In brewing, one of the biggest lessons that I've learned is: KNOW YOUR INGREDIENTS!
Now I don't want to come off insulting, and I certainly don't consider myself a brew master yet, but I want to challenge some of you especially when it comes to Gruits or herbed beer recipes.
The thing I hear the most is "its not something I want to drink more than a pint of." That's fair and I can't say that I've made a Gruit yet that I REALLY love (although I have some friends that think a couple of my herbed beers are absolutely great). Even though some of my friends like what I've made, I realized I was going about it all wrong.
For one, we all have to remember that this is essentially a lost craft. There's very few (if anyone) who is deeply familiar with the taste of the Gruits from say a thousand years ago. We know some of the herbs that brewers used but we're basically starting from scratch as far as putting recipes together. What did the first hopped beers taste like? How long did it take before the first good IPA was born?
Obviously there are many brewers who know a lot about hops. They know which ones are earthy, which ones are citrusy, which ones are floral, and so on. They know the typical alpha ranges, best times for additions, etc. How many brewers can say the same about herbs?
The secret, I believe, to making an outstanding herbed beer is in developing a similar awareness for the ingredients you want to use. That and acquiring ingredients that are really of brewing quality. You don't go to the grocery store to buy hops for beer do you? So why would you buy brewing herbs at the grocery store?
Imagine for a moment, you are brewing a hopped beer. Now, imagine that instead of using hop flowers, you are only using the leaves and stems. AND they've been sitting in a store for 2 years. Imagine what that beer tastes like.
The same can be said for herbed beers. Even though the bulk herbs you get at health food/natural stores are useful, they are rarely of a quality that is comparable to the quality of hops you get from a brewing supplier. Not only that, but you may not even be getting the complete plant. Take for instance mugwort and wormwood. A lot of brewers are using these herbs. I have never seen mugwort or wormwood for sale that contains the flowers. Have you ever smelled fresh wormwood flowers? They are incredible! AND there are many aromatics and essential oils that would make a truly great beer. But what you get at the store is similar to using hop plants without the flowers. If the ingredients aren't exciting, than the brew isn't going to be either.
So we've established quality. Next is knowing how to use the herbs.
A lot of times we just throw them into the boil. We're not giving them the same care and consideration that we give to hops. In herbalism, when making teas for example, each herb has a particular method that is appropriate for extraction. Some need to be boiled for a while, some only steeped, and some are best infused over several hours. Many flowers have aromatic oils that are completely damaged by heat.
So, I believe the 3 biggest rules for brewing with herbs are:
#1 - Find a quality source. Grow them yourself, get them from someone local, or order from someone who takes pride in what they're growing (like a hop grower!)
#2 - Find out the best way to use them. What type of heat and for long, or if they should be used dry. Are the active compounds water soluble or only alcohol soluble. Really get to know this herb.
#3 - Don't use too many herbs! Too many flavors just becomes a muddled mess and none get to shine. Even in herbalism, making preparations with too many herbs can depreciate the medicinal value. Its best to keep it simple and use herbs that can enhance each others qualities.
Really though, in my opinion, you shouldn't use any ingredients that you don't know very well. I would go as far to say that if you don't know what the living plant looks like, don't use it. But then again, I am very comfortable with cinnamon even though I don't know what a cinnamon tree looks like. Find a happy medium there. Its important that you can imagine the result rather than blind experimentation. I've done this myself and have vowed never again. I don't plan to use myrica gale or wild rosemary in a gruit again until I can get seed and grow them myself or wild harvest them. I just don't know these plants so I really don't feel comfortable creating recipes around them. On the other hand, I have been growing wormwood for a few years now and mugwort and yarrow grow wild where I live. I plan to use these all the time - I know what they look like, smell like, and taste like very well.
So to wrap it up, here's what I plan on doing for my next batch of herbed beer to give you an idea (which will be a wormwood ale).
I will likely use 3/4oz of plant material total (which all came from my garden)
* I will boil dried leaves for 15-20 minutes.
* I will add dried flowers near end of boil
* I will add a bit more dried flowers into the whirlpool to ensure aroma
That sounds pretty interesting doesn't it? Much more so than boiling the old, cut leaves and stems sitting in a plastic container at the health food store which does little more than add bitterness.
