Official MR.BEER® Blog

Summer Style

2008-06-16T10:17:00.000-07:00

Written by Eric Greene, Brewmaster Extraordinaire

Aloha, Homebrewers! Another quarter-year has come and gone, and that means summer must be here... Seems like a good time to take a look at what's going on with some of the best summer beers!

Before we do, what exactly is it that we want in a summer beer? I'm glad you asked! It all boils down to one thing: refreshment. In case you haven't yet noticed, one of the principal characteristics of the summer months happens to be oppressive heat. The degree, duration and exact nature of the oppression depends largely upon four key factors: longitude, latitude, elevation, and proximity to the center of hell (a.k.a. Scottsdale, Arizona). As everyone knows, the only thing capable of releasing a person from the grips of true fiery oppression is liquid, fizzy refreshment.

If a beer is to be refreshing, it should by nature be fairly light, both in color and body. This is because during the summertime, the oppressive nature of the heat may require a body to consume many units of refreshment, and light-bodied beers lend themselves to mass consumption. Thus, these beers should be relatively low in alcohol as well. We're not necessarily talking three-two beer here, but you don't see many ten-percenters released for the summertime these days. In flavor, the sky is the limit, but most summer favorites maintain drinkability as their prime directive, which means that balance is the driving force behind the flavor profile.

Speaking of mass consumption, light lagers are undoubtedly consumed in far greater quantities than any other beer style, especially in the summertime. This is precisely because big-time American brewers have taken their beers' refreshment way too seriously. Really, these beers are almost as refreshing as water – but sometimes that's exactly what you need in the middle of a rousing game of badminton, am I right? Classic American Blonde Ale and Cowboy Golden Lager are both good examples of this style.

Elsewhere (like Europe, the birthplace of light lager styles), pale beers have a whole different personality. Czech pilsner, a complex and snappy lager, is really the grandfather of all those afore-mentioned American light lagers. It proudly displays its distinctive hop flavor on a bed of soft malts and tastes fantastic with any food item that has seen the sweet kiss of charcoal (or propane, if you're a heathen). Try Grand Bohemian or Pilothouse Pilsner for a great example of a European pilsner.

Kolsch is a German ale (fermented at slightly cooler temperatures than other ales) has become a very popular summer brew. Kolsches are known for their clean, balanced flavor, but they can display a little more yeast character than a true lager. Quiet Creek Kolsch is a Mr.Beer® recipe that displays all the best qualities of the Kolsch style.

Close on the heels of light lagers (in the mass consumption department) follows the ubiquitous pale ale. This style has become the defacto microbrew style, especially on the West Coast. A little hoppier than other summer brews, pale ales are generally highly quaffable, with just enough bitterness to keep you coming back for more, but not so much that it makes your tongue pucker. Try a West Coast Pale Ale or American Devil IPA (if you like it a bit hoppier).

Hefeweizen, be it of American or Bavarian descent, is probably the best all-round summer beer ever created by the hands of men. The soft tartness of wheat quenches thirst and serves to balance a gentle grainy sweetness. Hops are present, but are only there to provide counterpoint to the smooth and mellow yeast characteristics that peek above the veil of malt. All this is combined with a nice, high carbonation that lifts flavors from the tongue, leaving your palate refreshed and ready for more. Brew a Whispering Wheat. I command thee!

Nearly extinct fifty years ago, Witbier is a traditional Belgian style that's come back with a vengeance. It shares many of its major flavor characteristics with Bavarian Hefewiezen, but is generally lighter in color and body. It also usually displays a nice fruity-spiciness from the addition of both coriander and orange peel. You truly can't have just one. Try a Witty Monk Witbier. You won't be sorry – neither will I.

Is American beer any good?

2008-05-14T14:29:00.000-07:00

The idea of weak American suds is being laid to rest by the boom in indie ales, stouts and pilsners

Ask most people where the best beer in the world comes from, and they'll probably say Germany or England. More worldly folks might mention Belgium.

But ask a beer aficionado these days, and odds are you'll get an answer that might surprise you – the good old U.S.A.

Click here for the rest of the article.

MicroFueler Turns Stale Beer Into Gas

2008-05-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

The dream of a home ethanol pump has been realized, says the New York Times, thanks to inventor named Floyd S. Butterfield. One of the world's only celebrated non-hillbilly still-makers, Butterfield has invented the $10,000 E-Fuel 100 MicroFueler, a gadget that combines heaps of sugar and a sprinkling of yeast to ferment an alcoholic brew which it then distills into ethanol. The notion is that, as long as the price of sugar stays relatively low, it could cost about $1 per gallon to make the fuel. It's even cheaper when you put un-drunk stale beer in the system: Since the fermentation is done, all it takes is the electricity to distill the beer into fuel for your car.

