Basic Brewing Radio

09-11-08 Understanding Attenuation - Basic Brewing Radio

11 Sep 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Home brewer Kai Troester explains the concept of attenuation, the factors that affect it and how we can test the attenuation potential of our wort.

09-04-08 Brewing Gadgets - Basic Brewing Radio

04 Sep 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Home brewer John Chubick of Bloomington, Illinois joins us to talk about his homebrew hop dryer, stir plate and temperature controller.

08-28-08 French Press Hopping - Basic Brewing Radio

28 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

James and Andy try out one of the hop stretching methods explained by Chris Colby on the previous show: steeping hops in a French press coffee maker.

08-21-08 Stretching Hops - Basic Brewing Radio

21 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, explains some tips on how to get the most out of our precious hops. Also, how to use a French press cof...

08-14-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Roasting Coffee

14 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Home brewer and coffee roaster Scott Koue of San Francisco joins us to talk about roasting our own coffee. Home roasted coffee can add more creative c...

PDF: Effectiveness of Various Methods of Wort Aeration

07 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

This is Fred Johnson's paper comparing fermenter shaking vs aquarium pumps for wort aeration.

08-07-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Aeration: Shaking vs Pumping

07 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Scientist and home brewer Fred Johnson of Apex North Carolina shares his experiment comparing fermenter shaking against aquarium pumping for aeration....

07-31-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Mt. Carmel Brewing

31 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

We sit down with Mike Dewey of Mt. Carmel Brewing Company in Cincinnati, Ohio - a commercial home-based brewery.

07-24-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Turbid Mashing

24 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby of Brew Your Own Magazine explains the Belgian technique of turbid mashing, which makes the most of limited mash tun space.

07-17-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Randy Mosher - Belgium Nobody Knows

17 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Our National Homebrewers Conference coverage from Cincinnati concludes with an interview from Randy Mosher. Randy talks about Belgian beer history and...

07-10-08 Basic Brewing Radio - NHC Wrapup Pt. 2

10 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Our National Homebrewers Conference coverage from Cincinnati continues. We have interviews with Ant Hayes, Greg Doss, Ray Daniels, Ken Schramm and Cra...

07-03-08 Basic Brewing Radio - NHC Wrapup Pt. 1

03 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Steve joins James as they begin their collection of interviews gathered from experts at the National Homebrewers Conference in Cincinnati. This week: ...

06-26-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Jim Koch NHC Keynote

26 Jun 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Jim Koch, founder of the Boston Beer Company, gives an inspiring keynote address to the National Homebrewers Conference in Cincinnati.

05-29-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing Green

29 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

James and Steve read letters from listeners with tips on how to brew greener and cheaper.

05-22-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Mead Basics

22 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Mike Lozano, home brewer and mead maker from Aurora, Colorado, takes us through the basics of mead making from the ground up.

05-15-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Alternate Hopping Strategies

15 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Tonsmeire, the Mad Fermentationist, shares three beers that have had hops added in "non-traditional" schedules.

05-08-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Dandelion Wine

08 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Tired of looking at those dandelions in your yard? Home brewer Don Osborn tells us how to put them to good use in the fermenter.

05-01-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Beer Eye for the Wine Guy

01 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Gary Vaynerchuk of Wine Library TV brings the thunder to BBR and gives us his perspectives on the art of tasting as he samples homebrew.

04-24-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Homegrown Hops Revisited

24 Apr 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, answers questions from listeners about growing hops in containers and other home growing issues.

04-17-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewer Michael Lalli of Choc Beer

17 Apr 2008

Contributed by Lukas

James and Steve sit down with the head brewer of the largest brewery in Oklahoma to share beers and tips on how to brew better beers.

PDF: Light Absorption by Various Beer Bottle Glass

10 Apr 2008

Contributed by Lukas

This is Brad Sturgeon's paper showing effectiveness of colored glass on absorbing light harmful to beer.

04-10-08 Basic Brewing Radio - The Science of Skunking

10 Apr 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Chemistry professor Brad Sturgeon of Monmouth College explains the science behind beer skunking and what kind of glass is best to protect against it.

04-03-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Tasmanian Hop Harvest

03 Apr 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Matt Kirkegaard, editor of Beer and Brewer Magazine fills us in on the state of the hop harvest in Australia and tells us about the beer and brewing c...

03-27-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Homebrew Goes to College

27 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Andrew McMichael of Western Kentucky University tells us about his History and Science of Beer and Brewing course that incorporates home brewing.

03-20-08 Basic Brewing Radio - What Is an IBU . . . Really?

