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Kegerators and Lagering

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Kegerators and Lagering

Lagering beer can be problematical for home brewers, if they are not properly equipped.  The key is that, for home brewing, kegs and lagering go hand in hand with the handy home bar invention called the kegerator.  A kegerator can do two things at once – act as a lagering closet and serve beer. If you want a little more control with your lagering temperature, you may opt for a lagering closet or separate fridge or freezer conversion.

The ideal lagering temperature for beer, according to white labs, manufacturers of specialty brewing yeasts, changes over the lagering period.  Ideally, the lagering process starts out at 51 to 53 degrees.  This temperature is maintained for the first week, and then the beer is allowed to warm to 62-64 degrees for four to six days.  After this, white labs recommends lowering the temperature five degrees per day until the ideal long-term lagering temperature of 31 to 32 degrees is achieved.  Then, lagering for six weeks at the lowest temperature takes place.

This is the most complicated lagering scenario I have heard of.  Most home brewers do not maintain such precise controls in any their brews, but it is clear that one would need to have a precise temperature controlled lagering closet in order to produce a lager of such exacting qualifications.  Keep in mind that the process of lagering was first developed by Bavarians keeping their beer in caves.

I would recommend a slightly more low-tech approach to lagering.  By utilizing your kegerator, you can lager your beer at roughly the same temperatures, as long as you are not serving beer at the same time (except at the final lagering stage, if you fudge the temp up to the regular serving temp of 38 degrees).  For the homemade conversion-style kegerators, there is plenty of room for an additional Cornelius keg, and sometimes a Sanke keg.

It is at this final stage that the keg comes into the picture.  This is the perfect time to transfer your lager beer into a keg for its final fermentation stage.  By lagering your beer in the keg for its final fermentation cycle, you can ensure that it will be a simple process to serve your beer.  After the fermentation is complete, simply tap the keg onto your beer line and serve.  No need to move the keg around and let it settle – although be sure to clean and sanitize your beer lines between each keg.

A custom temperature control can be installed into your kegerator or lagering closet if you do want to maintain such precise lagering controls as described by White Labs.  Johnson Controls produces what is probably the easiest to use temperature control unit.  The Johnson Controls unit plugs right into he wall and controls the power coming into your kegerator or freezer, turning of the power when the temperature reaches the right reading, and turning the power back on when the reading goes above the dial.

Whether you go low or high tech, lagering beer at home can be a challenge if you don’t have a kegerator or temperature controlled freezer / lagering closet.  It is not an impossible challenge, however, especially not for the home brewer who knows how to get things done.

Keg Theft: Kegs Disappearing From Bars and Breweries

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Not an activity we at Kegerators.com encourage, stainless steel kegs are disappearing from behind bars and breweries to be sold for scrap metal or possibly for home brewing.

The trend comes as the stainless scrap price has more than doubled in the last five years, making an empty 18-pound keg worth more than $13, according to price data for steel scrap sold in Chicago.

Hawaii actually passed legislation making beer-keg theft a crime. They may not have needed the law since existing theft laws probably would have covered it. But just for good measure, they passed it anyway.

Pacific Business News reported back in May:

Hawaii beer wholesalers reported the theft of more than 350 beer kegs last year, up sharply from the 30 stolen in 2006. Nationwide, approximately 300,000 of the stainless steel containers are stolen annually.

"This is a huge problem," Tim Lyons, legislative liaison for Anheuser-Busch Cos., testified in favor of the law. "It has just escalated beyond any reasonable proportion."

"Metal keg theft is a growing problem because they can be redeemed for fast cash at scrap dealerships," added Lance Hastings, Western regional director for state government affairs for Miller Brewing Co.

Imported Beers Taste Better In a Can?

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One of the great joys of the golden age of microbrews in which we live is the availability of beers from around the world. In most major cities in the U.S., you can find nearly any kind of beer. Many brands are imported from Germany, France, the U.K., Belgium, Japan, even Africa. If you can’t find it imported, the chances are that you can find an American made version of it. I will list some of my favorite imports here.

