How go you make a zero alcohol APA?

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Could the old man drink a sub 3% beer? That would open a lot more options.
 
Idea: What about fermenting with bacteria that conk off early, like 2% ish. I remember reading in some lambic text that some type of bacteria quit that early. Make a low gravity brew but mash it at 70 degrees like, do only a 5 minute hop addition. It should retain maltiness, now ferment with the bacteria and keg.

Anecdote: My lowest gravity ever was an unintentionally watered down beer that I hopped to volume rather than strength and my mash temp was about 68. Was meant to be 20 litres of 1042 and turned out to be 30-32 litres of 1030. Fermented out to 1006 from memory. Was very very drinkable. The recipe was Tony's lcba to start with.
 
Ducatiboy stu said:
What sort of options...
English mild.
SIPA.
Leictesweizen.
Berlinerweiss.
Lite American Lager.
Scottish 60.
 
Mr. No-Tip said:
Could the old man drink a sub 3% beer? That would open a lot more options.
Unfortunately no, has to be "NAB" which I believe is 0.5% ABV or less
 
So if I did a brew as per normal then post ferment reheat brew to above 78.3 deg C (boiling point of ethanol) then dry hop
This could work?
Only problem is how do you carb it? I don't have kegs
 
I'd start with the commercial alcohol free beers as a base, and figure out the best way to boost the hop flavour/aroma (hop tea, isohop, very small addition of vodka infusion....)
 
what about brewing a normal apa and running it through a "water purifying apparatus" remove all the alc and be left with no alc beer. I don't know if that would work
 
Your all forgetting the isomerisation of the alpha acids in the heating to remove the alcohol.
I did one ages ago at work as a trial batch. I believe it was 1035 og and 32 Ibu not fermented and pasteurised to kill off anything that would be in it. Personally I'd go that way and force carb it. Tasted way better than most of the no alcohol ones
 
Awhile back on here people were talking about a new liquid hop product that was made for adding a few drops to a commercial lager to up it's aroma/flavour. Maybe you could brew a super light beer with only a tiny bittering presence and then trial adding this kind of hop extract to achieve your 'apa' kinda flavour? once you know the right amount, do up a few bottles for the old boy.
 
barls said:
Your all forgetting the isomerisation of the alpha acids in the heating to remove the alcohol.
I did one ages ago at work as a trial batch. I believe it was 1035 og and 32 Ibu not fermented and pasteurised to kill off anything that would be in it. Personally I'd go that way and force carb it. Tasted way better than most of the no alcohol ones
Without fermentation, wouldn't the beer be too sweet?
If you think about it, the average PA probably finishes around 1.010, That is a fair bit less, sweet sugar than even a low OG un-fermented wort. Without any alcohol present, wouldn't it taste even sweeter?
 
I recently read that making a normal apa (whatever strength you want) letting it ferment as usual. Then boiling out the alcohol after primary and conditioning (bare in mind that hop aroma and flavour) and if you want to dry hop just chill it again and keg or whatever works really well.
 
surly said:
Without fermentation, wouldn't the beer be too sweet?
If you think about it, the average PA probably finishes around 1.010, That is a fair bit less, sweet sugar than even a low OG un-fermented wort. Without any alcohol present, wouldn't it taste even sweeter?
hence the 32 ibu. it was just perfectly balanced.
 
IIRC, Birell is brewed with a yeast strain that dosen't spit out alcohol as a by-product of chewing through the sugars. I believe there is no post heating process, just brewing as per normal.

I'd love to get my hands on this yeast.
 
barls said:
hence the 32 ibu. it was just perfectly balanced.
Interesting.
I like the sound of this approach much better than the brewing of a very "weak" beer. It is also much faster :)
 
Just a thought, but could you do a reverse eisebock? Freeze the low ABV beer and remove the alcohol somehow?
 
Cube said:
IIRC, Birell is brewed with a yeast strain that dosen't spit out alcohol as a by-product of chewing through the sugars. I believe there is no post heating process, just brewing as per normal.

I'd love to get my hands on this yeast.
i was under the impression it's done with a vacuum boil ie a boil at near vacuum
 
Just a thought, but could you do a reverse eisebock? Freeze the low ABV beer and remove the alcohol somehow?

Something like spinning it around really fast to remove the liquid?

:)

 

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