New Recipes in CAMRAs Essential Homebrew Book.

[Sadfield]

There's a new version of the Graham Wheeler classic being released, and the Co-author Andy Parker has tweeted a list of the recipes that will appear in the new book.

All supplied by the breweries and really rather good.

Available for discounted pre-order.

https://shop.camra.org.uk/books/essential-home-brewing.html

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[Leon103]

Some interesting sounding beers. May have to try that. Pulp by verdant is one of my favourite beers

 

[Pope]

I was a little but cynical when I saw "CAMRA", but I was pleasantly surprised when I read the list.

Boundary's Export Stout and Lost Industry's Mojito Sour are two beers on there which I can vouch for, definitely worth a try.

 

[Sadfield]

I was a little but cynical when I saw "CAMRA", but I was pleasantly surprised when I read the list.

Boundary's Export Stout and Lost Industry's Mojito Sour are two beers on there which I can vouch for, definitely worth a try.

Ha. Understandable, although the publishing arm of CAMRA do a few excellent books.

As ex-homebrew club attendees I fully endorse the Torrside Fire Damaged Smoked Stout. Great beer.

Love Yeastie Boys Royal Tanninbomb, Siren Yu lu, Thirst Class's Farmhouse in your soul and Thornbridge Chiron.

Both the Elusive beers, but particularly Lord Nelson, are very good. These are from the Authors brewery, set up a couple of years ago after he won the National Homebrew Awards. He has quite an interesting blog about going pro. http://www.graphedbeer.com/2016/01/so-you-wanna-open-brewery-part-i.html?m=1

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[Clint]

Must invest in that! Thanks for posting.

 

[AlanManley]

Love Elusive Brew. Just up the road from me actually.

Ha. Understandable, although the publishing arm of CAMRA do a few excellent books.

As ex-homebrew club attendees I fully endorse the Torrside Fire Damaged Smoked Stout. Great beer.

Love Yeastie Boys Royal Tanninbomb, Siren Yu lu, Thirst Class's Farmhouse in your soul and Thornbridge Chiron.

Both the Elusive beers, but particularly Lord Nelson, are very good. These are from the Authors brewery, set up a couple of years ago after he won the National Homebrew Awards. He has quite an interesting blog about going pro. http://www.graphedbeer.com/2016/01/so-you-wanna-open-brewery-part-i.html?m=1

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[marshbrewer]

I was a little but cynical when I saw "CAMRA", but I was pleasantly surprised when I read the list.

Just out of interest, why did the CAMRA association make you cynical?

 

[Pope]

Just out of interest, why did the CAMRA association make you cynical?

My perception of CAMRA isn't very positive. I hate the phrase "real ale", as if they're some self-appointed body which has the right to say what is and is not real beer. The beer which they call "real ale", tends to be sub-4%, flat and tasteless twiggy beer (which is what I was expecting to see on the list). They hold antiquated views on beer, refusing to accept that keg beer can be good and seem to be outraged by very hoppy (i've actually seen the phrase "overly hopped") and hazy beers, not to mention using adjuncts. I don't like that they give their members vouchers for Wetherspoons, helping a corporate giant. I know this is a generalisation, but their membership seems to be full of middle-aged to old men, who are stuck in their ways and struggle conceal their sexism.

 

[soupdragon]

Now that should start a discussion :nod:

Cheers Tom

 

[Cwrw666]

My perception of CAMRA isn't very positive. I hate the phrase "real ale", as if they're some self-appointed body which has the right to say what is and is not real beer. The beer which they call "real ale", tends to be sub-4%, flat and tasteless twiggy beer (which is what I was expecting to see on the list). They hold antiquated views on beer, refusing to accept that keg beer can be good and seem to be outraged by very hoppy (i've actually seen the phrase "overly hopped") and hazy beers, not to mention using adjuncts. I don't like that they give their members vouchers for Wetherspoons, helping a corporate giant. I know this is a generalisation, but their membership seems to be full of middle-aged to old men, who are stuck in their ways and struggle conceal their sexism.

I think you're being a bit unfair here. CAMRA was formed back when beer was total s**t - basically bitter was full of sugar and only brown because they stained it with caramel. Brewers would do anything to reduce their costs and their products showed it. I remember the awful hangovers which were the result and which you didn't get if you stuck to homebrew. Without CAMRA things wouldn't have changed.
Presumably that is also the reason the membership is getting on a bit - they can remember all that stuff...

 

[Sadfield]

I think you're being a bit unfair here. CAMRA was formed back when beer was total s**t - basically bitter was full of sugar and only brown because they stained it with caramel. Brewers would do anything to reduce their costs and their products showed it. I remember the awful hangovers which were the result and which you didn't get if you stuck to homebrew. Without CAMRA things wouldn't have changed.
Presumably that is also the reason the membership is getting on a bit - they can remember all that stuff...

That may all be true. However, it is no longer 1971. In 2018 it is understandable that some resistance to change is is met with cynicism.

I don't particularly buy into the 'without CAMRA' arguement. People don't eat the same rubbish 1970s food, today. Yet this change wasn't bought about by a campaign group. Nor was there any such group behind the craft beer scene in the US.