20 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

John Palmer, author of How to Brew, shares information from a conference that challenged his concept of what defines an International Bitterness Unit ...

03-13-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Belgian Sugar Experiment II

13 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

The Mad Fermentationist Michael Tonsmeire leads us through the second round of his tasty experiments using different sugars in Belgian Beers.

03-06-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing Italian Style

06 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Italian home brewer and beer podcaster Tony Manzi gives us a virtual tour of the beer and home brewing scene in his country.

02-28-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Hop Update and Hybrid Sparging

28 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby from Brew Your Own Magazine gives some advice on hop substitution and tells us about a hybrid sparging method between batch and fly. Also,...

02-21-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Is Homebrew Good for You?

21 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Steve Wilkes talks about the health effects of homebrew and beer in general with nutritionist Marjorie Fitch-Hilgenberg of the University of Arkansas....

02-14-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Homebrew History

14 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Charlie Papazian shares a bit of homebrew history 30 years after legislation legalizing home brewing passed Congress. Also, home brewer Robb Holmes ta...

02-07-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Advanced Yeast Handling

07 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Home brewer Anthony Fischer gives James and Steve an overview of advanced yeast storage and propagation techniques he uses in the lab.

01-31-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Contest, Letters, "World's Best Beer"

31 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

James, Steve, and Andy reveal the winners of the "You know you're a home brewer when . . . " contest, read listener letters, and sip rare Belgian beer...

01-24-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Mash Tun Efficiency

24 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

"How to Brew" author John Palmer helps us walk through mash tun efficiency - how to get the most out of our mash.

01-17-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Ray Daniels on Beer Education

17 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Ray Daniels introduces us to the Cicerone program, which is designed to educate beer servers and sellers. Also, Ray talks about education opportunitie...

01-10-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Sourdough Bread

10 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Home brewer and home baker John Owen talks about the similarities between baking and brewing and tells us how to make sourdough bread from scratch.

01-03-08 Basic Brewing Radio - Leftover Brewday

03 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Andy Sparks and Steve Wilkes join James on the patio to brew a partigyle session with leftover ingredients.

12-27-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing Nightmares

27 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

In this low-maintenance holiday episode, we share your brewday mishaps to live, laugh and learn.

12-20-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Worth Brewing Company

20 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Peter Ausenhus of Worth Brewing Company in Northwood, Iowa talks to us about how he's running a professional brewery with homebrew-scale equipment.

12-13-07 Basic Brewing Radio - The Hop Shortage: What To Do

13 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby of Brew Your Own Magazine fills us in on the hop situation and gives us tips to make it through to better, hoppier times.

12-06-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Cask Conditioning

06 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Benjy Edwards of Columbus, Ohio teaches us about cask conditioning and how we can make Real Ale at home.

11-29-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Making Sake

29 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Bob Taylor of Anchorage, Alaska shares his knowledge of sake and how he makes it at home during long Alaskan winters.

11-22-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Reiterated Mashing

22 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby of Brew Your Own magazine walks us through his process of making big beers by putting wort back through a second or third mash.

11-15-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Maui Brewing Company

15 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Garrett Marrero of Maui Brewing Company tells us about brewing in paradise and lets us in on how a couple of his wonderful beers are brewed.

11-08-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Beer Yeast Mead

08 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Mead maker Mike Lozano shares his experiment making mead with beer yeast. We also salute the Mighty Carson Art Players.

11-01-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Reusing Yeast

01 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, gives us tips on reusing all the good yeast we find in the bottom of our primary fermenter.

10-25-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Sam Adams LongShot 2007 Winners

25 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Jeff Bearer of Craft Beer Radio reports on the winners of the Samuel Adams LongShot homebrew competition at GABF.

10-18-07 Basic Brewing Radio - GABF 2007 Recap

18 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We talk to Great American Beer Festival first-timers Jeff Bearer of Craft Beer Radio, Rick Sellers of Pacific Brew News Radio and Rick Hagerbaumer of ...

10-11-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Measuring Tools

11 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chemistry professor Brad Sturgeon walks us through the basics of using thermometers, hydrometers and refractometers.

10-4-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Countertop Partial Mashing Revisited

04 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby of Brew Your Own magazine gives us an update on what he's learned about doing partial mashes with a countertop cooler.

09-27-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Offbeat Yeasts Part Two

27 Sep 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We continue our tasting with Michael Tonsmeire, the Mad Fermentationist from Washington D.C. This week, all the beers are fermented with Brettanomyces...

09-20-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Offbeat Yeasts Part One

20 Sep 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Tonsmeire, the Mad Fermentationist from Washington D.C., shares some of his beers made with other-than-normal yeast. In this episode: Kvass, F...

