Session Beers
Brewing for Flavor and Balance
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Brewers Publications
Published:1st Oct '17
Should be back in stock very soon
While the term “session beer” as a style description has only been around since the 1980s, many classic beer styles, like Pilsner, Kölsch, cream ale, and English mild and bitter, to name a few, have been a crucial part of “session” culture for beer drinkers for centuries. In more recent years, many craft brewers in America have begun producing additional low-alcohol drinks, providing sessionable examples of customarily strong beers. Nowadays, the craft beer market has many notable examples of “session IPAs” and moderate-strength pale ales and stouts, and even rare styles like Gose are now part of mainstream craft offerings. These cover a wide range in terms of malt balance and hoppiness, and their moderate strength requires high brewing standards to achieve balance and drinkability.
In Session Beers: Brewing for Flavor and Balance, author Jennifer Talley takes an overview of the history behind some of the world's greatest session beers, past and present. Talley weaves societal, political, and brewing trends into her narrative, and stresses the importance of beer in society as well as offering guidance on how brewers can encourage responsible drinking in their patrons. She addresses brewing processes and ingredients to help brewers master recipe development when crafting high-quality but easy-drinking beers. The final section contains 25 recipes curated by the author. These recipes are for popular craft session beers taken straight from the mouths of some of the best brewmasters in America, complete with a brief history of the breweries and brewers involved. Open up this book and disover why beer drinkers say “I'll have another” to session beers, and be inspired to brew some of your own.
For me, the great collection of beer recipes in the second half, generously peppered with the personal stories of the brewers who make them, stands as the shining heart of this book. The raw brewing talent that is represented in this compendium is stunning and a testament to Jen's ability to connect with other brewers. -- John Mallett, Director of Operation, Bell's Brewery, Inc. and author of Malt: A Practical Guide from Field to Brewhouse
A veteran of low-ABV ‘session' brewing, Jen Talley brings an enormous amount of practical and technical information to this subject. It's obvious her time at Squatters Pub Brewery in Utah fostered respect for the art and soul of brewing beers under 4.0% ABV. As someone who has been at this business of brewing for over 20 years, I can honestly say this book provided some keen insights into the thought processes and execution behind these fickle beer styles. I for one cannot wait to share this information with my brewers. -- Tomme Arthur, Co-Founder & Director of Brewery Operations, The Lost Abbey & Port Brewing Company
I was so thrilled to hear Jen Talley was writing this book. Jen always struck me as someone who could create anything despite whatever barriers were in her way. Way back in the early days of craft brewing, instead of seeing brewing in a low-alcohol state as a constraint, Jen found creativity and flavor. This book contains an immense breadth of knowledge, history, and brewing recipes. It is clear from this lovingly crafted book that every brewer should embrace the art of brewing session beers, if not for the challenge, then for the reward of being able to drink more than one and still enjoy oneself. Thanks Jen—I will have another! -- Mary Pellettieri, Co-Founder and President, La Pavia Beverages, Inc. and author of Quality Management: Essential Planning For Breweries
After growing ever bolder with high-alcohol beers in the US, session beers have brought back beers for us to drink and enjoy. Session Beers looks back to those authentic and exciting lower-alcohol beers that were there before the term ‘session beer' existed. -- Peter Bouckaert, Founder and Brewmaster, Purpose Brewing and Cellars, and co-author of Wood and Beer: A Brewer’s Guide
ISBN: 9781938469411
Dimensions: 232mm x 148mm x 20mm
Weight: 395g
250 pages