So, yes, this is not beer related or cider or spirits. In fact it is my fourth pick of alcohol but the really short video does show how one little thing can be done that really changes the flavor of your favorite drink. Plus the name is real cool too.
Cacao in the Yeast
There is always lots of beer chatter about a new hop varietal even when given an unappetizing name like Anchovy but less attention to yeast unless it is Thiol Boosted.
But premiere Yeast Lab, White Labs has found a new and rare yeast….
…strange to have a yeast from rare cacao. Hope to find a beer with it.
Can They Make it Hazier?
Back to science! Yeast, that fermenting wonder that can give a beer the aroma of banana without a banana in the vicinity of the brew kettle might just be able to replicate hop flavors. (Keep in mind, not all, just some)
You can read about the breakthrough work HERE but the upshot is that a genetically modified yeast could produce flavors that mimic Beers with hops. The question is how long would it take to, say, have a Citra Yeast or a Three-C’s yeast. Probably quite some time.
This research even has the imprimatur of brewing professor, Charlie Bamforth from the University of California, Davis as co-author on the paper.
Whether brewers will replace the dry hopping late in the brewing process with a GMO yeast with DNA from mint and basil plant is a whole different experiment.
FoodGPS Teaser – White Labs
Tomorrow’s FoodGPS post under the Brew & You banner is all about my recent trip to San Diego and the very important White Labs.
You will read about why they are important but for now, here are some photos by my beer compadre Richard taken during the beer adventure….
Beard Beer? Really?
Rogue is not content with Bacon Maple beer! Now they go even further down the rabbit hole.
This may be a bit much for me. There are lines that I get queasy upon crossing and this is one.
Yeast + Mikkeller
Mikkeller is going back to yeast school for us. I have expounded often on my love of the single hop series of beers as well as the single barrel series. I have not, as of yet, had any of the yeast series that was done. But apparently Round 2 is coming.
One basic recipe that stays the same but the yeast changes from saison to lager to English pale to American Pale to two Brett strains. And even the label is cool.
2 Excellent Beer gifts
I just had to share two of the best Christmas gifts (Beer related category) that I received this year…
So what you see is MALTed milk balls, a rabbit that is HOPping, some wheat and a packet of yeast. All of the ingredients in beer! A clever sister-in-law I have.
I have had great help in chasing my 50 Beers / 50 States goal but this wins a big prize. My wife found a friend who was traveling in the vicinity of some of my missing states and enlisted her to help me. And did she ever. She got beer from 5 states! Thanks to Ayn for single-handedly knocking 10% of my list away! Unbelievable!
St. Arnold moveable yeast series
This might be the first sighting of a new trend. St. Arnold started this series last year with Weed Whacker, a variant of the Fancy Lawnmower beer and in 2011 more moveavble yeasts will be made.
Here is the full list:
MOVABLE YEAST
Saint Arnold Brewing Co. pays homage to the hard-working fungi that turn sugar into alcohol with a series of familiar beers fermented with different strains of yeast. The first of these new, draft-only brews will be available at bars and restaurants across Texas next month. The brewer is making enough for approximately 20,000 12-ounce servings and expects that to last two to three weeks. A little about each beer:
• Weedwacker: A variation of Saint Arnold’s best-selling Fancy Lawnmower. All other ingredients remain the same, but the new beer will be fermented with a Bavarian hefeweizen yeast. Available Aug. 16.
• Altared Amber: The flagship beer will be made with Belgian Trappist yeast. Available mid-November.
• Bitter Belgian: Elissa IPA, also with Belgian Trappist yeast. Available mid-February.
• Brown Bitte: Brown Ale, with Alt yeast. Available mid-May.
Mikkeller – Educational beers
As is usual with me, I learn something new every day. Today’s nugget is that the nomadic Mikkeller is working on a third series of single ingredient beers.
I said to myself, “3?” Apparently, I completely missed the barrel series that showcased one beer in different barrels to see the effects from what was liquor was previously in that barrel. Hopefully, I can get a bottle of one of those and review it here.
Second, is the single hop series that I blather on about from time to time because it is such a great idea and each beer is fantastic in a non-educational setting. New single hop beers on the horizon include Summit, Apollo, Bravo, Citra and Sorachi Ace. I am especially geeked out about the last two.
Here is the list of single hop beers already out:
Amarillo
Cascade
Centennial
Chinook
East Kent Golding
Nelson Sauvin
Nugget
Simcoe
Tomahawk
Warrior
The third lesson is on yeast! Now this should be really fascinating. The same base beer is being used but with these different strains of yeast: lager, U.S. ale, Belgian Ale/Trappist, Weiss and Brettanomyces.