Without CAMRA, things may have changed sooner.

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[jeg3]

Interesting that it has diversified somewhat from mild, bitter and stout/Porter.

I’m thankful to camra for informing me years ago of the world of beer, but I quickly outgrew their perception of real ale

It does seem like they are changing slowly

 

[marshbrewer]

Sigh.

My point was 'was there some part of it being .CAMRA association that led the OP to think the recipes would be no good' not to rehash the above.

 

[Sadfield]

Sigh.

My point was 'was there some part of it being .CAMRA association that led the OP to think the recipes would be no good' not to rehash the above.

And you got your answer. We just rolled with it.;-)

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[Cwrw666]

I don't particularly buy into the 'without CAMRA' arguement. People don't eat the same rubbish 1970s food, today. Yet this change wasn't bought about by a campaign group. Nor was there any such group behind the craft beer scene in the US.

1. Camra had a huge effect. Whether it's relevant to anything today is another matter.
2. The Soil Association. I assume you've heard of organic food. That's theirs, trademarked and everything just like CAMRA trademarked the term `real ale'. At least you can call your beer real ale if that's what it is whereas it'll cost you £400 a year to call your food produce `organic'.
3. And we don't live in the USA.

 

[Sadfield]

1. Camra had a huge effect. Whether it's relevant to anything today is another matter.
2. The Soil Association. I assume you've heard of organic food. That's theirs, trademarked and everything just like CAMRA trademarked the term `real ale'. At least you can call your beer real ale if that's what it is whereas it'll cost you £400 a year to call your food produce `organic'.
3. And we don't live in the USA.

I think you've missed the point by a wide mark.



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[Simonh82]

I appreciate the work the CAMRA did maintaining cask-conditioned beer. I think real ale was and probably still is a powerful label to use and does have a meaning. Saying that I think it's a shame that they haven't yet expanded to include well-made keg beer. They don't need to call it 'Real Ale' if they want to reserve that for cask beers but they should acknowledge the existence of good keg beer. I know this debate is still a live one in CAMRA so it may yet change.

If I'm going to a pub I do look out for things like the Cask Mark so I know the beer will be well kept and 90% of the time I will go for something in a cask. That doesn't mean they are boring beers. Whilst I will stand full square behind Youngs Special being an amazing beer, I also like a lot of the local breweries that are making hoppy pale ales or American ambers on cask. They are superb.

In terms of the recipe book, I'd be much more interested in this than Brew Your Own Real Ale, which I have a copy of. BYORA was recommended to me when I started brewing and whilst the introduction to brewing techniques is fine, the recipes are pretty disappointing. Most of them seem to be small variations around the theme of 90% pale malt, a bit of crystal and maybe some roasted malts; bitter with Challenger and chuck in some Fuggle or EKG with 10 minutes to go. Some of them really push the boat out and suggest you dry hop with a few cones of Golding. The fact that that basic recipe can make some great beers is testament to the yeast that makes such a huge contribution to British style beers and unfortunately, Graham Wheeler chose not to include advice about which yeast stains to select.

 

[mgrds]

When CAMRA started it did so against a background of traditional craft-brewing being swamped by industrial brewed keg ales. It did a great job of helping those who cared about such things find beers brewed by those who wanted flavour above cheap booze. At the time it was true that the old breweries using traditoal methods were producing betters beers than mass produced crap

Of course it was a victim of its own success. Once you have a bandwagon people jump on it. And cask conditioned ale requires more care than keg - so a lazy or ignorant bar manager can serve really crap real ales (cloudy with yeast suspension , or not within time when they are at their best.

I remember on more than one occasion in my favourite Real Ale pubs running out of a popular brew and the landlord flat out refusing to start another cask as it had not yet stood long enough. But sadly many other venues are not quite so fussy !

In many ways, the same situation is playing out today with craft beers. Some great products were produced by those who love good beer. But the title "craft beer" is now increasingly a marketing strategy and is gradually losing its guarantee of quality and care. Sometimes brewers just bottle crap as they have throughout the ages !

Personally I keg some of my homebrew, I condition some in barrels, I bottle some , I've even used polypins . There is a certain magic to a well-coopered wooden cask but it doesn't mean it isn't allowed to do other things !

Everyone follows their own palate . I like a properly cleared beer with no residual yeast suspension but generally feel pasteurisation or filtration produces a less interesting palate! So for a treat I like a "live beer "that has been given time - butI'd rather have a pasteurised filtered keg brew to quench the thirst, if i'm in a pub i don't trust or taking my homebrew out on the road, than a real ale that is treated less than perfectly.

We CAN enjoy the best of both worlds !

 

[trueblue]

Graham Wheeler chose not to include advice about which yeast stains to select.

When Graham was an active member on Jim's he did state the only way you would create a perfect clone was to get the live yeast from the actual brewery but as that was totally impractical he left it to the brewer to use a yeast they were comfortable with to make a beer as close as possible.

 

[Braindead]

Anyone got this yet