The practice has long been a part of our nation’s societal drinking fabric, dating back to at least the time of the indigenous Pueblo people in the American Southwest 800 years ago. Famously, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson made beer for at-home consumption. Later, it was a popular under-the-radar hobby during Prohibition and remained so for decades.  

By the time homebrewing was legalized in the 1970s, the country’s beer renaissance had begun. The founders of breweries like Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., New Belgium Brewing Co. and countless others of that era were all hobby brewers first. As the number of American breweries grew throughout the 1980s and 1990s, many professional breweries looked to homebrewers and their creativity for inspiration. Regional clubs popped up where homebrewers could meet up, share tips and ingredients, learn about new equipment and build a sense of camaraderie in a largely solo hobby.  

But today, homebrewing is at a crossroads. Over the past seven years, the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) has seen its dues-paying membership drop from 46,000 to 30,000 individuals. It’s an indication of shifting trends that have sent ripples of worry through stalwarts of the hobby. Just like the wine and spirits industry, homebrewing is struggling to appeal to new audiences. 

That worry culminated earlier this year when the Brewers Association, the group that oversees the AHA, announced the hiatus of its annual conference Homebrew Con—a gathering where homebrewing enthusiasts attend educational seminars, pour their very best and most outlandish recipes and partake in a raucous club night. Instead, this year in October, a smaller experience will be available for members as part of the Great American Beer Festival, which is also run by the Brewers Association. No definitive plans have yet been announced for 2025.  

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Declines in homebrewing may have to do with shifts in the beer industry itself. The need to make beer at home is arguably less appealing since the number of professional breweries in the country is nearly 10,000. The chance to drink small-batch, professionally made beer has never been easier. To be clear, many longtime and dedicated homebrewers aren’t exactly throwing in the towel. But how can current homebrewers and organizations get a new generation involved in the hobby?  

“That’s the million-dollar question,” says Marshall Schott, a homebrewer who runs the popular website and podcast Brülosophy. “It might be going back to the local level, focusing on smaller clubs, rather than a national organization to lead things.”  

Typically, bringing new homebrewers into the fold happened through the 2,000 registered homebrew clubs around the country, which offer a chance to not only learn about home fermentation but to connect with neighbors. (The AHA has a searchable online database of these clubs.) Meanwhile, events like National Homebrew Day, held on the first Saturday of each May, offer an opportunity for hobbyists to fire up their brewing kettles and invite friends and neighbors over to learn.  

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But as of late, these events have been more insular than inclusive. “Oftentimes, the old guards of homebrewing push people out of homebrewing and clubs because they think they own the definition of homebrewing,” says Annie Johnson, a longtime research and development brewer who was named American Homebrewer of the Year in 2013. “Clubs need to be more progressive in their outreach to recruit members. It takes a concerted effort. I really feel the social aspect will draw in more of the younger generation and open the hobby to all things fermented.” 

Johnson, Schott and others say local clubs and organizations need to reach beyond the stereotype of the typical homebrewer—middle-aged white men—and find ways to appeal to a wider audience.  “Clubs can and should be as diverse as beer styles and focus on the goal of making the best beer possible,” says Johnson. “You’re only going to achieve that with diversity—of thought, processes and experience—and that is not mutually exclusive to fat old white guys.” 

The interest is there; tapping into it will be the challenge. The future of homebrewing needs curious, creative and dedicated types who enjoy beer. There’s a lot of those people in the world, and the continued success of the hobby will hinge on making space for them at the table.  

“People walk past my garage on brew days, and they think I’m cooking meth” says Schott. “After I assure them I’m not, they ask questions and see it’s approachable. It doesn’t have to be precious. It should be fun.”

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The post Homebrewing Isn’t the Popular Hobby It Once Was. What Went Wrong? appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

Anchor Brewing still owns the trademark on “Steam Beer,” but similar beers have been brewed over the years by other brewers who call it by its official style name: California Common.

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The style has never been widely popular, often lost in the shadow of India pale ales, but well-done versions have a nostalgic charm and are often a good pairing to pub dishes. The beer is fermented at ale temperatures with a lager yeast, giving it a slightly fruity flavor. The malt bill should have pleasing caramel and toast flavors, and the hops rooted in the Old World, with earthy, grassy and herbal flavors.

Brewers will often release a California Common as a small batch or limited-edition run. Last year, Connecticut’s Black Pond Brews was one of a handful of breweries nationwide that released a collaboration with the Anchor SF Cooperative, a group of former employees who banned together hoping to buy the brand. Proceeds from that beer, Connecticut Uncommon, were donated to the co-op’s acquisition efforts.

Some breweries offer California Common regularly, which is especially handy for those who need that Anchor fix.

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Full Steam Ahead: Try These

• Promised Land (Tree House Brewing Company, Massachusetts); 5.5% abv. Sweet malt with bits of toasted bread, this vibrant deep golden beer leans into the herbal hops without overwhelming the palate. Overall, refreshing with touches of fruitiness, this pairs well with chowder, or sourdough bread.
• War Bond (Mare Island Brewing Co., California); 5.2%. Soft and nutty with a light spun sugar flavor, this copper-colored ale brings earthy, Old World hops to the palate by the third sip. A pub beer made for long afternoons in solitude.
• Every Once in a While (Grist House Craft Brewery, Pennsylvania); 4.9%. This amber-colored lager has a herbal hop flavor with a cooked sugar malt character. Combined, it is slightly tangy but sweet and earthy. It offers intriguing sips that would pair well with a hearty sandwich.
• California Common (Institution Ale Co., California); 5.5% abv. The brewery calls this an “Amber hybrid ale,” which is an apt description for the overall style. Indeed, it pours amber and offers a slightly fruity and vaguely woody and nutty flavor sip after sip. Threads of herbal mint and pine tree weave through the glass.
• Jewel City Common (Brewyard Beer Company, California); 6.3%. Pouring a light amber, this packs a higher abv punch than most, which adds some body and warmth to the caramel toast malt body. Accented by woody pine hops and a bit of earthiness, this is a fine companion to fried seafood dinners.

