Step Mashing – What is it and why do it?
Step mashing is a technique that was developed by brewers at a time when malts were less well modified than they are now. When malting takes place the aim is to break down glucans and proteins, making it easier for home brewers to extract sugars. By performing different rests at different temperatures, brewers could perform […]
Adding Peppers to Beer
Continuing our series on adding unusual ingredients to beer, this week we are talking about how you can go about adding chilli peppers to beers to give your beer a kick of heat. Chilli beers aren’t for everyone but they present a fun and interesting challenge to brewers which can be quite rewarding if you […]
Adding Coffee to Beer
This week, Dave talks us through the techniques he has tried and tested for adding coffee flavour to beer; ‘One of my favourite beers and the one that really got me into ‘craft’ beer is Founders Breakfast Stout – an extremely complex yet beautifully balanced stout, full of rich dark chocolates and roast malt character. […]
Microbes and Beer
Saccharomyces is commonly referred to as ‘brewers yeast’ and is used by brewers to ferment their wort into beer – so it plays a pretty important role in the brewing process! However, there are other microbes available to brewers which can create complex and interesting beer styles. These microbes include; Saccharomyces Whilst there are over […]
Barrel Aging for Homebrewers
Barrel aging beers has become extremely popular practice among craft breweries and this has only been further popularised by the trend towards sour beers, which often require extended periods of aging, with the porous wood of barrels providing a great way to harbor bacteria and other souring microbes. In a commercial setting, breweries will often […]
Turbid Mashing
As homebrewers become increasingly interested in, and able to create, sour beers at home it is likely that the turbid mash technique may gain a little more prominence in the homebrew community – but what is a turbid mash? And how do you go about doing it? Dave in our UK office talks us through […]
Brewing for consistent results
This Week’s mash comes from the Home Brew Diaries blog. Laith Clark has been making homebrew beer for the past 2 years progressing from a single kit direct to Extract brewing and then to All Grain. In that time he has made some mistakes as well as some great beers. Laith blogs about his experiences […]
Tips For Hitting Target Gravity
Hitting your target original gravity (OG) is important to brewers for many reasons – when you plan a recipe your OG will influence the balance of your beer, affecting the total alcohol, the balance of malt character and the perceived bitterness (missing your target OG can throw off your BU:GU ration and completely change the […]
Reiterated Mashing
This week, Dave and Mark from our UK office did some experimentation with a technique first coined by Chris Colby back in 2007. The technique is called ‘reiterated mashing’ and seems perfectly suited for people hoping to brew higher ABV beers in the Grainfather. Read on below to find out how! Chris Colby, using the […]
