Don Tse

Conditioning in the container may be a path to longer shelf life, but it’s also a traditional way to prepare beer for the drinker—the beer is “alive” until it hits the glass. Here’s a technical look at two traditions that may provide inspiration for today’s brewers.

• Package Conditioning
• Bottle Conditioning
• Shelf Life

One of the most effective ways to increase shelf life is one of the oldest tricks in the book: package conditioning with a bit of fresh yeast. Yet there are pitfalls. Here’s how “the biggest natural-conditioning operation in the world” goes about it.

• Package Conditioning
• Bottle Conditioning
• Can Conditioning

In the battle against staling, understanding your malt’s free amino nitrogen content is a tactic worth deploying.

• Malt
• Shelf Life
• Staling

Whether it’s the various costs involved, location, conveyance, or keeping peace with the neighbors, here are some key considerations when it’s time for your brewery to bulk up.

• Malt
• Storage
• Ingredients

Despite recent troubles with input costs and supply chain, the vibes coming from the malt market seem relatively calm and upbeat. Hey, let’s not jinx it.

• Malt
• Ingredients
• Raw Materials

Are common misconceptions contaminating your cellar? We asked the yeast labs about what things brewers often get wrong. Here’s their advice.

• Fermentation
• Yeast

While malted corn isn’t always easy to work with, craft maltsters and brewers are figuring out how best to use what is essentially a new and flavorful ingredient. As interest grows, so will the options and the expertise.

• Corn
• Ingredients
• Raw Materials

A method known to the largest lager brewers and many homebrewers remains relatively rare at small breweries—pressure fermentation. When properly applied, it can be an effective way to trim tank time and control the quality of cleaner-fermenting beers.

• Cellar
• Fermentation
• CO2

Inspired by traditional farmhouse brewing, and further propelled by positive results—including increased sales—some brewers say they’re getting better beers without boiling.

• No-Boil
• Hazy IPA
• Kveik

Better brewing through chemistry? From avoiding stuck mashes to boosting hop aroma while dodging diacetyl (and decreasing tank time), there may be multiple uses for exogenous enzymes in your brewery.

• Enzymes
• Exogenous Enzymes
• ALDC

Kettle acidification has become an important technique in the craft brewer’s bag of tricks. Here’s some advice from a few of the best in the business on how to get greater consistency and depth of flavor when deploying lactic acid–producing bacteria.

• Acidification
• Fruit Beer
• Kettle Sour

They don’t just look impressive and produce some unique beers, but they’re also relatively inexpensive and easy to maintain. Might a foeder be a good fit for your cellar?

• Cellar
• Foeders
• Barrel-Aging