Click here for the complete article.

The Murphy Twins

2008-04-30T13:57:00.000-07:00

Two men were sitting next to each other at a bar.

After a while, one guy looks at the other and says, "I can't help but think, from listening to you, that you're from Ireland."

The other guy responds proudly, "Yes, that I am!"

The first guy says, "So am I! And where abouts from Ireland might you be?"

The other guy answers, "I'm from Dublin, I am."

The first guy responds, "Sure and begora, and so am I! And what street did you live on in Dublin?"

The other guy says, "A lovely little area it was, I lived on McCleary Street in the old central part of town."

The first guy says, "Faith & it's a small world, so did I! And to what school would you have been going?"

The other guy answers, "Well now, I went to St. Mary's of course."

The first guy gets really excited, and says, "And so did I. Tell me, what year did you graduate?"

The other guy answers, "Well, now, I graduated in 1964."

The first guy exclaims, "The Good Lord must be smiling down upon us! I can hardly believe our good luck at winding up in the same bar tonight. Can you believe it, I graduated from St. Mary's in 1964 my own self."

About this time, another guy walks into the bar, sits down, and orders a beer.

The bartender walks over shaking his head & mutters, "It's going to be a long night tonight, the Murphy twins are drunk again."

Report: Climate change will threaten beer production

2008-04-20T17:04:00.000-07:00

We all know already that climate change will affect everything from food prices to cute baby polar bears.

But now it's really hitting home, folks. A report from a researcher at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in New Zealand suggests that rising temperatures may threaten beer.

Click here for the entire article.

Beer For Helga

2008-04-14T16:33:00.000-07:00

(I appologize ahead of time for this. Ed.)

It was a hot day in Minnesota. Helga hung out the wash to dry, put a roast in the oven, & then went downtown to pick up some dry cleaning.

"Gootness, it's hotter dan hell today," she mused to herself as she walked down Main Street. She passed a tavern & thought,"Vy nodt?"

So she walked in & took a seat at the bar. The bartender walked over & asked her what she would like to drink.

"Ya know," Helga said, "it is zo hot, I tink I'll have myself a cold beer."

"Anheuser Busch?" the bartender asked.

Helga blushed & replied, "Vell fine, tanks, und how's yur viener?"

Brewer of the Month

2008-04-07T15:51:00.000-07:00

This Month's brewer is Rob Lanius

Rob has been brewing with MR.BEER® for almost 2 years now, and enjoys experimenting with his own custom brews. Most recently Rob has brewed one of his own recipes called Howlin' Hozer Jalepeno Brew at about 6% ABV. Rob likes a little kick in his beer!

Started brewing: April 2006
Favorite beer: Howlin' Hozer Jalepeno Brew
Favorite food: Cheese filled Jalepeno
The person Rob would most like
to share his beer with: Joe Montana

Do you or someone you know deserve to be the next brewer of the month?
Contact us at 1-800-852-4263 or e-mail brewmaster@mrbeer.com

I want some beer "Action"!

2008-04-02T15:47:00.000-07:00

Question:
Dear BrewMASTER, Everytime I brew, the amount of 'action' I get in my keg is different. What's up?
Mixed Up Mike, Jasper, AL

Answer:
The amount of 'action' you see during fermentation will vary depending on a number of things. To name a few, temperature, the amount of fermentables, and the heartiness of the yeast will all affect your fermentation process. But rest assured, the key to a successful fermentation is not how active your keg is, but that you give your brew enough time to complete its process. A good tip is to keep your keg within 3 degrees of 73f create an optimal brewing environment.

Ale Vs. Lager

2008-03-31T15:40:00.000-07:00

Ale Vs. Lager
Written by Eric Greene, Brewmaster Extraordinaire

For most homebrewers, the changing of seasons marks a changing of process and (much more importantly) style. I'm not talking about that free feeling that comes with shedding your long underwear and brewing in your skivvies‚ÄîI refer, of course, to the style of beers we brew. These days, many of us are getting ready to change from brewing lagers to ales. Sounds like a good time for review!

The very first beers were brewed in Egypt and Mesopotamia, though it's probably quite generous to call them beer. Nobody can really be certain what these beers tasted like, but we do know that they laid the foundations for the ales that later spread into Europe. Though these beers were almost certainly brewed at ale-like temperatures, from many of the same ingredients (including cereal grain, water, magic, and prayer) they probably bore no more resemblance to modern ale than lager.

