Articles About Hops Beer and Brewing

GUIDE TO BREWING LAGER THE EASY WAY

POSTED 22 JULY 2022
So what defines a lager?
Lager is beer which has been brewed and conditioned at low temperature using a bottom fermenting yeast. Use our guide to easily brew craft or traditional lagers all year round.

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GUIDE TO DIASTATIC YEAST

POSTED 31 AUGUST 2022

Yeast strains are classified as Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus if they carry the STA1 gene. Find out how this affects you and your beer.

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BELGIAN & FRENCH ALES

Belgium is a country populated in the North by Flemish speaking people (basically Dutch) and in the South by French speaking people. Belgian ales cover a large range of styles including Trappist, Abbey, Pils, Bock, Wheat, Blonde & Golden, Lambic, Amber, Tripel, Dubbel, Grand Cru, Flemish Red, Oud Bruin, Saison, Winter & Xmas and Fruit beers whereas French ales are represented by Biere de Garde, Saison and farmhouse.

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GERMAN WHEAT BEER

Wheat beer is a top-fermented beer which is brewed with a large proportion of wheat relative to the amount of malted barley. The two main varieties are German Weizenbier (covered here) and Belgian witbier covered in the Belgian ales article. The terms Hefeweizen ("yeast wheat") or Hefeweißbier refer to wheat beer in its traditional, unfiltered (cloudy) form. Kristall refers to crystal clear.

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MASTER BREWERS

NEW SERIES: At the heart of the brewery business lies the time-honoured process of brewing excellent beer.

The industry’s most skilled and experienced master brewers make a commitment to brewing excellence today and into the future. Guardians of our iconic heritage beers and creators of some of the best new brews.

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NEW HOPS FOR SPRING 2022

WE HAVE VERY LIMITED STOCK OF NEW HOP VARIETIES PERLE™, RIWAKA™ & NELSON SAUVIN™.
PRE-ORDERS FOR THESE HOP VARIETIES ARE AVAILABLE NOW. USE THE LINK BELOW FOR INFORMATION MORE ABOUT THESE HOPS

WE HAVE REASONABLE STOCKS OF MOTUEKA, RAKAU, PACIFICA & WAKATU WHICH WERE RELEASED LAST SEASON

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ALL ABOUT FUGGLE

POSTED 7 MARCH 2022
Despite being one of the most important hops in the history of beer, the precise origins of the Fuggle variety have been a puzzle for a long time.
Now research by Czech botanists, and a Kentish local historian, have answered all the questions.

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MAXIMISING MOUTHFEEL IN YOUR BEER

POSTED 12 MAY 2022

Have you ever wondered how to get more viscosity in your beer and stop it appearing to be thin. Read two expert opinions.

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MALT EXTRACT BREWING

POSTED 30 OCTOBER 2021
Once upon a time, extract brewing was how the vast majority of us got into the hobby. Many were happy to stick with extracts, too, never feeling the need to add the extra hours and complexity of all-grain brewing. An introduction to Extract brewing including Partial-mash

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HOW WE BUILT OUR HOP GARDEN

POSTED 7 DECEMBER 2021

Wondering where to start with a building a hop garden? We built this hop garden in North Canterbury to grow 100 plants at minimum cost.

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DIP HOPPING

POSTED 24 APRIL 2021
In 2012 Kirin, the Japanese brewing conglomerate, began talking about “dip hopping,” a technique that its brewers had developed that boosts pleasant hop aromas while suppressing or removing unpleasant off-flavors, like myrcene, and aromas that are derived from fermentation.

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USING HOP EXTRACTS

POSTED 27 APRIL 2021
Hop extract is designed to be used during the boil. That's because the alpha acid extraction is the same for hop resin extract as it is for whole hops and pellets and the hop additions can still be staggered throughout the boiling process.

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DRY HOPPING

UPDATED 19 APRIL 2021
The process of dry hopping refers to the addition of hops into your fermenter either during your fermentation period and/or after your primary fermentation period is nearing completion.

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STEEPING HOPS

POSTED 10 APRIL 2021
Some beer recipes suggest a steep/whirlpool hop addition after flame out. This article by Brad Smith of Beersmith fame explains how to do it and get the best results

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