The Brew
This is Vallée D’Blonde, my Belgian Blonde Ale entry for Euroclash 2026 on 16 May. It is also the first batch I brewed on the new BrewZilla 65L Gen 4.1, which gave it a bit of extra significance beyond just being a competition beer. Two reasons to not mess it up, then.
The recipe is a fairly classic 25A build: Weyermann Barke Pilsner as the base, a modest addition of Vienna for body, and 450g of D45 Candi Syrup for that gentle warmth and some colour. Czech Saaz is the single hop, which felt right for the style: understated, herbal, appropriately European. LalBrew Abbaye on yeast duty, pitched at 18°C with a slow ramp up. I also captured Abbaye from this batch to repitch into the Dubbel, so it was pulling double duty as a yeast nursery.
How It Went
Brew Day: 90-Minute Boil on the New 65L System
The mash ran as planned: in at 64°C with 18L for a 60-minute saccharification rest, ramped to 72°C for 10 minutes, then mashed out at 76°C. Sparge was 13L also at 76°C. Mash pH came in at 5.3, sparge at 5.6, both where I wanted them. Pre-boil volume was 28.5L, which put me in good shape for the 90-minute boil.
Hop additions were Czech Saaz: 65g at 60 minutes and 20g at 10 minutes. The D45 Candi Syrup, yeast nutrient, Whirlfloc, and zinc all went in at 10 minutes as well. I topped up 1L post-boil and ended up with 21L into the FermZilla at OG 1.057, exactly on target.
The 65L system handled this batch comfortably. Similar process to the 35L in most respects, slightly less fussing around the edges.
Fermentation: Clean Run with Abbaye
Two packets of LalBrew Abbaye pitched at 18°C into the FermZilla. Fermentation moved steadily, with a gradual temperature ramp to 24°C over 8 days to encourage full attenuation and let Abbaye do its thing with the esters. By day 14 I started cooling gradually down to 7°C for conditioning.
FG landed at 1.010, giving 6.2% ABV and solid attenuation. Clean fermentation throughout, no drama. The Abbaye performed well at the stepped temperature profile and I pulled a healthy crop from this batch for the Dubbel.
The Result: Kegged 8 March 2026
Kegged on 8 March via closed transfer, with additional volume going into PET bottles. Competition bottles were filled with the counter-pressure filler. Target carbonation was around 3.0 vol CO₂, which is on the higher end and appropriate for the style.
On the pour, carbonation was good. Foam stability was not quite where I wanted it (not the sustained head retention I was hoping for). Something to revisit.
The appearance is slightly darker than BJCP 25A expects. The style sits at 4–7 SRM, and this one leans toward amber rather than pale golden. The D45 Candi Syrup and Vienna malt are the likely culprits, and it is noticeable against style expectations. It is not a flaw as such, but it will probably cost points on the judging sheet if the panel is being precise.
Flavour is where this beer earns its keep. Good malt character, well balanced, and the Czech Saaz comes through subtly but clearly: herbal, slightly spicy, appropriately restrained. Nothing is out of place. The D45 adds a soft warmth rather than overt sweetness, which is what I was after. The entry name, Vallée D’Blonde, feels about right.
Next Time: Colour and Head Retention
The colour is the main thing I want to address. I’ll either pull the Vienna malt back significantly or swap the D45 for a lighter candi syrup (or both). Something like D5 or a clear Belgian candi would keep the fermentability and the Belgian character without pushing the colour as far toward amber. I want the next version to land solidly in the pale golden range where the style sits.
Head retention is worth a look too. A small addition of Carapils or some flaked wheat might give more foam stability without changing the flavour profile noticeably. Worth trying before Euroclash next year if I run this recipe again.