Writer: Michael Tonsmeire
Alsatian Funky Saison
This beer is all about showcasing an alternative universe where Germany developed the saison and wild culture of Belgium. Rather than trying to get my hands on Alsatian Gewürztraminer grapes, I blended in a bottle of wine post fermentation. The fruity notes from the wine meld beautifully with the new German hops and lemony-funky-minerally Brettanomyces. The extended warm conditioning also provides an opportunity for the Brettanomyces to free aromatics from glycosides in the hops and wine, and to work under pressure to create flavors quickly so that the fresh hop nose is still evident.
Recipe Design Ethos
Homebrewers and craft brewers often have slightly different goals when it comes to recipe design. But craft brewers have been taking cues from homebrewers on ways to improve, so too should homebrewers take cues from craft brewers.
Sapwood Cellars’ Ziparillo clone
Sapwood Cellars’ Ziparillo clone (10 bbl/12 hL, commercial-size) OG = 1.048 FG = 1.016 IBU = 14 SRM = 5 ABV = 4.2% This hoppy wheat beer was designed to introduce hop-averse
Fermentations Apart: Selecting different yeast for different jobs
Brewers often add adjuncts right into the main batch of beer before or during fermentation with the hopes that the characteristics of the beer will play nicely with the additive. But Michael Tonsmeire explains that fermenting the two separately may sometimes be your best approach.
Tonsmeire’s Acorn Oud Bruin
I brewed a beer with compatible flavors for the acorns: A rye sour somewhere between English old ale and Flemish oud bruin.
Brewing Table Beer: The challenges of making a 3% ABV beer
Table beers (beers under 3% ABV) present challenges that are not often a problem in stronger beers. Delve into the world of table beers and what it takes to brew a low-ABV beer worth having a spot on your tap list (or dinner table).
Sour Sans Bacteria – Brewing with lactic acid-producing yeast
New strains of yeast are being released in dizzying array thanks to yeast wranglers. Discover some of the benefits and pitfalls of these new strains being offered.
Perpetuum Sour
Author Michael Tonsmeire provides a recipe he utilizes for his home solera method to produce funky beers.
Perennial Artisan Ales’ Anniversaria clone
St. Louis, Missouri-based Perennial Artisan Ales’ anniversary ale, Anniversaria, is blended via solera. Their goal isn’t to release the same beer each year, but as brewer Jonathan Moxey put it, “create a thread that will run through each year’s release.”
Hop Extracts – Advanced Brewing
These hop extracts roughly fall into two categories, those primarily intended to add bitterness and those where aromatics are the goal.
Nitro Stonefruit Sour
The vanilla helps to make a more sherbet-like balance. You can add lactose to taste at packaging if you want more sweetness. The hop extract increases head retention, improving the perceived creaminess of the body and appearance of the beer. Lowering the pH before souring reduces protein breakdown by the bacteria, improving body and head retention.
Petit Saison
The inspiration for this beer was a play on De Baets’ remarks that traditional saisons were low gravity and heavily hopped. When it was still brewed with the Rodenbach strain, De Ranke’s XX Bitter was a rough approximation of a traditional saison, but with its cleaner character today you’ll have to brew your own for a taste of history. This recipe makes for a refreshing summer beer with the gravity dialed down and aromatics pushed to the fore.
