Christian Bourganel, entrepreneur and innovator, lover of beer and Ardèche, was considering a solution to promote these two elements. After a few months of reflection and work with the IFBM (Institut Français de Brasserie et Malterie) in Nancy, the fruit beers of the Ardèche were born in 1997, initially brewed by the Brasserie Castelain, but the stated objective was the creation of a micro-brewery in Ardèche.
The installation of the brewery in Vals les Bains is done in 2000 and on June 1, 2000, the Brasserie Bourganel offered its first Ardèche brew to local customers. Faced with the success of these beers, the Bourganel Brewery acquired new, more efficient equipment in 2004, and since then, each year, expansions have been carried out. In February 2006, the brewing room was changed and fermentation and aging tanks were added to increase the production capacity to 4,000 hectoliters per year.
Bottle from Terre de Boissons Calais and drunk at home. Clear gold colour lasting white head. It's got a decent carbonation. Very light peach ester. Light hop.. It's fine. Not too exciting but it's pretty drinkable enough. Not the best blond in the world but it's fine.
Sample at Kurtkeller 026: Summer-tastic 01 on 06/25/2017. Clear yellow color with a thin white head that evaporates quickly to a sparse outer ring. Spotty lace. Aroma of nougat, yeast and malt. Light-bodied with flavors of malt, nougat and earthy yeast. The finish is sweet with a caramel and nougat aftertaste. Slightly below average overall.
Bouteille 33cl @ Niamey’s 3rd craft beer tasting. Merci Michel. Dorée / trouble paille, col fin blanc. Arôme au nez malté - froment, pointe d’épice en rétro avec qcq soupçons de fruité, sans pour cela avoir la teneur d’ester d’une blanche belge. Palais est léger, malté ajoutant une certaine teneur de bouche, pointe d’épice et de fruité, grains en avant. Reste moyenne pour une blanche.
Bouteille 33cl @ Niamey’s 3rd craft beer tasting. Merci Michel. Nouvelle étiquette indique ’Brimbel’. Couleur pourpre, col fin rosé. Arôme, même dès le décapsulage, donne cet bouquet prenant de myrtilles, le tout rappelant le yaourt myrtille, l’effet malté est discret tant le fruité est dominant, ce dernier sans tombé dans le surfait de colorant et sucrose. Palais est finement malté, grains complété par les notes de jus de myrtilles. Effet citronné des houblons est là mais dans un effet noble certain.
Bouteille 33cl @ Niamey’s 3rd craft beer tasting. Merci Michel. BB 06/2019. Dorée trouble, col fin blanc. Arôme est malté, cara pils, note bio se sent de suite niveau des grains, houblonné modeste dans le noble. Palais reste dans un style blonde belge, effet bio, pas mal de grains, cara pâle et pils, pointe de levure et un effet houblonné tirant sur le noble restant cependant minimaliste dans son caractère - effet moyen de citronné.
Draft at The Avenue Pub, New Orleans. Medium amber with minimal off-white head. Aroma of nut extract, some caramel malt. Taste: largely of of chestnut, maybe a little caramel. The nuttiness dominates the taste, and not necessarily in a good way. A mildly dry, nutty bitterness for the finish.