Robert Wahl had a distinguished career as a brewing science educator. But one of his greatest legacies is a book that shines a light on American brewing in the immediate aftermath of Prohibition.
Considering the substantial resources and opportunities provided by the sales juggernaut that is IPA, it’s time to redirect some of those resources to a noble and long-ignored end: the resurrection of American lager beer.
Anyone who tells you East German beer was terrible either never drank any, is a liar, or only tried Gothauer beer. Best German Pilsener I’ve ever had? Mühlhausener Pilsator.
Assembling chaotic beer lists is not a sign of higher craft beer consciousness, it’s giving in to the basest instinct to constantly grasp for the new, the unknown, the next big thing.
Every hue of IPA and dozens of Stout sub-types are recognized in style guidelines, but Czech beer is reduced to “Bohemian Pilsner,” a name that would leave a Czech drinker scratching his head. Meanwhile, the country is awash with an array of lager styles, more than anywhere else in the world.
When the the Beer Judge Certification Program last updated their style guidelines in 2008, there were 23 beer categories. The newest draft guidelines have 11 more classes for a total of 34!
We’ve all heard of Berliner Weisse, but who now remembers her brunette sibling, Berliner Braunbier? She’s disappeared without a trace, despite, unlike many German top-fermenting styles, being brewed within living memory.
Heineken is synonymous with the Pale Lager called Pilsener that still dominates the world. The vast majority of the beer they brew is in that style. But that wasn’t always the case.
Once seen as the ultimate expression of beer geekery, India Pale Ales have been at the vanguard of a communal palate shift, resulting in the wholesale embrace of all things hop.
NitroBrew is an on-site device that turns any style of beer—from Stouts to Pilsners—into a nitrogenated brew within moments, giving it the rich, creamy head and silky mouthfeel of a beer poured right off a nitro tap.
Though not a new concept, “session beer” is one of the more recent beer trends in the US. It’s a sound concept, and has its place. But here in the US, it’s a flawed practice.
The heat from this Thai Chile Basil IPA is tamed with a caramel cracker base, while a fruity punch of hops melds with lime leaves and a minty blast of Thai basil.
Whitbread created one of the most useful documents for anyone interested in the history of British beer: their Gravity Book. In it, they documented thousands of samples of competitors’ beers, from the early 1920s to the late 1960s.
Like all beers that have been brewed for a long period, No. 3 has undergone many changes. No. 3 is also a beer that’s refused to die, no matter what history has thrown at it. If you’re ever in Scotland, you should give it a try.
MobCraft works like this: Homebrewers submit their recipes, users vote on the top four recipes, and the winning recipe becomes a beer that’s shared with members.
No, Sommerbier and Winterbier are not seasonal specials. At least not in the sense you’re thinking. They’re two of the earliest lager styles, now almost completely forgotten, though traces of them remain.
Breweries have an incentive to provide context and clarity to consumers, even if their beers stretch traditional style categories. A beer simply labeled with an obscure name gives no clues as to its flavor or character.
In The Complete Beer Course, each category of beer (lagers, Wheats, Abbey-style Ales, et al) gets clever treatment as a “course,” as author Joshua Bernstein guides the reader through brewing history and flavor profiles.
Scottish Shilling Ales are beers designated by that peculiar Scottish system of naming based on price rather than type. But what is the history of these beers, and how do they fit into the constellation of British styles?
The proliferation of new beer names is hitting a point of absurdity. But there’s a simple solution to the trademark problem, one that would also help consumers: Just use a style name.
