Modern Lager Beer: Techniques, Processes, and Recipes

by Jack Hendler Jack's Abby, Joe Connolly

The idea of crisp, pale lagers may have roots in 19th century Bohemia, but lager beer is far older and richly complex. Since Pilsner beer took the world by storm, lager beer has become a household term and a commercial behemoth before taking root among homebrewers and craft brewers. Modern Lager Beer is an exploration of the world of lager beers, their historical origins, and the detailed development and techniques used in their production today. Explore the Bavarian and Bohemian origins followed by an examination of the many significant ways that the modern perception of lager styles has been shaped by a myriad of techniques used to produce them. Many of the traditional methods once employed in the production of lager beer can be used today by the savvy brewer to create unique and delicious lager beers. Insight from many of today's modern brewers, along with traditional beers that have inspired them, will highlight the interesting ways that lager brewers borrow from these traditions in search of creating their own unique expressions of lager. Modern Lager Beer is filled with practical methods, processes, culture, and recipes from some of the world's greatest lager craft breweries. From the smallest details of decoction programs to philosophies of fermentation tank geometry, as much as possible of the minutiae of the world's most popular beer category is explored.

Genres: Nonfiction, Brewing

300 pages, Paperback

Published April 1, 2024

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great description of historical and modern lager brewing techniques and how they impact current and future lager styles and processes. Other than the recipes (which are really interesting) there isn't a lot of process detail that can be applied to the homebrewer as it is focused more on what craft commercial brewers are doing today. The recipes alone may be worth the price of the book and I enjoyed the process details, just don't expect this to teach a homebrewer how to make great lager.