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Beer School

Beer School, January 2021 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 26

What is Reinheitsgebot? Reinheitsgebot (pronounced Rhine-heights-ga-boat) meaning “purity order” refers to a series of regulations limiting the ingredients in German beer to water, barley and hops. Although previous purity laws exist, the 1516 Bavarian law is recognized for laying the foundation for future regulations.  By 1906, Bavarian purity laws were applied across Germany, though it was not referred to as Reinheitsgebot until the formation of the Weimer Republic in 1918. Bavarian Purity Laws  Duke Wilhelm IV enacted the 1516 Bavarian purity laws primarily as a form of consumer protection to prevent price gouging from innkeepers, and to ensure the availability …
Beer, Beer School, December 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 25

A Brief History of Bock Beer The history of bock bier began in the 14th century, named Einbeck after the town in Lower Saxony, Germany, where the style was born. Initially brewed as an ale, it was later brewed as a lager following the discovery of lager yeast. Around the turn of the 17th century, Bavarian brewers gained interest in the Einbeck, but with their accents pronounced it as “ein bock” or billy goat. Now known simply as “bock,” beer labels to this day will often feature satirical images of billy goats. Bock Bock, meaning strong, refers to a group …
Beer School, November 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 24

What is Kveik? You may have come across kveik while perusing your beer options and wondered what’s behind this trendy new beer style. It turns out that kveik (pronounced “kah-wike”), is not a new beer style at all, but refers to a unique family of ancient yeast strains originally used in Norwegian farmhouse ales. Kveik, a western Norwegian slang word for yeast, designates a collective of high-heat-tolerant yeast strains capable of producing clean beers at unusually high fermentation temperatures without hot alcohol flavours, medicinal or funky aromas that other ale yeasts would produce in the same high temperature range. From …

Beer School, October 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 23

A Brief History of Cream Ale  Cream ales first originated in United States in the mid-nineteenth century. In response to the large influx of German immigrants and resulting popularity of German lagers, American brewers developed the cream ale as a counterpoint to celebrated German beer. Due to local preference and cooler climates, Northeastern brewers were predominantly ale brewers. Prior to prohibition, many American brewers began producing a light bodied ale to rival increasingly popular German lagers. This brew was known as a “present use” ale, as it had a short shelf life and was meant to drink fresh. The fermentation …

Beer School, September 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 22

Old Fashioned Cocktail: A Brief History  There are many competing narratives surrounding the history of the Old Fashioned – many have been credited with its invention and many more have debated what constitutes a “real” Old Fashioned. So, here’s a brief, anecdotal and at least partially accurate account of this classic cocktail.  In 1806, the first published version of a cocktail resembling an Old Fashioned appeared as an editorial response in New York publication, The Balance and Columbian Repository. The paper’s editor described a cocktail called a Bittered Sling that was a “potent concoction of spirits, bitters, water, and sugar.” Similarly, …

August 2020 E-News, Beer School

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 21

Beer & Wine Hybrids Beer & wine hybrids have a long history in the craft beer world, dating back to at least the 1970s when Cantillon made Vigneronne, a blend of Lambic beer aged on Muscat grapes. Over the past several years, an increasing number of breweries have been experimenting with hybrids by blending wine with beer, co-fermenting wine and beer together and aging beer on wine grapes. Not only are there different ways to incorporate wine with beer, brewers may use whole grapes, grape must (freshly squeezed grape juice with skins, seeds and stems), grape juice, or pomace (solid …

Beer School, July 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 20

Pasteurization & Beer  For over 150 years, pasteurization has been instrumental in extending the storage life of food and drinks. French microbiologist Louis Pasteur developed the process in the 1860s, initially revealing that pasteurization could combat unwanted acidity in wine by inhibiting the growth of unwanted spoilage organisms. Similarly, he found that pasteurization could extend the shelf life of beer by applying heat for a short time.  Types of Pasteurization  When it comes to beer, there are two main methods of pasteurization. Bottled and canned beer can be pasteurized by passing through a long, narrow chamber or tunnel where they’re …

Beer School, June 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 19

What is a coolship? The term coolship, from the Flemish koelschip, is a large shallow vessel made of stainless steel or copper, used to cool wort. Coolships are often housed in large rooms, where they lie open to the elements allowing for airborne yeast to flow in and inoculate the beer. This type of fermentation is referred to as “spontaneous fermentation” because the microbes come at random, rather than using a controlled addition of cultured yeast strains. Predominantly used to create sour beers, a renewed interest in coolships for brewing has been inspired by Brasserie Cantillon, a world-renowned lambic producer …

Beer School, May 2020 E-News

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 18

Barleywine  A descendant of ancient English strong ales, barleywine (or barley wine) is a full-bodied, high strength ale usually between 8% and 12% ABV. Barleywine owes most of its heritage to its old ale predecessors, which by the nineteenth century was hardly a distinct beer style, but was variously known as old, stock, strong, or stale ale. These old ales were generally barrel-aged for a year or so, imparting them with vinous qualities and rich aromatics. Old ales were mostly malt-heavy and dark, with some residual sweetness and an elevated ABV. In 1903, Bass & Co. Brewery coined the term …

April 2020 E-News, Beer School

Leah’s Beer School: Lesson 17

Beer & Food Pairing With a growing number of craft beer delivery options and, for many of us, a bit of free time on our hands, we have the perfect opportunity to experiment with pairing beer and food. While we often consider wine and food together, beer actually offers incredible diversity in flavour, aroma, colour and texture, allowing for a plethora of pairing possibilities.  Complementing  Complementing relies on finding balance through similar flavours and aromas that work well together. Pairing a fruit beer with a fruit dish, like a witbier with oranges, brings out the orange and citrus flavours in …