Basic Brewing Radio

Ottawa, Canada home brewer Pete Hickey joins us to tell us how he brews in the extremely cold Canadian winter.

It's a trifecta: We have a triangle test of a fermenter experiment, sample our Zombie Apocalypse beer, and hear about brewing on a frozen Wisconsin lake.

Home brewer Patrick Bresnahan shares his bourbon stout experiment, trying to find the proper amount of bourbon to add to the beer.

Home brewer Christopher Owen shares the Belgian yeast experiment he conducted with the Louisville, Kentucky LAGERS club.

Jesse Core of Core Brewing in Springdale, Arkansas, tells us about his jump into pro brewing.

Matt Becker of New Brew Thursday shares his experiment brewing and blending beers made with commercial and homemade sour culture blends.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, starts the year off with a new collaborative experiment and tips on tweaking your process.

James and Steve read letters from listeners about batches of brew that didn't go the way they had been planned.

Brewers Kasey Loman and Jen Royer invade the home of non-brewers and brew up a batch of beer.

Andy Sparks shows off his home brewery in progress: a remote-controlled, high-tech electric dream machine.

James and Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, go over the data from the experiment comparing different fermenter types.

James and Steve read listener recommendations about software designed to better your brew.

Sadhaka Rajanatha of Kauai's Hindu Monastery shares some 17-year-old mead and his experiences as brewer for his fellow monks.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, fills us in on the technique of mashing with all your brewing water and not rinsing.

A behind-the-scenes look at the Basic Brewing Video episode, where James and Steve brew a watermelon wheat beer using only watermelon juice as the brewing water.

Home brewer Ken Valley shares beer that he allowed Mother Nature to innoculate instead of pitching yeast.

James heads to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to cover the second annual Outlaw Homebrew Competition at the Keg and Barrel brewpub.

James and Andy enjoy good conversation, weather, and beer with Phillip Lamb, who shares information on French Brewing.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, helps us launch the next collaborative experiment comparing the performance of different fermenters. Also, the roots of lager yeasts.

Adam Draeger of the Yak and Yeti brewpub in Arvada, Colorado, joins us to talk about his journey going pro and his techniques of adding fruit to wheat beers in a weekly feature at his pub.

James sits down with Andy Sparks and Dave Johnson to talk about canning wort for starters as the pressure cooker steams in the background.

James and Steve catch up on email and find a missing gem from Club NIght at NHC - Chickenuts.

Michael Tonsmeire, the Mad Fermentationist, and Nathan Zeender join James and Andy to sample homebrew Saison and talk about how to brew it.

Brad Sturgeon is back to answer questions about his experiment to find the IBU ceiling and to unveil further results.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, shares his experiences touring breweries and beer places in Belgium.

Dr. Brad Sturgeon of Monmouth College shares an experiment to try to find the top limit of how many IBUs can fit into a beer.

James, Steve, and Andy are joined by Danny Seeton and Matt Anderson, who have brought a yeast experiment to San Diego from north of the border.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, and Sean Terrill, head brewer of Silverton Brewing Company, help James examine the results of the latest collaboration experiment.

Zot O'Connor shares his experiment priming cider with different priming sugars. Helping us to judge the results are members of WAHA and a special surprise guest.

Members of the Hangtown Association of Zymurgy Enthusiasts (HAZE) of Placerville, California share their experiment comparing three hop varieties' flavor and aroma characteristics.

Vinnie Cilurzo, founder of Russian River Brewing and inventer of the double IPA, takes us through his trek from home brewer to innovative pro.

Will glassware affect the character of your beer? Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, joins James and Steve to investigate.

James and Steve taste the results of home brewer Dave Scheuing's experiments with mead, cyser and different yeasts.

Home brewer Don Osborn shares two beers that were brewed only using Brettanomyces strains to ferment. Don also talks about mashing in the evening and brewing the next morning.

Desiree Knott of High Gravity in Tulsa tells us about her quest to brew the perfect gluten free beer.

Sean Terrill returns to share the results of his efforts to refine the post fermentation refractometer correction formula and tells about his new job, brewing in thin air.

Jan Halvor Fjeld, this past year's Norwegian home brewer of the year, talks about his home system and shares a pale ale experiment.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, helps James launch two new collaborative experiments and talks about Scandinavian beers.

Frank Clark of Colonial Williamsburg joins us to talk about the state of beer and brewing in Colonial United States.

Home brewer Paul English shares his experiment comparing beers brewed with five different base malts and no other grains.

Home brewer Kai Troester continues a two-part discussion on pH in brewing by taking us into the mash tun.

Home brewer Kai Troester begins a two-part discussion on pH in brewing by starting with the basics.

Andy Sparks and the Mad Fermentationist, Michael Tonsmeire, share their homebrew Berliner Weisse beers and talk about brewing the nicely tart ales.

James is joined by Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, along with home brewers Kai Troester and Zot O'Connor, as they look at the results of the starch test collaborative experiment.

James and BYO Editor Chris Colby get together to chat about different ways to keep your lagers chilly during fermentation.

AHA Director Gary Glass brings us up to date on legislation across the country dealing with our favorite hobby. Gary also talks about the upcoming National Homebrewers Conference in San Diego.

Home brewer Charles Hoffman and James conduct an experiment comparing the effects of different mash times on a single recipe. Chris Colby and Kai Troester help interpret the results.

Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, and James invite you to take part in Collaborative Experiment Seven. Also, Steve Wilkes joins James to talk cider, lagering, and other homebrew business.

Home brewer Darnell Brawner shares the results of an experiment testing whether preheating grain with strike water is beneficial.

James talks with Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, as they examine the data from the sixth BYO-BBR Collaborative Experiment.