Planet Brewing

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Intro

When starting to brew again, I looked for a one-stop place to learn what is going on in home brewing today around the world. I did not find one. That’s why I hacked together ruby-planet, an aggregator that looks through a list of home brewing related blogs and fetches information about the latest posts. It will only display meta information that is provided in the xml feed, like title, description, link, ect. I will write a blog post shortly. Please take a look at Disclaimer as well.

Blog Posts

November 2025

Podcast Episode 444: Mike Foniok of the Establishment Takes an Ultramodern Approach to Mixed-Culture Fermentation - 2025-11-07 07:30:00 UTC

Table beer and mixed-culture beer only account for 2 percent of sales at the Establishment in Calgary, Alberta—but cofounder Mike Foniok says its takes up about half their floor space and half their time. That attention is paying off with awards at the highest level.

Inside the New Science of Hop Quality - 2025-11-06 08:00:00 UTC

In this first part of a three-part series, experts from John I. Haas weigh in on the evolving nature of hop quality, best practices in hop selection, the challenges of year-over-year and lot-to-lot variability, and the new tools and methods available to brewers to ensure consistency from field to glass.

Water Choices that Help Hops to Shine | Video Tip - 2025-11-05 08:00:00 UTC

You don’t want your water to get in the way of hop-saturated flavors. Here, North Park founder and head brewer Kelsey McNair sketches out a few different water profiles that depend on style—and why he might adjust those profiles, depending on choices made elsewhere.

A Matter of Taste - 2025-11-04 17:44:02 UTC

Beer is a potion of flavor and aroma compounds, and humans are creatures of opinion. In one culture, people favor some and eschew others, while elsewhere they may favor the other and eschew some. This is both inexplicable and universal.

Beyond the Pint: Meeting the Demand for Low-ABV, NA, and Functional Craft Beverages - 2025-11-04 08:00:00 UTC

Craft is evolving. Discover how breweries are meeting demand for low-ABV, NA, and functional drinks—with smarter tech, smaller formats, and bold flavor innovation.

What’s Brewing at Brewer’s Friend – November 1, 2025 - 2025-11-03 23:03:53 UTC

Investigating the Origins of Lager Yeast - 2025-11-03 08:00:00 UTC

Fermentation has been around for billions of years, but only recently did a new type emerge—lager fermentation, conducted by an organism that didn’t exist for much of Earth’s history. Here is its story… starting from the very, very beginning.

Recipe: Simply Dark Lager - 2025-11-02 06:00:00 UTC

This international-style dark lager works well on its own as an easy-drinking crowd-pleaser—but it also works well as a relatively base for fruit or other flavor additions.

Brew Kettle Insulation - 2025-11-01 10:51:01 UTC

Current State I currently use a 50l stainless steel pod as a brewing kettle. It needs to be heated over long periods of time. To reach the desired temperatures faster and waste less energy it is helpful to isolate the sides. Currently, I just strap leftovers from an old sleeping pad around the pod, which is neither perfect nor does it look nice. Better Thermal Coat Material I used a simple sleeping pad, again.

October 2025

Podcast Episode 443: Grain-to-Glass Brewing with Local and Regional Malt, Live from Alberta - 2025-10-31 06:00:00 UTC

Recorded live at the Alberta Craft Brewing Convention in Red Deer, this panel discussion centers on the ways that creative brewers in the province use locally grown and malted grain to craft unique beers that tell relevant stories for their customers.

The Making of a Classic: Goose Island Bourbon County Stout - 2025-10-30 17:05:18 UTC

Thirty years ago—not 33–Goose Island conducted an experiment that still resonates today. It reminded brewers that wood-aging has an important role to play in beer, and created one of the most American of American beers. Here’s the story of Bourbon County Stout.

North Park’s Guide to Achieving Fully Saturated Hop Flavor | Brewing Course - 2025-10-30 08:00:00 UTC

North Park founder and head brewer Kelsey McNair shares his approach and various techniques for achieving fully saturated hop flavor in IPA, West Coast pilsner, or any hop-forward style.

Recipe: Offset Gooding Farms IPA - 2025-10-30 07:00:00 UTC

From Offset Bier in Park City, Utah, this session-strength IPA—which features the new public hop, Vera—is fresh off a gold-medal win at the Great American Beer Festival.

A Life in Brewing with Dr Charlie Bamforth – BeerSmith Podcast #334 - 2025-10-29 14:33:42 UTC

Dr Charlie Bamforth, Professor Emeritus from the University of California at Davis joins me this week to discuss his long

From Grain to Gain: A Step-by-Step Roadmap to Getting on the Shelf and Staying There - 2025-10-28 19:23:00 UTC

Join Craft Beer & Brewing and AisleAI for a deep dive into how independent brewers are using AI tools to successfully sell into C-stores. We’ll discuss real-world examples of how you can use data, automation, and “always-on intelligence” to compete in the market and grow your brand like never before.

Hopeful Signs for the Beer Market - 2025-10-28 16:11:00 UTC

We have been seeing a tsunami of news articles about how badly the beer industry is doing. It seemed disproportionate to the actual headwinds, and at least one report out last week shows some heartening signs.

Recipe: Mount NZ Bright IPA - 2025-10-27 14:00:00 UTC

With its clear and pale look, juicy hop flavors, and balancing bitterness, bright IPA has become an emerging style in New Zealand. This recipe from Mount Brewing in Mount Maunganui showcases an experimental hop as well as Motueka and Nectaron.

Recipe: Annie’s Renée’d Cranberry Wit - 2025-10-26 17:00:00 UTC

This is a go-to recipe for the winter holidays. It’s easy to brew and makes use of cranberries for some seasonal flavor. It also makes a tasty base for experimenting with Renée and various infusions, whether at holiday festivities or just messing around in the kitchen at home.

Back in Black (?) - 2025-10-24 17:24:59 UTC

In which I attempt to convince myself that dark beers are not, in fact, extinct.

Podcast Episode 442: Fast Fashion Puts Its Foot on the Gas With New Zealand Hops and Extra Anchovy - 2025-10-24 06:00:00 UTC

Founder Matt Storm and head brewer Stefano Annicchiarico share their approach to drinkable and (mostly) dry hazy IPA and hoppy pils, using an array of New Zealand hops and a healthy dose of the experimental U.S. variety they sponsored and named five years ago—Anchovy.

Flavor Infusions: You May Know Randall, but Have You Met Renée? - 2025-10-23 07:00:00 UTC

Infusing beer with fruit and other flavors between the tap and the glass isn’t just a relic of a time when craft beer was less mainstream—and, often, more fun. It’s also something you can do at home, today. Ready to get acquainted?

Learning to Drink in Salt Lake City - 2025-10-22 15:50:50 UTC

You might think there are few places less conducive to learning how to drink than Salt Lake City, and reasonably so. In the 1980s, it wasn’t easy to get a drink there. But for the isolated teen, alcohol offered a potent weapon of rebellion.

Recipe: Altitude Homeward Bound NZ IPA - 2025-10-22 07:00:00 UTC

From Eliott Menzies and his team at Altitude Brewing in Queenstown, New Zealand, here’s a recipe for their NZ IPA that won gold in the Juicy/Hazy category at the 2023 New Zealand Beer Awards.

Strata’s Nephew Is a (Literal) Stud - 2025-10-21 07:00:00 UTC

It’s true. Strata has a nephew who is a stud. Breeding stock that is. Most males in the hop world die a sudden death once discovered to be males . . . unless they have something of value for future generations.

A Brewer’s Guide to New Zealand Hops - 2025-10-20 07:00:00 UTC

Intense, complex, and punchy, the hops of New Zealand are special—so, making the best beer you can with them deserves some special consideration. From Aotearoa, the Land of the Long White Cloud—or Middle Earth, if you prefer—here are specific tips from the brewers who know New Zealand hops best.

An Analysis of Bamberg Schenkbier from January 1843 - 2025-10-19 14:56:17 UTC

Fifty Meter Beer Project – Wind Malt - 2025-10-19 14:31:51 UTC

Cooking with Beer: Pumpkin-Ale Cheesecake - 2025-10-19 06:00:00 UTC

Fun to make and fun to eat—and it makes for killer pairings—this cheesecake is a celebration of the season and the classic seasonal beer style.