It is hard to stomach, but let me be the first to say: Newcastle in a can is better. I have always disdained canned beers ever since I started home brewing. Glass preserves the flavor, I used to say. Well it turns out that the clear glass bottles that Newcastle comes in don’t preserve the flavor as much as the opaque aluminum can. This is entirely understandable: sunlight is well known as a degrader of hop character in beer. This is why most ales of Newcastle’s quality are served in brown bottles. When Newcastle is drunk form the can, however, I must say that the taste improves. I can sense the light hop character I never before had in the beer, and it just seems fresher. Well, at least now I know: it isn’t always the container, but more what they put in it!

Of Guinness, it is always heard: much better in Ireland. There are many potential reasons for this, and I do believe it to be true, but if you live in the states, what can you do? It makes sense that Guinness at the brewery is made the same, whether in Ireland or the United States. It is my belief that from every moment after the keg of Guinness leaves the brewery here in the states, or is hauled off of the boat, it is at risk. This is partly because the beer is extremely sensitive to temperature changes. If it is not kept cool throughout transportation, it will undergo changes. If the tap system at the bar has hoses that are the wrong length, the carbonation will change. And the most obvious difference is that seemingly 99% of barkeeps in this country do not know how to properly pour a pint of Guinness! All the rest might as well be left up to chance, but it is high time that uninformed barkeeps in this country learned how to do it right. For those of you who have not been to Ireland, this is how you do it: First, pour roughly 2/3 of the pint full, at a slight angle of the cup. You then let this settle. It usually takes about 45 seconds for the initial pour to settle. Then you top it off and hand it to the patron. If you want to get fancy, you can make a leaf or such design in the foam on top, like they do with lattes. This method of pouring is the proper way, and allows the perfect degree of carbonation and proper head. If you are hazy on any of this, you should plan on going to Ireland to see how it’s really done. I recommend flying into Cork.

From Scotland, we have a true treat: in the ancient tradition of Heather Ale, Fraoch! This is a hop-less, or Gruit-style ale that is a little expensive, but well worth it! This craft ale is made in Scotland by Williams Brewing Company, and represents an elusive tradition of brewing that goes back 2,000+ years. The beer itself is a malty and rich amber with unusual bouquet. The beer is infused with both Heather and Sweet Gale, and imparts a lively inebriation to the imbiber. If you are a beer fan, you must drink this ale before you die! If you are a home brewer, try making some just to keep a 2,000 year old brewing tradition alive. The Fraoch website has some great reading materials on the history of heather ale viewable at: http://www.fraoch.com/history.htm

As delightful as it has been, I must now be off to dream further dreams of ales imported from the land of Morpheus. Until next time, drink it in good health!

Beer Book Review

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With the rise in popularity of craft, micro, and home brewing, a slew of books have come out in recent years on these subjects. Some focus on cultural aspects of beer, some on nutritional aspects, and some focus on recipes. I will go over a few of the more popular titles on the shelf today, and relate them to my personal experience.

There is a book by brew scholar and professor of brewing technology at U.C. Davis Charles W. Bamforth called Beer: Tap Into the Art and Science of Brewing, in 2003. This book goes into scientific detail about all aspects of the brewing process, with a mind to a layperson’s understanding of the topics. This is an excellent book for those interested in the details of the process of making beer. This is a good place for a starting home brewer or beer fan to learn more about what they are drinking. Professor Bamforth also gives lectures from time to time, so keep an eye out for his name in your neck of the woods. This book may be a bit simplistic for the home brewer or beer fan that is already intimately familiar with most aspects of beer production. Still, if scientific terms speak to you, it is a worthwhile read.

Radical Brewing by Randy Mosher contains a cultural overview of beer, an amusing embellished timeline of the history of beer, and many recipes. Just to give you an idea of the breadth of beer covered in this book: Corinthian Steinbier, An English Bragot, c. 1500, Juniper Rye Bock, Black Pepper Porter, and Mister Boing Boing Cherry Barley Wine are all represented, for better or worse. The book also contains recipes for beverages other than beer, such as Finnish Sahti, Mead, hop-less Gruits, and wine. Randy’s writing is one of the most palatable ingredients in Radical Brewing – witty and full of humor. I recommend this book to any brewer. Even if you prefer traditional brews, this book is sure to open your eyes, and due to the amount of recipes, a keeper as a reference manual.

