Left Hand Brewing Company
Dear Replicator,
As a former resident of Longmont, Colorado I enjoyed a bounty of local brews. Left Hand Brewing stood out to me due to their focus on classic styles that had just enough twist to make them a bit more interesting. To my delight, I saw their seasonal Oktoberfest at a local bottle shop in my new hometown of Portland, Oregon. I was blown away by the rich bready and toasty character, and was even more surprised by the scant list of ingredients on their website: Munich and 2-row. I would love to know how they were able to coax so much flavor out of such a simple malt bill, so any help is much appreciated!
Cody Gabbard
Portland, Oregon
Oktoberfest is a big deal at Longmont, Colorado’s Left Hand Brewing, especially to Lead Brewer Jeff Joslin. It so happens Joslin anticipates the annual release of Oktoberfest so much that he keeps his lederhosen at his desk year-round as a constant reminder that the beer and the season is on the horizon. More on that later.
The European influence is evident at Left Hand Brewing, due to the experiences of Co-Founders Eric Wallace and Dick Doore. Both veterans of the Air Force Academy, their tours exposed them to new experiences, including beer styles, that would later become the backbone of their future brewery.
Dick Doore first discovered brewing in 1990 being gifted a homebrewing kit for Christmas. You can say it “opened the Doore” for Dick to explore brewing on a larger level. Eric, a born entrepreneur and natural leader, brought his skill set and a passion for beer. Upon completion of their service, the pair brewed together regularly after reconnecting in Colorado.
Receiving positive reaction from friends and family, they decided to take their hobby professional, opening their modest brewery in a former sausage factory. Though ambitious, Wallace and Doore would never have imagined their production being among the top 50 American craft breweries.
Opening in 1993, Sawtooth ESB was the brewery’s first beer and their original flagship brew. Winning a medal in its very first year at the prestigious Great American Beer Festival (GABF), it has gone on to become the event’s most awarded Colorado-brewed beer, winning six medals. While Sawtooth ESB may be the heart and soul of the brewery, it is no longer the brewery’s flagship. Enter Left Hand Milk Stout.
After successfully climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, the thrill seeking Doore was seeking nothing further than a cold malt beverage. Finding a small pub at the base of the Tanzanian mountain, Doore had his first ever milk stout.
“This is the nectar of the gods,” said Doore of the stout.
The partners created a popular milk stout, a beer traditionally carbonated at first. Eventually, the drive to nitrogenate the beer in hopes of eventually canning it led the partners to a huge investment in time and research.
Two years and almost $200,000 was spent on R&D, resulting in the release of Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout at the 2011 GABF. The beer known simply as “Nitro” became the talk of the event as Left Hand became the first American brewery to nitrogenate beer into cans.
The milk stout line has been extended to include Raspberry, Peanut Butter, and Chai Milk Stout variations along with the popular original, accounting for about 60% of the brewery’s total yearly production.
Incidentally, neither owner is left-handed. The name Left Hand is a tribute to Chief Niwot, an Arapahoe chief known to be a force for peace between the native tribes and early prospectors in the local area. Niwot is Arapahoe for left hand. The mantra of the brewery is to better the community one pint at a time through better beer. Descendants of the chief visited the brewery and were pleased that the brewery is keeping his name and message alive for new generations.
The annual Oktoberfest event is a popular, communal event in Longmont, featuring beers brewed within the city limits from six different breweries. Headed up by Left Hand Brewing Foundation, the brewery’s non-profit arm, the event is held at a nearby city park.
The festivities start when one of the founders or brewers attaches a firkin to a bike leading a parade of brewery personnel and random beer fans through the town, stopping at each participating brewery. The Firkin eventually arrives at the festival where it is traditionally tapped by the mayor of Longmont to signify the official kick off of Oktoberfest.
Left Hand’s Oktoberfest lager taps in early August, packing a punch in both flavor and ABV at 6.6%. Interestingly, Oktoberfest is NOT a Left Hand Brewing original. The recipe became part of the company when Left Hand and Tabernash Brewing merged in 1998, the new organization keeping the Left Hand name.
The beer is crystal clear with copper hues. Biscuit and bread crust notes lead, supported by noble hop character that provides a dry and spicy finish. The beer is best served in a nonic glass or Oktoberfest stein, and of course, accompanied by a soft pretzel or fine German cuisine. Now you can create your own Oktoberfest celebration by brewing this classic style by one of America’s classic craft breweries.