Podcast Episode 441: Cask Ale Elegance and Understatement with Bill Arnott of Machine House - 2025-10-17 06:00:00 UTC

There’s a deceptive simplicity to cask ale, but for this Seattle brewer, the keys are great ingredients, close attention to the highly manual process, and conditioning for longevity in cask or can.

On That NYT Op-Ed About Craft Beer - 2025-10-16 18:08:10 UTC

You may have seen the op-ed in the New York Times offering handy advice to reverse the declines in the craft beer segment of the beer industry. It produced a chuckle among those who actually understand this industry, and here’s why.

Fresh Brew: Your Monthly Digest of Top Forum Discussions – October 2025 - 2025-10-16 14:26:38 UTC

Mumbai’s Woodside Inn Has the Beers and Burgers for Bollywood - 2025-10-16 07:00:00 UTC

From our Love Handles files on the world’s great beer bars: In the home of Bollywood, local fans of craft beer and burgers dance for this casual, cozy outpost.

A Day of Flavor & Insight with Briess - 2025-10-15 21:17:15 UTC

One of our popular taglines is “Great Malt, Great Beer,” you may have seen the slogan on some of our t-shirts….

The State of Writing 2025 - 2025-10-15 18:37:08 UTC

The North American Guild of Beer Writers announced the winners of their annual awards competition. I have some notes on the winners, plus some comments on the state of writing and publishing in 2025.

Noble Fruits for Mead Making (and Beer) - 2025-10-15 15:58:22 UTC

This week I look at the “Noble Fruits”, a term coined by Ken Schramm to describe the fruits that work

Recipe: Fork & Brewer Bohemian Hipster NZ Pilsner - 2025-10-15 13:00:00 UTC

Fork & Brewer’s all-Riwaka take on New Zealand’s signature beer style is clean and crisp, with a lean malt base that allows the pronounced tropical-hop character to truly shine.

Breaking Through in Craft Beer - 2025-10-14 06:00:00 UTC

Here’s how you can expand the distribution of your craft beer with data-driven selling stories.

Amazing Historical Document - 2025-10-13 16:16:00 UTC

An unearthed 1974 BBC video of Hook Norton is an amazing document, and not for the reasons you might imagine. The brewery, then as today one of the most “traditional” in the UK, was making some interesting beer that sheds a lot of light on the way things change.

More than a Feeling: Grasp the Intangibles of Beer Flavor - 2025-10-13 07:00:00 UTC

In the world of brewing, we can precisely measure and define certain things—and those things don’t have a whole lot to do with how we smell, taste, and feel about beer.

Recipe: Family Jewel Sticke Alt - 2025-10-13 06:00:00 UTC

Inspired by the festive, seasonal releases from Düsseldorf’s altbier breweries, this sticke recipe takes what’s great about altbier and kicks it up a notch for special occasions.

Beer Brewing Equipment Types with Chris Graham – BeerSmith Podcast #333 - 2025-10-12 20:37:45 UTC

Chris Graham joins me this week from MoreBeer to discuss home brewing equipment types and options for upgrading your brewing

The Big Winners at the GABF - 2025-10-11 19:21:35 UTC

Some of the highlights of the latest GABF and its winners, which were announced this morning.

Schneeeule and the Revival of Weissbier in Berlin - 2025-10-10 17:16:55 UTC

Berlin’s wonderful all-Berliner weisse brewery announced it was closing a few weeks ago (full text included in this post), which gives me an opportunity to repost my article from five years ago about what a wonderful project it was.

Podcast Episode 440: Jesse Brown of Formula Slows Down to Make Better Lager and IPA - 2025-10-10 06:00:00 UTC

You can make medal-winning helles and modern West Coast hoppy beers many different ways, but for the head brewer of this suburban Seattle brewpub, there’s no rushing the mash and no substitute for time in fermentation and conditioning.

Equipment Mini-Review: Anvil Foundry 6.5 - 2025-10-09 16:57:35 UTC

I have been brewing many more small (2.5 to 3 gallon) batches lately. It’s a great way to test out new styles–if I don’t like it I’m not stuck with 5 gallons. This has long been my favored format with … Continue reading →

Make Your Best Altbier Sticke - 2025-10-09 07:00:00 UTC

Altbier is the perfect style, and you can’t improve upon it… but sometimes you need to push the envelope.

Ask the Pros: How Mexico’s Hércules Brews and Bottles Export Stout that Wins - 2025-10-08 07:00:00 UTC

From the Hércules brewery in Querétaro, Mexico, here’s the lowdown on Pueblito, the export stout that won gold at the 2024 World Beer Cup—including the brewery’s German-inspired method for bottle-conditioning, which kept the beer in top form at the judging table.

Mountain Town Stout - 2025-10-08 02:05:04 UTC

After 17 years of serious brewing with dozens (hundreds?) of batches under my belt, I’m sometimes amazed by unexpected gaps in my brewing experience. I’ve made stouts of all varieties–oatmeal, imperial, Irish, milk, and more–but never a classic American stout! … Continue reading →

A Bubble Versus a Mature Market - 2025-10-07 17:14:19 UTC

A spate of “craft beer is crashing” pieces has me thinking about a post I wrote twelve years ago. Is the difference between a bubble and a mature market more about vibes than dollars?

Tips from the Pitch: Brewing Big Beers - 2025-10-07 07:00:00 UTC

Now is the perfect time to craft robust beers—from barleywines and imperial stouts to other high-gravity styles—that stand up to the season. Check out these must-have tips for brewing these high-strength, winter-ready beers.

Barley Variety – What’s in a Name? - 2025-10-07 04:43:00 UTC

Find out how Briess is always looking to continuously improve and understand varieties for their future potential…

Getting Sweet On Sours - 2025-10-06 14:55:00 UTC

Bierstadt’s Ashleigh Carter Picks Six Beers of Love and Dedication - 2025-10-06 07:00:00 UTC

Ashleigh Carter, cofounder of Denver’s Bierstadt Lagerhaus, focuses solely on lager in her own brewing, and she’s drawn to those with similarly singular approaches. Her chosen six-pack honors intentional commitment to a style, to a single beer, to presentation, and to experience.

Cooking with Cider: Sage-and-Walnut-Encrusted Pork Loin with Cider Chutney - 2025-10-06 01:00:00 UTC

Reach for a bottle of local craft cider and embrace the flavors of autumn with this dish, which pairs well with sides such as butternut squash, sweet potatoes, or roasted turnips.

How I brew Beer - 2025-10-05 15:51:01 UTC

Intro Over the years I did brew beer multiple times, first ~2004 with a Bier-Kwik style syrup set. Then 2011-2013 with malt. Now after many years of having my brewery stored away mostly in one 130L IKEA box it was time for me to brew again. I however upgraded my kettle to a 50l stainless steel pod and I also got a malt mill, so I can mill malt just in time, removing the need to buy small quantities when needed.

Beer Recipe - Münchner Dunkel - 2025-10-05 15:51:01 UTC

Intro Most beer recipes only contain the specific information for the described beer. It is assumed that all brewers master their personal brewery and can adjust the recipe where needed. I described my brewery and process in How I brew Beer and here I will only give you the specifics for the Münchner Dunkel. In the past to make beer more flavor and colorful the whole barley was malted at higher temperatures.

Mosaic SMaSH Session Pale Ale - 2025-10-05 15:03:15 UTC

I wanted a quick-and-easy hoppy beer in the sessionable zone, so I threw together a SMaSH recipe with mostly on-hand ingredients. Maris Otter served as the base, for something a little more flavorful than average 2-row. I have a pound … Continue reading →

Oktoberfest Beer at Oktoberfest: Does the Difference Even Matter? - 2025-10-03 19:00:03 UTC

Upright Brewing, 2009-2025 - 2025-10-02 16:31:49 UTC

Founder Alex Ganum is one of a handful of the most gifted brewers I’ve encountered in my travels around the world, and on a number of occasions, tasting his beer left me startled by its originality and accomplishment. With its singular vision and personality, Upright was an irreplaceable brewery.