This article originally appeared in the April 2024 of Wine Enthusiast magazine. Click here to subscribe today!

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The post Anchor Brewing Company Might Be Gone but the Legacy of Its ‘Steam’ Beer Lives On appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

Still, with all the available choices, certain styles of beers tend to capture the lion’s share of attention from drinkers. In the craft space, it’s the hazy or juicy IPA—a floral, fruity, full-bodied and hop-forward ale. In the mainstream, it’s a light lager—often bland, but refreshing. Because of this, many new beer drinkers often overlook other styles that, I believe, make up the foundation of the beer-drinking experience, whether it be robust stouts, earthy farmhouse ales or bracing sours.  

So, where should the fledgling beer aficionado begin? The following are suggestions that range in style, abv and appearance that, with a bit of open-mindedness, can spark a real appreciation for the hoppy, malty drink. Use this as a roadmap for your journey into the dynamic world of beer.

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Miller Lite (Molson Coors, 4.2% abv)

Of the “big three” light beers—Bud Light, Coors Light and Miller Lite—Miller Lite wins bronze in nationwide sales. (Bud Light has gold, followed by Coors Light.) But it has the most flavor: mild, sweet and with a tiny hop bite. This beer is based on the recipe for Gablinger’s Diet Beer, the first brew marketed as low-calorie. Gablinger’s flopped after its 1967 launch, but the category it created now accounts for most beer sales in the U.S. 

$7.99 Total Wine & More

Orval (Brasserie d’Orval, 6.9% abv)

First made in 1931, this Trappist ale is brewed by monks and is immediately recognizable by its teardrop-shaped bottle. This is a beer that changes with age—and it should be aged—with a taste that ranges from earthy hops to juicy fruit. It’s wonderful paired with mussels and fries.  

$5.99 Total Wine & More

Blind Pig (Russian River Brewing, 6.2% abv)

Russian River’s Pliny the Elder is the India Pale that receives the most attention from fans of the brewery. But the operation’s original IPA, Blind Pig, is a lovely combination of pine, citrus and earthy hops. Brewer Vinnie Cilurzo spent years making this beer at home before taking it pro, and it’s a testament to his dedication: Blind Pig helped build the modern craft–beer movement.

$5.99 Good Eggs

Saison Dupont (Brasserie Dupont, 6.5% abv)

Often cited as the benchmark for the rustic saison style, this elegant, full-bodied and highly carbonated farmhouse ale is filling but refreshing and wheat-forward with an earthy straw haze and hop bite. Identified by its green bottle in the U.S., it is now also offered in cans. It deserves a spot at every dining table.  

$13.99 Total Wine & More

Heady Topper (The Alchemist, 8% abv)

Long credited with helping start the hazy IPA craze when it was introduced in 2004, this beer is remarkably nuanced. With a lively combination of tropical fruits, pine and citrus, it’s the standard against which all other hazy IPAs are judged. 

$13.99 The Alchemist

Edmund Fitzgerald Porter (Great Lakes Brewing, 5.8% abv)

Roast-forward with the aromas and flavors of light coffee, chocolate and baked bread, this widely available porter pairs well with hearty dishes and grilled meats and veggies.  

$14.95 Belgian Style Ales

Duchesse de Bourgogne (Brouwerij Verhaeghe, 6% abv)

This Flanders red ale is tart with flavors and aromas of dark stone fruits and a touch of balsamic. Pair with roast duck, creamy cheeses or a rich beef stew.   

$13.79 Craft City

Schlenkerla Marzen (Hellerbraü, 5.1% abv)

This classic rauchbier, or smoked beer, offers intriguing aromas of campfire, bacon and wood thanks to its malt being dried over an open flame. The smoke flavor never overwhelms but can be polarizing to some drinkers. Think of it as open–pit BBQ in a glass.   

$6.99 Half Time Beverage

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (Sierra Nevada, 5.6% abv)

The beer that kicked off the modern American hop obsession in the 1980s is still a wonderful gateway into craft beer. Pine and citrus hops mix with a full-bodied caramel malt flavor.

$10.99 Total Wine & More

Dragon’s Milk (New Holland Brewing, 11% abv)

There are endless choices for bourbon barrel–aged stouts, a style of brewing that brings the earthy wood notes of charred oak into the beer. But this one from New Holland is readily available and balances the boozy flavors of the spirit with the chocolate-forward, roasted stout.  

$15.99 Target

Spotted Cow (New Glarus Brewing, 4.8% abv)

The flagship of New Glarus Brewing, this cult favorite is only available in Wisconsin, but it’s worth seeking out if you come across it. Fruity and refreshing, this is an everyday drinking ale that has lured many a macro drinker into the craft fold.  

$8.99 Target

White (Allagash Brewing, 5.2% abv)

A celebrated white ale made in the Belgian tradition, this has aromas and flavors of coriander and orange peel, making it a refreshing, summertime choice for a pint.  

$13.99 Target

The post The 12 Essential Beers Every Beginner Should Know appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

Over the past half-decade, a handful of big Japanese brewing companies have made major investments in North America, starting with Sapporo’s purchase of San Francisco’s historic Anchor Brewing Company in 2017. Two years later, Kirin bought Colorado’s New Belgium, followed by Bell’s Brewery in Michigan in 2021. Sapporo fired back by buying another California legend, Stone, in 2022. Then, at the start of this year, Asahi announced its plans to purchase Octopi, a large but mostly under-the-radar Wisconsin brewery that contract-brews beer for several leading craft brands. Asahi initially plans to make at least 700,000 cases per year at Octopi, though additional investments are possible, the company noted. 