Early European ales probably also bared little resemblance to what we think of as beer, until about the 13th century, when flowers from the hop plant became the dominant kettle flavoring. Before then, hops were but one in a menagerie of spices that went into the pot, amongst the likes of yarrow, coriander, grains-of-paradise, gooseberry, tree bark, dirt and spit (and many more). This beer was dark in color (but only partly from the dirt), and quite smoky because early brewers had to malt their own grain, and part of that process included roasting and drying it over an open flame.

It's difficult to say exactly when lagers evolved from all this, but by the 1500's, many German brewers were consistently brewing at cooler temperatures and storing the finished beer in caves for maturation. In fact, the word "lager" comes from the German word "lagern" which means "to store." By the 1840's, Gabriel Sedlmayr the Younger developed modern lager production methods.

Today, lagers and ales are separated both by process and yeast strain. Ales are brewed at warmer temperatures (60-75F), using yeast of the genus and species Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This yeast is traditionally thought of as a top-cropping yeast, meaning that it flocculates and settles on top of the fermenting vessel. It is also typically meant to be consumed more or less immediately. Lagers, on the other hand, are brewed at cooler temperatures (40-55F) with a bottom-cropping yeast that is now classified as S. pastorianus or S. uvarum (or both), depending on who you ask. They're still working that bit out.

As with most things in life, there are a host of exceptions to these rules. Steam beers are brewed with a lager yeast strain, but they are brewed at warmer temperatures. K√∂lsch and Altbier are both styles of ale that are brewed a little cooler than most ales, and they're always lagered for a spell after fermentation. The list goes on.

This ambiguity sometimes leads brewers to fudge the appellations of their beer a bit. Some commercial brewers use one neutral yeast strain to produce both ales and lagers. One prominent Northwest brewery uses an ale yeast strain to produce a crisp, pale, hoppy beer and they call it a maibock. I know of a brewer here in the Southwest who won a gold medal for his Red Lager, which was brewed with an ale yeast.

There is a certain logic in this: if it looks like a barleywine, tastes like a barleywine, and smells like a barleywine, then you must have a barleywine. Never-mind that the malt-bill, hop profile and process all say it should be a dopplebock. As brewers, we tend to get caught up in the production, and we confuse the process with the beer. It's important for us to remember that beer is not simply a sum of the ingredients and processes that go into making it, but a creative endeavor that sometimes takes on a life (and personality) of its own. Ours is a hobby steeped in magic, raised in art, and improved upon by science.

Hops can cause malignant hyperthermia in dogs

2008-03-31T15:26:00.000-07:00

WARNING: DO NOT LET YOUR DOG EAT HOPS!

Hops can cause malignant hyperthermia in canines, usually with fatal results. Even small amounts can trigger a potentially deadly reaction, including spent hops from the brewing process. Immediate action should be taken if hops are consumed by a dog.

Click here for more info.

How to Visit a Microbrewery

2008-03-20T14:49:00.000-07:00

Here's a great "How to" on visiting a Microbrewery (ed.)

Microbreweries are known for brewing exceptional, rare, and original styles of handcrafted beer. Common styles of ales as well as lagers are also produced. Microbreweries are fun to visit because each brewery is unique and has an interesting history, and of course there is always the opportunity to taste some good beer.

Click here to read the entire article.

Beer, With Benefits

2008-03-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

The best brews pack more than a heady buzz — they improve your health, too

Beer makes you feel good. You knew that. But you don't realize just how good. Recent research has revealed bioactive compounds in beer that battle cancer, boost your metabolism, and more. And these benefits come on top of the oft-touted upsides of moderate alcohol intake: clot prevention, cleaner arteries, and reduced stress.

Click here for the rest of the article.

MR.BEER® - Fun for the whole family - Round 2!

2008-03-04T14:29:00.000-08:00

Pat Glennon and his kids are at it again at www.annoyinglyboring.com. This time they make the MrRootBeer Kit. Enjoy!

Why Can't They All Be Like This?

2008-02-23T07:14:00.000-08:00

I found this Blog on MR.BEER and had to share it with you. (ed.)

----

...I made a mistake while ordering (MR.BEER). I went through and ordered as a 'guest shopper' rather than creating an account. I figured it would be quicker.

It was only after my order went through that I realized that, without an account, I couldn't log in and check the progress off my order or get a tracking number. This is a big deal for me because delivery companies have a hell of a time finding my house.