09-13-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Keeping Bees

13 Sep 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We talk to home brewer and amateur bee keeper Ryan Wilson about how to get insects to make the sweet stuff for our meads and braggots.

09-06-07 Basic Brewing Radio - "Marketing" Homebrew

06 Sep 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Creative Consultants Bob Corscadden and James Gardner of jimbob give us tips on "selling" the idea of drinking homebrew and other good beers in this d...

08-30-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Blending Beers

30 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Matt Brynildson of Firestone Walker gives us advice on blending beers to create new brews and explains his brewery's system of oak aging.

08-23-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing with Coffee

23 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby of Brew Your Own magazine gives us some tips on brewing beer with another brewed beverage - coffee.

08-16-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewer Thomas Larsen

16 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Thomas Larsen of Wynkoop Brewing Company in Denver gives us his take on making wonderful beers with interesting ingredients.

08-09-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewer John Legnard

09 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

John Legnard of The Sandlot at Coors Field gives us brewing tips and lets us in on what it's like to brew at a small brewery owned by one of the big g...

08-02-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Meadmaker Mike Lozano

02 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We sample delicious meads and mead-based experiments with home meadmaker Mike Lozano of Aurora, Colorado.

07-26-07 Basic Brewing Radio - NHC Grab Bag

26 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we have an assortment of sound from the National Homebrewers Conference in Denver. We talk to David Myers of Redstone Meadery, Tony Simmons...

07-19-07 Basic Brewing Radio - NHC: Tips and Tasting

19 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Our coverage of the National Homebrewers Conference in Denver continues with brewing tips from David Houseman and tasting tips from Lauren Salazar of ...

07-12-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Water Alkalinity and Beer Styles

12 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

John Palmer, Rick Bobbitt and Scott Jackson talk about their experiment at the National Homebrewers Conference pairing beer styles with appropriate wa...

07-05-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Measuring and Predicting IBUs

05 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Two chemistry professors, Bradley Sturgeon and Paul Charlesworth, join BBR veterans James Spencer, Andy Sparks, Steve Wilkes and Mark Smith to share t...

06-28-07 Basic Brewing Radio - NHC Keynote: Peter Bouckaert

28 Jun 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Peter Bouckaert, brewmaster of New Belgium Brewery, addresses the National Homebrewers Conference in Denver and takes Charlie Papazian to task on beer...

05-31-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Same Yeast, Different Flavor

31 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Neva Parker, laboratory manager for White Labs yeast, explains her experiment putting three yeast strains through various temperatures and gravities.

05-24-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Designing Brewing Experiments

24 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby from Brew Your Own magazine walks us through the process of designing experiments in brewing to get accurate, useful results.

05-17-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Conical Fermenters

17 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We talk with members of Fayetteville Lovers of Pure Suds about their fancy fermenters and why they moved up from carboys.

05-10-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Aging with Oak

10 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Dan Carey, Brewmaster of New Glarus Brewing Company in New Glarus, Wisconsin, shares his tips on aging beer in oak chips and in oak barrels.

05-03-07 Basic Brewing Radio - AHA Events

03 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Gary Glass, Director of the American Homebrewers Association, joins us to talk about Big Brew, National Competition and National Conference.

04-26-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing Software

26 Apr 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We read listener reviews of brewing software, and Andy Sparks talks about the Boulder Strong Ale Festival.

04-19-07 Basic Brewing Radio - A Tale of Two IPAs

19 Apr 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby from Brew Your Own Magazine takes us behind the scenes with the two personalities of one of our favorite styles: English and American IPAs...

04-12-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Batch Sparging with Denny Conn

12 Apr 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Noted batch sparging advocate Denny Conn gives us his side of the batch/fly-sparging debate and answers listener questions and concerns about the proc...

04-05-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Yeast Life Cycle

05 Apr 2007

Contributed by Lukas

David Logsdon from Wyeast takes us through the life cycle of our favorite micoorganism and lets know how we can help our yeast thrive and make great b...

03-29-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Sanitizing with Bleach and Star San

29 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Charlie Talley of Five Star Chemicals tells us best practices in using household bleach and Star San in sanitizing equipment.

03-22-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Sanitizing with Iodophor

22 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Murl Landman of National Chemicals talks to us about sanitization in general and using Iodophor specifically.

03-15-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Steven Pauwels of Boulevard

15 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Steven Pauwels of Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri lets us in on home brewing tips as he talks about some adventurous brews he has p...