The book Wild Fermentation by Sally Ellix Katz is a wild foray into a subject which, for brewers, seems very dangerous. Most brewers do not want to mess with wild yeasts, due to the ease and commercial availability of good quality ale yeasts. But this book covers much more than just beer. It covers a wide variety of foods made with the assistance of fermentation, such as vegetable ferments, dairy ferments, and even ventures into the realm of vinegar making. The book does have chapters on beer and wine as well. This book is a little much for me to handle. The chapters are compelling and informative, but it is all just too much for me to handle at once – it is like learning 5 different trades in one workshop. I recommend this book to those who are capable at multi-tasking.

My favorite book about beer, by far, is Sacred and Healing Herbal Beers by Stephen Harrod Buhner. This book is a gem containing a well-referenced codex of ancient beers from around the world. The poetry and humanitarianism with which Buhner delivers into our hands the wisdom, folklore, and recipes of the ancient brewers is both astonishing and informative. Buhner makes one particularly thrilling correlation between a beer trend that is 700 years old and political maneuvering of the protestant movement in Europe – but I won’t reveal it here because I’m not that kind of person. Buhner also writes from a fairly neutral viewpoint, taking in with deep understanding the cultures about who’s brew he is writing about. This book has been dearly loved in my home brewery, where ever it has been, and my first handed-down copy had so much wort spilled on it that I had to buy a new copy recently. This book goes over the cultural aspects of beer primarily, and also contains some bizarre recipes from the ancients – some of which taste quite good! If you are a home brewer or a fan of beer history, you must get this book.

A Guide to Strange and Unique Beer

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One of the greatest benefits of home brewing, and of the golden age of micro brew that we are currently living in, is the ability to create new and unusual brews.  The freedom that comes with experimentation in this realm knows no bounds except those of one’s own imagination and ability.  With practice and planning, even these limits will increase, as the breadth of knowledge in these fields is naturally increasing.  As the golden age of the micro brew expands to even more unique and inventive realms, we are even seeing the list of strange and unique beer that is commercially available expand.

Micro brewers have been experimenting with unique herbal beers well into the origins of beer.  Numerous recipes are available for your edification in books such as Sacred and Healing Herbal Beers by Stephen Harrod Buhner, and Wild Fermentation by Sandy Katz.  Sacred and Healing Herbal beers is by far the most influential book on brewing that I have had the pleasure to read.  My whole career as a hobby home brewer has, in fact, been based on this book, as has that of many home brewers that I know.  It is considered in some circles to be the “bible” of strange and unique beer.

To the beer drinkers of the United States, though, even something as simple as a Belgian White Ale is often considered exotic.  While the yeasts of such ales certainly lend themselves to distinction, I wouldn’t call them unique beers.  To qualify for this category, we must take into consideration the following:

Does the beer have a unique buzz or side effect?

And;

Does the taste of the beer differ due to an admixture?

Yeast has an important effect on the taste of any beer, but this only one aspect of beer production.  The quality of the water, the types and mixtures of malts and hops, and especially herbal admixtures affect both of these factors greatly.  Inventive processes can also enhance the taste of the beer. 

Water is the highest presiding factor over the quality of a beer; it makes up roughly 90% of the beer.  I have found that the best beer I have ever been able to brew used as its base pure Alaskan glacier melt water.  The list of all-organic ingredients helped, I’m sure, although other organic ales I have drunk have almost lived up to the taste of that ale, most notably the Fishtale Organic Ale.  I would call these beers of the highest quality, and the Winter Wolf Stout that I made with the Alaskan Glacier melt water “unique” due to the process of collecting the water.

There is one commercially produced ale that I have discovered to venture into the realm of herbal admixtures, although I am sure more are to come.  I am speaking of New Belgium’s Springboard Ale.  It is an innocuous sounding name, but this ale is truly a unique herbal concoction brewed up in the guise of a Seasonal beer: a Belgian Ale with the bite of wormwood and the tonic properties of Goji berries.

