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All Day Rye-P-A

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This is a tweak on one of my favourite American IPAs – Founders All Day IPA. The idea was to add a bit of background spice with the rye addition, and boost the fruity yeast esters by fermenting with some Vermont yeast, harvested from a bottle of Cloudwater DIPA v6 and made into a 2l starter. Style: American IPA ABV: 6% Batch volume:  24l Hops:  Chinook  |  Columbus  |  Pekko  |  Williamette IBU:  63 GRAIN BILL: Base malt:  4kg GOLDEN PROMISE Speciality grains:  300g CRYSTAL 20L  |  300g FLAKED OATS  |  100g RYE MASH SCHEDULE: Infusion:  15l Beta Glucan:  30 mins @ 45°c Protein rest:  30 mins @ 55°c Saccharification:  45 mins @ 65°c Mash out:  10 mins @ 78°c … Continue reading All Day Rye-P-A

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Tennents Whisky Beer @ Hotel du Vin

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— I’ll start by admitting I’m neither a lager fan nor a whisky buff. I tend to find the oesophagus-numbing blandness of lager fairly consistent from brand to brand, and the merest whiff of neat whisky makes my spine twitch. So an invitation to Tennents’ Whisky Beer launch at Glasgow’s luxurious Hotel Du Vin made me one of the least likely advocates of the evening. Thankfully, I’m magnanimous enough to put my preferences aside, and graciously test several free bottles of craft beer, alongside several rounds of Michelin Star worthy canapés from one of Scotland’s leading chefs, in one of Scotland’s … Continue reading Tennents Whisky Beer @ Hotel du Vin

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Heverlee Witte @ Sygn

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— I was lucky enough to bag an invitation to Edinburgh’s Sygn bar last Tuesday, for an evening sampling Heverlee’s recently launched Witte beer – a limited edition summer white beer. Making the trip from Leuven, Belgium was Heverlee’s master brewer Joris Brams. I couldn’t pass the opportunity to engage in some geekery with an expert brewer, and quiz him over the finer points of brewing. So I headed along to the party. A quick bit of background: Belgian born Joris worked with the monks of Park Abbey, Leuven, to uncover a variant of the Vogelmelk flower which is unique to the grounds of the abbey build in 1129 and helped to inspire … Continue reading Heverlee Witte @ Sygn

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B-I-Y @ Krafty Brew, Edinburgh

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— Over the years, it’s gradually dawned on us Brits that there’s a higher purpose to beer brewing than Tennents and Hofmeister* would have you believe. And, as our small nation develops a more discerning palette for malt and hops, this movement has urged the home brewing industry to up its game. I’ll interject here with a nostalgic anecdote. I remember the first time I tried to brew my own beer; it resembled a plastic hessian sack that conveniently looped onto a coat hook, and promised ‘Twenty pints of delicious, foaming, nut-brown ale.’ Of course, what it actually yielded was … Continue reading B-I-Y @ Krafty Brew, Edinburgh

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Craft Beer Rising @ Drygate

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— Last Saturday, Drygate brewery co-hosted a beer tasting event with Williams Brothers brewery and Craft Beer Rising – one the UK’s biggest beer event organisers. Forty beer-savvy attendees arrived, lured with the promise of tastings, testings and a lunch menu with matched beers. First, a bit about the brewery. If you’ve somehow managed to avoid the recent buzz around Williams Brothers’ and Tennents joint venture, you’ve done well. The last 12 months have seen Drygate in a frenzy of promotion, all in the pursuit of carving their name into craft beer and modern creative culture. They’re young, passionate and … Continue reading Craft Beer Rising @ Drygate