Liquid Agnostic

IF YOU VISIT A TRADITIONAL lambic brewery in Belgium, you’ll see spiders spinning webs among the casks. They are not a nuisance, and brewers don’t swat them away. The spiders are there by design to protect the fruity beer from fruit flies. The webs do, however, create a fitting environment for lambic, which can seem a little like magic. Using the oldest of all modern brewing styles, brewers summon wild yeast, resulting in funky, sour beers.

Source: The Heritage Beer Brewed With Some Help From Spiders – Atlas Obscura

Researchers at the University of Manchester have discovered a new species of yeast that could help brewers create better lager.

Working in collaboration with the National Collection of Yeast Cultures (NCYC), the team say it is a new of member of the Saccharomyces family and is closely related to the familiar brewers’ and bakers’ yeast.

However, this new species was found at altitude, growing more than 1000 metres above sea level on an oak tree in Saint Auban, in the foothills of the French Alps. To survive

Source: New species of yeast could help beer brewers reach new heights

NOFX can easily considered one of the most successful independent bands of all time. Formed in 1983 by bassist Fat Mike and guitarist Eric Melvin, the band has never signed with a major label. That kind of independence is very familiar to California’s Stone Brewing. Perhaps that’s where Stone Punk in Drublic, a collaboration with NOFX rises from.

First, the name. Stone Punk in Drublic is named for NOFX’s 1994 release by the same name, considered the band’s most popular release.

via Stone Brewing to team up with punk band NOFX – Beer Street Journal.

We are a country that is all agog about IPAs right now. Regular IPAs has become the norm. No brewery worth its salt is without one, and for the craft beer consumer it has very nearly become the Bud Lite of the day. Now it seems people compete to stand at the top of the heap of the biggest, baddest, hoppiest IPA out there. It may have started out as a joke in a video, but octuple IPAs are a thing.

But, here’s the thing, they’re not. In fact, the whole IBU measure is grossly misused and if you walk into a pub/brewery that is advertising a 100+ IBU beer, you can be pretty certain they are full of it. Yes, there is a small chance they are for real, but unless they are using hop extracts to brew their beer, they’re full of it.

via The myth of the 100+ IBU IPA – SommBeer.

Commenting on the project, Karen Hækkerup, CEO at the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, said “Just as we have seen shops sell goods that would otherwise have been thrown out , Beercycling allows us to recycle a product that is normally flushed down the drain.

“When it comes to circular economy, Danish farmers are some of the best in the world. If you can brew a beer with urine as fertiliser, you can recycle almost anything.”

Henrik Vang, the Executive Director at Nørrebro Bryghus, added: “We want to be a part of the Beercycling project partly due to the story it has already told, but also because it is interesting to partake in a project, which addresses the challenges of sustainability and circular economy. Basically, it is a cool project.”

via Danish brewery to release ‘Pisner’ beer.

It’s tempting to call Unbridled a transition beer. Its husky hop profile is right in line with the West Coast-emulating beers of Surly’s halcyon days (Furious, Overrated!, Abrasive), but the full-Brettanomyces yeast bill and fruity backbone show a clear deviation for the booming brewery. The brewers in Brooklyn Center have become enamored with Brett over the past two years, and the catty funk of Unbridled could soon become the brewery’s calling card in the way that big punches of cascade is now.

via Surly Unbridled Review :: Drink :: Reviews :: surly brewing :: Paste.

It’s becoming apparent that as food garners more respect as a craft, just like brewing, the consumer’s palate tends to embrace flavor, not endure tradition. “At the end of the day, you need to think about what works with what,” says Orkin. A mirror of his food menu, the beers at Ivan Ramen fall into two categories: a light, crisp supporting cast of Japanese beers, or flavorful experimental American brews.“Some of the more sour, tart, floral beers tend to wash away the fat that sits on your tongue, and [the eater] can enjoy the flavors of both things,” explains Combs.

via ‘Chef’s Table’ Ramen Star Ivan Orkin On Why Beer Matters • Hop Culture.