03-08-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Long Shot Winner Ken Smith

08 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Ken Smith of the Boston Beer Company tells us about how he came up with his winning Boysenberry Wheat, which has been included in the Samuael Adams Lo...

03-01-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Home Malting

01 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby of Brew Your Own magazine tells how we can turn seed into malt in our own kitchens.

02-22-07 Basic Brewing Radio - KC Club Competition

22 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We travel to Kansas City, Missouri (actually Olathe, Kansas) to attend the 24th annual homebrew competition of the Kansas City Biermeisters.

02-15-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Collaboration with Adam Avery

15 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Adam Avery from Avery Brewing in Boulder, Colorado lets us in on some of the behind-the-scenes details of brewing "Collaboration not Litigation Ale" w...

02-08-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing Organic

08 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Amelia Slayton from Seven Bridges Cooperative joins us to tell us about brewing with organic ingredients and why we should consider it.

02-01-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Mead Festival and Experiment Tips

01 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

David Myers from Redstone Meadery gives us a preview of the upcoming International Mead Festival in Denver. David also has some advice for our upcomin...

01-25-07 Basic Brewing Radio - How to Smell Better

25 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Researcher Dr. Jay Gottfried explains how the sense of smell works and how a study he's conducting may help us to improve our brews by being able to s...

01-18-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Gluten Free Brewing

18 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Connie Rieper-Estes and Leigh Nogy from Dark Hills Brewery talk with us about brewing gluten free beer at home and their dream of founding a commercia...

01-11-07 Basic Brewing Radio - John Palmer on pH

11 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

John Palmer, author of How to Brew, walks us through the potentially intimidating topic of pH. John tells us how to measure pH and what to do with our...

01-04-07 Basic Brewing Radio - Home Brewing vs. Craft Brewing

04 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

We get input from our listeners on "home brewing" vs. "craft brewing" and extract vs. all grain.

12-28-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Belgian Sugar Experiment

28 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

James, Andy Sparks and Steve Wilkes collaborate to taste home brewer Michael Tonsmeire's experiment comparing six different sugars in Belgian beers.

12-21-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing American Pilsner

21 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, walks us through the hoops and hurdles home brewers have to go through to brew American Pilsner, the mo...

12-14-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Beer Judge Certification Program

14 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Ed Westemeier, communications director of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP), gives us the history behind the organization and talks about it...

12-07-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Ambitious Brew Part Two

07 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

We continue our discussion about the history of beer in the USA with Maureen Ogle, author of Ambitious Brew - The Story of American Beer. Part two tak...

11-30-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Ambitious Brew Part One

30 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

We learn about the history of beer in the USA from Maureen Ogle, author of Ambitious Brew - The Story of American Beer. Part one takes us from the Pil...

11-23-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Decoction Mashing

23 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own Magazine, walks us through the age-old process of decoction mashing.

11-16-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Brewing FAQs with John Palmer

16 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

John Palmer, author of How to Brew, joins us to answer frequently asked questions on home brewing. John also tells us the causes of common off flavors...

11-09-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Adam Avery of Avery Brewing

09 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Andy, Brian and James spend some time chatting with Adam Avery of Avery Brewing. Adam talks about making the move from home brewer to brewery owner, d...

11-02-06 Basic Brewing Radio - HSA Experiment - Final Chapter

02 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Andy Sparks and James Spencer join Brian Warren and John Holder in Denver to taste the last round of samples in the Hot Side Aeration experiment. We a...

10-26-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Queen of Beers and Recirculating Systems

26 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Rick Sellers from Pacific Brew News Radio reports on a California brewing competition for women only. Also, Chris Colby from BYO explains high-end RIM...

10-19-06 Basic Brewing Radio - New Belgium Brewing

19 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

We travel to Fort Collins, Colorado to speak with Eric Salazar and Peter Bouckaert of New Belgium Brewing.

10-12-06 Basic Brewing Radio - GABF Beer Judging Demonstration

12 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to a demonstration hosted by the Brewers Association, we see what happens behind the scenes in the judging of the Great American Beer Festival ...

10-05-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Homebrewing Contests at GABF

05 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

We cover two homebrewing competitions in connection with the Great American Beer Festival: the GABF Pro Am and the Long Shot competition from the Bost...

09-28-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Our Chat with Charlie Papazian

28 Sep 2006

Contributed by Lukas

We join homebrew guru Charlie Papazian near a beautiful stream at his house to share his homebrew and his thoughts about the hobby.

09-21-06 Basic Brewing Radio - Fruit Beers with Randy Mosher

21 Sep 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Randy Mosher, author of Radical Brewing, talks to us about fruit beers and getting the most out of them. Randy also gives us his favorite approach to ...