Category: history

A Few New Chop & Brew

By on September 13, 2014in beer education, general beer, history, homebrew, video

We’ve fallen a bit behind on posting new Chop & Brew episodes — so here’s a quick update for the homebrewers out there!

Episode 28 “AHA Wort Rally Beer Tasting Notes” features a taste panel on four very different beers made from the same Double Black IPA wort donated to homebrewers by Lucid Brewing Company at this year’s AHA Wort Rally. See how much impact the changes in dry hopping and yeast made to the beers.

Episode 29 “Bad Ass Barrelfied Imperial Porter” finds the krewe of Chop & Brew homebrewing a wicked Imperial Porter and conditioning half of the batch in a recently-emptied Woodinville Whiskey Company rye whiskey barrel. Tasting notes and discussion includes advice on barrel-aging in second-use barrels.

Episode 30 “Rhubarb Saison” features a homebrewed saison that includes four pounds of rhubarb throughout the brewing and fermentation stages for a dry, tart saison.

Chop & Brew #26: 2014 BJCP Style Guidelines

By on June 20, 2014in beer education, general beer, history, homebrew, video

Chop & Brew coming through with some breaking news that affects all homebrewers, beer judges, competition organizers, and other beer-related hobbyists/professions. This C&B video features Gordon Strong, president of the Beer Judge Certification Program, updating the 2014 BJCP Style Guidelines last weekend at the 2014 National Homebrewers Conference in Grand Rapids, MI. Public feedback will be taken on the new proposed guidelines when they are released at the BJCP website and forum. What are your thoughts on these new ideas?

Chop & Brew #24: Basement Stout Fest

By on April 29, 2014in beer education, general beer, history, homebrew, video

Three dudes, two stouts, one Saint Paul basement. This is not the exposition for a horror movie, it’s the latest episode of Chop & Brew. Chip Walton, Chris Paynes and Michael Dawson enjoy two very different homebrewed stouts – Beamishish and Imperial Irish Cream Coffee Stout – both made with the fairly new high-extract MCI Stout malt. Join the crew as they discuss some tips and techniques involved in brewing these stouts. And if you miss your pints of Beamish, check out the recipe at the official episode page and brew your own.

Chop & Brew #23: Music City Brew Off

By on April 17, 2014in beer education, beer events, history, homebrew, video

Chop & Brew takes a roadtrip from the Twin Cities to Nashville, TN for the Music City Brew Off homebrew competition. In this episode, we get an inside look at the inner-workings of the homebrew competition hosted by the Music City Brewers homebrew club. MCB president John Malone shares his experiences and gives some advice to other clubs that may be interested in coordinating a competition of their own. C&B is also hoping to get involved in the MN State Fair homebrew competition and next winter’s Upper Mississippi Mash Out as well.

Chop & Brew #22: John Kimmich from The Alchemist

By on March 30, 2014in beer education, breweries, brewpubs, Features, general beer, history, homebrew, video

It’s not MN Beer officially, but likely something that will interest beer lovers and homebrewers here in the Upper Midwest. In this episode of the locally-produced Chop & Brew webshow, a discussion and Q&A with John Kimmich, head brewer at The Alchemist in Vermont, famous (infamous?) for the traders’ cult favorite Heady Topper. In this hour-plus video, John discusses not only his personal journey into and through craft brewing, he also offers homebrew-friendly advice and insight on all elements of brewing specifically as it relates to brewing hoppy beers. Footage shot in October 2013 while visiting Nashville, TN for the Music City Brew Off — which will be the focus of an entirely separate future episode of Chop & Brew. For Heady Topper recipe and other related links to the episode so this link to official episode page.

We also slacked a bit on posting the prior two episode of Chop & Brew in separate posts. So here they are in handy-dandy hyperlink form:

C&B 20: Homebrew Video Nerds Unite Two homebrewing videographers chat about their obsession with documenting brew days and what role video plays in the current landscape of homebrewing.

C&B 21: Meet the Brewer: Mino Choi Mino Choi is an award-winning homebrewer, winemaker and meadmaker. Join us for a gold-medal flight of his amazing fermentations and get some tips and tricks from one helluva competition fermentationist.