Short trip to Oshkosh

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message news:TSSsb.195700$e01.713989@attbi_s02...
You know, this puzzles me immensely. We home-brew, although we're
far from experts. We don't pasteurize our product before bottling
it *shudder*, yet it keeps for months. Actually we usually keep
a few bottles back to see how it ages, and it sometimes improves
with age!

Interesting. The reason we were told that Sprecher was limited in their
distribution area was because they didn't pasteurize their beer.

Is it possible this is some Federal or State health regulation?
For example I know some states strictly regulate the sale of
unpasteurized milk and fruit juice. Others don't allow it at all,
much to the dismay of "health nuts" who don't wish to drink that
nasty unhealthful pasteurized stuff (ouch! got my tongue wedged
in my cheek there).

I don't have any idea how you could make beer last months.

Well, at least in our case and the case of some other friends
who homebrew, you don't seem to have to do anything. We do the
primary and 2ndary fermentation, we make sure the bottles are
clean and free from soap, we bottle, we cap, we make sure they're
capped tightly, and that's it.

I can't comment on why the Sprecher tastes icky after its date.
Maybe a more knowledgeable brewmeister could. My SWAG is that
it has to do with specifics of the yeast (and other ingredients--
hops for example). The observation is that some of our brews
improve with age, some don't change much, some deteriorate.
The principle variables for us were the type of yeast used and
the ingredients. I know that some hops which we tried to store
for a while picked up an icky taste which transferred to the
beer.

I laugh when I
see Miller doing it now, like it's a new invention! (Especially when you
can keep a case of "Genuine Draft" in your garage for years, in hot or cold
weather, chill it -- and have it taste EXACTLY the same.)

Yeah, Budweiser too. What a joke!

Cheers,
Sydney

"Snowbird" wrote in message om...

Is it possible this is some Federal or State health regulation?

No. There are a lot of people making unpasturized beer. Pathogens
that grow in beer aren't very common. The main reason beer is pasturized
is to make it more shelf stable from a taste standpoint. By cooking the
stuff to death, Bud is as skunky three months from now as it is the day
it is canned.

Snowbird wrote:

Is it possible this is some Federal or State health regulation?

Probably State. Many of the northeastern States use health regulations to get
around the Federal control over interstate commerce and establish defacto
trade restrictions. The main target is dairy products, but there are others.
This is less true in the midwest, but it's still there. Lots of States have
regulations deliberately interfering with the "importation" of Wisconsin dairy
products, for example. In fact, the Feds also have one, but this is a nearly
unique example of this sort of thing among Federal regulations.

George Patterson
If you're not part of the solution, you can make a lot of money prolonging
the problem.

Big John wrote:

Is there a company that brews an 'original' German beer (like they
made in the 20's)? I can remember that taste back then growing up
(sipping from Dad's glass) and would love to get some with the strong
hop flavor they had.

There's a brewery in Pennsylvania that has a Bavarian brewmaster and makes a
beer that's very close in taste to the stuff they serve in Munich. I drank it
for a while after my brother and I returned from Germany. Haven't had it in
years and don't remember the name.

As I recall, it's available only in some areas of Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Also costs about 150% of what a typical national brand costs.

George Patterson
If you're not part of the solution, you can make a lot of money prolonging
the problem.

Big John wrote in message . ..

Everything now is 'light' for the ladies and those who don't go out
and work with their hands year round.

Oh, no BJ don't blame it on the distaff side.

The construction and mechanic types I know are the first to
require water in a can with a small amount of beer flavor added.

Me? I drink Guiness.

Cheers,
Sydney

"Snowbird" wrote in message
om...
Big John wrote in message
. ..

Everything now is 'light' for the ladies and those who don't go out
and work with their hands year round.

Oh, no BJ don't blame it on the distaff side.

The construction and mechanic types I know are the first to
require water in a can with a small amount of beer flavor added.

Me? I drink Guiness.

I *love* Guiness. It's expensive though.

There are times when heavy beer doesn't do it for me. On a hot summer day, I
prefer crisp, American style lagers. The heavy beers don't quench my thirst
the same way and they're usually much more expensive. Now, if someone offers
me a free Guiness, I'm not going to turn it down! Thirst be damned!

-Trent
PP-ASEL