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October 2020
Cover Story: New Hop Varieties. Also developing new hops, South African hops, African Umqombothi, IBUs dissected, DIY trunk lines, and brewing English IPA
In this issue
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articleEnzymes Ex Machina: Explore the world of exogenous enzymes
For a long time the only enzyme most brewers would ever think about adding was some amylase enzymes . . . boy have times changed. Learn about the rapidly expanding world of exogenous enzymes.
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article
The Sandbank Brewing Co.: A once-a-year (or lifetime) experience
After three hard days of riding a mountain bike through the turbulent escarpment zone in Zambia, what awaits riders is some finely crafted beer, made at home by the race organizer. Check out this unique story.
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projectDIY Draft Trunk Lines: When you want to run long draft lines
When your keg storage unit (kegerator) and home bar aren’t going to be located in the same area of your house it’s time to run trunk lines. Here is how to build them yourself with the help of a glycol chiller.
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articleSession Beers: The drive to go little
Bigger is always better, right? Not according to fans of session beers. Denny and Drew lay out some keys to crafting a fine example of a low-alcohol beer built with enough character to feel “big.”
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articleEnglish IPA: Yes, you can call this India pale ale
Many view their India pale ale to require certain character
istics, but those may not come close to what the classic rendition looked like. Gordon Strong takes us back to the prototypical IPA; the English IPA. -
recipe
Gordon Strong’s English IPA
OK, this is about as simple as it gets: One malt, one hop, and single infusion mash. When you only use a small number of ingredients and you don’t do extra work to transform them, you really have to make quality choices. So, don’t skimp with your ingredients selection.
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article10 New Hops to Brew With
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articleA Decade in the Making
It takes at least 10 years (and often more) from the time a new hop is initially crossed to its release. That is, if it even gets released, which is incredibly rare considering how many crosses are made every year. For a hop to be released, it has to check all of the boxes.
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mr-wizard
Yeast Propagation From A Bottle
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articleYeast Propagation, Dialing in Your Brewing Water Profiles
Feed yeast and they will grow . . . so why bother with these multi-step growth methods advocated by pundits? Mr. Wizard has some reasons. Also, find out about dialing in your water profile, whether using tap or reverse osmosis (RO) water.
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recipeTraditional Umqombothi
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articleA Sip of Tradition
Umqombothi is an ancient South African beer made from maize and sorghum and spontaneously fermented. Explore the traditions and techniques around this unique beverage.
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articleSouth African Hops
South African hops have come a long way in recent years — from being bred almost entirely for alpha acids years ago to new varieties that have desirable flavors and aromas unlike hops from any other region. And they are starting to become more accessible to homebrewers.
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articleLate Hopping: Tips from the Pros
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recipeOuter Banks Brewing Station’s Lemongrass Wheat Ale clone
Finally, use the freshest lemongrass that you can find; pinch it and smell your fingers, it should have a citrus, ginger aroma.
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articleOuter Banks Brewing Co.
A reader looks for a way to remember his late wife with one beer that she loved most — enjoyed in one of the settings she enjoyed most — the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
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articleBasic Tricks of Cider
Making hard cider can be an extremely easy task but you may end up with a lackluster drink. Find out some simple tricks to getting the most from apples.
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projectThe Moonlighter Challenge: Dangling a beer carrot
If you’re looking for big laughs in a group atmosphere while maintaining a safe distance, you need to check out the Moonlighter Challenge build.