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So, what do all these moves mean? You’re much more likely to see beers from Japan’s big producers in wide distribution across the U.S. and Canada. And it’s not just big brands from Japan that are turning heads on this side of the Pacific: A number of the country’s craft brewers have also earned dedicated fans in North America, thanks to their embrace of special techniques, unusual ingredients and often charmingly quirky label art. 

This versatility is what makes the island nation’s beer scene so appealing, says Ry Beville, a lecturer in Japanese literature at U.C. Berkeley and publisher of the bilingual magazine Japan Beer Times.  

“Japanese craft brewers make excellent examples of classic styles, from pilsners to IPAs, but most consumers outside of Japan probably look forward to drinking Japanese craft beers that incorporate native ingredients,” he says. Those unusual local flavors can come from things like sushi rice and yuzu fruit, as well as time in barrels that were used to make shoyu, a.k.a soy sauce, and Japanese whisky. 

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Other producers are taking inspiration from another Japanese beverage: sake. Joe Stange, managing editor of Craft Beer & Brewing magazine, recently returned from a tasting trip in Japan. One standout, he says, was a rice saison from Osaka’s Craft Beer Base, where that brewery’s take on Belgium’s traditional farmhouse ale style was fermented with koji (i.e. Aspergillus oryzae) the mold that is used to make both sake and soy sauce. “The result was crisp, brightly herbal, almost minty, bitterish and dry, reminding me somehow of cool grass, as well as cool sake,” he says. “I loved it.” 

While that beer might be limited to Japan, at least for now, it showcases the unusual processes and ingredients that are available to Japanese brewers, many of whom are now shipping cans and bottles to our side of the Pacific. Those beers seem to be finding an audience: Google searches for “Japanese beer” recently hit a high they hadn’t seen since the end of 2005. Imports of Japanese beer to the U.S. grew by 14.8% from 2021 to 2022, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), the most recent year for which it offers data. 

With those new shipments coming our way, there’s never been a better time to learn more about Japanese beer firsthand. So, which ones should you drink today? Check out the best Japanese beer curated by experts. 

Sapporo Premium (Sapporo Breweries, 4.9% abv)

This is a delicate pilsner-esque lager beer, brewed with a nod to German tradition.

 
“Sapporo is the smallest of the big three Japanese brands, but its blend of lightly toasted malt and delicate, herbal hopping makes it my favorite. In the Japanese fashion, it is ideal at the dinner table. It goes especially well with seafood, and I love it with crab or lobster.” —Jeff Alworth, author of The Beer Bible and the Beervana blog and podcast 

$18.50 (12-Pack) Total Wine

Tokyo White (Far Yeast Brewing Co., 6% abv)

Echoing the Belgian tradition, this saison-style ale is light, fruity and thirst-quenching.   

“One of the better Japanese breweries exporting to the United States is Far Yeast, based in Kosuge, in the mountains about 50 miles west of Tokyo. Far Yeast Tokyo White is a beautifully delicate and super-drinkable wheat beer fermented with saison yeast—floral and pome-fruity in the nose, pleasantly tangy, then dry on the palate. You could drink a lot of it, easily.”  —Joe Stange, managing editor of Craft Beer & Brewing magazine 

$5 Giannone Wine & Liquor

Hitachino Nest Ancient Nipponia (Kiuchi Brewery, 6.5% abv)

This imperial pilsner is based on a heritage barley cultivar and an aromatic hop cultivar.  

“A great beer with a great story—brewery owner Toshiyuki Kiuchi revived Japan’s Kaneko Golden variety of malting barley from a mere sixteen seeds, eventually growing enough to create Nipponia, a strong lager spiced with Japanese Sorachi Ace hops for a full, citrusy, slightly vanilla-ish flavor.” —Stephen Beaumont, co-author of The World Atlas of Beer and chief reviewer at Beaumont Drinks 

$6 Total Wine

Asahi Super Dry (Asahi Breweries, 5% abv)

The best-selling rice lager balances delicate bitterness with high, Champagne-like carbonation. 

“To many outside of Japan, Asahi Super Dry may seem like nothing more than a ‘beer-flavored beer,’ a light-bodied lager with a trace of hop bitterness, but it captures a perfect balance between European premium lagers and American ‘lite’ lagers. It pairs well with almost any food, from sushi to steak, and the more you sample, the more that slight bitterness starts to shine through, encouraging just one more glass.” —Daniel Morales, author of the newsletter How to Japanese 

$11 (6-Pack) Total Wine

Coedo Beniaka (Kyodo Shoji Coedo Brewery, 7% abv)

A rich imperial amber ale, Coedo Beniaka boasts the charismatic taste of sweet potatoes.  

“This amber ale is brewed with locally sourced sweet potatoes, yielding good body and rich flavor with caramel notes and umami, backed up by a well-integrated kick of alcohol. Pair it with barbecue ribs or crème brûlée.” —Ry Beville, publisher of Japan Beer Times   

Prices Vary Wine-Searcher

Orion Draft Beer (Orion Beer Co., 5% abv)

This is connoisseur’s choice among bottled rice lagers, with hints of black pepper and tropical fruit.  

“This beer reminds me of home—it’s funny how an item made across an ocean can do that. Orion sparks memories of exploring classic American lagers with friends. It has a mild complexity that reminds me of numerous regional American lager brands we’ve tried over the years, categorically similar in refreshment, but with more character than the mega brands.” —Zigmas Maloni, co-owner and curator at Chicago’s Beermiscuous beer cafés 

$9 (6-Pack) Vendome Wine & Spirits

Kuro Kuro (Hideji Beer, 9% abv)

This hoppy imperial stout is flavored with chestnuts from southern Kyushu.  

“This brewery in a rural prefecture of southern Japan known for its beaches quietly releases some of Japan’s best craft beers. A gold medal winner in the specialty beer category at the 2022 World Beer Cup, Kuri Kuro offers a wonderful nuttiness from the chestnuts that complements roasted flavors of the malt. Sip it with a Japanese whisky.” —Ry Beville  

$7 ShopWineDirect

Echigo Koshihikari (Echigo Beer Co., 5% abv)

This is a craft take on the mass-market rice lager style from Japan’s first microbrewery.  