The Springboard ale boldly forges ahead to reclaim space for herbal beer brewers.  Ever since the German beer purity laws, or Reinheitsgebot, adopted in 1516, and even before, the powers-that-be have sought to implement control over what manner of inebriation is allowed to the general public.  The only ingredients allowed by law in ale were water, malt, and yeast… hops were added to the list later, by popular demand.  The only other brew known to contain an active amount of wormwood ingredient is the infamous Absinthe, outlawed in the U.S. and many other countries, but still sought after and made by high class moonshiners in the United States, and, I am sure, in other countries in which its production has been outlawed.

Before the release of Springboard, the United States saw a proliferation of specialty ales – some of which contained herbs, others of which contained specialty yeasts.  A variety of Belgian Ales as well as Fraoch Heather Ale paved the way for the release of New Belgium’s Springboard by exposing the beer fans of the U.S. to more and more strange and unique beers.

In my personal experience, home brewers have been the first to experiment with wild and imaginative combinations in strange and unique beer.  I have drunk of the “Orge-Clops-Itar Ale”, containing the herb eyebright, which is regarded as a beneficial tonic for eyesight.  The brewer stated to me that the inclusion of eyebright was to help with night vision and goblin sightings.  Another unique home brew was the “Skull Crushing Hammer”, a beer made with the herb Yarrow.  The herb is said to have immense healing qualities when applied in a salve to open wounds, but when ingested, has inebriatory qualities that enhance the effect of alcohol.

Amongst home brewers is probably the best way to expose one’s self to an amazing variety of strange and unique beers.  It may not be the easiest to find home brewers bent on such strange brews, but it will certainly be a rewarding endeavor.  It might be worthwhile to enquire at your local home brew supply store about some of the “crazier” brewers that come into the shop.

When home brewing was outlawed with prohibition, it took another 50 years before the state repealed the ban on home brew, and now, finally, craft brewing is overtaking the ground it had lost over 200 years ago.  Thanks to the home brew revival, authors like Stephen Harrod Buhner and Sandy Katz, and bold brewers like New Belgium, we are sure to see a revival on the field of strange and unique beers.

Entrepreneurship and Home Brewing

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Home brewing has always been a hobby with numerous possibilities for the financial benefit of the home brewer.  With the skills and knowledge of brew craft that many home brewers have, it is easy to make the jump from a hobbyist into a career brewer.  Some brewers start by opening their own local brewpub.  Others go to one of the many schools offering degrees in Master Brewing, hoping to land a job with a larger company that produces ales of quality.  Some brewers even go underground to sell their concoctions at parties and even speakeasies.  If you are thinking of a career in brew crafting, it is wise to look at many of the entrepreneurial options available to you.  You might just find the perfect new career you have been looking for!

Many home brewers love to brew beer, but have trouble making the jump to using industrial style equipment.  If you are confused by the array of home brewing products out there, just remember: with each jump in technology, you will be able to make more beer, more efficiently, more cost effectively, and more time effectively than ever before.  It is always good to keep your old bottling tools on hand in case you want to make a special gift bottle or limited edition ale.  But for the entrepreneurial home brewer, a move to Cornelius kegs and the larger regulation kegs is an important step.

Cornelius kegs are a great way to get to know how modern beer kegging works, and to experiment with carbonation techniques.  The set-up price is relatively small, and the savings in time that would otherwise be spent bottling is vast.  Another good initial investment is the kegerator, or kegerator conversion kit. A proper knowledge of how your Cornelius keg interacts with a draft beer system will help you greatly when you switch to regulation kegs.  Cornelius kegs are becoming harder and harder to find second-hand, but they are available as brand new or reconditioned units through many home brew equipment suppliers.  

Because of the size of the Cornelius keg (about 6 gallons), it is the perfect choice for the home brewer who wishes to gradually develop their brew shop and range of knowledge.  Most home brewers start out brewing batches in that range, and this will allow home beer production to increase without the need for a larger kettle – but this is the next step!  Once you have started to keg your beer, you will find it so easy to make large amounts, that you will want to increase your kettle size to around nine gallons.  A nine-gallon kettle takes only a little more time to brew than a three or five gallon one.  Many home kitchens are not built to accommodate such massive pots, though, so you will have to plan ahead to ensure success with this increased brew load.

