Questions for a Master Brewer

I'm going to trek 400 miles to go to the Deschutes Brewery's open house to pick the brain of their brewers. For those who do not live in the NorthWest... Deschutes is a highly regarded brewery for its amazing tasting beers of all major styles.

I'm writing up some questions to ask the brewers and thoughy some input from you guys would be great.

http://www.deschutesbrewery.com/Banquets/Upcoming+Events/default.aspx
Thats the event I'm attending(Open House and Barrel Tasting... will be outdated in a week from this post)

So please help me come up with some great questions to nail these top-notch brewers with :rockin:

say, has anyone ever tried papaya, i feel like that might go well with a wheat beer

What?!
That is soo far off topic I must server you Forum Ritalin!

Hey, if you snipe some kick a$$ recipes, be sure to share. . . Seriously, though. . .all the questions I should ask, and I can't remember any of them.. . I'm sure I'll think of something. . .

berkeleybrew said:

say, has anyone ever tried papaya, i feel like that might go well with a wheat beer

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no joke. . .what the ???

There was another thread about fruit beers yesterday - did you mean to post that question there?

How can I get ahold of some shortfills?

Ever wonder what it would be like to make a beverage with 1/3 malt, 1/3 honey and 1/3 grapes?

berkeleybrew said:

say, has anyone ever tried papaya, i feel like that might go well with a wheat beer

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O/T? I took it as a suggested question. A lot of brewing experience up there...another way to ask might be to say "what are the weirdest fruit beers have you made?"

Or more generally, "what's the most unusual ingredient you've added to a brew that worked out unexpectedly well?"

This place doesn't look like it puts too much effort into fruit beers. Perhaps a good question might be something like:

"With the acquisition of breweries like Rolling Rock and Goose Island by major brewing companies like Budweiser, how much longer will the craft brewer be able to survive? Do you see a degredation in quality (both real and perceived) of craftbrewed beers as they try to meet the demand of a national market?"

or

"Is there any evidence that new, genetically modified hops strains will hurt the image of the craftbrewer, or will they usher in a new interest in craft brewing from the new flavor combinations that can be achieved?"

I have a question. The closest store that sells Black Butte Porter is way too far from me, (about 2 miles) do you deliver?

True, craft brewers are being snapped up by the big boys, but does that spell doom for the little man? I think not. Just makes them try harder, and if the big brewers don't realize that if they hose the beers that they're gonna incorporate into their lineup, and people decide to look elsewhere for there hops and barley, then someone in development ain't doing their job...:rockin:

We could ask about trends they see, market research, that sort of thing. It doesn't really affect our life so much, but they love to talk about it. It makes them feel happy.

The first question "can I have more Mirror Pond, please?" (repeat with Black Butte and Obsidian).

You are a lucky man. Let's see, serious things to ask about:

Most exciting recent evolution in American Craft Brew.
How much experimentation do they do, and what kind of test brews do they have going (and can I have a taste)?
I heard a rumor about some one importing their beers to Japan in the near future.
What kind of education/ study they would recommend for someone eitther looking to advance their home brew or turn pro.

Followed by the questions:
Can I have some yeast?
Can I have some bottle caps?
Can I have that?
How about more Mirror Pond?
Any junked kegs laying around?

　鯰　 said:

The first question "can I have more Mirror Pond, please?" (repeat with Black Butte and Obsidian).

You are a lucky man. Let's see, serious things to ask about:

Most exciting recent evolution in American Craft Brew.
How much experimentation do they do, and what kind of test brews do they have going (and can I have a taste)?
I heard a rumor about some one importing their beers to Japan in the near future.
What kind of education/ study they would recommend for someone eitther looking to advance their home brew or turn pro.

Followed by the questions:
Can I have some yeast?
Can I have some bottle caps?
Can I have that?
How about more Mirror Pond?
Any junked kegs laying around?

Click to expand...

I went back and got a mason jar of yeast.
No junked kegs, they turn them into bbqs and ashtrays.
Some of the brewers had some serious education, while other brewers just worked their way up from the bottling line with their passion for beer.

They just recently opened up a new program where they let a panel of brewers experiment with beers. They do it in a round robin rotation where each brewer gets the pubs 100barrel system for two months. I think it ended up that each brewer could make an experimental batch a year (that would take some prep). I was also lucky enough to get a wax'd 22 of Mirror Mirror (their double mashed barley wine YUM)

When I talked about the market of things they simply stated that craft brewing is/has/will go further and farther. The head brewer stated that they keep a good friend ship with other breweries like Sierra Nevada, so they do not kill themselves by competing. When I brang up large companies gobbling up craft breweries, he just laughed and said that the real people behind the craft brewery would just start another one.

He also brang up a good point. Craft brewing isn't determined by the amount of beer you make, but how, and who makes it.

In the middle of conversation another brewer in saftey goggles and a lab coat came running up to us with a pitcher saying "Perfected!" and poured us their upcoming Pilsner beer. I honestly thought it was a bit hoppy for a pilsner, but it was very good all the same.

My favorite is their Jubilale, I got a list of their grain-bill and what hops they have on hand (he said they use E.K. Goldings on the back) going to release an official clone recipe soon.