American lager Stay Away from me
Some of us remember a great Canadian band by the name of The Guess who. They had a hit in the 60’s when they sang: American Woman, Stay away from me. Being good, beer drinking, Canadians, they probably also said: American lager, stay away from me as well. Anyone who drinks “real” beer will tell you the same. The mass produced American lagers, like Bud, Miller, Busch, Old Milwaukee, and PBR have a reputation as watery cheap beers. They sell well. Monty Python, famously, compared American beer to sex in a canoe (It’s F’ing close to water). And, they said that before the rise in popularity of light beer. What would they think of that? It’s a shame that these commercial beers have so much of the market. For, today is American Beer day. So, let’s find out what American beer is really about.
Brewing in America dates back to the first European Settlers. In the late 1500’s, Dutch Settlers in New Netherlands (Now New York and New Jersey) started brewing their style of beer locally. By 1632, The Dutch West Indies Company opened a brewery in Lower Manhattan. Then around the mid 1600’s, The British took over the territory. They brought their English style heavy ales to America. And, that was the standard until The 19th century when German immigrants introduced Lager style brewing that had a longer shelf life due to the hops and temperature controls. Lager style took off, and ever since, holds the top sales statistics across the country. Yeungling, in Pennsylvania is the oldest continuously operating brewery in the Country (1829). Their popularity spawned a bunch of Breweries in Wisconsin (Pabst, Miller, Schlitz, valentin) who opened large scale operations for mass production.
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Despite it’s popularity: American lager, stay away from me
Currently there are close to, if not more than, 10,000 Breweries in America. But, In Bev, Molson/coors, and Constellation brands Run the bulk of the beer market. These 3 companies own all the top sellers, not only in America, but throughout the world. And, thanks to these monopolies, many people never get to experience what true American Beer can and should be. While our country has some of the biggest, bustling metropolises, we also have some of the greatest agricultural resources with Miles of fertile land at our disposal. So, we can grow all the beer making ingredients we want. As a homebrewer, I can attest to the variety I can get delivered right to my door. Hops, grains, yeasts, and other ingredients pose endless possibilities. But, the bulk of beer consumed is all, pretty much, the same.
While there are die hard fans of Coor’s VS Bud VS miller, in the end, they are all the same type of beer. While they claim quality ingredients, it’s all mass produced. And, they aren’t above using fillers and adjuncts like corn and rice. Given the resources available, this is a shame. Most people only know these F’ing close to water beers. Think about it: over 10,000 breweries with multiple offerings, and the majority of people could probably only name anywhere from 3 to 12 beers. Well, if you are one of those people, today is the day to try something new. And, if you avoid the top sellers, continue saying, “American lager, stay away from me”. But, don’t hold that statement to all American beers. Do yourself and your community a favor, go to your local brewery and see what they have on tap.
Mix it up
Most local breweries, brew pubs, and tap rooms offer at least a half dozen beers. So, you’re bound to find one that tickles your fancy. And, if you are a real beer lover, you’ll find something appealing in each one you try. We recommend doing a flight of beers if they offer it. This is anywhere from 3 to 10 beers served in smaller glasses to let you sample each one they have on tap. They will usually arrange them from lightest to heaviest. All together, you end up with 1 to 2 beers since the glasses are small. But, you get to try a variety of styles. And, unless you live in some desolate place like northern Montana or the Dakota territories, a local craft brewery is not far.
So, drop what you’re doing, right now, and go to your local brewery (after reading this of course). Here is a brewery finder from craftbeer.com. If they’re closed, break in (No! Don’t do that!). But, if you don’t have the time or impetus to go to a brew pub, please, avoid the crowds and drink at home. You can get plenty of good American beers at your local package store, or even order online and have it delivered to you. There’s a whole world of beer to explore, so don’t settle for making love in a canoe.
What to expect when you say American Lager, stay away from me
Some people, especially those who drink the mass produced lagers, think that anything other than their beer is just some heavy undrinkable thing. How many times have I heard people say, “Oh, you like those dark beers…”? Just because it’s a “craft brew” doesn’t necessarily mean it’s heavy. Possibly, it’s the experience of actual flavor that throws off the uninitiated. Most craft brewers take great strides to ensure that each brew has a different feel, flavor, and effect. So, don’t poo poo it until you try it. And, go into it with an open mind. The first time you tried beer, you probably thought it was kind of nasty. But, it grew on you. Give micro/craft brews the same courtesy to decide if it’s for you or not.
There are multiple styles with varying degrees of hoppiness, malt flavors, density, color variations, and more. A favorite in the current market is hazy or New England Pale ales which is an unfiltered ale that is cloudy on purpose, highlighting citrus and hoppy notes. And, you are bound to find brews labeled as sessions or Saison ales. Both of these types tend to have a creamy feel to them. These are the antithesis of light beer, definitely not less filling, but, undeniably great tasting. Remember, beer is a form of comfort food. Why not try something that is truly that: comforting? The usual turnoffs in beer are bitterness and thickness. So, if you haven’t developed a palate for them, perhaps stouts and porters can wait.