What’s Brewing at Brewer’s Friend – October 1, 2025 - 2025-10-01 15:54:55 UTC

September 2025

Notes on Fresh Hop Season 2025 - 2025-09-30 15:09:10 UTC

Now I’m looking for that wonderful, recognizable taste of the harvest. If peach season signals the end of summer, the iridescent green flavor of a fresh hop tastes like autumn.

How Your Brain Perceives Beer with Randy Mosher – BeerSmith Podcast #332 - 2025-09-25 23:30:09 UTC

This week author Randy Mosher joins me to discuss how your senses and brain work together to create the overall

Personal/Programming Notes - 2025-09-22 18:49:19 UTC

A note about my availability over the next month, as well as a few words about the state of free speech in the US following the murder of Charlie Kirk.

Fifty Meter Beer Project – We Have A Thresher! - 2025-09-21 13:44:37 UTC

Water to Grain Ratios for the Mash in Beer Brewing - 2025-09-18 13:46:55 UTC

This week I cover water to grain ratios used during mashing and how it affects the mash and ultimately your

Two Exciting Events This Weekend! - 2025-09-17 17:16:27 UTC

This weekend, Friday and Saturday 9/19-20, Portland-area breweries will host two cool events: a ranging discussion on hops, esp. fresh hops, with an art release, and a cask ale fest. Let me tell you about both.

Fresh Hop Beers Go to Eleven - 2025-09-16 18:22:26 UTC

Trying to describe fresh hop beers is hard because rather than just reaching for another adjective, we grope toward different realms of experience. Drinking a very good one is to experience synesthesia and encounter the taste of iridescent green.

Fresh Brew: Your Monthly Digest of Top Forum Discussions – September 2025 - 2025-09-15 21:02:17 UTC

Success Stories: Threshold Run Club - 2025-09-12 18:07:01 UTC

A small program at a neighborhood brewery isn’t the kind of thing to make big news—except that breweries across the country do these kinds of things every day. Taken together, they’re important elements of healthy local communities.

J.C. Jacobsen’s letter about pure yeast to Gabriel Sedlmayr - 2025-09-10 17:13:00 UTC

Podcast: 140+ Years of Malting History & Innovation - 2025-09-10 14:52:20 UTC

In a recent McFleshman’s Brewing podcast, called “Respecting the Beer," Gary Arndt and Joel Hermansen discuss the art, science, and history of craft beer….

The Jacobsens about the Dreher breweries - 2025-09-09 20:30:41 UTC

Icy Beer is … Fine? - 2025-09-09 17:04:49 UTC

The newest trend among young drinkers is something called “icy beer”—lager on the rocks, if you will. Is this the end of civilization, or a tasty summer treat? I consider the question.

Munich Helles BYO Edition - 2025-09-07 14:09:13 UTC

As a delicate yet flavorful lager, Munich helles has a reputation as a style that is difficult to brew well. My previous three versions have all been pretty decent, and after a few years’ hiatus I wanted to give the … Continue reading →

The Book of Lists: 7) Technological Innovation - 2025-09-04 16:48:54 UTC

The art of brewing has been constantly evolving for thousands of years. Technologies like heated stones, elbow thermometers, and fish bladder finings may have run their course, but others transformed beer. Which were the most significant? The answers lie herein!

No. 11 Bohemian Pilsner - 2025-09-04 00:24:52 UTC

I’ve been chasing the Bohemian pilsner style for awhile, with variable success. My most recent version, No. 11 Bohemian Pilsner, got pretty close to what I was looking for. It needed just a touch more malt character, so I increased … Continue reading →

What’s Brewing at Brewer’s Friend – September 1, 2025 - 2025-09-03 14:59:41 UTC

Drinking Beer For Science - 2025-09-02 18:23:15 UTC

Some exciting new research is happening as I write this, and will examine why fresh hops taste different than dried ones. Four breweries are participating, and Oregon State University will be analyzing them. Here are the details.

Brewing with Fonio: A Sustainable Grain Experiment - 2025-09-02 15:19:17 UTC

Brewing a Belgian-style Saison with Fonio, a sustainable African grain that adds crisp, fruity flavour and eco-friendly benefits.

August 2025

How to Brew with Rye, Spelt, and Oats: A Guide to Non-Traditional Grains in Homebrewing - 2025-08-29 13:47:21 UTC

Discover how to brew with rye, spelt, and oats. Learn tips, recipes, and challenges of using non-traditional grains in homebrewing.

New Hop Varieties with Stan Hieronymus – BeerSmith Podcast #331 - 2025-08-27 20:32:37 UTC

Stan Hieronymus joins me to discuss the new hop varieties coming out as well as the wide variety of new

Washing/Rinsing Yeast – How to Harvest and Reuse Brewing Yeast - 2025-08-21 20:39:32 UTC

This week I take a look at how you can harvest and reuse brewing yeast from one batch to pitch

Fifty Meter Beer Project – Fusarium - 2025-08-16 13:22:54 UTC

Fresh Brew: Your Monthly Digest of Top Forum Discussions – August 2025 - 2025-08-15 14:19:02 UTC

1980s Altbier and Kölsch - 2025-08-15 07:15:00 UTC

Oktoberfest-Märzen in the 1950s - 2025-08-13 19:19:19 UTC

It’s a Bug’s Life: Let’s Keep Them Out of the Brewhouse - 2025-08-13 16:56:19 UTC

While talking about the creepy and crawly can be an uncomfortable topic, the maltster and brewer, just like all agricultural and food producers, need to do their part in keeping their products bug-free…

A Week Like No Other: The Bighorn Barley Tour Recap - 2025-08-13 16:54:19 UTC

As I sit at my desk, reflecting on this year’s Bighorn Barley Tour, I’m filled with gratitude and awe…

Off Flavors in Beer with Jamil Zainasheff – BeerSmith Podcast #330 - 2025-08-09 21:22:58 UTC

Jamil Zainasheff joins me this week to discuss off-flavors and imbalances in beer brewing. Subscribe on iTunes to Audio version

What’s Brewing at Brewer’s Friend – August 1, 2025 - 2025-08-01 15:34:37 UTC

July 2025

Coffee in Beer with Scott Janish – BeerSmith Podcast #329 - 2025-07-30 19:06:22 UTC

Scott Janish joins me this week from Sapwood Cellars to discuss how to incorporate coffee into your beer. Subscribe on

British Brewing in the 1970’s with Ron Pattinson – BeerSmith Podcast #328 - 2025-07-21 16:11:47 UTC

Ron Pattinson joins me to discuss the rich history of British Brewing in the 1970’s. Subscribe on iTunes to Audio

Fresh Brew: Your Monthly Digest of Top Forum Discussions – July 2025 - 2025-07-15 15:43:10 UTC

Why I think the Reinheitsgebot and its effects are misunderstood - 2025-07-13 14:40:03 UTC

Fifty Meter Beer Project – A New Year - 2025-07-05 14:20:22 UTC

What’s Brewing at Brewer’s Friend – July 1, 2025 - 2025-07-01 14:59:20 UTC

June 2025

Tips for Sustainable Homebrewing - 2025-06-30 10:39:11 UTC

Using Sulfites in Beer Brewing - 2025-06-26 13:10:15 UTC

This week I take a look at the practice of using sulfites as a preservative in beer brewing, including the

Craft Pilsners with Mitch Steele – BeerSmith Podcast #327 - 2025-06-25 19:24:42 UTC

Mitch Steele joins me from New Realm brewing to discuss variations in Craft Pilsners as well as how to brew

Trost! (My Nerdiest Beer – & Video – Ever) - 2025-06-21 11:25:00 UTC

Fresh Brew: Your Monthly Digest of Top Forum Discussions – June 2025 - 2025-06-16 13:43:12 UTC

Mead and More with Ken Schramm – BeerSmith Podcast #326 - 2025-06-12 02:11:47 UTC

Ken Schramm joins me this week to discuss mead, our relationship with alcohol and the future of home brewing and

Meet the Fierce & the Fluffy: 2025 Peregrine Falcons - 2025-06-09 17:31:11 UTC

After much anticipation and a whole lot of webcam watching, our falcon family of 2025 is…

