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Five Fruit Purees That Are Perfect for Fall Beers

posted by Puree Arete

The Goldilocks of seasons gives craft brewers an array of fruit beer options.

Seasonal holidays, seasonal foods, and seasonal ingredients all influence seasonal brews. During the winter, we seek out dark, complex brews to compliment longer nights by the fire and succulent holiday feasts. Come spring, we’re worn out by winter’s heavy flavors, and we crave sweeter, lighter beers. Hot summers steer us towards light beers that pair well with watermelon, hot dogs, and long days on the beach.
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West Coast Hop Breeding Releases First Hop Varietal

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West Coast Hop Breeding, a network of six Oregon hop farmers that have teamed up to develop new hop varieties, has released their first varietal called McKenzie.

McKenzie was bred over a 5 year process. Lead breeder Pat Leavy grew up fishing the McKenzie River and came up with the name for the “bright and fruity” hop with grapefruit, lemon, nectarine, and melon aromas that is backed by pine, resin, and wood.

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How Decanters Increase High-Quality Beer Production

posted by Flottweg Separation Technology, Inc

It’s a complex process to transform grains into refreshing, delicious beer. During production, a brewery’s step-by-step hot and cold processes influence the quality. Flottweg’s highly-efficient beer centrifuges meet the specific requirements of breweries while optimizing the entire process for maximum yields with the utmost level of quality.
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Is a Wet Mill Right for your Brewery? A Chat with Scott Shirley at Lawson’s Finest Liquids

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Wet milling remains one of those topics that brewers discuss but rarely encounter in the wild. Once solely the province of the largest craft brewers, in more recent years wet mills have become slightly more common but remain unusual to find in a smaller craft brewery.

In contrast to dry milling, wet mills steep malt in a continuous stream of warm water to allow the grain’s moisture level to rise to a set mark, usually 15 to 20 percent. When a wet mill’s rollers grind the malt, the grain’s husk remains intact and doesn’t fragment. This significantly reduces the amount of dust and debris created and allows for faster run-off time and more loading of the lauter tun. The downsides, beyond cost, include additional cleaning of the mill and its rollers along with an increase in the time required to mill the malt.

We recently spoke with Scott Shirley, the Director of Brewing Operations at Lawson’s Finest Liquids in Vermont, to learn more about his brewery’s experience with a wet mill and hear what advice he has for brewers considering one.

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Craft Maltsters Guild Announces Dates and Location for 2023 Annual Conference

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The Craft Maltsters Guild has announced that that the 6th Annual Craft Malt Conference will be held March 16-18, 2023 in Portland, Maine. The event will mark the guild’s tenth anniversary.

The conference will take place at the Holiday Inn By the Bay Hotel & Convention Center and include expect tours, educational seminars, receptions, a trade show, and networking sessions. It is the only conference that offers workshops and seminars specifically focused on the research, topics, and best practices relevant to the craft malt supply chain. In 2023, both in-person and virtual registration options will be offered.

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3D Mapping of Hops to Pinpoint Flavors and Aromas

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In thinking about sustainability and flavor, a California company has been 3D mapping hops to create natural, optimized hop extracts to beers giving brewers a chance to dial in recipes to exact specifications.

“By understanding and being able to pinpoint compounds in hops, triangulate sensory and expectations off of what we think it could be, we have created a more true to type variety,” says Ross Hunsinger, Director of Food and Beverage Innovation for ABSTRAX.
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Why Use Fruit Puree instead of a Fruit Extract?

posted by Puree Arete

The addition of fruit to beer is an ancient practice. Beer is an ancient craft with a basic recipe that predates writing, so it’s no wonder that brewers have experimented with a variety of ingredients during that time. The addition of fruit is a natural way to add interest to a traditional base style as well as increasing strength and nutritional value. Fruits can add sweetness or tartness. They mingle with malts and hops for greater aromatic complexity. They add novel qualities to beer flavor and color that can’t be accessed by grains alone.
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Brewing a Truly Local Beer — Wrangling Local Yeast

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With the talk of shifting hop regions and the continued rise of local maltsters, let us not forget yeast. The miraculous microbe lives all around us but unless we’re talking about coolship ales, there is not much of a focus on brewing with local yeasts.

Several years ago Bootleg Biology in Nashville, TN launched its Local Yeast Project and touted itself as the “first organization to pioneer the collection and cultivation of official local yeast strains for every U.S. postal code and country across the globe, beginning with the original S. Arlingtonesis™.”

Finding and isolating and then using a local yeast strain – one in immediate proximity to a brewery – adds an unrivaled dimension to a beer. Beer Edge Editor John Holl spoke with Jeff Mello the Chief Yeast Wrangler of Bootleg Biology about the project and its benefits.