I really do want brewers to make great herbed beers. I hope these thoughts impart some ideas for you all.
Now I don't want to come off insulting, and I certainly don't consider myself a brew master yet, but I want to challenge some of you especially when it comes to Gruits or herbed beer recipes.
The thing I hear the most is "its not something I want to drink more than a pint of." That's fair and I can't say that I've made a Gruit yet that I REALLY love (although I have some friends that think a couple of my herbed beers are absolutely great). Even though some of my friends like what I've made, I realized I was going about it all wrong.
For one, we all have to remember that this is essentially a lost craft. There's very few (if anyone) who is deeply familiar with the taste of the Gruits from say a thousand years ago. We know some of the herbs that brewers used but we're basically starting from scratch as far as putting recipes together. What did the first hopped beers taste like? How long did it take before the first good IPA was born?
Obviously there are many brewers who know a lot about hops. They know which ones are earthy, which ones are citrusy, which ones are floral, and so on. They know the typical alpha ranges, best times for additions, etc. How many brewers can say the same about herbs?
The secret, I believe, to making an outstanding herbed beer is in developing a similar awareness for the ingredients you want to use. That and acquiring ingredients that are really of brewing quality. You don't go to the grocery store to buy hops for beer do you? So why would you buy brewing herbs at the grocery store?
Imagine for a moment, you are brewing a hopped beer. Now, imagine that instead of using hop flowers, you are only using the leaves and stems. AND they've been sitting in a store for 2 years. Imagine what that beer tastes like.
The same can be said for herbed beers. Even though the bulk herbs you get at health food/natural stores are useful, they are rarely of a quality that is comparable to the quality of hops you get from a brewing supplier. Not only that, but you may not even be getting the complete plant. Take for instance mugwort and wormwood. A lot of brewers are using these herbs. I have never seen mugwort or wormwood for sale that contains the flowers. Have you ever smelled fresh wormwood flowers? They are incredible! AND there are many aromatics and essential oils that would make a truly great beer. But what you get at the store is similar to using hop plants without the flowers. If the ingredients aren't exciting, than the brew isn't going to be either.
So we've established quality. Next is knowing how to use the herbs.
A lot of times we just throw them into the boil. We're not giving them the same care and consideration that we give to hops. In herbalism, when making teas for example, each herb has a particular method that is appropriate for extraction. Some need to be boiled for a while, some only steeped, and some are best infused over several hours. Many flowers have aromatic oils that are completely damaged by heat.
So, I believe the 3 biggest rules for brewing with herbs are:
#1 - Find a quality source. Grow them yourself, get them from someone local, or order from someone who takes pride in what they're growing (like a hop grower!)
#2 - Find out the best way to use them. What type of heat and for long, or if they should be used dry. Are the active compounds water soluble or only alcohol soluble. Really get to know this herb.
#3 - Don't use too many herbs! Too many flavors just becomes a muddled mess and none get to shine. Even in herbalism, making preparations with too many herbs can depreciate the medicinal value. Its best to keep it simple and use herbs that can enhance each others qualities.
Really though, in my opinion, you shouldn't use any ingredients that you don't know very well. I would go as far to say that if you don't know what the living plant looks like, don't use it. But then again, I am very comfortable with cinnamon even though I don't know what a cinnamon tree looks like. Find a happy medium there. Its important that you can imagine the result rather than blind experimentation. I've done this myself and have vowed never again. I don't plan to use myrica gale or wild rosemary in a gruit again until I can get seed and grow them myself or wild harvest them. I just don't know these plants so I really don't feel comfortable creating recipes around them. On the other hand, I have been growing wormwood for a few years now and mugwort and yarrow grow wild where I live. I plan to use these all the time - I know what they look like, smell like, and taste like very well.
So to wrap it up, here's what I plan on doing for my next batch of herbed beer to give you an idea (which will be a wormwood ale).
I will likely use 3/4oz of plant material total (which all came from my garden)
* I will boil dried leaves for 15-20 minutes.
* I will add dried flowers near end of boil
* I will add a bit more dried flowers into the whirlpool to ensure aroma
That sounds pretty interesting doesn't it? Much more so than boiling the old, cut leaves and stems sitting in a plastic container at the health food store which does little more than add bitterness.
I really do want brewers to make great herbed beers. I hope these thoughts impart some ideas for you all.