Making Hard Seltzer at Home - 2025-06-08 16:48:18 UTC

This week I take a look at the best practices for making hard seltzer at home. Seltzer has grown in

Understanding Carapils® Malt - 2025-06-05 15:49:00 UTC

Carapils® Malt has been one of the most commonly misunderstood malts, often being confused with a light caramel malt. However, Carapils® Malt is not a caramel malt at all…

Understanding Malt with Jeff Bloem – BeerSmith Podcast #325 - 2025-06-02 15:51:05 UTC

Jeff Bloem from Murphy & Rude Malting joins me to help us understand brewing malts, and help break through the

May 2025

The Session #147: Downing pints when the world’s about to end - 2025-05-30 07:45:00 UTC

BeerSmith Recipes Site Hits 2 Million Recipe Milestone! - 2025-05-16 15:43:41 UTC

Over the weekend we hit the 2 million recipe milestone on the BeerSmithRecipes.com web site! We now have over 2

A Deep Dive into Brewing Flakes: What They Are and Why They Matter - 2025-05-15 13:11:57 UTC

Briess is five family generations deep in malting history, tracing our roots across a wide range of barley and malt innovation since 1876…

CBC 2025: Kicks, Pints, and Big Indy Energy - 2025-05-14 18:38:37 UTC

What happens when nearly 8,000 craft beer enthusiasts from over 60 countries make their way to Indianapolis…

Specialty Malt Fermentability in Beer Brewing - 2025-05-09 17:38:31 UTC

This week I take a look at how the use of high proportions of specialty malt can impact the fermentability

The Holy Trinity of Cheesy Beer Snacks - 2025-05-09 12:45:32 UTC

April 2025

Dry Hopping Beer with Michael Tonsmeire – BeerSmith Podcast #324 - 2025-04-28 20:37:42 UTC

Michael Tonsmeire from Sapwood Cellars joins me to discuss dry hop techniques and new dry hop products for beer making.

Draft Weekend Stout - 2025-04-26 15:15:57 UTC

Another morning mash. Dug out the ol Fogger stout recipe. Been a while since I made this Just a basic, but solid Irish style Stout. But can definitely change things and add things if needed I forgot how good a stout smells in the morning. Can’t wait to get into this one.

Metals and Their Role in Beer Oxidation - 2025-04-21 16:47:10 UTC

This week I take a look at metals, oxygen and how the two can combine to rapidly oxidize and age

Selecting the Right Mash Profile in BeerSmith - 2025-04-14 20:07:27 UTC

This week I take a look at mash profiles in BeerSmith and how you can select the right one to

My Experience with Super F, a Vegan Alternative To Isinglass - 2025-04-11 19:23:23 UTC

Making Mead with Alex Mendoza – BeerSmith Podcast #323 - 2025-04-09 22:13:01 UTC

This week Alex Mendoza from Hiveworks meadery joins me to discuss styles of mead, making mead and his personal story

Beer Case Study: BeerSmith’s Witbier - 2025-04-04 19:43:08 UTC

This week I take an in-depth look at my Witbier recipe and some of the design decisions made in designing

March 2025

New Brewing Hop Products with Max Shafer – BeerSmith Podcast #322 - 2025-03-30 23:44:12 UTC

This week Max Shafer joins me from Roadhouse Brewing to discuss a large number of new hop products including hop

Spontaneous Fermentation for Beer Brewing - 2025-03-25 22:48:36 UTC

This week I take a look at spontaneous fermentation for home brewers and what you might expect from using wild

Wild Brettanomyces Project – 2024 Update - 2025-03-21 11:55:00 UTC

Barrel Aged Stouts with Skip Schwartz – BeerSmith Podcast #321 - 2025-03-20 17:51:36 UTC

Skip Schwartz is my guest this week to talk about barrel aged stouts, flavored barrel aged beers, blending aged beers

When to Use Different Mashing Techniques in Beer Brewing - 2025-03-14 18:55:49 UTC

This week I take a look at when you should apply different mash techniques to achieve a particular style or

Fifty Meter Beer Project – We Made Beer! - 2025-03-08 13:40:43 UTC

Using Sensory Kits to Understand Off Flavors in Beer - 2025-03-05 18:14:49 UTC

This week I take a look at using sensory kits to enhance your ability to judge beers. These kits, while

February 2025

New England IPA and Hazy IPA Brewing Secrets - 2025-02-28 21:34:29 UTC

This week I take a closer look at brewing the vaunted New England IPA (NEIPA), also called Hazy IPA and

Cold IPA with John Palmer – BeerSmith Podcast #320 - 2025-02-27 16:56:37 UTC

John Palmer joins me this week to discuss the Cold IPA style, its history and how to brew one at

Yeast Flocculation and Beer Brewing - 2025-02-21 20:59:26 UTC

This week I take a look at the yeast flocculation, what it means and how it affects your finished beer.

Easing back in… - 2025-02-18 13:08:38 UTC

I actually put something together Just a small cider, but gotta restart somewhere.

When to Use Different Hopping Techniques in Beer - 2025-02-15 16:59:19 UTC

This week I take a look at the major hop techniques, and provide a perspective on which hop techniques are

Beer, Mead and Cider with Michael Fairbrother – BeerSmith Podcast #319 - 2025-02-11 23:25:18 UTC

Michael Fairbrother joins me this week to discuss the business of beer, mead, cider and opening a restaurant. Subscribe on

Does Whirlfloc affect Haze Stability? - 2025-02-11 13:52:08 UTC

We found that the yeast-derived haze that is generated by haze-positive strains with late dry hop is not impacted by Whirlfloc.

Using Multiple Equipment Profiles in BeerSmith - 2025-02-08 21:42:33 UTC

This week I take a look at the practice of using multiple equipment profiles for your brewing equipment in BeerSmith.

January 2025

International Bitterness Units (IBUs) and Beer Recipe Design - 2025-01-30 16:38:55 UTC

This week I cover the formal definition of an International Bitterness Unit (IBU) widely used in beer recipe design, but

Simplified Homebrewing with John Blichmann – BeerSmith Podcast #318 - 2025-01-27 17:21:21 UTC

John Blichmann joins me this week to discuss simplified brewing and how to combat the decline in homebrewing. Subscribe on

Understanding Hop Sensory Data - 2025-01-24 18:37:28 UTC

This week I take a close look at hop sensory data which these days is often published on a “spider

Process Control of DMS in Lagers with Dr Greg Casey – BeerSmith Podcast #317 - 2025-01-22 18:03:36 UTC

This week Dr Greg Casey joins me to discuss Dimethyl Sulfide (DMS) in lagers, and how process control can aid

Fifty Meter Beer Project – Making Caramunich Malt - 2025-01-18 00:39:17 UTC

2024 Homebrew Highlights - 2025-01-07 16:57:49 UTC

Fifty Meter Beer Project – Making Lager Malt - 2025-01-02 16:51:47 UTC

December 2024

The Darkest-er Beer Ever! - 2024-12-16 13:58:34 UTC

August 2024

Checking in on the Stout - 2024-08-02 13:15:21 UTC

I had brewed a stout back in February and it now been 5 months aging. This one is not a huge Stout. With a starting gravity of 1080 and finishing at 1010, it’s coming in at about 9.2% that’s fair sized beer alright. I was looking at this being an imperial stout.. but.. well let’s […]

July 2024

Nectaron Pale Ale - Recipe - 2024-07-04 13:50:48 UTC

December 2023

2023: THE BEST YEAR OF BEER YET - 2023-12-04 00:39:13 UTC

As 2023 draws to a close this year’s World Beer Meeting (WBM) in Austria and the Czech Republic is currently being held. What better time to take a step back and reflect on what a year this has been. I think it’s safe to say we have finally cracked the code. Are there little tweaks…

July 2023

Where Can You Buy Mead? (Full List + Brands) - 2023-07-27 11:38:26 UTC

Schwarzbier vs Dunkel: Origins, Brewing Process, + More - 2023-07-27 11:25:09 UTC

Howler vs Growler – The Ultimate Beer Container Showdown! - 2023-07-27 11:07:36 UTC

Why Is Miller High Life So Cheap? Read On to Find Out! - 2023-07-25 12:58:00 UTC

Which Beer Is Best?: Modelo Negra vs Modelo Especial - 2023-07-13 11:45:10 UTC

Yuengling vs Budweiser: Let’s Compare These US Beer Giants - 2023-07-10 13:46:33 UTC

Heineken vs Budweiser – The Battle of the Beer Giants - 2023-07-06 10:57:52 UTC

June 2023

What Does Root Beer Taste Like? A Uniquely Complex Mix - 2023-06-21 11:48:33 UTC

Can I Mail Beer to a Friend? A Complete Guide - 2023-06-08 11:16:32 UTC

Sapporo Reserve vs Premium: Compare, Contrast, and Enjoy! - 2023-06-06 12:02:39 UTC

May 2023

The Joy of a Beer Solera: Reflections and Learnings - 2023-05-16 15:59:53 UTC

Discover the joys of brewing a beer solera and learn valuable insights from our reflections. Follow our solera journey and gain tips for your own brewing projects.

