Date: December 1998
How do commercial breweries lager so quickly?
Digital and Plus Members OnlyCommercial brewers determine the length of their lagering period by defining what they want to accomplish during lagering. Most of the changes that occur during lagering do not require two months or more and hence, most lagers age for less than two months. After lagering, most lager brewers want a reduction in diacetyl (butter flavor),
Why does my beer taste like Anbesol?
Digital and Plus Members OnlyMmm, Anbesol beer! Two of the keys to problem solving in brewing are having a good palate and having the ability to describe what you are detecting with your senses. Anbesol is a phenol-based local oral anesthetic (like Chlorasceptic). There are several things that can make a beer taste phenolic. The sanitizer problem you refer
Making Port at Home
FREEA lot of people don’t really care for sweet wines, but Port can be a wonderful and complex beverage. Though it may not be widely consumed in this country, there are
Dubbel Trubbel
Digital and Plus Members OnlyHere is my recipe for a spiced dubbel, not patterned after any one commercial example but rather an amalgam of several but with a bit of a twist. It is moderately strong, medium dark, spicy from both the yeast and the flavorings added. I recommend aging it well, trying it several different times over the course of a couple of years. In effect you will probably find that you have brewed several different small batches in one, as the flavors really evolve over time.
Improve Your Cask Conditioned Beer
Digital and Plus Members OnlyFarmers in England can still be persuaded to make the extra effort to grow top-quality barley for brewing. British farmers work from a list of approved barley varieties, and these varieties command a premium price over feed varieties. Barley varieties with exotic-sounding names such as Maris Otter, Halcyon, Pipkin and, in Scotland, Golden Promise are
Brewing Like the British
Digital and Plus Members OnlyLet’s face it. Brewers in England brew at home for very different reasons than brewers in the United States. In the United Kingdom take-home beer is very expensive, and people brew at home so that they can save money. In this country take-home beer is very cheap, so brewers are brewing at home to improve
Pep Up Your Holiday Parties
Digital and Plus Members OnlyMake your beer stand out at any celebration by paying close attention to glassware, pairing food and beer, and proper serving techniques.
Superior Stout
Digital and Plus Members OnlyA good stout begins with a classic coffee-like flavor, says Owen Hutchins. From there it’s a matter of manipulating the recipe to include an array of subtle flavors. Hutchins is the head brewer at The General Lafayette Inn and Microbrewery in Lafayette Hill, Pa. He has been brewing for 10 years and has been noted
The Sssssound of Beer
Digital and Plus Members OnlyOne carbon atom, two oxygen atoms, born in a crossfire hurricane. At normal, room temperatures carbon dioxide is a heavy, colorless gas. It’s a common by-product of organic activity, not just in your fermenter but in your lungs, too. When that army of yeast cells in your carboy ferments sugar into ethanol and carbon dioxide,
Using Nitrogen: Tips from the Pros
Digital and Plus Members OnlyBrewer: Bill Tressler Brewery: Green Bay Brewing Co. Years of experience: 4 years homebrewing, 4 years professional Education: American Brewer’s Guild apprenticeship program; University of Calif., Davis, practical brewing course House Beers: Hinterland Pale Ale, Amber, Honey Wheat, Packerland Pils, Pub Draught, and Maple Bock Bill Tressler should have known what he was getting into when he