So Yeah, Dood…

This past Sunday saw me at my third BJCP course. The technical topic — water — was something I had a broad understanding of, but no real depth of knowledge. Light lagers are something most of us are familiar with — some people experience that familiarity with less enthusiasm than others, and the class was largely unified in its disdain prior to the tastings. More on that later…

I spoke with the technical topic presenter — Zymurnauts president Kevin Berry — prior to class, and noted my particular interest in the topic. He made sure to tell me that it was dangerous territory to tread as he feels that once you’be begun altering your water profiles it’s difficult not to do so every time you brew. Having seen his presentation, I can understand the sentiment entirely. Most typical beer drinkers don’t think about how important water chemistry is to the final flavor of their brew, and how much of an effect its had on the geography of beer styles throughout history. Sure, we’re marketed to by the macro-brewers about how clean their water is, or that it comes from the Rocky Mountains, but that doesn’t even tell half the story about water profiles. (more…)