Hops
Ironically, It’s the hops that cause the bitterness, but, also impart the unique flavors. And, IPA’s are very popular these days, even in establishments that cater to the Bud/Coor’s contingent. Typical American lagers are low on the bitterness scale, while IPA’s are specifically designed hop forward. While hops contribute bitterness, they also perform more functions. They serve as a preservative. India Pale ale came to be, not in India, but on boats going from England to India for trade. Beer was a staple. On the long voyages, it would spoil. So, they learned to dry hop it (add hops after the initial brewing process). This stabilized it, and added a whole new dimension of flavor.
And, that’s something modern brewers are well aware of. The variety of hops out there serve multiple purposes. Some have higher acidic profiles that contribute to extra bitterness. But, all have a variety of flavors to offer. They span a spectrum from fruity to citrus to herbal to scents like pine and earth. You may encounter flavors and aroma of pineapple, lemon, mango, tangerine, peach, green tea, herbs, and more. While bud and its competitors tone down the hop flavors and bitterness, craft brews celebrate the possibilities. Fruitier hops may spend longer in the “wort”, while more acidic ones will just come in at the end to add bitterness.
Malt
You can malt most grains. It is actually a process designed to enhance and/or convert sugars from grains. They soak the grain (such as barley) to start it germinating. Then they halt the process by drying the grains with hot air. It’s a little like roasting coffee. The darker the roast, the more intense the flavors. This is part of the reason why drinkers of commercial beer scoff at “dark” beers. It’s like drinking dunkin’ coffee with extra cream and extra sugar, or the dreaded PSL VS a straight double espresso. While the Dunkin’ may have an essence of coffee, it’s just part of a bunch of other things. The Straight espresso is pure, heavily roasted, coffee. And, not everyone has the palate for that. But, the base difference is how long the beans are roasted. Espresso is practically burnt, while DD coffee is slightly under-cooked.
American lagers (stay away from me), use very light roast malts (and some fillers) to attain a decidedly golden hue for their beers. You have to admit, they are consistently pretty in color and clarity. Remember, Budweiser was based on the Czech Budweis (pronounced Bood vah). Unfortunately, over the years, they dumbed it down to attract a mass following by eliminating characteristic features that don’t appeal to the lowest common denominator. They are decidedly unadventurous on purpose. Some people go on to try different levels of roasted barley. The darker the roast, the heavier the beer, and the flavor possibilities are multifarious. There are base malts that are primarily the sweet sugary component of beer, and specialty malts that are less about sugars, and more about unique flavors.
Yeast
While yeast is the smallest ingredient in beer, it is definitely one of the most important. It can make or break the beer for many reasons. Yeast occurs naturally. It’s in the air we breathe. And, it can do good things or bad. Too much yeast can create an overactive beer, while too little will result in a flat one. And, if any wild yeast strains get into your beer, it can ruin it, introducing unwanted esters, bacteria, and other dangers to the beverage. What yeast does is eat the sugars in beer. When this happens, the yeast converts the sugar to alcohol and gasses. We know the gas as carbonation.
It also creates flavors. And, there are Esters, which are scents and boosting of flavors like Honey, wine, and fruit. Then we have Vicinal Diketones (VDKs) which create butter, caramel, and butterscotch flavors and aromas. And, we have phenols which create what some refer to as petrol type attributes. While this may sound off putting, with the proper combination of ingredients, it creates a certain creaminess and balances out a beer. That’s why it’s important to properly ferment your beers. If you bottle too soon, the yeasts won’t finish their job. For instance, some yeasts create DVK’s during fermentation. If they don’t have time to re-convert them, the flavors don’t meld, and you end up with a “skunky” off putting ale. The same with phenols. They give Saison ales and some Germanic wheat beers their characteristic appeal. But, they can also make your beer taste like gasoline.
So, you see, you can’t just use any yeast. While beer is essentially, bread, bread yeast doesn’t promote the right flavors, aromas, or mouthfeel that specifically cultivated strains do.
Put them together, and you have beer
American lager, stay away from me. That doesn’t have to be the case. While the mass produced beers use fillers to blunt the flavors of their already lightly roasted malt, stultify the features of the hops, and use tightly controlled yeast strains that prohibit unwanted flavors, there are many alternatives. And, these beers do make for an easy transition to the world of alcoholic beverages. But, today, try to expand beyond them. Even the mass producers know that their beers are only a starting point. Today, the top selling beers in America are all part of a portfolio owned by multi-national conglomerates. So, the people who bring you Bud, also produce Goose Island, and some other brands that you would consider “craft” brews.
