBQ food pairing suggestions for each of the beers, along with tasting notes:-
ABV: 4.8%.
Colour: Bright, clear, mid-to-dark gold.
Nose: A subtle note of malt biscuit combines with gentle floral, herbaceous and grassy hints.
Palate: Fresh, crisp and smooth with sweet cereal notes, light hints of citrus peel, caramel malt biscuit and a long, mildly bitter finish.
BBQ food pairings: Very versatile as a beer to drink before tucking into the BBQ, or to go with chicken skewers, fish, halloumi and salads. The beer has enough body and flavour to stand up to lightly spiced dishes, so BBQ marinades with a bit of chilli heat shouldn"t be a problem!
ABV: 5.3%.
Colour: Hazy, dark gold/medium amber.
Nose: Aromas of fresh banana and spice with a hint of banana shortbread too.
Palate: Fruity and quite full-bodied with a creamy mouthfeel and notes of banana, subtle clove-like spice, a touch of sweet biscuit and a mild bitter edge in the background. While packed full of flavour, this beer retains a light touch and never feels heavy.
BBQ food pairings: Good for spicy food, including chicken with tandoori spices, but also with many other types of BBQ food and side plates, such as burgers with relish, sausages, cheese and chutney, vegetable pakoras etc.
ABV: 4.7%.
Colour: Dark brown.
Nose: Malty aroma with a touch of molasses, coffee and liquorice.
Palate: Notes of caramel, roasted malt, liquorice and milky coffee with a touch of cocoa and roasted nuts on the finish.
BBQ food pairings: This beer would also pair well with many spicy options and would be a particularly good match for burgers (meat or vegetarian), beef steaks, ribs and lentil dishes, as well as chocolate and ginger-based desserts and Tiramisu.
ABV: 0%.
Colour: Bright mid-gold with a slight orangey tinge.
Nose: Lightly floral with notes of almond paste, hay and faint hints of peach and citrus.
Palate: Upfront malty sweetness is immediately toned down by a pleasing touch of hoppy bitterness with a hint of grapefruit, before barley sugar kicks in on the long finish.
BBQ food pairings: Very versatile as a refreshing beer to drink before, during or after your BBQ! It will also pair well with lighter food, including white fish and fish cakes, garlic prawns, halloumi, pasta and salads.
ABV: <0.5%.
Colour: Mid-to-dark hazy gold with an orange/medium amber tinge.
Nose: Aromas of banana bread, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves with a hint of coriander.
Palate: Notes of sweet banana bread and a hint of orange peel with gentle "Christmas spice" notes, similar to the nose, that add a tingle on the finish.
BBQ Food pairings: This refreshing, isotonic non-alcoholic beer would be excellent with fish (including white fish, salmon, trout and tilapia), garlic chicken skewers, corn on the cob, white meat sausages and salads.
Image provided by Powersheds
Of course, if you want to BBQ German style, then a combo of bratwurst, hamburgers, frankfurters, pickles, sauerkraut and potato salad, along with your favourite Krombacher beers, will go down a treat! In any case, whichever BBQ options you choose, a cool refreshing beer is an essential part of the experience and Krombacher has the right choice to keep you and your guests refreshed and happy!
Click to watch video of how to prepare Krombacher Beer Can Poussin
Stephan Kofler says: "The Krombacher beers available in the UK provide a broad range of flavours to perfectly pair with a whole host of BBQ classics. The Pils and o.0% are great alongside olives and salty nibbles as guests arrive. They are also majestic with lightly spiced chicken kebabs, grilled halloumi or, for a BBQ centrepiece, try our Beer-Can Poussin recipe using our 33cl Pils can!"
Click to watch video of how to prepare Krombacher Dark BBQ Ribs
For Stephan, Krombacher Dark can handle more robust and boisterous ingredients and flavours, as he explains. "It's fabulous when used to make marinades and beer sauces. Our Krombacher Dark Ribs showcase this perfectly, but it's great for making pulled pork as well."
For fish, Stephan particularly recommends the wheat beers. "The Weizen and non-alc Weizen are such refreshing beers for the summer months. These work brilliantly with barbecued fish and anything with zesty fruit notes. We recently created some unbelievable fish tacos with a mango salsa that matched magnificently."
Krombacher now has over 300 draught taps in operation in the UK and you can also buy beers in Bargain Booze, Booths, Co-op, Filshill Keystore, Majestic, Morrisons, Ocado, Oddbins, Spar and Tesco.
Ocado has the full range, while the other retailers stock a smaller selection in 33cl, 50cl or 60cl bottles and/or cans.
