Scan the beer list at your favorite local brewery and alongside IPAs, stouts, ales and lagers, you just might spot a Gose. Just a few years ago, though, that wouldn’t have been the case. The historic sour style – known for its tart, mouth-puckering flavor – has been brewed in Germany for centuries, yet almost disappeared entirely several times. Traditionally, the sour wheat beer (pronounced goes-uh) gets its distinct salinity from the addition of salt and subtle floral notes from coriander. As sour styles have exploded in popularity at craft breweries across the U.S. in recent years, Goses are having their own renaissance. To truly appreciate just how unique the style is, however, you need to first understand its unlikely origins.
THE RISE, FALL AND REBIRTH OF GOSES
The sour, salty style almost went extinct in Germany. Now, it’s making a staggering comeback at American craft breweries, thanks in part to Destihl Brewery in normal, illinois. WRITTEN BY HEATHER RISKE PHOTOGRAPHY BY NEIL BURGER
Goses have a long and complicated history. The first mention of the style dates back all the way to 1181, when the beer was initially produced in the tiny town of Goslar in northern Germany. The style takes its name from the River Gose, which, prior to changing course, ran through the town. The small river was purported to have had a high saline content at the time, and, according to legend, that’s what gave the first Goses their distinct saltiness. At the height of Gose’s popularity in the mid-1500s, 387 taverns had been granted licenses to brew the style. “The beer was a phenomenon,” says Fal Allen, author of the upcoming book Gose: Brewing a Classic German Beer for the Modern Era and brewmaster at Anderson Valley Brewing Co. in Boonville, California. “By the end of the 16th century, the entire Harz region [of Germany] was covered by Gose fever and the beer was an export hit for the city. The popularity of Gose moved mostly in a southwestern direction, finally ending in Leipzig. There, the beer took on a new life; even as brewing completely vanished from Goslar, it was thriving in Leipzig.” Near the beginning of the 20th century, Leipzig, a town much larger than Goslar, was home to dozens of Gosenschenke, which translates literally to “Gose tavern.” The first Goses were likely produced using spontaneous fermentation, in which the beer is exposed to open air to allow in natural and wild yeasts and bacteria, or fermented through a mixed culture that had taken up residency in the wood vessels used during brewing and fermentation. Although early Goses were said to get their saltiness from the river of the same name, brewers later began adding salt to the beer, a practice continued today. The beer, however, remained a regional specialty and was never produced in massive quantities. When World War II broke out, production of Goses – and all other beers in Germany – declined sharply. At the start of the war in 1939, only one brewery – Döllnitzer Ritterguts Brauerei just outside of Leipzig – was still producing the style. “They were happy to stay pretty small and only brewed 7,500 to 10,000 hectoliters [less than 8,500 barrels] a Inspired Local Food Culture
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