Na Zdravi !

Beers. Mostly Craft Beers, Mostly West Coast.

Thursday, April 23, 2020

fresh beer

Na Zdravi!

A 10-second take.
Not really reviews, just my way to keep track of the beers I've tried.

My mother's family is Czech. They emigrated from Bohemia and settled in Nebraska in the mid-1800s.
They were from the region that included the town Pilzen (Pilsen) where a brewery called Měšťanský pivovar Plzeň, now Pilsner Urquell (Plzeňský Prazdroj in Czech), started brewing a uniquely Bohemian-style beer we now know as pilsner.
So, as I raise a glass in honor of my Bohemian roots ...

Na Zdravi! (to your health).

Reinheitsgebot

The Bavarian beer purity law of 1512 that declared that beer can only be brewed using water, barley and hops. This has been since amended to include yeast.
It is the very basic recipe for beer.

Malts?

Malted grain, traditionally barley, is the foundation of beer. It provides the sugars (starches) that will ultimately yeild the alcohol and carbonation.
Malts can be named for the region of origin, the arrangement of the barleycorns, or the varietal of the grain.
Light or dark roast grains affect the color and flavor of the brew.

Hops?

A "hop" is the cone shaped resinous flower of the female hop plant. It is used in brewing to add bitterness, flavor, aroma, and stability depending on when it is added.

Hops are one of the 4 basic ingredients of beer although they are not esential in the brewing process. The are used simply to add flavor and complexity to the brew.
Double and even triple IPA's feature an extreme amount of hops, and an ABV to match.
Noble Hops - The traditional varieties of hops that were used to make early European beers. Medieval brewers used Hallertau, Saaz, Spalt, and/or Tettnang hops. All are from Germany except Saaz from the Czech Republic (Žatec in Czech). All are still used today.

Yeast?

The magical ingredient that makes beer ... beer. Yeasts consume the sugars from the malted grain and the waste product of this process is alcohol and carbon dioxide.
The type of yeast used divides beer into two general categories, ales or lagers.
Yeast can also impart flavors and aromas to the brew.

ABV?

ABV stands for Alcohol By Volume and is expressed as a percentage. So a beer with an ABV of 5% is literally 5% alcohol and the rest is "flavored" water. Most beers fall in the 4.5% to 10% range,
Beers around 5% (or less) are sometimes referred to as Session or Sessionable Beers meaning they are suitable for drinking multiples in one "session".

IBU?

IBU stands for International Bittering Units which measure the bitterness of beers on a zero to whatever scale, although most all beers fall in the 5-120 range. What IBUs measure are the parts per million of isohumulone found in a beer. The higher the number the more bitter the beer ... well sorta. Different styles of beer can and do have different perceived bitterness based on their formulation.

Final Gravity

My #1 Bottleshop!

