Hi everybody, from the waterlogged wilds of sunny France, and thanks for letting me join your forum. I’ve been brewing for quite a while and love to experiment. The homebrew scene here in France is, I think, soundly established, and “craft” rather than “industrial” beer is becoming more and more popular. Traditional styles other than the ubiquitous Kronenbourg tend to be more like Belgian Abbey beers, but the craft scene tends to favour the hoppier pale ale and stouts. I love reading about American styles and approaches and trying new recipes. I’ve never had a cream ale or a California common or a Kentucky common (as far as I know) and would love to sample these beers so that I had an idea of what I was trying to brew. Maybe a research visit is called for.
My favourite beer of all time is Hopback Summer Lightning, of which I’ve drunk more pints than had hot dinners, and my Favourite French beer is Thiriez’ Blonde d’Esquelbecq. So I’m looking forward to some interesting browsing and I may throw in my grain of salt from time to time.
Welcome to the AHA forum, sir. Good to have you here. I hope you learn whatever you seek, and teach us all a thing or two.
To everyone: Ankou is a sage brewer. I’m sure he can help offer unique perspectives. We are fortunate to have him join our ranks.
You exaggerate, Mr Taylor.
Good to see you here.
Glad to have you here on the forum. Please do not discount your Belgian inspired beers. I spent two months in France last Fall (most Canadians make a pilgrimage to Juno Beach at least once) The welcome we got in the Normandy area was very genuine and heartfelt. I rediscovered the fantastic beer scene in France. Even though some of your big names are owned by the big guys of the World the flavour is still unmatched anywhere on this side of the Atlantic. I had some of the Thiriez’ Blond when we went to Dunkirk and it is a very well made beer. My favourite beer was la Béte which I found in Montignac. I like that the pubs never adopted polished concrete floors and high uncomfortable metal stools. Getting back I have tried to replicate some of the French Styles - I have a fantastic Bière de Garde on tap right now and a Bière de Mars aging until Mars.
Salut et bienvenue !
Est-ce que vous venez de Bretagne ? Je crois que « An Ankoù » vient de la mythologie de Bretagne, non ?
J’aime lire des bières du nord de la France (et de la Belgique aussi). Mais le plupart des bières françaises sont vraiment difficiles à trouver ici. J’ai l’espoir de visiter quelques-unes des meilleures brasseries françaises un de ces jours.
I’ve never brewed with sage, but I did try rosemary in a sahti-inspired raw ale once. 
Thanks, Mark. Glad you had a great time in Normandy- cider country, and perry, too. There are some good French beers and some awful ones too. La Bête, I recall, was a decent beer. I’ve got a bottle of their Christmas beer in the Fridge, right now. We have a friend living just outside Montréal who loves to send us photos of the beers she’s drinking and the festivals she’s at. It seems to me there are some very good beers to be had on your side, No. I don’t discount them, I avoid them; they’re too strong for an Englishman used to drinking pints. I like bières de garde. La Goudale is a good one, La Choulette is better, but difficult to find in Brittany. Glad your BdG worked out well. I’ve had to google Bière de Mars, it’s an old name for a saison now called bière de printemps. I think the best authentically French styles come from the North East and I love them, by and large. But they’re still too strong to drink all night- for a lightweight like me, anyway. I really must practise more.
Bien que je sois anglais, j’habite en Bretagne et t’as bien raison à propos du Ankoù. C’est un personnage qui ressemble beaucoup au Grim Reaper du folklore anglais.
En ce qui concerne la sauge:
Dave believes, perhaps, that I specialise in gruit. 
Now there’s something I should have a go at.
I am attracted to the NE styles - my Grandfather came from Ypres. I haven’t been to Montreal since 1974. I live in British Columbia where even tiny villages like mine (1400 people) have a brewery. Nice thing about small breweries, that have no retail presence, is they will give a shot at nearly anything a local requests and even let them help out with the design and brewing of the beer. Santé!
Ah. This does rather elucidate your comment to Mark about pints.
We’ve got reasonable access to the big Belgian brands around here, but the only French beer I can find with any frequency is Kronenbourg. I can find Normandy cider (which is very good) more easily than French craft beer.
Many French beers tend not to travel very far. I can buy as much Choulette as I want to in a supermarket in Lille, but can’t get it in the same supermarket anywhere in Brittany. Trappist beers are widespread and they are excellent value for money, while some local (and frankly dodgy) craft beer might sell for twice the price. The French, by and large, are still coming round to beer, I feel. I sometimes get the impression that a “cool” label is more important than the beer. Except where beer is traditional, of course. But largely it’s wine.
I’m astonished you get Normandy cider in Alabama. I’ve seen it very rarely in countries as close as England.
Iechyd mad ! Trés bien. J’aim bien les bièrs de Normandie, les bièrs fait en blé noir.
One cannot find any buckwheat beers here stateside but i get by.
I, too am new to this forum and have not posted before but I learn something each time I log in.
Bien venu. À bien tôt.
We can find Le Père Jules pretty consistently. I have no idea where it sits in the overall Normandy cider market.
Hi David and cheers.
Buckwheat beers are from Brittany, especially the brewery Lancelot. I must confess they’re not much to my taste, but the “galette” is another Breton invention involving a large buckwheat pancake topped with cheese, ham, andouille, fried egg, black pudding, etc, but not necessarily all of those at the same time. If ever you get to try Telenn Du, it;s abut the best of the buckwheat beers.
I hadn’t come across that one. Brittany and Normandy tend not to swap their ciders. But I’ve found their website and shop and it’s jolly expensive at €7.50 a bottle. Good cider can be had for €4-5 a bottle in the supermarket. Next time I’m up that way I’ll look out for it. They also do calvados and pommeau, I see.
Indeed. I’ve had the savory buckwheat galette whilst visiting some friends in Quimper. But that was back in 2010. The bièr de blé noir was at a couple of taverns and I don’t know who’s it was but I did a search for Telenn Du with no results on where to buy. At least stateside. I did find a retailer in Lebanon offering it but that’s not much help.
My tastes run more towards the malt forward beers, especially during the colder months. At the moment I have on tap a chocolate stout, a dry Irish stout, and English porter and a Belgian Dark Strong. But soon I will be planning on brewing my Saison and I am going to try a Märzen fermented under 1 atmosphere of pressure as I don’t have a lagering chest. These are good summer-time beers, in my book.
Dave