Writer: Jon Stika
Extract Brewing Essentials
Digital and Plus Members OnlyAs both a homebrewer and professional brewer at Phat Fish Brewing in Dickinson, North Dakota, I frequently get asked about the process of brewing beer, including how difficult it might be to get started brewing at home. I always do my best to give a complete yet concise answer that includes encouragement for them to
Home Malting
Digital and Plus Members OnlyMalting barley at home may sound like a lot of work, but it’s actually pretty easy and doesn’t require much equipment you don’t already own. Once you have the malting process down, you may want to even grow your own barley. Jon Stika walks readers through the steps.
Brewing Beers to Cellar
FREEWine isn’t the only beverage that can get better with age. Here’s why (and how) certain beer styles evolve with time, plus tips and keys to make a beer worth cellaring.
Cereal Mashing
Digital and Plus Members OnlyMention the word “cereal,” and most folks think of ready-to-eat breakfast food. To a brewer, cereal is the grain produced by any number of grass crops from Avena sativa (oat) to Zea mays (corn) that has not been sprouted to make malt. Cereal grains make up the greatest quantity and provide the most energy to
Water Treatments
Digital and Plus Members OnlyWater is the main ingredient of beer. The many different styles of beer we have today evolved for many different reasons, not the least of which is the chemistry of the local water supply where the beer was created. Historically, brewers no doubt experimented with different ingredients and techniques much as homebrewers do today. They
Choosing and Using Different Forms of Hops
Digital and Plus Members OnlyHops have been the herb of choice to preserve and flavor beer for centuries, but only during the last several decades has there been such a wide variety of hop products available to homebrewers. For the purpose of this article, hop “cones” are the whole female flowers of the hop (Humulus lupulus), which can be
Cold Steeping Specialty Grains
Digital and Plus Members OnlySteeping specialty grains is a common practice for many homebrewers, particularly those who brew extract or partial-mash recipes. As with many things in the beer brewing process, there are trade-offs to be made in time, labor, extract efficiency, flavor, color, body and foam when we compare one approach of brewing with specialty grains to another.
Brewing with Citrus Fruit
Digital and Plus Members OnlyAs the craft beer and homebrewing movement continues to grow around the world so does the variety of fermented beverages and the ingredients that go into them. Some of the unusual ingredients in beers currently being brewed are new (such as specialty malts and new varieties of hops), but some are ancient, perhaps as old
Adding Herbs and Spices to your Beers
Digital and Plus Members OnlyA spice is typically defined as a dried part of a plant used to flavor, color, or provide preservative properties to food (or drink). In that regard, every beer you drink is spiced with at least hops, which provide a variety of flavors and some preservative elements to your brew. As we delve into the
Brewing with Corn
FREEMacro lagers aren’t the only beers that benefit from the addition of corn (maize). Learn how it can benefit homebrewers too!
Sweet Grass Ale
Digital and Plus Members OnlyMalt, hops, water, yeast….and lawn clippings? Well, not exactly. Sweetgrass is a fragrant plant used by Native Americans for spiritual ceremonies. We’ll show you how to brew a vanilla-scented beer with this uplifting ingredient.
Calibrating Equipment
Digital and Plus Members OnlyIs this thing reading right? The importance of calibrating your equipment.