Don’t know if it’s been mentioned yet. If you like stouts, try:
Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence
I agree with an early poster to this thread, DeKonick is the most “neutral” Belgian that I have tried. If it’s done correctly, you should get a bit of “pear” flavor but that’s about it from the yeast. Pater bier is also good but that should have the esters etc. normally associated with Belgian offerings. I like to quaff that to avoid getting “over served” if you know what I mean (and no, German lagers do not allow you to avoid hangovers). Of course, as soon as you start jacking up the gravity, the more esters and phenols you will likely get. It is no surprise to me that Mr. Lenard dislikes heffeweizens; in my opinion that stuff behaves more like a Belgian yeast strain than a German ale yeast. By the way, if you get bubblegum and bananna flavors in abbey beers that is a flaw; you need to do something to rid the beer of those flavors. Also, if you don’t care for the heavy esters and phenols stay well away from the Chimay strain; that stuff while good in my opinion is extremely “fruity”.
Finally, it is no sin to dislike any style of beer. In this particular case I believe the good lord made the original poster dislike these styles so he would concentrate on lagers to everyone’s benefit. 
patersbier is not technically a style
Well you are correct if you define “style” as being included in the BJCP official list. I was however using the term in a broader sense. I suspect the the next time they update “the list” it will be included as I notice more commerical beers of that type and much more interest in the homebrew community. One of the problems with the majority of Belgian beers (and of course there are exceptions) is that they tend to be high gravity hence getting “over served” is a distinct possiblity when exploring that countries offerings. As an aside, I wish American craft breweries concentrated more on the “session” side of the isle but that is a rant for another day.
A somewhat more comprehensive list than that of the BJCP and Gordon Strong’s neckbeard:
http://www.brewersassociation.org/pages ... guidelinesAlso, here’s a great list for the OP
http://firstwefeast.com/drink/best-belgian-beers/I didn’t notice Houblon Chouffe mentioned anywhere above. Very approachable, minimally phenolic Belgian beer (notice I didn’t say “belgian-inspired”? Yeah, this one’s actually made by a Belgian Brewery). Was the first true Belgian IPA though. Sorry. “Belgian beer to accentuate hops” for the style purists (!)
One other thing to keep in mind is that Belgians look at beer very differently than Germans (which Ken seems to like…their beers too). German beer is a much more industrialized product than Belgian beer. All about precision, scale, repeatability, and of course, CLEAN flavors, mainly accentuating the malt.
Many Belgian styles conversely arose from farmhouse production, and it was closer to winemaking. That is why Cantillon fiends are such purists about their lambics/geuezes. Technically, you can’t EVEN MAKE a lambic/geueze if you don’t use open fermenters exposed to the wild yeast, bacteria, flora and fauna of the Senne Valley! Take it a step further, and the Trappist tradition (Orval, Westmalle, Westveterlen, Chimay, Rochefort and 3 others I can’t name) is the closest that old world Belgium came to precise process. The monks were (and are) experts in coaxing the flavors they want out of very simple malts and hops with YEAST. Yeast is a means to an end for most clean German styles
All this adds up to the Belgians liking their yeast flavors. However, I have had so many TERRIBLE homebrewed Belgians that largely come from people just trying to make the biggest booziest beer possible (not the ‘best’ beer possible!).
For cleaner Belgian Beers, I would start with Saison Dupont. But you are talking to one of those Cantillon fiends :mrgreen:
Also, as mentioned above, if you are interested in the tradition, Brew Like a Monk is a great read. As is Farmhouse Ales (which I actually prefer…both the book and the beers!)
@ ken I brewed a bds with wyeast 3522. Been the bottle 2 months and it’s decent def needs some more aging but there is no bannana or clove tastes which I find repulsive. Maybe give 3522 a try I’ve never had a Belgian I liked either but when I saw dogfish head used 3522 in raison d’etre I figured I try it. I think in a few months Ill be able to say I like some Belgian beers
I’m brewing my second batch of Patersbier tomorrow. Looking over my brewing notes, this seems to be one of the easiest beers to brew of all time.
Only one type of grain, two types of hops. No mineral additions - straight RO water. WY3787 can ferment anywhere from 65-85 (according to Kristin England) so temp control isn’t a huge issue. I ferment at 68 for a restrained Belgian character. Mostly fruity esters with very little spice.
Wow, what a simple brewday! Should be a piece of cake. I am getting to where I really appreciate simplicity in my brewing. I’m working toward having a set of house recipes that I can just pull out and brew, and this is definitely one of them.
[quote=“ipa”]
Which reminds me of another great Belgian beer that you may like, Houblon Chouffe, it’s a Belgian IPA.[/quote]
[quote=“Pietro”]
I didn’t notice Houblon Chouffe mentioned anywhere above. Very approachable, minimally phenolic Belgian beer (notice I didn’t say “belgian-inspired”? Yeah, this one’s actually made by a Belgian Brewery). Was the first true Belgian IPA though. Sorry. “Belgian beer to accentuate hops” for the style purists (!)[/quote]
There’s another vote for the Houblon Chouffe
Although I LOVE Houblon Chouffe, I wouldn’t describe its yeast (WL550 / W3522) as a neutral one. I think it is pretty distinctively belgian. There are certainly more muted belgian strains available.
That being said, user Thirsty has a fabulous mini (~1.050) Houblon Chouffe recipe posted on this board somewhere. I’ve brewed it (or something close to it) several times and it is just wonderful.
