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Toppling Goliath Brewmaster Mike Saboe is a perfectionist with an uncompromising vision for how his beers should taste. In this conversation with Jamie Bogner, he discusses his dissatisfaction with the marketing of other beers that led him to experiment with brewing techniques that delivered on their promises, the importance of mouthfeel in building a satisfying beer experience, considering time, barrels, and even distribution strategy in the recipe and process design for his beers, barrel-aging strategies to achieve intended flavors and textures, approaching hops selection and blending with clear goals but also the flexibility to embrace the unexpected, and more.
“If you’re talking along the lines of a German-style Hefeweizen or [Belgian-style] Lambic, when it comes to those styles of beer, I keep my techniques rather traditional—I don’t deviate a whole lot. But when it came to imperial stouts and hoppy beers, I felt it was more important to throw large portions of the book out the window... If you want to take the island, sometimes you have to burn your ships.”
Brought to You By
This is episode is brought to you by the American Homebrewers Association (AHA). A community of more than 45k beer and brewing enthusiasts worldwide. The AHA publishes Zymurgy Magazine, hosts the national homebrew competition, and equips members with brewing tips, proven recipes, and money saving deals on beer, food and brewing supplies.