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Dr. Richard Priess Discusses Brewing with Kviek Yeast

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In a relatively short time, historically speaking, brewers have rediscovered Kveik and been using it in earnest. The Norwegean yeast has helped cut fermentation times way down, a boon for small breweries looking to quickly get beer, especially IPAs to market.

Dr. Richard Priess the director of Escarpment Labs recently spoke on the All About Beer podcast about how the yeast has gained in popularity and what is still being discovered and mapped out.

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Brewing with Oats – Tradition and the Future

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Over its relatively short lifespan, the New England IPA style has generated more than its fair share of controversy. In the beginning, brewers both professional and on the home side debated what made the beers cloudy and hazy.

Was it flour or some other agent of haze? And what accounted for that softness on the palate or the extreme juiciness in the aroma? As brewers and brewing scientists dug further into the biology of these beers, they expanded their understanding of the importance of biotransformation, thiols, and other components of the DNA of hazy and juicy beers. Near the center of the attention is the use of oats, flaked, rolled, or malted, in the grain bill.

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Phantasm: The Magical Mystery of Thiols Explained

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It’s not unusual for brewers to trade information about new hop varieties and text or email one another about how to best use experimental varieties. The products usually involve a big hop company that has heavily invested in a years long research project, sending the new varieties out for testing to a few select breweries. But some ingredients fly even further under the radar.

Phantasm is one of the lowest key ingredients out there. Very difficult to source, challenging to find information about, word of Phantasm spread largely through the brewing underground in the past year.

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‘Tis the Season – Zach Beckwith Talks About How to Best Serve Fresh Hop IPA’s

posted by

There is a certain love that comes with a fresh pint of fresh hopped IPA that gets beer fans of all stripes a sense of wonder and delight. While some will think that these beers should be consumed within hours of being brewed or packaged there are some brewers who believe giving these beers a little bit of time is beneficial to everyone.

Zach Beckwith formerly of Bend Brewing talked with Beer Edge Editor John Holl about his thoughts of how to best serve fresh hop IPAs.

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Is My Fruit Pureé Aseptic (and Why Should I Care)?

posted by Puree Arete

What is aseptic fruit pureé?

The word aseptic comes from two Greek roots that mean, in essence, not toxic. The aseptic manufacturing process preserves foods and beverages through rapid heat treatment followed by rapid cooling under sterile conditions. By using aseptic processing, potentially harmful microbes are eliminated from products, making perishable fruit pureés shelf-stable and safe for consumption. But that’s not all that aseptic processing and packaging does.
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2022 Hop Products Preview

posted by

Hop harvest is in full swing around North America and countless brewing professionals are making the pilgrimage to the Pacific Northwest to visit farms, walk the fields, and conduct rubbings that will lead to lot selections.

The hop industry has grown in the United States and become more diverse as the craft beer segment has grown and looked for new varietals and products that they can add to recipes to bring vibrant aromas to the glass.

Companies in the hop space are eager to keep up and innovation has come fast and furious. From freeze dried Cryo fresh hops to varieties grown for a specific style of beer, there is a dizzying amount of choice these days.

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2022 Flavor Trends that Brewers Should Know About

posted by Puree Arete

In 2022, people are more motivated than ever to eat and drink healthier. Retro themes are popping up as people escape to pre-pandemic days. On the other hand, they’re also feeling a little stir crazy and ready to travel. It’s likely that two years of global pandemic are having a big impact on lifestyle trends. As a result, consumers are motivated by health concerns, nostalgia, and the call to adventure. That combo should give daring brewers plenty of inspiration for novel fruit beers.
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Yakima Brewer Kevin Quinn on a Changing Climate and Hop Farming

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Climate change is on the mind of every farmer and grower in the Pacific Northwest these days. From the average temperature rising over two degrees over the last several decades, to wildfires, and unusual rain patterns, there is a lot to be thinking about and acting upon not to mitigate problems in the future.

Kevin Quinn of Bale Breaker Brewing in Washington’s Yakima Valley spoke with Beer Edge editor John Holl about this year’s harvest on Loftus Ranch, where the brewery is located, and how they are thinking about the future.

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Sugar Creek Malt’s Caleb Michalke Discusses Rauchmalt

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As craft malting continues to rise in popularity and farmers are reviving traditions, brewers are looking for ways to have their beer stand out on the marketplace. While rauchbiers aren’t breaking any sales records there is a loyal set of fans who are looking for a smoky fix.

Some craft maltsters, like Caleb Michalke, the owner and maltster of Sugar Creek Malt in Indiana has taken to creating specialty smoked malt that appeals to today’s modern brewer. He spoke to Beer Edge editor John Holl.

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