For a winter warmer that can lay down and improve for many months—brew it now and try it at the New Year, and the next one—here’s an American-style barleywine that gets a clean profile from the use of lager yeast.
Here we take a simple grist, often a single hop, and a long fermentation process, and we turn it into a classically grainy, floral lager. You’ll be glad to have this one on tap.
Don’t fear the smoke: This recipe leans heavily into cherrywood-smoked malt for a surprisingly smooth and balanced character with the power to convert the skeptics.
It’s one of the beer world’s great flavor combinations: malt in harmony with the primal appeal of smoke, coolly and cleanly fermented. Best of all, brewing a great smoked lager isn’t all that difficult—as long as you know your malt.
No need for spices when hops and yeast can do the trick, and an attenuation-monster yeast strain helps to complete the profile for this big but dry saison.
Let the pedants complain, but cold IPA is both fun to drink and fully coherent as a style. Josh Weikert walks us through the elements and methods behind the lean, bright IPA that’s “wester than West Coast.”
This is an outstanding all-purpose beer that pairs well with a variety of foods, is low in alcohol, and can be turned around relatively quickly. If you have a few taps in your home, you might consider dedicating one to the dry stout—it won’t let you down. Sláinte!
This throwback recipe has a tad more malt backbone and sweetness than today’s leaner West Coast–style IPAs. (It tastes like America.)
This riff on an altbier recipe includes three different types of rye malt, making it a great way to get to know the ingredient and what it can contribute to a beer.
Why ask rye? Is it actually all that tricky to use? And what does rye really taste like, anyway? Let’s simplify this complex, evocative, old-fashioned ingredient—and make some great beer with it.