Blog — collaboration

In 1972, Rosa Merckx became the first official female brewmaster and operations director in 20th century Belgium. After the death of her former boss, she was given control of the 300 year-old Liefmans Oudenaarde brewery, where she had worked since 1946 (Nurin). Merckx is an absolute pioneer in the female brewing revolution, which has taken until the new millennium to really build momentum in Europe. Want proof? It took until 2012 for a woman - Sara Barton - to win the British Guild of Beer Writers Brewer of the Year award. And it was just last year that a group...

Oh Brother, wherefore art thou hops? As a hop lover, part of me just f@*!ing hates gruits. That same part of me feels like they are a waste of a brew day. Why would I put time and energy into a left-behind brewing practice that favours inferior ingredients? Do you know why I use hops? Because they are amazingly well-suited to beer. Once you get a taste for the pungent flavours and bitter notes there is no substitute. Well, there is no substitute that actually stands up. But that's just my inner hop head talking. Gruits and herb beers definitely have their...

Before I jump into the recipe for Quiet Rye-ot, I would like to again thank Rob and Gian down at Abe Erb for being such accommodating brewing partners and hosts. One of the perks of my currently un-paying job is getting to go out and brew with other brewers in the areas. This includes professional brewers and likeminded homebrewers. It really is a pleasure to be able to reach out to the community and work with so many different people. Well then. Sappy, thank you hugfest accomplished. Let’s move on to the actual beer.   Why this brew? For those who spoken to...