So I sent an email to their customer support and asked if they could email me a tracking number. Going from my usual experience, I was hoping to get an email back sometimes before UPS tried to deliver, failed and returned to sender...
Click here for the rest of the article...

MR.BEER® - Fun for the whole family.

2008-02-22T09:53:00.000-08:00

You gotta check out this video of Pat Glennon of www.annoyinglyboring.com. He does a great job of following the initial MR.BEER& brewing instructions -- and his "helpers" make the process fun. Enjoy!

I'll be sure to post his bottling video when it becomes available.

MR.BEER® is HOPPING!

2008-02-18T15:33:00.000-08:00

WOW! The holiday season is way behind us -- but MR.BEER® is still hopping! (Pun Intended)

Our support team is fielding GREAT questions from our new brewers -- and our seasoned brewers are venturing into fruit beers and ciders while we wait patiently for hops stock to increase.

Our BrewMaster Select® series has really taken off as they are pre-hopped all-malt beers and because they are a great alternative to recipes currently out of stock due to the hop shortage. It's great to see brewers adapt!

I want to thank our friends at MrBeerFans.com and the MR.BEER Yahoo! Group for helping us support the MR.BEER® community. If you've not ventured into these user supported forums you're missing out on some great tips!

Thanks again for being a MR.BEER® customer. We owe our success to you!

Peter Gariepy

How to Assemble a Cornelius Keg

2008-02-01T13:51:00.000-08:00

Found this on WikiHow. Enjoy (Ed.)

Cornelius 5 gallon kegs are commonly used by homebrewers to keg homebrewed beer. It is generally easier to keg beer than it is to bottle beer. Used Cornelius kegs are commonly available, affordable and easy to clean and maintain. There are a decent amount of components that make up a Cornelius keg, and whether one is rebuilding a used keg or putting one together from spare parts, it's helpful to know what goes into assembling a Cornelius keg.

Click here for the rest of the article.

Photo without caption... (2)

2008-01-31T13:36:00.001-08:00

Every once in a while in life...

2008-01-30T13:05:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while in life, you run into a genius with true talent...

Our Warehouse

2008-01-29T10:59:00.000-08:00

Every year in January we do a physical inventory in our warehouse in Racine Wisconsin. Why the boss chose Wisconsin in the middle if winter is beyond me. :)

Ellen, Wholesale Orders Manager, took these picts.

Enjoy!

Peter

Traffic Jam Caused By Beer Truck

2008-01-25T08:24:00.000-08:00

A beer truck crashes on the highway and causes a huge traffic jam as everyone pulls over to steal beer.

Traffic Jam Caused By Beer Truck - Watch more free videos

Hopped Recipes Are Back!

2008-01-24T13:32:00.000-08:00

GREAT NEWS... Most of our hopped recipes are back!

Dear MR.BEER® Customers,

As many of you know MR.BEER® has been without hops since late December due to a worldwide hops shortage. The good news is we've recently received 5 of our original hops as well as 9 all-new hops -- many that replace unavailable varieties perfectly.

Until supplies increase hops will only be sold in conjunction with a recipe. Supplies of our pre-hopped malt extracts have not been effected by the hop shortage.

Thanks again for everyone's patience and understanding.

Happy Brewing!

Eddie Yueh
President

P.S. FREE SHIPPING - Order either 4 or 6 pack bundle or our Premium Brew Packs and get free shipping. Offer expires January 31st.

Broken long neck bottles while capping

2008-01-22T15:43:00.000-08:00

Question:
Dear Mr. Brewmaster, I recently broke a couple of the long necks while bottling my last batch of beer. I used your hand capper and metal caps. What gives?

– Totally Juiced, Venice CA

Answer:
Wow muscles, that must have hurt. Our double lever capper is meant to provide ease of use without need of brute force to crimp the metal cap securely onto your bottle. It also has a magnet where the cap top is seated to hold the cap securely as you are applying even pressure to bring the levers down to level. Bring the bottle up toward you as the levers are going down to avoid putting weight in addition to pressure on the bottle. This will ensure that you get a good seal on your cap while retaining the integrity of your bottle.

How to open a beer bottle with a dollar bill.

2008-01-22T14:36:00.000-08:00

Another Happy Customer...

2008-01-14T07:30:00.000-08:00

"A word about the Mr. Beer mini-micro-brewery. I’ve read comments on several lists that diss the Mr. Beer kits and the brews they output. I can unequivocally state that the naysayers were full of "doodoo". Every single kit batch I’ve sampled has been up to the standards of some of the best micro-brews I’ve bought from the package store, and better than most, frankly."

For the rest of the article click here.