Intro

I wrote a fantastic newsletter, best ever. Sadly, I made a change that blew away everything I wrote, and the software I use has no "undo." So, you'll just have to put up with this second attempt. But seriously, I have to wonder about something that has auto save, but no undo for a major change. (in this case it was updating a template which blew away the text) Anyway, I'm happy I got it done, and hope you enjoy.

In this issue, I continue the discussion about beer from last week by covering lagers and ales, the two main categories of beer.

About Beer

Anyone who's had a beer, has seen the words "lager" and "ale." But what exactly makes a lager a lager, and an ale an ale?

To many people, what comes to mind when talking about a lager is something light, crisp, and refreshing. Most mass produced beers are lagers, such as Budweiser, Modelo, Asahi, and Tsingtao. What often comes to mind for ales is something more robust, and often thought of as "stronger." Examples could include stouts, such as a Guinness, or Newcastle Brown Ale, or IPAs that are the dominant style for craft beer. However, as we dive into it more, there's a lot more to it.

Yeasts play a major role in the definition. Lagers and Ales actually use different yeast strains. Lagers use Saccharomyces pastorianus (named after Louis Pasteur), and Ales use Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It's thought that ale yeast originated from the skins of grapes, which would make sense given how ancient winemaking is. Lager yeast however, only arose in the 1400s by some estimates, and lagers themselves didn't become big as a style until the mid-1800s in Bavaria with the advent of refrigeration.

Lager comes from the German word for "storage," as in storage underground where low temperatures can be maintained. Through decades of this practice mysteriously arose the lager strain of yeast that was ideally suited for low temperature fermentation.

Temperature, as you might have guessed, has a huge effect on beer when it comes to fermentation. In general, the higher the fermentation temperature (roughly 55-65F for lagers, and 65-75F for ales), the more esters and phenols are produced, which create fruit and spice character in the beer. (the best examples of ales with high esters and phenols are Belgian beers, such as Chimay)

So, this is why lagers tend to be light and refreshing, whereas ales tend to be more robust.

However, the reality is a bit more complicated. There are many examples of dark lagers (like a schwarzbier, Munich dunkel, etc.), and there are many examples of light ales (cream ale, blonde ale, etc.). There are also ales that taste-wise can be mistaken for a lager, such as a Kölsch, which uses ale yeast, but is fermented at lager temperatures, and a Steam beer (think Anchor Steam) which uses lager yeast fermented at ale temperatures. (it's often understood that it's called "steam" due to higher-than-lager fermentation temperatures)

In reality, one can have a spectrum of yeast flavor from "clean" (meaning none at all) to high ester and phenol flavors.

However, this is just one dimension of beer. As mentioned, there's color. But color is not just the look, it is indicative of the ingredients used. Specifically malts. Malts will be roasted, toasted, kilned in different ways resulting in different flavor profiles, and color.

In fact, as one would expect, there's many dimensions. A big one besides the malts and yeast influences is the contribution of hops, which is usually measured in International Bitterness Units, or IBUs. There's the alcohol content, measured in Alcohol By Volume, or ABVs. And then there's the plethora of favors that various beers may have, including floral, herbal, sour, sweet, citrus, tropical, spice, wood, etc.

At the end of the day, what matters most is not how the beer is made, but how it tastes.

Lagers have gotten a bad rap due to being the predominant style of mass produced beers. However, there's a reason why the predominant style for Japanese beers are lagers, specifically light lagers. The clean, crisp nature of the beer ensures it doesn't overpower delicate flavors found in sushi. The carbonation, and slight acidity, provides palate cleansing, enabling a more enjoyable experience. The slight herbal, and floral notes from the hops and malts, help enhance and balance the umami flavors.

Business Update

Not much to report, other than I spent hours filing paperwork for registering Sugoi Brewing Company as a fictitious business name in San Mateo County. It is amazing the amount of process in paper based forms, where the turn around time can be days to verify if all the fields are correct or not. Not to mention, having to talk to people on interpretation of laws and policies. There certainly is still room for technology to make some aspects of government more efficient. (well, it could make it worse too)

I have some leads in Cupertino, Milpitas, San Francisco, I'm pursuing, and am looking at cities mid-peninsula, such as Palo Alto, San Mateo, etc. and East Bay, like Berkeley, Walnut Creek.

Random Tidbits

• I noted some wins in last update, and forgot one. I also one 2nd place at the California State Fair for a Belgian Witbier, a wheat ale that is traditionally made with orange peel, and coriander. However, I added a twist by adding in ginger, chrysanthemum, and Sichuan peppercorn.
• I learned that the first brewery making beer for local consumption in Japan was founded during the Meiji era by William Copeland, a Norwegian-American who worked for a time in Germany brewing beer. The brewery he founded in Yokohama would later change hands, and eventually become Kirin.

Please let me know what you think of these newsletters. What do you want to see less of? more of? Too long? Too short? Any questions you want answered?

For past newsletters, please visit: https://sugoi-brewing-company.ck.page/profile/posts​