April 2023

Zachary’s Gluten Free Red 0.4% - 2023-04-22 04:51:09 UTC

Hops & Gnarly Stout 0.5% abv - 2023-04-22 04:18:42 UTC

Lars’ A Lunch Brownie 0.9% abv - 2023-04-19 15:27:06 UTC

Simon’s Saison 1.3% abv - 2023-04-19 15:17:26 UTC

Simon’s Lemon Myrtle Gose 0.5% abv - 2023-04-19 15:10:18 UTC

Craig’s Ginger Biscuit Brown Ale 0.4% abv - 2023-04-19 14:59:56 UTC

Lars’ A Haze For Days IPA 0.9% abv - 2023-04-16 06:36:42 UTC

Miro’s Low abv IPA 0.9% abv - 2023-04-16 06:03:10 UTC

David Heath’s Low abv IPA 0.9% - 2023-04-16 05:55:34 UTC

Miro’s Hazy IPA 0.7% abv - 2023-04-15 13:01:49 UTC

March 2023

How to Decoction Mash in a Grainfather - 2023-03-07 14:18:49 UTC

In this article, you’ll learn how to decoction mash in a Grainfather which involves removing a portion of the mash, boiling it and returning it to the main mash.

February 2023

I asked ChatGPT to write me a homebrew recipe - 2023-02-16 15:28:50 UTC

I asked ChatGPT to write me a homebrew recipe and this is the result that is produced.

How Mash Temperatures Affect Your Beer - 2023-02-07 11:32:57 UTC

In this article, we will explore how mash temperatures affect the brewing process, including the various temperature ranges used for different beer styles, the impact of temperature on the conversion of starches into sugars, and the effects of temperature on the finished beer.

January 2023

Top 10 Breweries in Pittsburgh, PA in 2023 - 2023-01-11 15:27:11 UTC

Using HopGain® Haze for a permanent haze in your beer - 2023-01-04 11:08:12 UTC

In this article, I’ll take you through an American Wheat Ale that I brewed and then dosed with HopGain® Haze. It’s an extract that you dose into a finished beer to add long lasting haze.

December 2022

Homebrewing Christmas Wish List 2022 - 2022-12-23 10:31:54 UTC

If you are an avid homebrewer, or looking to buy something for a homebrewer, then look no further than this list. I wanted to put together a list of all the things that I’d like in my Christmas stocking this year.

2022 Review - 2022-12-20 21:55:00 UTC

As the year comes to a close, it’s a good time to reflect on what we’ve learned at The Modern Brewhouse. This year, we saw an increase in small to medium craft brewers seeking consulting services on oxygen mitigation techniques. While there is still a lot of misinformation to navigate, we’ve noticed that opponents of…

The Reality of Oxygen Ingress Part 2 – The Cold Side - 2022-12-20 13:46:18 UTC

We talk quite extensively, almost as an afterthought, about oxygen ingress and why we want to eliminate it, but what are the actual values? What can you expect in terms of numbers? Let’s take a quick look at some of the known quantities and review some scenarios. Many have asked about the maximum DO levels…

November 2022

Building a “balanced” beer using the BU/GU ratio - 2022-11-24 16:15:51 UTC

The BU/GU Ratio of a beer stands for bitterness units (IBUs) divided by the gravity units. As a brewer, it helps you determine the amount of bitterness balanced with the sweetness of your beer.

An Ultimate Guide On How To Properly Store Beer - 2022-11-22 21:29:23 UTC

October 2022

I tried malting my own Barley and failed - 2022-10-26 13:49:55 UTC

I love the idea of using local ingredients when making my beer. In this article, I’ll take you through the steps to malt your own Barley.

September 2022

Brewing a Hazy IPA with only British hops - 2022-09-14 08:38:45 UTC

In this article, I’ll take you through a recipe to brew a Hazy IPA using only English Hops (Harlequin, U.K. Chinook & U.K. Cascade)

August 2022

2022 Mid Year Update - 2022-08-09 19:44:25 UTC

Like that the summer has come and almost gone. They say, time flies when you are having fun, and that couldn’t be more true here. Large numbers of members are making the best beer they have ever, and that includes myself. We discovered some more of the key points in the process that really contribute…

How to Properly Clean Your Brewing Hoses - 2022-08-05 18:35:22 UTC

July 2022

USDA Releases 2022 Hop Planting Report - 2022-07-11 14:24:36 UTC

March 2022

2022 Q1 Update - 2022-03-24 14:45:03 UTC

At this point if you are not bewildered by the amount of progress and forward movement we make here, I don’t know what to tell you. Q1 of 2022 is already wrapping up and boy has it been a great year thus far! The fermentation studies have made a re-appearance in an exciting way. After thorough…

Beer Advent Calendar Options - 2022-03-10 22:58:51 UTC

January 2022

Which Size Brew Kettle Should You Get? - 2022-01-07 18:07:35 UTC

2022 Update - 2022-01-05 16:48:19 UTC

As said previously these updates will be few and far between since everything that needs be said is on the forum. With that out of the way, here is your first quarter update for 2022. Malt We continue to be the tip of the spear on Malt, Malting and enzymatic activity enhancement. We can now…

September 2021

Beer Volume Conversions - 2021-09-21 14:13:49 UTC

Mid-Year Update - 2021-09-10 14:46:07 UTC

A little late, but things around here are still moving as fast and feverous as normal. Here are some high level overviews of what we have cooking for our members. We completed a N=100 study of a special enzyme, that allows for roughly 85% attenuation. Mashing and attenuation are very important to us. With current…

June 2021

Beyond Pellets: Transforming Hops with Technology - 2021-06-06 21:18:14 UTC

May 2021

Top 5 Disasters that Threatened US Hop Production - 2021-05-09 16:22:49 UTC

Why London Ale III is the Quintessential NEIPA Yeast - 2021-05-08 18:17:58 UTC

January 2021

New Year Update - 2021-01-10 15:26:19 UTC

It’s been awhile since any articles and updates have been posted, but trust me, we have not stopped pushing the envelope in the least. However, early last year we switched our model. Which is now paid monthly access. The forum holds most of the expansive tests and trials, but since we have switched to a…

June 2020

Flavour Stability in Home Brewing - 2020-06-23 21:15:13 UTC

Guest Author: Tuur Mertens Introduction Famous painter Edgar Degas once declared the frame to be ‘the pimp of the painting’. If he were a brewer, he might have made a similar statement about beer freshness; as it is exactly that what makes a good beer pop. Sadly enough, for both brewers and consumers alike, beer…

May 2020

Modern Brewhouse: Malt Antioxidants - 2020-05-08 18:01:45 UTC

A very common question we hear is, “Malt has antioxidants?!” Malt is a natural product, and like many natural products, it contains naturally occurring antioxidants. Here is a list of them and what they do. In order to get an understanding of the possible pathways for Enzymatic and Non-Enzymatic consumption of Oxygen, as well as…

April 2020

Modern Brewhouse: Hops - 2020-04-23 15:36:40 UTC

It’s no secret that when brewers try modern brewhouse methods, one of the main things the comment on is how the hops seems to “pop” or have more presence than in previous versions of the same beer. They have a certain brightness and clarity of bitterness, aroma and flavor. This isn’t specific to dry hops…

Hefe Weissbier; Bavarian Style - 2020-04-21 16:44:08 UTC

I was asked to do this for BeerAdvocate, I will put it here as well. What does Kunze have to say about Weissbier production? As you can see from the graph above Wiessbier is a balancing act of three dominant flavor profiles. How you produce that beer, meaning the methods used, will determine your overall…

January 2020

Wort Study # 1 - 2020-01-23 17:10:05 UTC

Wort study #1, which was a large batch test to validate the efficacy of the bio reactor. The results are in, and I am going to deem it an overall success! There was some temperature offset issues which caused it to look like a colder ferment then we wanted, and a few “blips”, which we…

Deoxygenation Revisited - 2020-01-22 02:09:04 UTC

Deoxygenation is paramount for the modern brewhouse method, as we have detailed before here on the blog, and don’t worry I’m here to assure you this has not changed. However as with all things in life sometimes we need to stop, re-calibrate, re-evaluate, and determine if the methods are still valid and optimal. We are…

The Bio Reactor - 2020-01-21 20:54:35 UTC

I have always had a plan of creating a bio reactor to collect wort parameters and details.