Left Hand Brewing Co.’s Oktoberfest clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.061 FG = 1.010
IBU = 25 SRM = 9 ABV = 6.6%
Ingredients
7.25 lbs. (3.3 kg) Munich malt (10 °L)
5.7 lbs. (2.6 kg) Pilsner malt
4.5 AAU Apollo hops (60 min.) (0.25 oz./7.1 g at 18% alpha acids)
2.5 AAU Mt. Hood hops (25 min.) (0.5 oz./14.2 g at 5% alpha acids)
1.75 AAU Mt. Hood hops (5 min.) (0.35 oz./9.9 g at 5% alpha acids)
1 Whirlfloc tablet (25 min.)
Wyeast 2352 (Munich Lager II), White Labs WLP860 (Munich Helles Lager), or SafLager S-189 yeast
¾ cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Mill the grains, then mix with 5 gallons (19 L) of approximately 131 °F (55 °C) water to achieve a 122 °F (50 °C) mash temperature. Let the mash rest for 10 minutes. During the mash rest, check the pH. The target is 5.4 pH; add lactic acid to achieve the target. Once the pH is within range, raise the temperature of the mash to 147 °F (64 °C) and hold for 30 minutes. Next, raise the temperature of the mash to 154 °F (68 °C) and hold for 30 minutes. Transfer 40% of the mash to a separate vessel and bring to a boil. Boil for 15 minutes. The aroma will be marvelous. Transfer boiled mash back to lauter tun.
Vorlauf for 15 minutes or until wort is clear. Run off the wort to the kettle, then begin to sparge once you have 1–2 gallons (3.8–7.6 L) wort in the kettle. Due to the decoction, keep the mash bed fairly wet to avoid a stuck bed. Sparge four gallons (15.1 L) of water at 172 °F (78 °C). Lauter until you have 6.5 gallons (24.6 L) of wort.
Heat wort to a rolling boil, start a 60-minute boil timer and add first hop addition of Apollo hops. Add the second hop addition and Whirlfloc with 25 minutes left in the boil. Add the final hop addition of Mt. Hood with 5 minutes left. Once the boil is complete, whirlpool the wort and let rest for 15 minutes.
Chill the wort to 50 °F (10 °C). Add a healthy yeast pitch to the fermenter and aerate with pure oxygen (unless using dry yeast strain). Ferment at 52 °F (11 °C) until the beer is below 1.030, then increase temperature slightly to 57 °F (14 °C) for a diacetyl rest. Leave at that temperature until beer has been terminal and stable for three days. Drop temperature to 32 °F (0 °C), dump the yeast after 10 days and lager for at least 30 more days. Bottle or keg and carbonate to 2.6 v/v.
Left Hand Brewing Co.’s Oktoberfest clone
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.061 FG = 1.010
IBU = 25 SRM = 9 ABV = 6.6%
Ingredients
3.8 lbs. (1.7 kg) Munich dried malt extract
3 lbs. (1.36 kg) Pilsen light dried malt extract
4.5 AAU Apollo hops (60 min.) (0.25 oz./7.1 g at 18% alpha acids)
2.5 AAU Mt. Hood hops (25 min.) (0.5 oz./14.2 g at 5% alpha acids)
1.75 AAU Mt. Hood hops (5 min.) (0.35 oz./9.9 g at 5% alpha acids)
1 Whirlfloc tablet (25 min.)
Wyeast 2352 (Munich Lager II), White Labs WLP860 (Munich Helles Lager), or SafLager S-189 yeast
¾ cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Heat 3 gallons (11.4 L) of water in your kettle. Bring to, or at least near, a boil. Remove from heat and stir in the malt extract slowly to avoid clumping. Once all extract is in and dissolved, return to boil (for 60 minutes) and add the first hop addition.
Add the second hop addition and Whirlfloc with 25 minutes left in the boil. Add the final hop addition of Mt. Hood with 5 minutes left. Once the boil is complete, whirlpool the wort and let rest for 15 minutes.
Chill the wort to 50 °F (10 °C). Top your fermenter with pre-boiled and chilled water also at 50 °F (10 °C) to yield a total of 5 gallons (19 L).
Add a healthy yeast pitch to the fermenter and aerate with pure oxygen (unless using dry yeast strain). Ferment at 52 °F (11 °C) until the beer is below 1.030, then increase temperature slightly to 57 °F (14 °C) for a diacetyl rest. Leave at that temperature until beer has been terminal and stable for three days. Drop temperature to 32 °F (0 °C), dump the yeast after 10 days and lager for at least 30 more days. Bottle or keg and carbonate to 2.6 v/v.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS:
The all-grain version will provide a more “true-to-the-original” representation of the beer because, according to Head Brewer Adam Lawrence, “The decoction is everything in this beer.” But those who are not yet ready to take on all-grain or decoctions will find the extract recipe results in a suitable and tasty beer.
The key to produce a clean lager is to have an ample and healthy yeast pitch and to oxygenate thoroughly if using a liquid yeast strain. It’s better to pitch a little extra yeast than not enough, so it’s strongly recommended to do a large starter and decant after yeast settles or pitch more than one sachet of dry yeast, especially since this is a fairly strong Märzen at 6.6% ABV.
