Mika Laitinen joins me this week to discuss his new book Viking Age Brew about ancient farmhouse brewing techniques including Sahti beer.
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[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/beersmith/BSHB-192-Viking-Brew.mp3]Topics in This Week’s Episode (43:53)
- This week my guest is Mika Laitinen, author of the new book Viking Age Brew (Amazon affiliate link) about Nordic and Sahti Farmhouse Ales.
- We first discuss the tradition of farmhouse ales, which were traditionally brewed throughout Europe using local ingredients going back 1000 years.
- Next Mika explains the Sahti farmhouse beer style which is native to Finland and Nordic countries, and has survived in Finland due to its association with certain festivals and ceremonies.
- We explore the handful of commercial breweries that still brew Sahti.
- We discuss some of the unique aspects of Sahti including its lack of hops, no boil during the brewing process, and use of herbs and rye malt.
- Mika explains how Sahti was traditionally brewed in wooden vessels using hot stones. He also shares typical ingredients used including juniper.
- We talk about the use of herbs, particularly juniper in the mash.
- He shares with us techniques for brewing ancient farmhouse ales at home, along with a sample recipe.
- Mika shares some resources where you can learn more on this topic.
Sponsors
- Thank you to our sponsor Craft Beer and Brewing Magazine for sponsoring this episode. I encourage you to subscribe to their great magazine!
- And also Anvil Brewing Equipment. Anvil is a new line of kettles, burners and accessories from John Blichmann at Blichmann Engineering. They make top quality brewing equipment built to last a lifetime.
- Also check out BeerSmith, BeerSmith Mobile software and the new DVDs John Palmer and I filmed – How to Brew with Malt Extract and How to Brew All Grain are available now. You can subscribe to the BeerSmith newsletter for free to get some great articles on home brewing.
Thanks to Mika Laitinen for appearing on the show and also to you for listening!
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