Inevitably, it seems, what is good and what is fun can be most accurately represented by those little cartoon angels and devils that perch on our shoulders and whisper conflicting suggestions into our befuddled ears. Who would have guessed that the simple—or complicated, as deep-enders like myself practice it—act of homebrewing could join together good... View Article
Lest you think I was going to leave you without a recipe, here’s the official commemorative beer of next year’s conference, which is, at the time of this writing, slumbering in a bourbon barrel in the cellar of an unnamed Chicago-area brewpub. You can brew it yourself, or you can show up at next year’s... View Article
It’s the stuff of legend, the muse of poets, the nectar of the gentry. Strong beer, brilliant as topaz, sweet as dew, and dripping with the perfume of hops, was for centuries a revered icon of English culture. In typical language-loving English style, these beers had nicknames such as angel’s food, clamber-skull, huffcap, dragon’s milk,... View Article
Don’t you just love American beers these days? They’ve lost none of their aggressive, in-your-face pugnaciousness, but many now wrap that big personality in a velvet glove. It’s an elegance not much valued in the early “Just gimme some hops” days of the craft beer scene. And it’s the big, hoppy flagship beers, the beer... View Article
Grilled Wasabi Salmon Adapted from FreshFish4u.com – 6 servings 1 oz wasabi powder 2 ozs amber ale or porter 2 Tbls oyster sauce Pinch of salt 2 pinches of white pepper a few drops of honey a 1 inch cube of fresh ginger, cut into matchsticks 6 salmon fillets (about 5 to 6 ounces each)... View Article
5 gallons at 1049, 43 IBU 4 pounds Maris Otter pale ale malt 2 pounds pilsner malt 2/3 pound malted wheat 1/2 pound piloncillo, demerara or similar unrefined sugar, added to kettle Mashing is a simple infusion mash: 90 minutes at 146 degrees F, a little on the low side to maximize fermentability; mash out... View Article
A shaft of golden light rips through a thin patch of the blotchy white sky. On the beach below, towels unfurl to reveal bumpy legs cased in vampire-white flesh, which cooks quickly to prawn pink in the hazy brilliance. Released from the dark closet of winter, seekers young and old sit and squint, dazed, mole-like,... View Article
Flanders Sour Brown Ale 5 gallons at 1057 (calculated at 77 percent mash efficiency) 3 pounds pilsner malt 6 pounds Munich malt 12 ounces aromatic malt (a sort of very dark Munich, around 20 Lovibond) 4 ounces dark crystal 2 ounces black malt, preferably European, de-bittered 8 ounces unrefined brown sugar, such as pilonillo or... View Article
Sometimes, one sip of a beer can transport you back through the centuries, a sort of liquid time machine. The sour beer of Flanders, with its unique tangy, fruity aroma, magical ruby color, and refreshing yet earthy taste, can do just that.
