Dessert Beer, No Hops.

[user 108580]

OP, I notice you're in Petaluma. Moonlight Brewing up in Windsor has been releasing gruits every now and then for the last few years, and I've loved the ones I've been lucky enough to sample. I wouldn't necessarily describe any of them as "dessert beers", they're really herbal beers, an older style of brewing before hops became the de facto herb to use. There are herbs other than hops that act as natural preservatives. Randy Mosher devotes a few pages to gruits in his book "Radical Brewing", and Stephen Harrod Buhner's "Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers" is another one to look at, although his approach is much different.

I'll have to check some of their stuff out. I've been recently branching out and trying many different styles/varities to break away from the norm. The only one I havent been brave enough to try is a wild ale.... everytime I hear someone describe it it sounds god awful. One of these days though. Thanks for the info, supermoth

 

[Denny]

When I brewed Denny conns bourbon porter, I had thought about not adding hops when I took my pre boil reading, it tasted that damn good. Its on my to do list.

I wouldn't recommend doing that.

 

[BigKahuna]

Quite a few of the other herbs used in gruit do have a bit of a preservative quality, but not as good for stabilizing beer as hops. ut you need something, or just make a gallon batch and drink it fresh.

OR... You Could.... Wait.... No, actually a 1 gallon separate batch from a mash or boil seems like a great idea!

Never Listen To Revvy! (Always listen to Revvy!)

 

[roymullins]

aren't hops and weed closely related?... that might be a hell of an option in lieu of hops...

 

[BigKahuna]

aren't hops and weed closely related?... that might be a hell of an option in lieu of hops...

Really a Bull**** Idea!
No, No and NO!
IF i were you I'd delete this post!

 

[moti_mo]

It doesn't take much hops to preserve a beer, look at Bud light...there's no discernable hop character, but it doesn't spoil....You don't reall taste or smell them, yet they're there nonetheless.

From Anheiser Busch's website:

"In the early 1870s, Adolphus Busch became the first American brewer to adopt the use of pasteurization, which allowed beer to be shipped over long distances without spoiling. By the early 1880s, Adolphus had pioneered the use of artificial refrigeration, refrigerated railcars and rail-side icehouses. The combination of these innovations allowed Anheuser-Busch to transport and market Budweiser as America’s first national beer.

Pasteurization- Adolphus Busch responded quickly to advances in science and technology. Previously, beer had been highly susceptible to the influence of heat, light, storage conditions and spoilage. With the introduction of Pasteurization, heat could be used to destroy harmful micro-organisms, allowing beer to be maintained for longer periods without spoiling. Adolphus embraced this idea and became the first U.S. brewer to pasteurize beer in the 1870s. This new technology allowed beer to be shipped long distances without spoiling and made it practical to bottle beer."

http://anheuser-busch.com/index.php/our-heritage/history/history-of-innovation/

Come on guys, use your brains, or at least do a little googling.

I found this by googling

 

[moti_mo]

Revvy, sorry that my first response to you was uber-long, so you may have gotten bored by the end, but I ended it with a question for you:

So, in response, I would just ask this. Without referring to old HBT threads, could you explain to me the chemistry of how an unhopped wort would spoil over the course of days if the OP is careful to:

1. take his unhopped wort to a nice rolling boil to pasteurize the wort.
2. cool the wort quickly to pitching temper
3. transfer the wort with utmost attention to sanitation (racking cane, carboy, etc.)
4. immediately pitch the recommended amount of healthy brewers yeast
5. ferment the wort in a sealed fermentation vessel
6. transfer the finished beer, again using rigorous sanitation, to a closed package (bottle, keg, etc.)

You could even throw in a step 5b if you want:

5b. pasteurize the fermented wort (heat to ~150 Celsius and hold for 30 minutes) and cool before bottling/kegging

-although I doubt it would really be necessary.

 

[Denny]

aren't hops and weed closely related?... that might be a hell of an option in lieu of hops...

Not very closely. About the same as saying you and I are related because we're both humans.

 

[moti_mo]

Hello? Revvy, are you out there?

 

[MisterTipsy]

He's searching for an HBT thread from 2005 that negates everything you said.

 

[kingwood-kid]

Lambics and similar beers are loaded with aged hops used for their antiseptic properties; they are also rife with bacteria. So clearly, many bacteria can survive hops and alcohol. on the other hand, I made a lavender beer recently with no hops, added bacteria but no yeast, and let sit in my 100 degree garage for several days. After getting no sourness whatsoever (my bacteria was expired and subsequently confirmed as lifeless) I pitched yeast and it fermented out. I've been drinking it for a month now, and it's tasty, but still not remotely sour.

I'm no stranger to infections, but a sizable amount of living organisms have to make their way into your beer to contaminate it, and they have to be able to survive and multiply once they get there. If you follow proper sanitation procedures all the way through the process, you won't need hops to keep your beer from souring. Coming up with a drinkable recipe is the real challenge.