Even before the big three beer companies were bought out, they produced a variety of beers. But, it’s always been the intro beers that sold the best. Budweiser, Miller, and Coor’s are all capable of brewing some exceptional beers that would make the most ardent craft beer producer jealous. But, they don’t for a couple reasons. 1) market share, it’s not very profitable, 2) Authenticity: Micro brew aficionados won’t buy something from a mass producer, just out of spite, also because it just reeks of fake (even if it is superior). We want to meet the brewer and owner, and know they are real people, not just someone hired by a giant corporation. Basically, it lacks heart. It’s like the AI of brewing. Instead, they buy craft breweries and distribute their beer for a bigger profit and more market share.
Time to say Bye Bye to American Lager, so stay away from me
Not totally. But, why not take the extra step and buy local. Support your local brewery. You can still drink American Lager, but stay away from the mass producers. And, if you have the right equipment and refrigeration, you can even brew your own. Personally, I haven’t been adventurous enough to branch out into lagers. It’s probably from overthinking it, or laziness. But, I actually prefer ales to lagers in general. That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a well done lager from time to time. And, you should too.
In the meantime, drink some American beer, not the making love in a canoe type. The kind that says welcome to the neighborhood. And, don’t forget to eat something while drinking. We don’t want you get in trouble. So, here are some American beer friendly recipes.
Cheers!
Deck The Malts Saison Ale
Equipment
- Tall large brewing Pot
- 6 Gallon Carboy
- Racking buckets
- Tubing
- Air lock
- Blow off tube
- Carboy topper/ stopper
- Bottling tube
- Bottle capper
- Bottle caps
- bottles
Ingredients
- 1 Lb Caramel Malt
- 1 Lb American Honey Malt
- 1/2 Lb Munich Malt
- 3 Tbsp Coriander Seeds
- 2 Tbsp Cardamom Pods
- 4 Each Cinnamon Sticks
- 6 Lb Golden Malt Extract
- 2 Oz Zappa Pellet Hops
- 2 Cups Mosaic Leaf Hops
- 2 Cups Cascade Leaf Hops
- 2 Oz Centennial Pellet Hops
- 2 oz Cascade Pellet Hops
- 8 oz Honey
- 2 Cups Brown Sugar
- 12 Grams Saison Ale Yeast
Instructions
- Thoroughly clean and sanitize all equipment before brewing, transferring, fermenting, and bottling
- Bring 3 gallons of water to a boil. Put the malts in a brewing bag/sack. Put the bag in the water. Then add in the spices. Simmer for 45 minutes.
- Remove the bag of malts. Stir in the malt extract. Return to a boil. Add in the mosaic and Zappa hops. Boil for 5 Minutes. Then add the cascade leaf hops
- Boil for another 10 minutes. Then add the remaining hops, honey and brown sugar. Stir well to dissolve all the sugars. You can add a flocking tablet or Irish moss at this point, to help clarify the ale. Boil for another 10 minutes.
- Strain the wort well into a racking tun (Large container, preferably with a spigot). Then, transfer to a sanitized carboy (fermenting tub or bottle). Add in enough cold water to bring the volume up to 5.5 gallons. The cold water will also cool down the wort, so you can add the yeast without killing it.
- When the wort is no longer warm/hot, pitch the yeast onto the wort. Place a blow off tube in a stopper, and cap the carboy with that. Place a container with a little water in it next to the bottle to catch blow off from the fermenting process. Place in a cool dark area where it won't be disturbed for a couple weeks.
- After about 3 to 4 days, the activity level of the fermenting should slow down considerably. At this point, switch the blow off tube for an airlock. Let it ferment for another 10 to 14 days.
- Look at the activity level of the brew. After about 2 weeks, the yeast will dwindle down to very little activity. You will be able to tell by how fast and how many bubbles form in the airlock.
- At this point, it's time to bottle. Sanitize, your bottles, bottle caps, and all equipment used in the bottling process.
- Using a siphon or transfer pump, transfer the ale from the carboy to a racking tun. Do this through another filter. Be careful not to suck up the sediment that fills the bottom of the carboy. This is why we start with 5.5 gallons. You will lose at least 1/2 gallon to the sediment (possibly more). Test your ale for measurements of alcohol, sugar, and specific gravity at this point.
- Dissolve 1 cup corn sugar or other type of sugar in water on a stove to make sure it is completely dissolved. I also, usually boil my bottle caps at this time (to sanitize them). Let the sugar mixture cool a little. Then whisk it into the wort.
- Transfer the ale to the bottles. Cap the bottles. Then, store them in a dark cool place to do a secondary fermentation for at least 2 weeks. Be careful when opening the first bottles that they aren't overly active. Enjoy your own home made ale!