Who's Coming to Dinner?

I once had the pleasure of meeting a well known brewer I really respected at a promotional event in San Francisco. We got to talking about barrel aged beer and mixed culture ferments. I mentioned that I really enjoy brewing what have been commonly described as “farmhouse” beers with a variety of microbes and that I may shepherd the fermentation in one direction or another with a gentle hand but that letting nature do its thing was my favorite part.

He quickly disagreed. He was of the opinion that the vision of the beer should be crystal clear and if the finished product didn’t meet that criteria it should be disposed of.

I recently imagined brewing as planning a dinner party.

I invite guests that I think may get along and vibe well (ingredients), I prepare the ambiance and clean my apartment (set the water profile, form a recipe, clean the fermentation vessel), and I cook the food (brew day) and then I let conversations happen naturally and see where the night takes us. I put all the pieces in place to create what I think will be a harmonious event.

Have you ever been to a party where the host is aggressively steering the conversation? Forcing introductions? Making everybody play some game they don’t want to play? That is my concern when it comes to brewing by strict numbers and intervening in what’s happening naturally. You may get a result that is, on the surface, satisfactory. What’s missing, however, is some depth of character. Some abstract quality.

This week I brewed a beer that was largely improvised. Missing thermometers, limited ingredients, and non ideal equipment led to a hectic but fun brew day. In the end it will indeed be a beer and I have an idea of where I’d like it to go... but I’ll be happy as long as it tastes good.

Someday I hope to have a shiny brewhouse with all the bells and whistles along with a lab full of stir plates and ph meters and microscopes... but not every beer needs to be brewed by numbers.