Brewing with Style

Home beer brewing has become one of the world’s most popular hobbies. People around the world are brewing their own beers, ales, and lagers, and having a great time doing it. For the beginner a simple search of the Internet will show that there are as many brewing techniques as there are brews.

Ale and Lager are the main types of beers brewed by the home brewer. As home brewers know, what separates the two is the yeast used in the fermenting process of the brew. Ales are fermented using high fermentation methods, and lagers use the opposite - or low fermentation - method. After the fermenting process is complete, the resulting ale will be thicker than lager. Lager drinkers are not typically use to the consistency of ales, and may have to adjust to the thickness of the liquid.

Home brewers develop many unique and unusual ways to brew their ales and lagers. It is important to find ways to keep the temperature consistent during the fermentation process, and this is where things can get creative. One of the best places to ferment lager is in your home refrigerator. For ales, home brewers sometime stick them in a dark closet to get the best results.

There is one unusual style of brewing that is becoming popular with home brewers, which has the most interesting fermenting technique of all. Lambic beers originated in Europe, and instead of adding packaged yeast to start the fermentation, the Lambic beers are set out without a lid and “collect” yeasts from the atmosphere. After the yeast has activated the fermentation process, the Lambic beer is put into barrels and left alone, unlike the traditional fermenting processes that require constant attention.