On a trip down to the Milwaukee Zoo with my family, we stopped into the Northern Brewer store. I needed to pick up some yeast for an Irish Draught kit I was doing and they are very close. On the counter as I was checking out was a flier for "Ale through the Ages: The Anthroplology and Archeology of Brewing", a program run by the Discovery World Museum in Milwaukee. It instantly grabbed my attention, because I am a bit of a history geek (quiet you), and I love recreating historical minutia. There were three sessions listed, but unfortunately I had plans already for the first one. The second, a 15th century style Gratzer Ale, was doable so I registered up and made the drive down.
http://programs.discoveryworld.org/archives/1497
First off, the last time I was at Discovery world was when it was in the lower level of the Milwaukee Public Museum, eons ago. Heading down to the new (to me) site was awesome, and the place is beautiful. I got there a bit early due to traffic being cooperative so I walked around the Great Lakes exhibit for a bit prior to starting. The class itself was $20 ($15 if you are a member of the museum), was about 1.5 hours and was held in their Digital Theatre space which was very comfortable and conducive to a good viewing environment. As you walked into the space you were greated with the recipe (both all-grain and partial mash), some Northern Brewer SWAG, and an opportunity to sample a young Berliner Weiss they had recently brewed up. They did the brewing on the street during a recent event and used a wild yeast strain that gave the Weiss a distinct citrus and sour taste. It was quite good, if a bit young, and set the mood for the beer we were about to see being made.
Archeology Associate Kevin Cullen led the discussion on brewing and the history of the style of beer we were seeing. The audience was a mix of new to brewing, experienced brewers and students of anthro/archeology. Kevin did a very nice job of keeping things on a level that worked for all the audience covering topics like how brewing is accomplished, what grains are used historically, and the basics of brewing history. While he did this to volunteers with the museum assisted him in stirring the mash they had started prior to class, transferring the mash to a secondary pot, sparging the grain, and the other physical tasks. When we started to get into discussions about the specific brew we were working with, Kevin used his power point presentation to show the region we were talking about (Western Germany and Poland) and the historic documentation we have about the ancient, medieval and early modern brewing process. It was a lovely look at images from various hausbuchs, gravity breweries, monasteries, and the physical landscape. Tied into the history of Europe was the brewing industry's history in Milwaukee and Wisconsin and a digression of how was here during the beer boom as well as the places that are reviving the old traditions today.
A great deal of information was given out via lecture form, but it was a well presented lecture that did not make me feel like I was sitting back in a hall with 300 students hoping my TA understood what the guy was talking about because I had no clue. Kevin showed an ease with the material asking opinions and clarifications of some of the experienced brewers and professors in the audience. During the entire time the air took on the wonderful aroma of smoked wheat (which Kevin smoked himself) as the beer progressed through the boil. One very nice thing was having the ingredients of the beer be passed around for us to smell, feel, and sample. It really gave you a good sense as to where the beer was headed.
The end of the time saw the beer go into two carboys ready for a short two week fermentation. Free form discussions afterwards took place, but as I had a hour and a half drive home I thanked Kevin for the presentation and headed out. In two weeks the class is invited back for the bottling, where we will do the work and get the chance to take home some samples of the beer.
I had an excellent time and am hoping that I'll be able to do more of these classes. There is a colonial porter one in December that sounds great!
Kevin's Blog can be seen here:
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