Italy is definitely not what anyone would consider part of Europe’s traditional brewing heartland: In terms of beverages, the Southern European country is mostly known for its amazing wines, which complement its world-class cuisine. But since the mid-90s, Italy has developed a relatively small but dynamic brewing scene, which originally started in the country’s north, before spreading throughout the Italian peninsula. Brewers like Agostino Arioli at Birrificio Italiano—not far from Lake Como, north of Milan—have inspired beer makers in the U.S. and the U.K. to make their own Italian-style Pilsners, after Birrificio Italiano’s Tipopils. Other Italian brewers have experimented with the country’s native wine grapes, resulting in Italian Grape Ale, one of Italy’s first “native” beer styles to gain international attention.
In this episode, I talk to Maurizio Maestrelli, one of Italy’s leading drinks writers and the author of a recent article, “Grape News — How a New Generation of Italian Brewers Created Italian Grape Ale,” that ran in our Mother of Invention series, created in partnership with Guinness. We discuss the history of Italian Grape Ale and the origins of the Italian craft beer boom, including some of the leading figures of Italy’s beer renaissance, like Teo Musso at Birra Baladin and Nicola Perra at Birrificio Barley. We also talk about Italy’s other “indigenous” beer style, Chestnut Ale, and the rich relationship Italians have with food of all kinds. As Maurizio notes, Italians don’t just think of “citrus” as a flavor. Instead, they’ll say they’re identifying the aroma of lemon or chinotto, citron or bergamot. Italian brewers who make Italian Grape Ales will say that beers using the same type of grape can have very different grape flavors, if those grapes were merely grown on different parts of the same island.
While recording this podcast, we did experience some technical difficulties with a bit of noise that comes in and out—we apologize for that. If you’re interested in how Italy has embraced good beer—and created several good beer styles of its own—I think you’ll find the discussion worth your while.