Tales of ales from the heart of Ohio to the ends of the Earth
Last week I attended parts of the Ohio Craft Brewer’s conference, held at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Columbus. For me the most interesting aspect of the conference was Tom Shellhammer’s keynote address [1]. Shellhammer, the Norwester Professor of Fermentation Science at Oregon State University, is internationally recognized for his research on hop chemistry. His... Continue Reading →
It’s been over a month since my last post, perhaps my longest hiatus since starting this blog nearly four years ago. In the meantime, I’ve been to Colorado for a workshop, Idaho for vacation; South Korea for a neutron scattering conference; and upon returning home spent several evenings in my yard pulling the weeds that... Continue Reading →
For a few years I’ve secretly aspired to become certified beer judge. Some of you might think I’m already qualified to judge beer, but regular readers of the column will know better. The challenging part, aside from knowing what you are talking about, is to land a spot on one of the Beer Judge Certification... Continue Reading →
Last night Land Grant Brewing held their first session of what they call Land Grant University, a series of educational sessions on the key ingredients in beer. The inaugural session was devoted to yeast, future sessions will focus on hops, malts and water. Attendance was capped at 50 participants and there was a full house... Continue Reading →
In this review I’m going to compare two of my favorite hop-forward late winter releases: Nugget Nectar by Tröegs in Hershey, PA and Chillwave by Great Lakes out of Cleveland, OH. Since Nugget Nectar is an Imperial Amber Ale while Chillwave is an Imperial IPA this comparison may seem somewhat artificial, but these two beers... Continue Reading →
The cold days of winter are an ideal time for sipping strong, dark, hearty beers that warm you from the inside out. Strong malt-forward beers come in several different styles including Imperial Stouts, Barleywines, Doppelbocks and Old Ales, but one of the most interesting families of strong beers are the Quadrupel Ales (quads) that originated... Continue Reading →
Many foods and drinks are acquired tastes. Think back to the first time you tried coffee, gin, rhubarb, bleu cheese, single malt whisky, grapefruit, ... What did you think? Chances are you didn’t like it very much. Maybe you still don’t, but over time many people come to enjoy, even crave, one or more of... Continue Reading →
Most types of beer are better fresh, and freshness is particularly important for the hoppy American style IPAs and double IPAs. Sometimes over just a few months the acids that come from the hops start to break down changing the flavor profile of the beer (usually for the worst). When shopping for beers for the... Continue Reading →
This is the first in a series of posts about families of beer. The idea of this series is to give you some insight into origins and brewing science behind the beer, brief descriptions of each style within the family, and some good examples so you can do your own research. We start with wheat... Continue Reading →
This section of the site has some basic information on beers. The first post in this series are random facts that may come in handy for building your basic knowledge. 1. What are the basic ingredients in beer? Malted grain (usually Barley), Hops, Water and Yeast. 2. What is the difference between a lager and... Continue Reading →
Pat's Pints 