“I’ve always found this malt-forward pale lager refreshing to the core, and the foam quality impresses. Specific ingredients and process can really make a beer—promoting a local Niigata ingredient like the Koshihikari rice cultivar is representative of the locality where this beer is brewed, while complementing the imported German barley and hops.” —Zigmas Maloni 

$3 Mission Wine & Spirits

Hitachino Nest Anbai Ale (Kiuchi Brewery, 7% abv)

Ume green plums and local sea salt take Hitachino Nest’s strong white ale to new heights.   

“It almost seems like Hitachino Nest can do no wrong—they consistently make great beers, usually with Japanese-specific ingredients, too. This slightly tart ale is infused with sour plums from the brewery’s rural environs, as well as Japanese sea salt. Drink one with raw oysters.” —Ry Beville  

$9 BevMo

FAQs  

Is Sapporo Beer Japanese?  

Yes—mostly. Sapporo is one of the oldest breweries in Japan, founded in the city of the same name on the northern island of Hokkaido in 1876. Since then, however, the brewery has expanded massively. Today, it owns multiple production facilities, including some in the U.S. and Canada, which make most of the Sapporo beer that is sold in North America. As such, the Sapporo you’re sipping might not be Japanese in the sense of it having been exported from Japan, but it is made by a Japanese company with very deep roots in the Japanese brewing tradition.  

How Do You Say “Beer” in Japanese?  

Derived either from the English word “beer” or the German word “bier,” the most common Japanese word for a fermented, malt-based beverage is written “ビール” and pronounced “bi-ru.” Try to say “beetroot” without pronouncing the Ts and you’re pretty much there. 

What Is Japan’s Most Popular Beer?  

By volume, the current best-selling beer in Japan is Asahi Super Dry.  

How Is Japanese Beer Different? 

That depends on the type of beer. For mass-market, so-called “pilsner” pale lagers, the frequent use of rice means that most Japanese beer is less heavy and more “dry” on the palate than beers from elsewhere. 

However, Japan is also home to happoshu, an unusual category of not-quite beers. Literally meaning “sparkling alcoholic beverage,” happoshu includes beverages with less than 67% barley malt, sometimes with very little malt at all, which puts them in a different tax category. They generally offer beer-like flavors at slightly lower price points. 

Does Japanese Beer Taste Like American Beer? 

Generally, yes. In many styles, Japanese beer is just a little bit lighter in body and crisper on the finish, compared to similar versions from U.S. producers. But when it comes to craft beers, the use of local ingredients and equipment—from sweet potatoes to koji—can bring truly unique flavors to each glass. 

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated that Japanese rice is used to make Sapporo Premium. It is not.

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At the end of last year, Talea built upon the wild success of its existing Brooklyn taprooms and burst onto the Manhattan scene, opening locations in Bryant Park in October and the West Village in December. These new spots followed quickly on the heels of its first Williamsburg outpost, which debuted in 2021, and its 2022 Cobble Hill locale. Added up, Talea has averaged one new taproom per year—an incredible feat for a small business in New York City—a city that is notoriously grueling for small businesses. What makes this growth even more exceptional is the fact that these cofounders are women: According to a 2021 audit from the Brewer’s Association, only 3% of the 9,000-plus craft breweries in America are fully women-owned.

“Being women-owned is so intertwined with every single part of our business,” says Hankinson, whose partner, Darland, is at home with a newborn at the time of our interview. In addition to boasting a progressive parental leave policy and partnering with women-owned businesses on everything from construction to can collaborations, Hankinson says they take inspiration from a “muse customer” when developing beers: a professional woman in her mid-20s to late-30s who lives in Williamsburg and probably owns a Peloton. But beyond just “women who eat Sweetgreen for lunch,” Talea courts demographics who may feel excluded from craft beer culture including older individuals, the LGTBQIA+ community, people of color, even folks who don’t drink alcohol.

In short, when Darland and Hankinson took the leap from their corporate jobs to professional beer-making—Darland worked in finance and Hankinson in consulting—they aimed to make beers that would please everyone from discerning beer snobs to hard seltzer-drinkers and everyone in between.

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“We are creating gateway craft beers, often sours, that a lot of the time are inspired by cocktails or desserts,” says Hankinson, of the minimally bitter and fruit-forward brews for which they’re known. “We’re using a flavor profile that is more familiar to someone who has maybe only had really hoppy IPAs or beer pong beer and who doesn’t know what craft beer can be.” She might be selling Talea short here—the brand takes big swings with flavors. Last year, they collaborated with tinned fish darling Fishwife on a Super Smokey Lager and with Fly By Jing on a spicy Weekender Sichuan Lager (both women-owned companies).

After a couple years of growing Talea’s reach in NYC-area restaurants and hundreds of regional retailers, Darland and Hankinson opened their flagship brewery and taproom in Williamsburg three years ago, drawing crowds with charming design, inventive beer flights, food-truck pop-ups and even taproom yoga. The Cobble Hill location came next. All of their spaces share an unabashedly feminine design sensibility that draws inspiration from the light and bright all-day cafés of Australia. A far cry from the dark, somewhat grungy taprooms and breweries that seem to be the standard, Talea outposts are so comfortable and pleasant that a large portion of their business is remote workers.

As Hankinson sees it, New York City is many years behind the craft beer curve, compared to cities like Denver and Portland. For one, the economics are harder, both in terms of rent and personnel costs, but also the odd logistics, like disposing of spent grain. (“We have to pay someone to take our spent grain to recycle it,” she says. “In other parts of the country, farmers buy it.”)

