Ask Mr. Wizard

Boiling Off the Alcohol In Beer

TroubleShooting

Chris Patterson — Downers Grove, Illinois asks,
Q

In an article by John Naleszkiewicz in the October 1995 issue of BYO, he reviewed a method of removing the alcohol after fermentation by heating the beer in an oven at 180 °F (82 °C). Is there any risk of fire with this method?

A
Wow! Talk about a blast from the past and a reminder of how brewing trends often slowly develop. The topic of no-alcohol and low-alcohol beers is certainly gaining traction in the world
Response by Ashton Lewis.