You should always have a spoon or stirring paddle that can easily reach the bottom of your kettle.  Kettles with false bottoms and spigots can easily facilitate the exit of the wort from the kettle, which can be a real problem if your kettle is holding in excess of five gallons.  Because of the weight of the wort, you will basically have to not move the kettle until the wort has cooled.  If you are using a wort chiller to affect this change, you should ensure that the water lines can reach the kettle where it is placed.

The most important jump for the entrepreneurial home brewer is the use of the all grain brewing technique.  By using grains, you will save money over using malty extract, and as your batches become bigger and bigger, these savings will increase exponentially.  There are some more start up costs associated with this kind of brewing, but also many shortcuts you can use while perfecting this brewing technique.  Some find it distasteful, but the use of food grade five gallon plastic buckets can replace the need for a false bottom kettle, and a cleaned and sanitized camping cooler can also help with the mashing process, where maintaining temperature is so important.  If you consider yourself a bit of an engineer, and have a lot of room to work with, the three tier brewing system is the best way to maximize the efficiency of your all grain brewing setup.

The career of a brew master is a fun, creative tradition that is enjoyable for both the brewer and the drinker!  Remember that you need not have a degree to be a master brewer, but a scientific knowledge of brewing will only make it easier to repeatedly produce the unique ale that is yours!  Remember that an eye for invention and mechanical improvisation will save you tons of time and money in this effort, and good luck!

Fortified Ales I Have Known

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One rare treat in the world of craft brewing is the fortified ale.  A fortified ale is an ale that has a hard liquor, an herbal admixture, or both added to it before kegging or bottling.  This kind of ale is mostly seen in the realm of craft brewing or home brewing.  In the days before refrigeration technology was much advanced, it was common for barkeeps to mix new ales with older ones, enhance brews with wormwood to increase their potency, and for brewers to create fortified ales as well.  Now, the fortified ale is a rare commodity indeed, but one that is rather simple for the home brewer who is equipped to keg his or her beer.

The most effective use of the fortified ale that I have experienced has been that of an herbal tincture.  This process can be used to provide both flavor and increased inebriation to any home brewed ale.  I have found Anise, Star Anise, Mugwort (both root and leaf), and wormwood to all be effective herbal admixtures for fortifying ales, but it is certainly advisable to use such sparingly, as it is easy to add too much to our brew.  You need not fear for loss of the batch in such cases, though.  Usually the bitter or acid tastes die out with some aging (6-11 months, depending on the girth of your step-step).

If you plan to create a fortified ale, it is important to realize that if alcohol is used (say, a cheap rum, herbally affected or not) to enhance the inebriatory qualities of your ale, it will be necessary to force carbonate your beverage by the use of a beer keg of some sort.  The reason for this is that when the alcohol level of the beer increases with the addition of a hard liquor to the mixture, the yeast that normally causes the carbonation effect is killed.  I have found the use of a Cornelius keg to be handy when making fortified ales at home.  Common among home brewers, the Cornelius keg offers, at a reasonable price, a great chance to try fortifying one’s own ale while maintaining a proper level of carbonation in the beverage in question.

If you have a home bar, and you are a home brewer, a fortified ale can be a great addition to your selection of seasonal ales.  A brandy enhanced amber ale for fall, perhaps?  How about a winter stout with the extra zing of mint schnapps?  I find that one liter of 80 proof alcohol enhances the five gallon home brew batch quite effectively.  I recommend adding to this liter an herbal admixture of some kind to make your fortified ale truly special.  If you are brewing for summer, an apricot, cherry, strawberry, or apple infused rum could add that special something you are looking for.  The method of fortifying ales with special liquor is one that is seldom practiced among home or craft brewers – a chance to try something unique and different.

Many microbrewers these days are trying all kinds of admixtures for their ales, from Rogue’s Hazelnut Brown (Highly recommended), to Laguinitas with their Brown Suggah (made with molasses, very strong), to New Belgium’s Springboard Ale (fortified with a pinch of wormwood).  There are new concoctions coming out every month, it seems, and the atmosphere is ripe in the craft brewing world to bring forth the next level of unique brews: the fortified ale.