But she’s excited to see more New York City women, however few, forging a path in the beer industry, and she hopes to see more of them own their breweries. “One of the most exciting brands brewing in Brooklyn is Back Home Beer,” says Hankinson.

Iranian-born Zahra Tabatabai, the founder of Back Home Beer, draws inspiration from the flavors and ingredients of the Middle East, like Persian blue salt and sun-dried black limes. Her “Sumac Gose,” sold in a striking cloudy pink can, is brewed with nearly one pound of tart cherries per gallon and cured sumac sourced from a single farm in Turkey. There are also a good amount of husband-and-wife-run beer businesses, like Grimm and Fifth Hammer.

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When I ask Hankinson if she thinks the craft brewery scene in New York is still a boys club, she says yes, without hesitation. “They’re still selling to the same consumer base that they have always been, and I don’t see much effort to truly open up to a broader audience,” she says. She pauses. “That doesn’t bother me, because we don’t view craft breweries as competitors. We view our competitors as any other way someone would spend a Saturday afternoon in NYC.”

With wine, cocktails, coffee and a sophisticated menu of small bites, Talea really isn’t like any other brewery in the city—and it doesn’t want to be. ”Someone in the West Village could be going to Little Ruby’s for a drink and a snack, or Dante for a cocktail. Those are our competitors.”

The post The Women-Owned Brewery Making Waves in NYC’s Male-Dominated Craft Beer Scene appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

We are only starting to understand how much influence soil has over the quality of apples. And in Oregon and Washington, which are among the top-volume producers of hard ciders in the U.S., many of the apples are grown in volcanic soils.

“Volcanic soil is going to have more iron and magnesium,” says Burns. According to a study by Oregon, Washington and Idaho State Universities, apple trees lacking these minerals have a whole host of issues from premature yellowing and browning leaves to stunted growth, producing tiny fruit.

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Rick Hastings, owner and cider maker of Liberty Ciderworks, sources his apples from three nearby farms including Topcliffe Farms in Prosser, Washington, which has an abundance of volcanic soils. “The flavor levels are also completely off the charts,” Hastings says. Particularly when comparing Golden Russet apples, he says.

“I’ve tried Golden Russet ciders made on the East Coast and even elsewhere in Washington State,” says Hastings. “Yes, there’s a vague similarity. But the richness of these ciders made from Golden Russets grown in volcanic soils make it a completely different thing.”

Travel just about 150 miles southwest from Prosser and you’ll find yourself at Mt. Hood Organic Farm, which grows over 100 varieties of apples and pears which find their way into cider. “Volcanic soil naturally has a really good pH level,” says Brady Jacobson, co-owner of the Oregon farm. “A lot of people need to treat their soils with lime to get their desired pH, but we’ve never had to do any treatments.” Jacobson collaborates with nearby Hiyu Wine Farm to make Germina, Nivose and Floréal, naturally fermented ciders.

As cider’s popularity continues to grow, more time and money is invested in how the orchards interact with the soil. The Pacific Northwest’s volcanic soils have long been producing some of the most sought-after apples in the country and, more recently, compelling ciders, making it a good place to go deeper.

This article originally appeared in the Winter 2024 issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine. Click here to subscribe today!

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The act of brewing with rocks is nothing new. The human fascination with fire has smoldered on for a mega-annum, using it for warmth, cooking, protection and waging war. The earliest brewers found that heating sweet liquid and allowing it to cool and be inoculated with natural yeast would create beer. Fire-heated rocks added to a pot allowed for the needed robust boil.

As brewing technologies and safety protocols have advanced, so-called stein beers fell out of fashion.

“It’s not the safest thing,” says Jack Hendler, the cofounder and brewer of Jack’s Abby, who is also writing a book about lager traditions. “We made a big fire that maybe shouldn’t have been started, but we did make some tasty beer.”

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In terms of style, stein beers fall into the historical category. That’s how Ryan Wibby, the president and brewer of Wibby Brewing in Longmont, Colorado, came to make them. A local homebrewer had suggested the arcane style as part of a collaboration, and it sent Wibby down a ring of fire. Now he brews it several times each year.

Granite and soapstone are the best rocks to use, as they can hold thermal energy without breaking apart. Soapstone can be expensive, but granite pavers can be found at just about any garden center for a reasonable price. Then it’s building and maintaining roaring fires in chambers to get the rocks to upwards of 1000°F and carefully transferring it to the wort in the brew kettle.

“You can hear the crackling of the malt and water on those rocks as you’re lowering them into the kettle and creates this wonderfully different smell that I’ve only experienced while we make this beer,” says Wibby.

Wibby has produced stein beer a few dozen times, including one collaboration batch with NASA scientists who provided a meteorite to heat up and use in the process. The inspiration is the Lucy project, which will visit the Trojan asteroids, thought to contain information on the origins of our solar system.

“There’s no real definition to what a stein beer should taste like,” says Wibby. “It could be because it can be dark, it can be light, could be fruity. And it’s more about the technique rather than an actual flavor profile.”

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However, beers incorporating darker malts are typically praised because the sugars they produce wind up getting a deeper layer of flavor and caramelization from the rock’s extreme heat that creates a fluffier, fuller mouthfeel. As such, brewers have embraced dunkels or bocks as a preferred style. Rauchbiers, which use smoked malts that can impart bacon and campfire aromas, are also popular.

Tomme Arthur of the Lost Abbey made a stein beer for the first time a dozen years ago and has made it several times since. There isn’t a strong constant consumer demand for the style, but previous batches have sold well and quickly, and there is certainly curiosity and appreciation for the hot and labor-intensive process. He sees it as an ideal seasonal offering, either for spring or as an autumn alternative to pumpkin beers.

“I don’t know many people are making them, but definitely would like to bring it back just because it’s fun to play with flame and fire and rocks.”

Why Are Beer Steins Called That?

“Stein” is German for “stone.” In this case, the style is named for the heated rocks, but the drinking vessel gets its name from the material they were originally made from—stoneware.