Brown Ale: Iteration 5 - 2020-01-21 06:00:00 UTC

This post is one in a series of making small adjustments to a single recipe in order to improve it, learn more about the impact each ingredient has on the finished product, and the art of recipe creation. The rest … Continue reading →

Ss brewtech Malt Mill - 2020-01-10 16:07:31 UTC

I was given the opportunity to get this mill early and do some testing. I put it though its paces and here is what I found! The mill arrived early in December of 2019, and was packaged well. Assembly was a breeze, as it was just 4 screws for the hopper The first thing I…

Ss brewtech Mill Video Review - 2020-01-08 13:55:37 UTC

I was lucky enough to get my hands on this mill earlier than most and put it though its paces. Here are my thoughts!

Brown Ale: Tasting Iterations 3 & 4 - 2020-01-07 06:00:00 UTC

December 2019

Interview with Homebrewing DIY - 2019-12-20 17:55:37 UTC

Brown Ale: Iteration 4 - 2019-12-10 06:00:00 UTC

November 2019

Brown Ale: Iteration 3 - 2019-11-26 06:00:00 UTC

Brown Ale: Tasting Iterations 1 & 2 - 2019-11-12 06:00:27 UTC

October 2019

Brown Ale: Iteration 2 - 2019-10-29 06:00:45 UTC

Brewing yeast family tree (Oct 2019 update) - 2019-10-23 08:35:08 UTC

Two new fantastic paper on interspecies Saccharomyces hybrids were recently published in Nature Ecology and Evolution. One from the Hittinger lab and collaborators, and the other from the Verstrepen lab and collaborators. A bunch of new commercially available brewing yeast strains were sequenced during the projects, and this meant there was yet again more data […]

Brown Ale: Iteration 1 - 2019-10-15 06:00:17 UTC

Limitations: Beer 14 (Barleywine) - 2019-10-01 06:00:22 UTC

This post is one in a series following five brewers limiting themselves to a select set of ingredients and brewing several beers each with only those ingredients. The goal of these limitations is to push creativity and to see what … Continue reading →

September 2019

Limitations: Beer 13 (American Wheat) - 2019-09-17 06:00:12 UTC

Solving the Muri mystery - 2019-09-12 07:46:45 UTC

Last summer (2018), we published a paper on the ’Muri’ hybrid. This strain was isolated from a yeast culture that Bjarne Muri had produced when attempting to revive his grandfather’s old kveik culture. In the paper we did some genetic and phenotypic characterization of the strain (a single cell isolate from Richard Preiss). The strain […]

Limitations: Beer 12 (Hoppy Wheat) - 2019-09-03 06:00:14 UTC

August 2019

Overview with WNYbrews - 2019-08-02 12:46:32 UTC

I was asked to discuss the basics of low oxygen brewing. Give it a listen, it’s very high level and easy to digest. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/low-oxygen-brewing-with-bryan-rabe/id976941329?i=1000445715460

June 2019

Reinheitsgebot- What is it, and why it’s important to me. - 2019-06-10 17:50:33 UTC

The text (translated) of the 1516 Bavarian law is as follows: We hereby proclaim and decree, by Authority of our Province, that henceforth in the Duchy of Bavaria, in the country as well as in the cities and marketplaces, the following rules apply to the sale of beer: From Michaelmas to Georgi, the price for one Mass [Bavarian Liter 1,069]…

May 2019

The mysteries of diastatic brewing yeast - 2019-05-31 17:23:23 UTC

It’s time for another long due update. I’m very excited to share our latest manuscript on diastatic brewing yeast (or “Saccharomyces diastaticus” as it was formerly known as)! Keep in mind that this is a preprint and the manuscript is currently under peer-review. Below I’ll summarize the main findings of our small project (that ended […]

December 2018

The Basis of Modern Brewhouse Methodology - 2018-12-05 22:08:59 UTC

Let’s take the time machine and travel back to early 2014, where a guy (Brandon) and I exchanged beers. At the time, I was making what I thought of as “fantastic” beers that were falling flat when compared to genuine German examples. I had tried every trick in book to no avail. To my surprise,…

November 2018

Spunding Automation and Logic - 2018-11-27 16:04:06 UTC

Since I brew according to the Reinheitsgebot, I have to carbonate the beer naturally, which means no force carbonation (unless the carbonation is recaptured from fermentation). It’s actually a very simple thing to do, and I have already wrote about its numerous benefits prior. I prefer to do this via spunding (or basically capping the…

The System. - 2018-11-26 19:52:35 UTC

I have thought about this post for a long time, but just didn’t have time to dedicate to it. It has finally came to fruition. Hopefully you stay for the full ride, this is going to be a long one! Many moons ago I started down the path of low oxygen brewing. Since low oxygen…

An updated brewing yeast family tree - 2018-11-16 15:07:29 UTC

I’ve been bad at updating the blog lately, as I have been busy writing on my thesis, taking care of our 1.5 year old son, and being involved in various smaller brewing research projects at work. We’ve had a number of results published during the autumn, including two papers on kveik (here and here) and […]

April 2018

Phylogenetic tree of 1011+157 yeast genomes - 2018-04-24 08:52:18 UTC

A couple of weeks ago the main results of the 1002 yeast genomes project (which actually ended up as 1011 yeast genomes) were published in Nature. This amazing piece of work from the J Schacherer & G Liti labs offers insights into the evolutionary history of S. cerevisiae, and is also an amazing source of data […]

February 2018

On Serving: A Look at Total Oxygen Ingess - 2018-02-05 16:06:49 UTC

This will be the last part in the series of blog posts discussing cold side oxygen ingress, and we feel it will be the most thought provoking. We already spoke on purging, CO2 purity, and bottle cap ingress. What about when that keg sits in the serving chamber? All the damage has been done and now it’s safe, right?…

January 2018

Improving fermentation performance of yeast hybrids through adaptive evolution - 2018-01-31 20:24:51 UTC

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, the research project I’ve been dedicating most of my time to the past 18 months is one based on the adaptive evolution of newly created lager hybrids. Our manuscript based on the work was accepted in late November 2017, and today the article was published in the […]

Bottle Cap Oxygen Ingress..Is It Real? - 2018-01-31 15:09:13 UTC

We have briefly touched on this subject in other posts, but we get a lot of questions on it. How can this work? Basically gas diffusion is driven by concentrations across the boundary of the same species. In simple terms, what this means is that a concentration of 21% O2 on the outside of the bottle…

Low Oxygen Brewing Software Version 7.0 - 2018-01-31 13:12:50 UTC

We’d like to take a second to introduce our major revision to the Low Oxygen Brewing Software. It represents the culmination of all our major milestones from a process standpoint and it has some features that are not found in any other sheet. It supports both Low Oxygen and Traditional brewing methods that utilize “No-Sparge”…

Kegging With Care: A Guide to Purging. - 2018-01-24 20:18:57 UTC

“How do you purge your kegs?” “How do you perform closed transfers on finished beers?” “How do you keep fresh beer on tap for so long?” These are questions that are not only asked of us with some regularity, but questions that all brewers have asked their more knowledgeable counterparts at some point in time….

