Making sweet dessert meads isn’t particularly difficult in and of itself, but building drinkability and balance into big flavors and high finishing gravities poses challenging flavor questions. Florida’s Brewlihan answers them with beautifully structured meads that find balance through the flavor triangle.
Not every beer needs to chase the latest trends and tech—consider Sierra Nevada’s Celebration IPA, the fresh-hopped seasonal that remains reassuringly old-school. here, chief brewer Brian Grossman explains how the team works to keep its profile consistent in the face of changing tastes and changing hops.
Marcus Baskerville, former head brewer and co-owner at Weathered Souls in San Antonio, shares this recipe for the richly layered, Caribbean-accented imperial stout that was one of our Best 20 Beers in 2023.
From cocoa to coconuts via lactose and long boils, brewers are shaping today’s dessert stouts for easy appeal. Just don’t say they’re easy to make.
This extract-based wee heavy recipe offers the chance to try boiling down some wort in the kettle to develop caramelization and deeper malt flavor.
’Tis the season... Shaun Kalis, cofounder and brewer at Ruse Brewing in Portland, Oregon, shares this recipe for a fresh-hopped version of their bright, West Coast–style, Mosaic-heavy IPA.
Lager is anything but a minimalist pursuit for the head brewer of Philadelphia lager stalwarts Human Robot. Flavor and character are primary focuses, and the brewery achieves those with all the tools in the toolbox—interesting ingredients, customized approaches to decoction and other processes, and a variety of fermentation profiles that maximize different types of expressions.
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Dear reader: You’ve seen the headlines, contemplated the statistics, and you’ve probably felt some of the sting yourself, but rest assured—draft beer is not dead. It has, however, been neglected. Here’s how we give it new life.
Sometimes known as “kettle caramelization,” the Maillard richness of a boil reduction can add deeper malt flavor to any beer you brew—even if it’s not Scottish.
At Bauman’s Cider in Gervais, Oregon, owner and cidermaker Christine Walker prefers to bottle her ciders as single-varietals whenever the harvest makes it possible—and this one features the red-fleshed Mountain Rose apple, native to Oregon.