This article originally appeared in the Winter 2024 issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine. Click here to subscribe today!

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The post ‘Not the Safest Thing’: With Stein Beer, Brewers Play with Fire appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

The cool climate of the American Northwest—specifically that of North Dakota, Idaho and Montana—has long been a dominant factor in the U.S.’s production of malting barley. But, like most of the West, these states have been confronting major drought conditions. Drought-stress on the annual grass has led to a steep decrease in yields—down a whopping 30% in 2021—and resulted in lower-quality grains.

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“Beer is mostly water, and then, after water, it’s mostly malt,” says Andrew Zinn, owner of Weaverville, North Carolina’s Leveller Brewing Co. When U.S. malt production drops—as it has in recent years—it creates major problems for brewers.

To counteract these increasingly common issues, land grant universities have been shifting their malting barley sights to regions that historically haven’t been able to successfully grow the critical crop. From North Carolina to Oregon, newly developed winter barley varieties could provide brewers with a stable supply of a pivotal component in beer production.

A Fermenting Crisis

“The problem is that in a year when you have a low amount of malt that’s produced in the U.S., it’s not a year that we drink less beer,” says Nicholas Santantonio, assistant professor of plant and environmental sciences at Virginia Tech. Santantonio leads the university’s small grains breeding program, which focuses on breeding for disease resistance.

Following 2021’s droughts, for instance, brewers had to purchase shipfuls of substandard malt from outside the country. “Because this industry is so concentrated in such a small area, you have these shifts in weather—these off years where things are really different or really bad—and that means that the system itself, the whole supply chain, has vulnerabilities in it.”

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While better than the historically low yields of 2021, in both 2022 and 2023, North America’s barley harvests still remained under the five-year average. And, like the low-quality malts that have been imported from overseas, many of last year’s crops were not up to snuff.

A significant portion of the barley harvested contained higher-than-desired protein levels, which can lead to a number of potential problems. The resulting beers often end up cloudy and, even more concerning, high protein can create excessive foam during the fermentation process, leading to dangerous boil overs and, potentially, third-degree burns for workers.

Diversifying the growing range of barley could help to mitigate these kinds of issues by increasing both the quality and quantity of the integral cereal grain.

Winter Barley Brews Potential From Coast-to-Coast

Malting barley is a cool-climate crop that has traditionally been planted in the spring and harvested in late summer. In its U.S. growing regions, this is when drought and disease pressures, such as powdery mildew and various rusts, are most likely to occur. But a burgeoning slew of winter barley varieties circumvents the stresses of these geographic and time constraints, working with the changing climate, rather than against it.

Avalon, which entered commercial production last year, was released as the first malting barley from Virginia Tech’s small grains breeding program. It was introduced by the university in 2020 after a decade of development. Derived from a cross of high-yielding feed barley, Thoroughbred, Avalon was specifically designed to thrive in America’s Southeast—an area that has long struggled to successfully grow the cereal grain.

“Barley doesn’t like high heat and doesn’t like humidity,” says Ashley McFarland, vice president and technical director of the American Malting Barley Association. “The humidity is really from more of a disease standpoint.” Planted in fall, Avalon largely avoids the warm weather stresses that once characterized Southeast spring barley. It boasts moderate resistance to leaf rust and powdery mildew, says Santantonio.

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Universities from Cornell to Oregon State have also been developing their own regionally-adapted winter varieties. Additionally, farmers in cold-climate areas like Minnesota, North Dakota and New Jersey have been integrating winter barley into crop rotations.

In Oregon, for example, Willamette Valley farmers and researchers—who have traditionally grown spring barley—are experimenting with winter barley. Eastward, Grand Rapids, Michigan—which is home to about 40 breweries—has likewise endured hotter, drier summers. Because of barley’s susceptibility to various molds, including pernicious vomitoxins, West Michigan farmers have been growing both spring and winter barley.

While rising temperatures may seem like a boon for growers of winter barley, there are, of course, some agricultural downsides. The crop performs best with snow as an insulator, says Kevin Slagh, head maltster for Emergent Malt, a small-batch malt producer in Zeeland, Michigan.

Local Production Promises Wide-Ranging Benefits

The rapid pace of these sorts of local environmental changes underscores the importance of climate-resilient crops specific to the conditions of a given region. “We kind of need to stack the deck to make sure we’ve got as many options in front of us as possible,” says Brent Manning, co-founder of Asheville’s Riverbend Malthouse. Manning says he knows farmers working with Southeast-specific Avalon as far away as New Jersey and Indiana. “I don’t think we have as long of a horizon to develop varieties as we once did.”

But the potential for winter barley goes well beyond serving as a hedge for erratic weather.

If barley stays in the ground after the summer growing season, it also serves as a cover crop, which can help to sequester carbon, retain water and improve the overall health and quality of the soil. “In theory, [it] will then help protect the soil from erosion and also will help tie up some of those nutrients that might have ran off in other circumstances,” says McFarland.

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Similarly, it could help brewers to save money—and emissions—on shipping. Beer is already heavy and pricey to transport. Incorporating locally-produced malting barley into the mix saves on those financial and carbon costs, while offering brewers new ingredients and flavors to add to their existing arsenal.

Naturally, the cereal grain deeply impacts the nuances of beer, not to mention aroma and mouthfeel. Zinn believes these locally-produced malting barleys could help beer-loving cities, like his home base of Asheville, refine their brewing ethos and help them to cement a regional identity.

In January, he released Leveller’s first Avalon-made beer and has been experimenting with the grain in a rye lager, farmhouse IPA and a Czech-style Pilsner. He thinks the Avalon malt particularly shines in the latter, performing similarly to previous malts while retaining the grassy and wildflower undertones of the regionally-appropriate malting barley.

Add up all the benefits—the interesting flavor profiles, advantages to local farmers and the overall climate impact—says Zinn, “moving barley close to home makes a lot of sense.”

