![]() This time, I merely shrugged, because drinking American-style IPAs simply isn’t why I came to Estonia. Le Coq IPA, made with Chinook, Amarillo, Cascade and Citra hops. Once in the Old Town, I spotted bottles of A. Le Coq out of business, though the brewery eventually was resuscitated under new management during the first period of Estonian independence before (again) being nationalized during the Soviet occupation, ending in 1991. Sadly, World War I and the Russian Revolution quickly ensued, combining to put A. Accordingly, there was a side benefit of avoiding increasingly onerous import duties. Le Coq finally elected to establish production nearer its market, and the company purchased a brewery in Tartu – now Estonia, then Russia. Petersburg, then the Russian capital, lies at the Gulf of Finland’s furthest reach, 230 miles to the east of Tallinn. In the early 19th-century, the brewery’s founder and namesake Albert Le Coq began exporting Imperial Stout brewed in England to Tsarist expectations, shipping it to Russia via the Baltic Sea. Le Coq in his classic introductory text from the 1970s, World Guide to Beer. The writer Michael “Beer Hunter” Jackson told the story of A. Le Coq Imperial Extra Double Stout, and Saku (Baltic) Porter. Let’s cook some kvass instead.įor beer hunters of my generation, Estonia is primarily associated with two larger commercial breweries and two relatively familiar beers: A. It was sweeter but no less delicious, and would be an apt thirst quencher in summertime, so keep the lemonade and iced tea. The commercial version of kvass available at the Golden Piglet Inn actually lacked the tang of what I remembered at a street stand in Moscow, circa 1999. It tastes like its principle ingredients, bread and water. Given that one of the glories of Estonian cuisine is its dense, moist black bread, kvass/kali is a natural product line extension. Like sour cream, for example, or pickled cucumber. ![]() "The sour is the taste of Russia - everything is supposed to be sour for Russian taste. ![]() The whole mixture ferments for a few days, a process that creates a natural carbonation, as well as a distinctive sour flavor.Īccording to Russian writer Alexander Genis, that sourness is beloved in the region. You soak it in water, and then add some yeast (other additions - raisins, honey, mint - vary from recipe to recipe). To create that tangy fermented flavor, kvas makers start with Russian brown bread. In the Estonian language, it's called kali. We tend to think of kvass as Russian, though many Baltic and Eastern European countries have their own versions. Kvass is a lightly fermented, traditionally homebrewed “soft” drink made from dark bread and yeast, with a myriad of other additional ingredients varying from kitchen to kitchen. It is obscure and mysterious, with an impenetrable language and an inspiring back story. ![]() Yet Estonia is everything I crave in a European nation. Much to Carmen Kass’s disappointment, the Louisville metro area is not a bastion of Estonian name recognition, and while I’ve long since become accustomed to puzzled looks when announcing our holiday destinations, mentions of Estonia furrowed more than the usual brows. And in overcrowded Europe, Estonia’s sparsely populated countryside and extensive swathes of forest provide spiritual sustenance for nature-lovers. Put simply, Tallinn is now one of the continent’s most captivating cities. Europe has fallen head-over-heels for the charms of Tallinn and its Unesco-protected Old Town. With a newfound confidence, singular Estonia has crept from under the Soviet blanket and leapt into the arms of Europe. For the last 300 years Estonia’s been linked to Russia, but the two states have as much in common as a barn swallow and a bear (their respective national symbols). Its closest ethnic and linguistic buddy is Finland, and although they may love to get naked together in the sauna, 50 years of Soviet rule in Estonia have separated the two. It shares a similar geography and history with Latvia and Lithuania, but culturally it’s distinct. The Lonely Planet travel guide provides an introduction.Įstonia doesn’t have to struggle to find a point of difference: it’s completely unique. Carmen Kass, model and famous Estonianįor spring break in 2016, we decided to spend a week in Tallinn, Estonia. I hope one day when I say I'm from Estonia, people don't say: 'What? Where's that?'
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |