Leah is on a research break this month so we are reprinting our version of the classic: Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Beer (But Were Afraid To Ask). Beer: The Basics Beer is a fermented beverage principally made from four ingredients: Water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. Each one of these ingredients will...

What Is a Gruit? The word “gruit” describes an herb mixture originally used to enrich the flavour of beer before the widespread use of hops. The earliest known reference to gruit dates back to the 10th century from an area now in the Netherlands, Belgium, and northwestern Germany. Historically, a gruit mix was primarily comprised...

What are Finings? Finings are processing aids used to clarify beverages including beer, wine and non-alcoholic fruit-based beverages. Clarity is a desired quality for many beer styles, including most lagers and cask ales, where fining techniques are required to remove protein and yeast haze. Other beer styles like hazy IPAs are intentionally cloudy, as they...

What is A Side Pour? The early 20th century marked a shift away from hand-pulled cask engines to draught beer served in pressurized kegs. Originating in Czech Republic, side-pull faucets, also known as side pours, provided a novel approach to pouring from pressurized kegs, allowing for increased control over the flow of beer and level...

Water in Brewing For most beer styles, water accounts for more than 90% of the brew, though its contribution is largely overshadowed by more exciting ingredients like barley, hops and yeast. Water not only impacts the flavour and aroma of a beer, it also affects the bitterness, acidity, and mouthfeel. The five primary minerals in...

History of Schwarzbier Schwarzbier, or “black beer,” refers to a dark lager that originated in Germany. Although it is certainly not the first beer ever brewed, it is quite possibly the oldest continuously brewed beer style in the world. Historically, the term Schwarzbier was likely a generic name attributed to any dark German beer, making...

What does it mean to be a Canadian craft brewery? Although provincial guidelines vary slightly, craft brewers across Canada follow the same operating principles: Craft breweries are independently owned and operated, where a large beverage company cannot be a controlling shareholder The brewery is small, producing no more than 400,000 hectolitres of beer per year,...

What are Cryo Hops?  Before diving right into the swirling whirlpool of Cryo Hops, let’s first look at how hops are used in brewing.  Hops are one of the 4 essential ingredients in beer, along with water, yeast and barley. Brewers may use either whole cone or pelletized hops, where whole cones are kept intact,...