The post As U.S. Barley Production Struggles, the Beer Industry Looks to New Varieties appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

It proved to be better and far more popular than Glass suspected. The company released its Belgian White Nitro in December last year. 

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Nitro is short in the brewing industry for nitrogenation, the infusion of gas to create a creamy body and distinctive, cake-like head. Think of Guinness, the legendary dry Irish stout, and its signature look. That’s it.  

In the not-too-distant past, this silky style was mostly resigned to stouts and porters. But times are changing, and this formerly rare technology has crossed over into a diverse array of craft beer styles—in a way that once would have been considered sacrilege.  

What Is Nitro Beer?  

The majority of draft and packaged beer is infused with carbon dioxide (CO2), the prickly carbonation that gives the finished product its fizz. The level of gas differs from beer to beer, depending upon the style. The standard nitrogenated beer has carbon dioxide, too, with a total gas breakdown of roughly 30% CO2 and 70% nitrogen (N2). 

The nitro pour was created by Guinness in the 1950s and the technology has developed further over the decades. On draft, the gases are combined in the beer and forced through specially outfitted taps with a restrictor plate that pushes the beer through small holes, which help to release the gases. “That leads to the beers that have big foamy head on top after everything settles down from the cascading bubbles from agitation,” says Steve Parkes, a long-time brewer and the director of the American Brewers Guild, a brewing school in Vermont. “Then you’ve got your thick foam layer on top, which has mostly nitrogen bubbles in it.”  

In canned and bottled versions, brewers like Guinness have taken to using a “widget,” a small ball filled with N2 that separates when the can is opened. It releases the gas into the beer and creates the same head as draft. But it’s not the only way to nitrogenate non-draft beers. Other brewers will add a drop of liquid nitrogen to the can or bottle before it’s filled and then a second one immediately before it’s capped. When the container is opened and poured, the effect is the same—no matter the style of beer. 

The Growth of Non-Stout Nitros 

Nearly two decades after it was founded, in 2011 Left Hand Brewing released its first nitro beer, a milk stout in bottles. It became an instant hit and put the brewery on the national radar as craft beer fans and others flocked to the smaller, American alternative to Guinness. Milk Stout Nitro would be released in cans several years later.  

The milk stout is the brewery’s flagship. But despite it being light on the palate, its dark color put off some drinkers, especially during warmer months when brightness can conjure up thoughts of refreshment. A light-hued Belgian-style white, often called a wit, is brewed with wheat, and often accented by orange peel and coriander. It can be a delightful summer sipper.  

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This is why Glass decided to give it a go, despite his initial reservations. “There was enough enthusiasm [in-house] for me to find an old home brew recipe and to give it a shot on the pilot system,” says Glass who previously worked as the director of the American Homebrew Association. “I really liked the results, and we did three more batches in the pilot system, then scaled it up to our 60-barrel brewhouse. Now we’re brewing it every two weeks.”  

The Left Hand Belgian White Nitro has quickly become a top seller for the brewery, but success outside of porters and stouts is not always guaranteed.  

Parkes notes that the hop-derived bitterness that is typical in many beers does not play well with the nitro treatment. The N2 often concentrates the bitterness into the foam, leaving the beer underneath a little lighter and brighter.  

This is one reason that the India pale ale, the best-selling category in craft beer, is not often given the nitro treatment. “It dulls the palate in a way that that diminishes the impact of hops,” says Parkes. “It just doesn’t work: it makes them taste worse.” 

That doesn’t mean some brewers haven’t tried. Guinness released a short-lived nitro IPA in 2015 (six-packs can still be found at certain retailers). The Boston Beer Company released a trio of Samuel Adams canned nitro beers around the same time that included an IPA, along with a coffee stout and a white ale.  

Left Hand’s Belgian-style white, however, manages to keep the citrus and spice from the base recipe, offering bright aromas and flavors with a bit of a creamy mouthfeel. The release suggests that there is renewed interest in exploring nitro styles beyond stouts and porters, where the roasted malts used in the recipe often accentuate flavors of coffee and chocolate.  

Guinness, unsurprisingly, has continued to push the nitro boundaries. Visiting its U.S.-based breweries in Maryland and Illinois will reveal nitro beers beyond the standard stout (which is still produced in Dublin). These offerings explore how gas plays with different ingredients and styles.  

“Here in Baltimore, we have a nitro passion fruit sour, a tangerine cream ale and a blood orange cream ale,” says Sean Brennan, the head brewer for North America at Guinness Open Gate Brewery and Barrel House in Baltimore. “Using the fruit, with the bubbles, it’s like a smoothie beer sorbet.” 

Fruited beers, which are popular among craft beer drinkers, seem to be enhanced by nitro. It lends a velvety character and increases tropical fruit aromas. Also, because they’re often made with fresh fruit or purees, fruit beers can boast vibrant hues that are dramatically accentuated by the contrast of a thick white head. 

These sorts of experiments with different ingredients and styles are helping brewers like Glass and Brennan to advance the science of making beer. It also gives them a chance to have fun and explore what consumers may gravitate toward next.  

“I want to keep playing with those to see where they land,” says Brennan.  

The post Not Just Stout and Porter: Nitro Beer Takes a Walk on the Lighter Side appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

Rinke is referring to the “Champagne” or “bubble” tax, which kicks hard cider or perry (pear cider) into higher tax brackets if additional fruits outside of apples or pears are added and as the carbonation level increases. These very common and popular co-ferments, as they’re called, can result in producers having to pay roughly 12 times more per gallon than is required for standard apple- or pear-only cider. These major financial constraints don’t just impact cider and perry makers—they apply to mead and winemakers, too. 

“This tax has controlled the beverage industry for years,” says Rinke, who makes ciders, wines, perries and co-fermented fruit wines with wife Kim Hamblin. 

