By K. Florian Klemp
Published January 2011, Volume 31, Number 6
Newcomers are often surprised that smoked beers even exist, but beer made with smoked malts are one of our most tangible link to the 18th century and before. At one time, most beers made with kilned malt had a smoky tinge, and maltsters strove to eliminate it. The exception is a handful of brewers in and around Bamberg, Germany, whose rauchbier (smoke beer) is still made with wood-cured malt in centuries-old fashion―the definitive smoke beer. Read More…
By K. Florian Klemp
Published November 2010, Volume 31, Number 5
Porter doesn’t have the fame of stout, the thunderous hops of IPA or the quirk of barrel aging, but once upon a time, it boasted all three. Largely relegated to ordinary status, porter was designed as a populist brew in London.
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By K. Florian Klemp
Published September 2010, Volume 31, Number 4
The term “pilsner” is attached to many pale lagers worldwide, some of which are worthy imitators of the Bohemian original at best, or pale imposters at worst. The clear-cut roots of pilsner are in Bohemia, a phenomenal convergence of science, imported brewing talent and ideal ingredients. The success of pilsner is extraordinary and by far the most significant single revolution in the craft. Ironically, a definitive set of circumstances sparked the development of pilsner, with a subsequent, distinct set spawning the globalization, diverse interpretation and ultimate watering down of its unpretentious elegance. Read More…
By K. Florian Klemp
Published July 2010, Volume 31, Number 3
The resurrection of languishing stylistic gems might be America’s greatest contribution to brewing in the past 30 years. This would most certainly be the case with Russian imperial stout. Imperial stout is synonymous with lofty status, and its bold, brawny character is a natural for the attitude and taste of New World microbrewers. Fortified, exported stouts symbolized the respect and far-reaching influence that British brewers enjoyed during their heyday. Today, they convey a message of no-holds barred craftiness among the Americans. Read More…
By K. Florian Klemp
Published May 2010, Volume 31, Number 2
Though beer styles have evolved relatively recently, all have tangible connections to more ancient brews through ingredients or methods. Brewers were bound by resources and climate on one hand; and regional heritage, pride and individualism on the other. For altbier, the indigenous brew of Düsseldorf, it is a combination of all those factors. Obliged to the climate out of necessity, and to history by choice, altbier proudly alludes to its past in its very name, German for “old beer.” Read More…
By K. Florian Klemp
Published March 2010, Volume 31, Number 1
Belgium is synonymous with brewing eccentricity and whimsy―its brewers’ penchant for unusual ingredients, methods and historical usage is still very much alive. To them though, it is business as usual. Their most distinctive beer is lambic, which relies on the ancient method of spontaneous fermentation, a natural microbiological ambush for inoculation, fermentation and maturation. The outcome is a marriage between beer and wine, a product of process and local conditions as much as ingredient. It is the indigenous beer of Brussels and the rural Senne River Valley to the west, having survived unscathed through many recent brewing revolutions and innovations, including the doctrine of one Louis Pasteur. Lambic is without peer in complexity, a brew that is years in the making, and centuries old in design―beer in its most natural state. Read More…
