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...