Some special beers in the north of Spain.

I have visited some places in Cantabria and the Basque Country in my search for special beers. When I arrived I was invited to a concert by the group "Punto Es" where one of our friends played, in the town of Somo, here I drank the extra reserva 1906 beer, it is a beer from La Coruña, produced by the brewery Estrella de Galicia, with Alc. vol 6.5%, color: 16.5 EBC, bitterness: 25 IBU, primitive dry extract of 15°P, made with toasted malts, Perle Hallertau hops and selected Hijos de Rivera yeast. The beer is amber in color, with a strong toasted flavor and aromas of caramels, it is in an amber 33 Cl bottle.

A few days later we went to Bilbao, Euskadi: Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa (Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, ACBC), to meet him. We walk along the Nervión River passing by the Guggenheim Museum and its famous Spider: Maman (Mother) by the artist Louise Bourgeois, a work dedicated to her mother. We walk through the Plaza Venezuela where we cross the river to enter the streets of the old city, walking through the Arriaga Antzokia theater, the Santiago de Bilbao Cathedral until we reach the Plaza Nueva, where we have made a stop to try the famous tapas and drink some local beer. So they recommended me a beer La Salve Txirene, It is an APA style beer (American Pale Ale), Alc Vol. 5.6%, color: 8 EBC, bitterness: 40 IBU, yeast: ALE, made with 100% Alavesa malt and malted wheat. American CASCADE and CENTENNIAL hops. It is a soft beer with a certain aroma of fruit. Enough Refreshing.

It was a quick visit to Bilbao, so on the way back we made a stop at the house of some migrant friends from the city of Maracaibo, who have dedicated themselves to producing fabulous cheeses. They've done a BBQ and have some beers I want to try. Here I have tried the DouGall´s beers. In 2006, the Dougall's company was born in the town of Liérganes, Cantabria, an ideal place due to its proximity to large water sources such as the Miera river. I have started with a Leyenda beer, a beer with 5.8% Alc. Vol. The malts used for its preparation are: Maris Otter, Cara Gold, Torrefacto Wheat, Crystal 150, with hops: Cascade, Columbus and yeast: House Ale. It is a beer with a lot of foam, with a copper color, somewhat cloudy with a special flavor in an amber bottle of 33 Cl. I liked it.

The weather has been perfect, a temperature around 21°C with plenty of sunshine, so I've decided to try another beer from the DouGall's family of beers. An American Pale Ale 942, a beer with 4.2% Alc. Vol. , with malts such as: Maris Otter, Cara Gold, Torrefacto Wheat, with hops: Simcoe, Cascade with house Ale yeast. It is a beer with less foam, a blonder color, in a 33 Cl glass bottle.

I am sure that i will return to continue knowing about this magnificent region of northern Spain.