Search This Blog

Respect Beer

reviews, forum, and more

Labels

10 Barrel Brewing (2)
21st Amendment Brewing (12)
Abbey Ale (3)
Alameda Island Brewing (2)
Alaskan Brewing (4)
Ale (7)
Ale Industries (1)
Alesmith Brewing (3)
Allagash Brewing (3)
Almanac Beer Co. (5)
Altamont Beer Works (3)
Alvarado Street Brewing (5)
Amber Ale (10)
Amber Lager (5)
American River Brewing (2)
Anchor Brewing (13)
Anderson Valley Brewing (4)
Anheuser Busch (6)
Asian Pacific Breweries (1)
Auburn Alehouse (2)
Ballast Point Brewing (9)
Barebottle Brewing (1)
Barleywine (3)
Bear Republic Brewing (7)
Beer Ads (1)
Beer Quotes (4)
Belching Beaver Brewing (12)
Belgian Quadrupel (1)
Belgian Strong Ale (2)
Belgian Style Ale (3)
Benchmark Brewing (4)
Berryessa Brewing (1)
Bike Dog Brewing (5)
Bitter Brothers Brewing (2)
BJ's Brewhouse (2)
Black Ale (5)
Black Diamond Brewing (1)
Blonde Ale (18)
Blue Frog Brewing (1)
Booze Brothers Brewing (1)
Brasserie de Rochefort (3)
Brauerei Hofstetten (1)
Brauerei Michael Plank (1)
Breakside Brewery (1)
Brett Beer (1)
Brouwerji West (1)
Brouwerji Westmalle (1)
Brown Ale (17)
Burning Barrel Brewing (1)
Burning Beard Brewing (1)
Calapooia Brewing (1)
Calicraft Brewing (2)
Canyon Grill and Alehouse (23)
Carlsberg Breweries (1)
Casa Agria Specialty Ales (1)
Central Coast Brewing (1)
Chapman Crafted Beer (2)
Cigar City Brewing (2)
Claimstake Brewing (1)
Cleophus Quealy Brewing (1)
Clown Shoes Brewing (1)
Copperage Brewing (2)
Coronado Brewing (5)
Cream Ale (4)
Crooked Lane Brewing (3)
Crowns & Hops Brewing (1)
Deschutes Brewing (34)
Device Brewing (4)
Dogfish Head Brewery (3)
Dos Equis (1)
Double IPA (40)
Drake's Brewing (9)
Dubbel (3)
Dust Bowl Brewing (1)
Eel River Brewing (2)
El Segundo Brewing (1)
Electric Brewing (1)
Elysian Brewing (4)
Epidemic Ales (1)
ESB (Extra Special Bitter) (2)
Faction Brewing (2)
Federation Brewing (3)
Fieldwork Brewing (1)
Firestone Walker Brewing (23)
Flatland Brewing (2)
Flavored (17)
Flying Fish Brewing (1)
Fort Point Beer Company (1)
Fort Rock Brewing (2)
Founders Brewing (9)
Four Peaks Brewing (2)
Freewheel Brewing (1)
Fruit and Field (7)
Full Circle Brewing (3)
Full Sail Brewing (2)
Ghost Town Brewing (2)
Glassware (30)
GoodLife Brewing (1)
Gordon Biersch Brewing (3)
Gose (3)
Grass Valley Brewing (1)
Green Flash Brewing (2)
Grimm Artisanal Ales (1)
Gruit Ale (1)
Grupo Modelo (5)
Guinness (3)
Heater Allen Brewing (4)
Hefeweizen (10)
Helles (4)
HenHouse Brewing (6)
Heretic Brewing (11)
Hermitage Brewing (2)
High Water Brewing (2)
Hop Valley Brewing (6)
Hopsy (41)
Humble Sea Brewing (2)
Imperial Stout (12)
Indian Joe Brewing (1)
IPA (226)
Irish Dry Stout (3)
Irish Red Ale (5)
Iron Springs Brewing (2)
Jackrabbit Brewing (6)
Karl Strauss Brewing (4)
King Kong Brewing (2)
Knee Deep Brewing (2)
Kolsch (7)
Kona Brewing (4)
Lager (59)
Lagunitas Brewing (36)
Laughing Monk Brewing (1)
Lead Dog Brewing (6)
Light Beer (10)
Links (2)
Local Brewing (1)
Logsdon Farmhouse Ales (1)
Loomis Basin Brewing (7)
Lost Coast Brewing (6)
Mad River Brewing (4)
Magnolia Brewing (2)
Maibock (2)
Marin Brewing (1)
Maui Brewing (2)
Mendocino Brewing (2)
Michelada (2)
Mike Hess Brewing (4)
Mission Brewing (1)
ModernTimes Beer (1)
Moksa Brewing (4)
Molson Coors Brewing (3)
Moonlight Brewing (5)
Moonraker Brewing (1)
Morgan Territory Brewing (1)
Mother Earth Brew Co. (1)
Mother Earth Brewing (1)
Moylan's Brewery (2)
Mraz Brewing (4)
Mt. Shasta Brewing (3)
New Belgium Brewing (27)
New English Brewing (2)
New Glory Brewing (10)
Ninkasi Brewing (1)
North Coast Brewing (7)
North Park Beer Co. (2)
Occidental Brewing (1)
Ol' Republic Brewery (2)
Old Hangtown Beerworks (1)
Old Kan Beer (1)
Omission Brewing (1)
Original Patten Brewing (1)
Oskar Blues Brewing (6)
Out of Bounds Brewing (3)
Pabst Brewing (1)
Pale Ale (46)
Palm Tree Brewing (2)
Park Brauerei (1)
Peak Brewing (1)
Photos (47)
Pilsner (38)
Pilsner Urquel Brewery (3)
Pizza Port Brewing (4)
Plisner (1)
Porter (12)
Red Ale (5)
Red Bus Brewing (4)
Revision Brewing (1)
Rogue Ales (5)
Rubicon Brewing (1)
Russian River Brewing (11)
Sactown Union Brewery (3)
Saint Archer Brewing (2)
Saison (5)
Samuel Adams Brewing (2)
San Diego Brewing (2)
Schwarzbier (7)
Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy (4)
Scottish Ale (1)
Shady Oak Barrel House (1)
Sierra Nevada Brewing (96)
Sleeping Giant Brewery (1)
Smoke Beer (Rauchbier) (1)
Societe Brewing (3)
Solid Ground Brewing (2)
SoMa Beer Co. (2)
Sonoma Springs Brewing (2)
Sour (4)
South Lake Brewing (1)
Speakeasy Ales and Lagers (2)
Steam (California Common) beer (1)
Stella Artois Brewing (1)
Stone Brewing (12)
Stout (23)
Strike Brewing (2)
Stroh's Brewing (1)
Strong Ale (7)
Sudwerk Brewing (2)
Sunriver Brewing (1)
The Bruery (2)
The Hop Concept Brewing (1)
The Monk's Cellar (1)
Toppling Goliath Brewing (1)
Track Seven Brewing (7)
Tripel (1)
Triple IPA (2)
Trumer Brauerei (4)
Unibroue (1)
Urban Roots Brewing (5)
Wayfinder Beer (2)
Weizenbock (1)
Wheat (7)
Widmer Brothers Brewing (2)
Wild Ale (3)
Winter Warmer (7)
Witbier (6)
YOLO Brewing (2)

About Me

Steve: A slightly impaired baby boomer. Known raconteur, bon vivant, craft beer "connoisseur", internet curmudgeon, stroke survivor, full-time grandpa, and all-around good guy

View my complete profile

copyright

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.