There are so many variations on American Wheat beer that the only qualification seems to be that you brewed it in America and it has wheat in it. For my money, though, I like to split the malt bill pretty much in half between wheat and barley and to use a nice, clean, yeast, such as White Labs’ WLP … [Read more...]
History of American Brown Ale As with all the beer styles with “American” tacked on the front, (i.e. American IPA, American Pale, American Sour) this style is inextricably rooted in European brewing history. It has two brothers. Both of them English, and the roots stretch back to the 1700s when … [Read more...]
Quick Characteristics Brewery: New Belgium Brewing Co. Location: Fort Collins, CO Style: American Pale Lager ABV: 5.0% IBU: 29 Hops: Nugget, Nelson Sauvin, Cascade, Liberty Malts: Pale, Munich, … [Read more...]
Eventually in every home brewer’s career, they hit a point when they grow tired of brewing only ales and want to try their hand at brewing lager. Unfortunately, challenges with temperature control can make this difficult, but the key to successfully brewing lager is simply knowing when it is okay … [Read more...]
History of Pale Ales The American pale ale (APA) is the younger brother to the English pale. So, as you might expect, they share much of the same history, with the American version becoming a distinct and separate style only about 30 years ago. Though a relatively young branch, it grows out of a … [Read more...]
Quick Characteristics Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Location: Chico, CA Style: Czech Pilsner ABV: 5.0% IBU: 28 Hops: Perle, Saaz, Spalter Select Malts: Two-row Pale, Pilsner, Munich … [Read more...]
A Primer on Priming: How to Carbonate Your Beer Naturally Carbonation for a beginning homebrewer can be very easy. Boil the packet of corn sugar that came with the kit and mix it in, right? Well, there’s a lot more to understanding the priming process than simply knowing how much you usually … [Read more...]
Quick Characteristics Brewery: Wychwood Brewery Location: Witney, Oxfordshire (UK) Style: Old Ale ABV: 6.6% IBU: ? Hops: English Fuggles, Sovereign, Styrian, Cascade Malts: Chocolate, Crystal … [Read more...]
History of Blonde Ale I could make some joke comparing the short and rather uninspired history and oft considered overly simplified profile of the Blonde ale to the short-of-smarts blonde, subject of so many poor jokes. It could go something like this… how do you confuse a Blonde Ale? Put her … [Read more...]
Ah, the love of beer. I don't know about you, but I have a fond love for that first sip after a long day. And I think there are many people out there just like me. We may not all look alike, live near each other, brew our own, or even enjoy the same styles, but that love of beer is strong within … [Read more...]
As a hobby, brewing tends to start modestly. You get an equipment kit from a friend or loved one and brew your first batch using an extract kit that likely came with it. You boiled, chilled, and pitched in a two gallon pot on your kitchen stove, and two weeks later you made an unholy mess of your … [Read more...]
Quick Characteristics Brewery: Boston Beer Company Location: Boston, MA Style: Fruit Beer / Bavarian Radler ABV: 4.5% IBU: 8 Hops: Hallertau Mittelfrueh Noble hops Malts: Samuel Adams two-row pale … [Read more...]