CO2 Purity and Why It’s Important - 2018-01-19 15:48:00 UTC

Carbon Dioxide (CO2) purity is a very significant topic in modern brewing. Recently, many newer brewers have been picking up on the topic. Yet the topic is universal to all brewers, regardless of their hot side methods and we thought it might be a good idea to go back to the basics of the topic…

Save the Date 3/4/2018. - 2018-01-16 19:42:05 UTC

We have been busy in the lab! Because of this we have some fun and exciting things coming down the pipe here in the new year. Firstly, we were asked (and obliged) to write a feature article for BYO, where we gave an overview the process at more of a high level and disseminating the…

December 2017

Decoding White Labs strains from Gallone et al. 2016 – Update - 2017-12-30 13:27:51 UTC

Thanks to some amazing contributions and discussions in the comment section of my previous post on this article (special thanks to ‘qq’), we’ve now managed to identify (its at least a good estimation) the majority of the White Labs strains from the set of brewing strains in the Gallone et al. 2016 paper. In addition […]

Brewtan B Dosing - 2017-12-12 15:38:44 UTC

Just wanted to do a quick post detailing the required dosing for Brewtan B. There was some discussion recently on another forum and I added to that discussion a quick summary of the current dosing recommendations: So, to summarize: VOLUME BASED DOSING Mash – 1/2 tsp/5 gal (0.1 tsp/gal) for TOTAL water amount in mash (dose…

Nectar of the Gods: A Revised Guide to Brewing Modern Monastic Ales - 2017-12-01 14:48:17 UTC

There has been an unspoken understanding since I started working with Bryan that I was not going to contribute all that much to the business of lager brewing. I have never been set up to brew these “cold” beers and while I now have a deeper and more serious appreciation for their flavor and construction,…

October 2017

Decoding some White Labs strains from the Gallone et al. 2016 paper - 2017-10-22 20:04:37 UTC

NOTE: This post has been updated. The paper on brewing yeast domestication authored by the Verstrepen lab and White Labs last year is a fantastic piece of work (i.e. Domestication and Divergence of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Beer Yeasts, Gallone et al. 2016, Cell). I’m sure most of you have seen it by now, so I won’t […]

Some of our recent research - 2017-10-19 18:14:26 UTC

I feel bad for again having to start off a post by apologizing for my inactivity here at the blog. It has been quite a busy summer for me, as my wife and I got our first child (his name is Ludwig) in the end of June. I’m currently on parental leave from my research […]

Powell’s Wildberry Kveik - 2017-10-04 21:30:46 UTC

September 2017

Foam - 2017-09-29 18:23:14 UTC

Beer foam is not only a necessity as far as appearance is concerned, but also paramount to the whole experience that is beer. It is something so important to me that I designed my logo around it: Now I am not talking about foam as it relates to a beer that is over carbonated or…

July 2017

The State of Modern Brewing: On Progress, Updates and Review - 2017-07-06 13:27:55 UTC

“Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb.” Winston Churchill Introduction It…

June 2017

Cathedral of Beer: Modern Trappist Ales - 2017-06-28 17:37:00 UTC

Introduction One of the remarkable things about Belgian Trappist ales is how they are simultaneously idiosyncratic yet instantly recognizable as kindred. Pour yourself a glass of Chimay, Rochefort, Achel, Westmalle or Westvleteren. You’ll be astounded by how the individualistic spirit of each brewery mates with the hallmarks of the “style”. Brewing beers like these are…

Packaging: Canning Beer at Home - 2017-06-27 19:12:59 UTC

I have been eyeing a canning setup and researching industry best practices for canning methods for some time. Knowing what we know about oxygen ingress in general, it was not very difficult to realize that oxygen at packing was a very large concern. I went back and forth over it for quite awhile, but finally…

May 2017

Sulfite Testing Strips Do You Really Need to Adjust pH? - 2017-05-17 20:11:30 UTC

There are a lot of people using sulfite testing strips now and I get a lot of people asking me about needing to adjust pH for these strips to be accurate. I have always adjusted, and never gave it any thought. But it piqued my interest enough to start to take dual readings while brewing. Over…

April 2017

Cool things that can be done with allotetraploid interspecific hybrids - 2017-04-22 07:54:01 UTC

The title of this post may sound a little confusing or complex for those not familiar with the nomenclature of the field, but I’ll try my best to explain our recent results to you. As I’ve written many times previously on this blog ([1], [2], [3], [4], and [5]), I have been working with and […]

March 2017

Modern Brewhouse Reconfiguration - 2017-03-16 13:08:35 UTC

A few years back, once we discovered the secret to success, I did a quick brewery reconfiguration to accommodate the new methods. I ran everything with silicon hoses to allow for easy reconfiguration as methods and processes evolved. After 250+ batches I thought I had enough experience with the system to start to lock things…

Dr. Lambic Is Opening A Brewery! - 2017-03-06 15:49:28 UTC

February 2017

A Guide To Blending Sour Beer With Fruit - 2017-02-22 21:28:22 UTC

A Shout Out to Winning-Homebrew.com! - 2017-02-16 16:03:40 UTC

Mob Barley was so kind to feature us on his amazing website and blog! Thanks to folks like him, we are gaining so much momentum. Folks are loving the methods and seeing great results! Be sure to check out his great site and don’t forget to check out our forums, a lot of great talk going…

The Reality of Oxygen Ingress Part 1: The Hot Side - 2017-02-15 15:06:47 UTC

We Now Have Forums! - 2017-02-14 17:54:34 UTC

With the release of the paper and podcast, I was mobbed with emails, pm’s and requests related to Low Oxygen brewing methods. The common thread with the curiosities was how it translates, if at all, to other beer styles. After the 100th request I set out to try and put this all together and try…

Low Oxygen Quick Reference Spreadsheet - 2017-02-06 14:31:13 UTC

The past month or so has been pretty busy for me: putting out the “Water” spreadsheet, trying to maintain the main Low Oxygen Brewing spreadsheet, etc. One thing that has come to light is that it is difficult to maintain all the various Excel sheets I have produced over the past year. As I revise…

A Low Oxygen Brewday - 2017-02-04 13:49:51 UTC

One of the biggest hurdles for people wanting to try low oxygen Brewing methods and processes, is that they think its either too difficult or too time consuming, or worse yet, both! Yesterday I brewed a Helles. I put up a bunch of cameras, and streamed it to youtube so everyone can see what a low…

January 2017

Low Oxygen Bottle Filling - 2017-01-16 15:54:09 UTC

The dread of every low oxygen brewer, even at the commercial scale, is packaging. Previously we spoke of spunding, which is a fantastic way to mitigate the ingress of oxygen for keggers and bottlers alike, but what about filling growlers and bottles for competitions and gifts? It’s an interesting problem, as we are dealing with…

Trub Seperation- Why and How - 2017-01-09 17:41:59 UTC

After reading and trying some of the techniques outlined in this article, I was able to achieve a better product with faster fermentation, clearer beer, better foam and a better, longer lasting brewery-fresh taste. I will first show some excerpts from literature, and then show how I implemented them on the homebrew scale. Fix in…

Antioxin SBT - 2017-01-05 18:48:06 UTC

I have known about commercial antioxidants for some time and have played with AntioxinSB in the past. When getting the samples of the SB, the company sent me some literature on the rest of their products one of which being AntioxinSBT, a new kid on the oxidation block. AEB sums it up as: “A new generation of…

Cold Fermentation and Spunding Results - 2017-01-05 16:48:06 UTC

Earlier we spoke of the importance of these 2 procedures, but a recent post on the homebrew talk forum along with a recent re-read of George fix’s book “Principals of Brewing Science”, made me think about writing a quick post about it. One thing I think ALL parties can actually agree on is the subject…

December 2016

Jester King Spon 2016 Méthode Gueuze – Tasting and Interview - 2016-12-30 20:28:34 UTC

The Infamous Low Oxygen Sensory Analysis - 2016-12-22 19:04:54 UTC

It won’t come as a surprise to the many low oxygen converts, but the original PDF is going on 8 months old now. It’s hard to believe in the face of such an overwhelmingly vast body of information and the better part of a year the public has been able to brew batches using the latest Low Oxygen…

The Sour Beer Brewday - 2016-12-07 03:13:24 UTC

November 2016

Podcast: Fermentation Nation - 2016-11-10 16:15:55 UTC

I was invited by the great guys on Fermentation Nation to discuss some low oxygen brewing techniques. I am far from a tv personality and I was week 2 into a 4 week stint with pneumonia so I apologize for any misspoken words and phrases, we start at 31 minutes in. Hopefully this can ease…

The Rare Barrel: Brewery Profile, Interview, and Tasting - 2016-11-09 03:37:08 UTC

Yeast Deoxygenation Method - 2016-11-04 16:45:54 UTC

We find the yeast deoxygenation method is a very viable way to mitigate DO in brewing water. Thanks to our good friend Bilsch he came up with this method and here is an excerpt from him: “Someone said to me, in the context of pitching in oxygenated wort, yeast are the best oxygen scavengers we know….

