At Speakbeer.com you will find blog posts about craft beer, brewing, and beer/food pairing that will get you talking the language of beer while providing tips and advice about the art of brewing at home.
What do you get when a cart full of malted barley collides with a tropical fruit filled semi-truck? HGH (Home Grown Hops), part DUH! A very limited release Strong Ale presented by Oskar Blues, brewed with hops grown on their … Continue reading
If you have ever attempted to make a world class American style IPA, you know how difficult the task. IPA’s are all about balance. They are a very delicate dance between a massive hop presence and a sweet but not … Continue reading
Haven’t blogged in a few weeks. Good to be back in the saddle. Although the blogging may have slowed, the drinking has not. I have a great beer to share from an award winning brewery, Firestone Walker Brewing Company. Union … Continue reading
Another single bottle sample from a friend… Full Sail Brewing is a well respected brewer of fine ales from the Hood River, Oregon area. They are a gold standard of Pacific Northwest breweries, pumping out fine ales since 1987. … Continue reading
A friend gave me a can of this newbie to the craft beer market (new here in the Baltimore/DC area). To be honest, I did not get a look at the can to see that there was anything different about … Continue reading
I have been meaning to pop the top off one of these stubby, retro bottles for quite some time. Available by the 12 pack, this beer is marketed and brewed with “session” drinkers in mind. Session Premium Lager pours … Continue reading
Looking for a bold, citrusy hop punch in the face, followed by the spciy slap of a Saison? Flying Dog has a beer for you. Wildeman is on the loose… I was eagerly anticipating this release to find its way … Continue reading
I had a recent request from a brewing student that we brew a world class Belgian Lager on instruction day. We discussed the ins and outs of brewing, fermenting and aging lager beer, and during that conversation I recommended a … Continue reading
I enjoyed reading Lost In The Beer Aisle’s recent post about his adventures at the Boston Extreme Beer Festival this past weekend. What a line up! And as his post replies mention, he did not even get to try many … Continue reading
Stopped by the liquor store this afternoon and eyed a single can of Oskar Blue’s OLD CHUB with my name on it. Couldn’t resist giving this highly regarded Wee Heavy Scotch Ale a taste, especially as my Scotch Ale is … Continue reading
This past Friday I had the pleasure of offering advice and instruction to two brewers looking to take their craft to the next level. We spent the morning brewing a custom designed, all-grain American Rye IPA together. Felipe and JC … Continue reading
With just 80 days remaining before the April CRABS homebrew meeting competition, we finally got around to brewing a “Wee Heavy” Scotch Ale. Our results were anything but Wee…more on that after some background info on this style. Wee Heavy’s … Continue reading
I love to cook with grains. Beans, brown rice, bulgar wheat, oat bran…it”s all good with me. I’ve got a 35 lb. sack of malted wheat sitting in my brew house that will not see a mash tun in the … Continue reading
One of my favorite American IPA’s is Bear Republic’s Racer 5. It is a fantastically balanced, malty smooth yet bracingly bitter IPA that relies heavily on another of my favorite things…Columbus hops. Columbus hops are a high alpha-acid bittering hop … Continue reading
My BEEResolution #11 is to enter beers into the monthly CRABS competition and compete for our club’s Homebrewer of the Year award. The first competition was held this past week. The style being Brown Ales. My next door neighbor and … Continue reading
Yesterday evening’s tasting event at Constellation Books was a great success. We had a varied line-up of winter warming stouts on hand (six in all) that were a joy to behold (and to drink!). Creating a tasting consisting of one … Continue reading
My Speakbeer BEEResolution #11 is to enter brews into the monthly CRABS competitions, our local homebrew club. I will be entering my English Mild in the January competition this next week. Wish me luck! I decided to brew an ESB for the February … Continue reading
While studying for my Cicerone Certification I decided to give some beer/food pairing advice a true test. All About Beer Magazine has a great article written by none other than Brooklyn Brewery’s Brewmaster Garrett Oliver on the subject of matching beer with food. … Continue reading
What’s a new year without resolutions? What better resolution than a BEEResolution? In 2012, I resolve to… Earn my Cicerone certification. Brew at least twice a month. Expand my beer horizons with innovative brewing ingredients and techniques. Blog about my … Continue reading
I brewed an English Mild Ale three weeks ago (see post) and chose to cask condition the brew in a cornie keg to mimic as best I could a Real Ale experience. For those of you not familiar, cask conditioning … Continue reading
