When I first began learning about wine and really acquiring a palette for it, I thought I was going to have to give up beer. I didn't think that they would fit in the same world anymore! I still maintain that to a certain level. Meaning: I have to admit that I have become somewhat of a beer snob. I no longer invest money in the many popular “light” beers that used to take space in my refrigerator. I now hunt out the more lovingly crafted ales and lagers that are produced by European monks, or cases of the sapid Samuel Adams brews.

I was fortunate to meet a young fellow by the name of Nick Bohr. We became friends through my wine club, and he opened my eyes to the wonderful world of beer. Nick is a local brewer, and has successfully produced some of his own tasty concoctions that I have tried. A couple of weeks ago, he furthered my brewing education by showing me the ropes of personal brewing. The next few paragraphs give some insight into the beer brewing process.

Beer begins with water. All of them do, and Nick had all his supplies laid out ahead of time. Brew man Bohr also had a bag of brewing grains lying in wait, and he offered the bag to me for an olfactory assessment. I looked in and saw what kind of looked like a bag of coffee grounds and seeds. When I inhaled, I was happy to experience the slight waft of chocolate and grain. (This one is going to be a stout!) The grains used in beer should be thought of in familiar terms. Think of a cup of tea prior to the bag being placed in the water. This is similar. By adding the mixture via grain bag, the water began to become infused with the essence of the grains that Nick selected. This part of the process is the actual “brewing”. It makes a canvas of sorts, for the rest of the beer.

We continued on, Nick calmly checking the mixture, and then removing the bag of grain prior to the water boiling. Nick had already shown me a huge bag (32 oz.) of malt extract. This is essentially syrup that comes out of the barley when it is roasted. It looked like a big bag of molasses and is actually most of the sugar that the yeast feeds on later in the process. I took on the task of stirring as the malt was added. Nick professionally squeezed the entire bag in, and then we let it all melt together. Nick boiled it to kill off any unhealthy microorganisms, and we decided to pass the time by sampling some of Nick's past batches. It was very easy to be patient this way.

When the time was right, Nick brought out some hops that he selected for the brew. Hops are essentially the flavor additive to all beers. Depending on which hops are added, you can make the drink taste citric, herbal, grainy, or sweet. The hops are the bud portion of a specific plant which exudes oil and gives different flavors. We added the hops, and then continued the cook. We were nearing the final steps of the process, and it was time for the yeast. Here is where beer is probably most similar to wine. The fermentation process is the same even though the process has been different up to this point. The selected yeast was added to the 5 gallons of “wort”. (The name for the mixture of these ingredients). When this happens, the yeast senses the sugar in the liquid and begins to eat. It will produce alcohol as a waste product in this chemical reaction, and some carbon dioxide as well. The beer is left in its fermentation tank to process, and a few weeks later, the bottling takes place. Each “batch” produces between 5 - 5 1/2 gallons of beer (about 48 12-oz. bottles).

Beginning in March, you can brew your own batch of beer at Winestock! Free samples will be available for you to try, and then our staff will supervise you as you brew a batch. If you are interested in learning more about beer brewing, please contact us here at Winestock, (www.winestock-online.com), 688-7770.