This week I welcome back Gordon Strong to discuss lager fermentation, lager yeast flavors, judging beer as well as some trends in craft brewing.
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Topics in This Week’s Episode (54:29)
- This week I welcome back Gordon Strong. Gordon Strong is the President Emeritus of the Beer Judge Certification Program, its highest rated beer judge, and author of the books Modern Homebrew Recipes and Brewing Better Beer (Books links are paid Amazon affiliate links).
- Gordon starts by discussing his recent travels and beer events.
- We talk about the basic fermentation character of lagers and how it differs from ales.
- Gordon discusses Sulfur, which is a common off flavor in lagers – especially very young lagers as well as methods to mitigate it.
- We discuss “Clean Fermentation” and what it means with respect to lagers, as it is slightly different than with ales. Again the difference is larger with fresh lager beers.
- Gordon provides some advice for those looking to make a clean, fresh lager with few flaws.
- Gordon recently judged at both the Great American Beer Fest and World Beer Cup and he shares some of his observations with regards to both.
- We talk about some recent trends he has observed in craft beers and craft breweries.
- Gordon shares his tips for pro brewers looking to enter a major beer competition, and how you can position your beer to be a winner.
- Gordon closes with his thoughts on making a great lager, as well as craft beer and judging.
Sponsors
- Thank you to our sponsor Craft Beer and Brewing Magazine for sponsoring this episode. I encourage you to subscribe to their great magazine!
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