Low Oxygen Dryhopping - 2016-11-02 13:23:01 UTC

It’s quite the conundrum, but basically all methods we have tested and verified use active yeast and spunding. Since we have to break our purge to add hops, and since we know our purges are far from perfect to begin with, its a necessity to use those yeast for their oxygen scavenging abilities. There are…

Low Oxygen Bottling Methods - 2016-11-02 13:04:24 UTC

We realize that many of the brewers who will visit this site will be keggers. At the volumes typically produced by the average brewer, kegging is an inevitability. But small batch brewers and keggers alike will no doubt bottle. As we know, bottles may be the best vessels in which to package low oxygen beer….

Lagering - 2016-11-01 22:02:47 UTC

As with any lager production, proper lagering time is needed to clarify and refine the beer. Unfortunately we have yet to find an easy low oxygen solution to fining/filtering to accelerate that so we are stuck using other methods, namely time, temperature and yeast strain. Finding a medium to medium-high flocculating yeast is going to…

Cold Fermentation Practices - 2016-11-01 21:32:31 UTC

I touched on the cold fermentation in the yeast post. But we will use this post to further dive into it. A few years ago there were some folks who rediscovered a novel approach to lager beer making, the accelerated fermentation schedule. Mr. Narziβ details and outlines this process in what we refer to “Die” and Mr. Kunze…

Wort Recirculation Manifold - 2016-11-01 18:25:02 UTC

For those who are recirculating wort during the mash, use a pump to vorlauf or are simply sparging as normal, the return line should always be kept below the wort level. The traditional lawn sprinkler type return is too susceptible to oxygen ingress. A simple hose submerged can be all that is needed. I have found…

Dissolved Oxygen Meter - 2016-11-01 18:03:11 UTC

We here at Low Oxygen Brewing run Extech DO600 pocket testers. We find them to work pretty well for the price point. I would rely on them for all hot side process as well as oxygenation. I am fairly confident in them for some cold side readings, but once things get in the parts per…

Low Oxygen Boiling - 2016-11-01 17:53:27 UTC

After reading Kunze we found that thermal stress on wort is a real thing and we can taste it too. When experimenting with longer boils with a higher boiloff rate there was more color pickup and the wort then lost most of the fresh malt flavor that was present pre-boil. The resulting beer was not smooth…

Sulfite Testing Strips - 2016-11-01 16:49:07 UTC

Another big hiccup for Low Oxygen Brewing is people think they must have a dissolved oxygen meter, and while we feel they are invaluable in the brewhouse, it can be quite the expensive for a brewer wanting to try these methods out for the first time. I am here to talk you down from the…

Limiting Oxygen Exposure on the Hot Side VIA Caps - 2016-11-01 16:31:53 UTC

We are at quite a disadvantage compared to commercial brewing for many reasons, however maybe the largest is simply surface area. If you compare the surface areas of these large macro breweries to us its quite ridiculous. However we can still contend, we have NaMeta, and we can limit our surface areas as well and it…

The EASY Fast Ferment Test (FFT) - 2016-11-01 16:14:28 UTC

People think doing a FFT is super tedious and a pain in the @$$! But today I am going to tell you a super easy way! On day 2 of your main fermenting batch, simply pull 100ml or so from the main batch ( if you have a fermenter with a valve, super simple). If…

Why Do We Spund? - 2016-11-01 16:04:47 UTC

Well the simple answer is oxygen, but more so the lack of! In our tests and trials we found that in order to preserve that awesome fresh flavor you need to package the beer with DO levels in the parts per billion range. Luckily we have the some of the purest CO2 available to us… And…

Fermenter to Keg Spunding - 2016-11-01 15:31:53 UTC

For Traditional Fermenter to Keg: Jumper fermenter output to Keg liquid out Jumper blowoff to Keg gas in post Close receiving vessel and attach spunding assembly Set spunding assembly to desired pressure setting (start with 0.8 bar) This example uses a brewbucket and a corny keg, but the method can be used on any fermenter…

Oxygenation of Yeast - 2016-11-01 14:41:35 UTC

Oxygenation (or as we like to call it, the only time oxygen is allowed to touch wort!) We all know oxygen is needed for healthy fermentation (except in the case of dry yeasts, i.e. they come with enough reserves that they do not need it). I would target 8-12 ppm of oxygen in the wort…

Grain Conditioning - 2016-11-01 13:46:11 UTC

Grain Conditioning Here are some advantages that go along with grain conditioning: Allows for coarser crush Coarser crush improves lautering Coarser crush inhibits LOX Improves husk elasticity Produces undamaged husk Allows for tighter gap on mill Yield and attenuation increase Conversion efficiency increases Conversion duration decreases Preservation of husk can improve stability Crush as close…

October 2016

List of Brewing References - 2016-10-31 18:31:18 UTC

Here is a list of Bryan’s references and important articles on brewing that may prove indispensable. This page is constantly updated Professional Schooling Technical University of Munich in Weihenstephan Institute of Brewing and Distilling EdX- The Science of Brewing Member of Master Brewers of the Americas Member of American Society of Brewing Chemists Member of…

What Does Oxidation Look Like ? - 2016-10-31 14:05:31 UTC

The short answer? A rusty/burnt looking orange color. This beer is a prime example, as it was heavily oxidized during mashing by a pump sucking in air during the entire mash. Some time ago I did a test of my old brewing methods vs. my new methods. I brewed the same recipe and used the…

Lager Yeast…There has to be an easier way! - 2016-10-28 19:20:43 UTC

One of the hard parts of this whole low oxygen brewing thing is fermentation, because you have to be really careful about these tasty polyphenols you saved from giving their life to protect your beer on the hot side of the brewhouse. We need to make sure they don’t fall on their swords during fermentation…

Basemalt Blending - 2016-10-28 16:57:29 UTC

Enter Super Pima®, a custom pilsner malt that will blow your mind… I have been playing with trying to get the malt right for these beers for quite some time. I found the more I tightened up my system the more the malts I was using tasted wrong. Vienna was giving me way too much fresh…

A Sauergut Reactor - 2016-10-28 16:33:47 UTC

I had some recent discussions with some folks over some VERY fresh Bavarian samples. There were flavors in these beers that I could not replicate exactly, however I had some batches that had hints of it. Looking back through my notes, I noticed the high pH of my Weyermann Barke malts, and how I had…

Questions About Low Oxygen Brewing? - 2016-10-28 14:34:27 UTC

UPDATE: Due to Staunch Bigotry, we have been silently banned and erased from the AHA. We urge all folks who are considering a membership to the AHA to boycott due to this shunning of truth and brewing science. This attitude towards us is utterly disgusting. We have a nice thread over at the…

The Complete Guide To Brewing After The Zombie Apocalypse - 2016-10-14 02:48:05 UTC

September 2016

Dr. Lambic’s Guide to Brewing Your First Sour Beer - 2016-09-04 15:57:17 UTC

August 2016

Fundamentals of Sour Beer Fermentation - 2016-08-29 04:27:13 UTC

June 2016

HomeBrewCon 2016 – Sour Beer Brewlogs - 2016-06-08 05:51:54 UTC

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