History and beauty. The Brandywine Valley is steeped in both.

Located roughly 45 minutes outside of Philadelphia, it’s where northern Delaware meets southeastern Pennsylvania. Here, Revolutionary War battles were waged, country estates belonging to industrial magnates were built, and world-renowned gardens were grown.

Over the last 20 to 30 years, it’s been a place where foodies and wine lovers alike have flocked to impeccable restaurants and rolling vineyards. But recently, there’s another feather in the Brandywine Valley’s tourism cap: beer travel.

And with the crisp fall weather, there’s no better time to go on a brewery road trip to the Brandywine Valley.… Read the rest “The Hills of Beer Are Alive in the Brandywine Valley”

In 1999, Learn To Homebrew Day was established as the first Saturday in November by the American Homebrewers Association to promote the most rewarding and delicious activity of all time—homebrewing. Beer lovers worldwide are invited to brew, share their knowledge, and celebrate the hobby of homebrewing annually.

Pledge to brew and save $ 5 on your AHA membership!

The post Save the Date: Learn to Homebrew Day, Nov. 5th appeared first on American Homebrewers Association.

American Homebrewers Association… Read the rest “Save the Date: Learn to Homebrew Day, Nov. 5th”

The roots of American craft beer extend throughout the nation, but the bines of the movement are clearly embedded in the Pacific Northwest (PNW). It’s there that hop farmers have cultivated not only a wealth of varietals but a thriving agricultural industry that provides brewers with 75 percent of the nation’s piney, citrusy, tropical-tinged botanical gems. Hundreds of breweries—from decades-old trailblazers to recently minted upstarts—blanket the Washington and Oregon landscape like densely packed bubbles comprising the aromatic head atop one of the region’s trademark IPAs. Here we present a quintet of standout operations to visit the next time you find yourself thirsting for authentic, local flavor in the Pacific Northwest.… Read the rest “5 Pacific Northwest Breweries to Please Any Palate”

Heat up your 1.5-2 gallons* (3.8-5.7 L) of brewing water to 160° F (71° C). With the specialty grains in a steeping bag (often called a muslin bag at homebrew shops), steep the grains. After 30 minutes, remove/discard the grain bag and stir in the malt extract. Stir until the extract is fully dissolved, taking care none has collected on the bottom of the pot.

Once the extract is dissolved, bring the liquid to a boil. Follow the hop addition schedule listed in the ingredients. Note that the timing of hops is from the end of the boil.… Read the rest “LTHD22 Hoppy Amber Ale”

Assistant brewer Chris carefully and methodically fills bottles with a crisp pale ale using a simple machine. He gently passes the bottles to his colleague Michaela, who is ready with a manual capping tool. She is absorbed in the task, carefully sanitizing new caps before lining up the bottles to stamp on a lid. This is Ignition Brewery, a microbrewery nestled in the Sydenham Community Centre in Lewisham, South East London. The only aspect of this scene that’s different from any other small brewery is that Chris and Michaela have a reduced intellectual ability and difficulty with everyday tasks along with diverse physical conditions.… Read the rest “Brewers with Learning Disabilities: Equity in the Workplace”

For more fermented food recipes, join/renew for one or three years with code KITCHEN to claim your free copy of The Fermentation Kitchen by Gabe Toth.

The following article is featured in the March/April 2021 Zymurgy magazine.

By Amahl Turczyn

Miso is a fermented paste traditionally made with soybeans. As with sake, miso ferments with the help of koji, that magic culinary mold Aspergillus oryzae, grown on rice or barley. The cooked soybeans are mixed with koji and a percentage of salt to control fermentation and deter unwanted microbes, and then blended into a paste and left to ferment at room temperature.… Read the rest “You Can Ferment That: How to Make Miso”

You know the saying: “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” Well, beer’s always been there for fish, but only recently have chefs around the country sufficiently established the pairings between seafood and suds to make them part of the local vernacular.

An Array of Flavors

Just as the speech pattern that turns words like “beer” into “beah” is a dominant trait in New Englanders, so too is a true affinity for seafood.… Read the rest “Salinity & Suds: Pairing Beer with Seafood”

In celebration of our AHA membership offer in September–get FREE copy of Fermentation Kitchen when you join/renew–we’ve compiled some of our favorite fermentation projects.

Get Your Book

These 5 fermented food recipes from around the world are perfect for your explorations into home fermentation.

Fermented Hot Sauce

Making your own hot sauce might sound oddly industrial, but chiles are one of the most straightforward foods you can ferment! Find recipes and procedures for making fermented hot sauce at home. You can follow along or alter the recipes with your favorite pepper, spice, and flavor combinations!