Join authors Dick Cantwell and Peter Bouckaert as they tell the story of the marriage between wood and beer from Roman times through medieval Europe to modern craft brewing. Cooperage is a long and venerable craft and here the authors give a description combining the evocative and technical. The smells, the heat, choosing the wood, drying, fashioning staves, steaming, firing, and assembling into a perfect container-at least perfect until the bunghole is drilled to accommodate the precious contents. Barrels and foeders have gone from an oddity of traditional breweries to a commonplace feature at the heart of the craft brewing industry. It is estimated that 85% of US breweries now use wood as part of their process. Maintaining wooden vessels requires care and meticulous organization of cellar space. The authors discuss the vagaries of temperature, humidity, seasonal changes, mold, and evaporation, and how breweries new and old deal with these challenges. The basics of selecting, inspecting, cleaning, and maintaining barrels are detailed. Finally, of course, the wood must be united with the beer. The complexity and variations that govern how wood imparts flavors to beer can be overwhelming. The authors guide the reader through wood's characteristic flavor compounds and the nuances of toasting and charring. Oak is the focus, American, French, and Eastern European, but other woods get their due. As well as intrinsic flavors, the microflora that take up residence in a barrel or foeder are the living, beating heart of a barrel-aged beer, able to create sour and unique beers of fascinating complexity. The authors pepper the text with stories and experiences from some of the giants of the craft brewing scene, discussing how they monitor their barrel programs and taste and blend their beers to create something truly special. All this will inspire professional and amateur brewers alike. At the end of the book the authors give some helpful advice on wood aging for homebrewers, including the uses for chips, cubes, spirals, staves, powders ... and the odd chair leg. Get ready to embrace the mystical complexity of flavors and aromas derived from wood.

This definitive book on one of the world's legendary beers clearly explains the mysterious term barley wine. Fal Allen and Dick Cantwell share their secrets of how to brew this challenging high-alcohol, hoppy, sweet ale that is every brewer's crowning achievement. Recipes from some of the beer industry's most respected brewers are included.

As a diverse but distinctive style, IPA bestrides the craft beer world like a colossus. As author Dick Cantwell says, "We are living in the heyday of IPA." While hops remain front and center in the myriad examples of IPA available to beer drinkers today, the style is also now subject to vast experimentation and "dressing-up," producing fruity, herbal, black, Belgian-y, and juicy versions of this perennial favorite. Brewers are pushing the boundaries of IPA by using flavors from cocoa, coffee, tea, fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, chilis, and wood. Before describing how this multitude of ingredients can best be applied to crafting unique, eclectic, and tasty IPAs, Cantwell gives a potted history of IPA, acknowledging some of the fanciful notions the story often includes. When he arrives at craft brewing today, Cantwell opens up whole new vistas where experimentation can happen, involving spices and herbs of all kinds, fruits from every corner of the globe, vegetables familiar and not-so-familiar, coffee and chocolate, teas and botanicals. Along the way, he describes his thoughts behind his approach and how to treat these ingredients with free license while still being conscious that the aim is to produce something delicious that people will want to drink again. Brewing Eclectic IPA will inspire professional and homebrewers alike to explore the creative ways in which these ingredients can be used in brewing highly hopped beers. Try your own version using any of the 25 recipes for contemporary IPAs that the book contains, designed by some of America's top brewers.

The Brewers Association's Guide to Starting Your Own Brewery distills the wisdom of craft brewing veteran Dick Cantwell into one text that delivers essential industry insight. American craft brewers have always exhibited a sense of community and collegiality but the success of the industry is embodied by the production of consistently high-quality beer at community-oriented breweries. This book is an indispensable resource for aspiring brewery owners to turn that vision into reality. At every level, brewing is about careful planning and execution of processes. The author shows that this is no different when starting a brewery. Cantwell walks the reader through initial planning, from site selection, size, staffing levels, your brewery concept, and dealing with delays, to business planning and raising capital. Regulatory and legal issues are discussed—not least a brewery's obligations to the inland revenue service—along with strategies essential for starting and growing your operation, such as production and sales planning and brewery expansion either on site or opening new locations. The author includes several example business plans that are explored in detail, and peppers the book with his own personal and hard-won insights on everything from guerilla marketing to applying epoxy resin flooring. Within this big picture, the author weaves in critical aspects like brand identity, marketing, quality assurance, and distribution, not to mention details like equipment options, securing ingredients, and installing flooring and drainage that will stand up to the demands of a busy brewery. Finally, once your brewery opens its doors, the process of brewing needs to continue smoothly. You need to plan and adapt your brand portfolio, operate sustainably, dispose of wastewater correctly, and package and present your product in a way that will appeal to customers. Craft breweries pride themselves on conscientious operation, maintaining the safety of their staff and operating responsibly within their community, all the while being profitable. From concept to operation, this book gets you on the right track to succeed in one of today's most dynamic industries.