But these arbitrary brackets, based on fruit and carbonation, may soon change thanks to the bipartisan Bubble Tax Modernization Act (H.R. 7029), introduced to the House of Representatives on January 18. The bill would remove the differentiation between various lower-alcohol, fruit-based sparkling beverages outlined in the current law by allowing them the same carbonation levels afforded to hard apple and pear ciders—without charging producers higher tax rates.

The proposed change comes at a critical time for the U.S. cider industry. Large and small producers are under increasing pressure from breweries that are exploring fruit-flavored beers and malt beverages. In fact, the global fruit beer market raked in an estimated $266.9 billion in 2022; it’s expected to hit $379.5 billion in 2028. In spite of their bubbles, neither beer nor malt beverages are subject to the tax.

From Cider to Still Wine to Sparkling

Currently, the law separates cider, still wine and sparkling wine into three separate categories, each taxed at a higher rate than the last. Several factors—including ingredients and effervescence—can move a cider into either the still wine or sparkling wine categories, which substantially changes the rate at which it’s taxed.

Here’s how it works: A beverage falls under the cider category if it contains only apples or pears; has less than or equal to .64 grams of carbon dioxide per 100 milliliters (the level standard in a pint of beer); and is less than 8.5% alcohol-by-volume (abv). 

These beverages, which encompass standard hard ciders and perries, are taxed at a modest $.23 per gallon. However, there are “multiple triggers that put it into the wine tax class,” says Michelle McGrath, CEO of the American Cider Association (ACA), which is far costlier for producers. 

If those apples are co-fermented or back-sweetened with additional fruit like grapes, blackberries or raspberries, it gets classified as still wine. This is a problem for producers for a number of reasons. The tax rate for still wine is substantially higher—more than four times that of cider—at $1.07 per gallon. 

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Things get even trickier when carbonation comes into the equation. Consumers have come to anticipate a level of effervescence similar to that of beer or standard commercial ciders, and co-ferments and fruit-sweetened ciders often aren’t bubbly enough for their tastes. However, producers are wary of adding additional carbonation, which would flip their products into the higher-taxed sparkling wine category.

At least once a month, Dave Takush, head cidermaker at 2 Towns Ciderhouse in Corvallis, Oregon, gets an email from a customer saying that his co-ferments taste flat. He has to explain that these bottles were intentionally made that way, as he can’t afford to add the carbonation they want.

McGrath often hears the same. “Producers are pretty tired of hearing complaints from consumers about their fruit ciders tasting flat, because the wine tax bracket has a low carbon threshold,” she says. Artificially carbonated beverages get taxed at $3.30 per gallon and those that undergo bottle fermentation (i.e. naturally sparkling) are taxed at $3.40 per gallon—costing producers roughly 12 times as much to make. 

In practical terms, 100 gallons of what’s considered cider will cost $22 in federal taxes. However, should a very similar co-ferment fall into the naturally sparkling category, that same product will cost $340. That’s all before state or other taxes. 

Beer, on the other hand, is taxed in a completely different manner and brewers can incorporate as much mango, strawberry or other fruit they want without worrying about reducing carbonation levels or paying additional taxes. 

Bring Forth Fruit

Given the far higher tax rates, one would think that cideries would prefer to stick to straight apples or pears. But co-ferments have been flying off the shelves. In 2023, 41% of cider sales were co-ferments with fruits like blackberry and cherry, according to Nielson data. “Fruit ciders are quite a popular segment of the cider industry,” says Takush. “If you have a taproom or you’re trying to get on the shelf at a bottle shop or into larger chains, you have to have fruited cider because it’s something people want.” 

If this bill can make it through the House and Senate, sales will likely increase even further. All fruited ciders, fruited meads and other co-ferments will be legally allowed to boast the same level of carbonation of its apple- and pear-only brethren (and beer)—as long as they are under 8.5% abv—without moving up into the sparkling wine tax bracket. “The important thing to understand is this isn’t a tax break,” says Takush. “Very few people make carbonated fruit wines because they can’t afford it.” 

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As it stands now, many producers curtail what they make in order to stay within the lower tax brackets. 

Lyndon Smith, farmer, COO, and founding partner of Botanist and Barrel in Cedar Grove, North Carolina, is one of those producers. He aims to highlight Southern fruits like Muscadine grapes, pawpaws and certain heirloom apples in his pétillant naturel (pet-nat) ciders. Yet he finds himself constantly having to make tough decisions about what he can or can’t make. “It’s a real shame that the tax has to be part of our thought process,” says Smith. 

McGrath echoes this sentiment. She points to the farm-based cider makers who are attempting to showcase the fruit they grow while diversifying their revenue streams. “But if they’re getting pinged with the carbonation tax, then it makes it less appealing for a small farmer,” she says.

Consumers Are Paying the Price 

This bubble tax also financially impacts cider-loving consumers, as these added production costs are reflected in the purchase price. “I am still going to make the cider I want, regardless of the tax,” says Steve Selin, owner and cidermaker at South Hill Cider in New York’s Finger Lakes region. “But if I have to pay the Champagne tax, I should charge consumers $1 or $2 more per bottle.”

Because production costs are already higher for small cider makers than they are for their larger counterparts, these increasingly popular fruited ciders and co-ferments already tend to be more expensive for consumers. When the bubble tax gets thrown into the equation, producers need to charge even more to cover their costs—and these higher price tags may go beyond what the average consumer is willing to pay.

This is why producers are hoping the bill will pass by the end of the year—in spite of a slow-moving Congress. The goal, they say, is to bolster producers while giving consumers what they want at a price they can afford. 

“Innovation and creativity are hallmarks of American producers,” says Takush. “It started with the craft beer revolution, and now that same spirit has spread to cider and winemakers. And right now, that carbonation tax is hindering innovation.”

The post Cidermakers Have Long Feared the ‘Bubble Tax.’ A New Bill Could Change Everything. appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.