Campfire is a place of togetherness. A place of marshmallows, smoke, bacon, pancakes, ice and fire, cosiness…and beer!
@thebeertrale and @beerisaconversation (yup that’s me) settled in Virginia, along the Appalachian, next to Devil’s Backbone brewing to run some “Beer & Campfire” experiments.
Warning: try this at home
Smoke your Beer
Turn up the heat and the volume as we’re going to Smoke (on the Water). Just like Scotch Whiskey and cured ham beer has been smoked for ages. Actually all beers were smoked up until recently. Not the beer itself but the grains. The old school way to dry malted barley was to kiln it above wood fire and that was still the case until the 19th Century. As the heat was kilning the grains, the smoke was also imparting flavors. Smoke is a natural heritage flavor in beer. Some beer styles are still living to that tradition nowadays, using a portion of beechwood or oakwood smoked malts in their bill, like German Rauchbier, London Porter, Lichtenheiner or Grodzikie…
In this video we smoke beer on the spot, by the campfire, choosing our smoke in the wild (spruce, pine, oak,…). It’s not smoking the beer itself so much but add a complementary aromatic component floating on the glass and the foam. A beautiful way to turn a Jalapeno Sour or a Baltic Porter into a complex smoked beer! Enjoy and try this at home!
Beer & Marshmallow
We named our best result the Baltic Mallow. Roasted Marshmallow and Baltic Porter!
Beer batter pancakes
Yes you can replace part of the milk for beer… but which beer? Check our beer batter fight and figure out what best work: Bourbon barrel aged stout or cherry fruit beer!
DIY Ice Beer
Ever forgotten some beers in the freezer ? On the deck in winter ?Here is your best recovery plan, the best way to impress everyone! Do it yourself. Make your very own Ice beer.
Instant Coffee Beer
Coffee and Beer is nothing new. You have Coffee Stout, Espresso Stout, Chocolate Coffee Stout, White Stout….But wait for it, you can do much more… and you can do it yourself. Take a French Press, your best freshly ground coffee and the beer you want to infuse. Let’s go! Best when done around the campfire.
Toast your beer
Yes you can toast your beer. Literally you can create Maillard reactions on the spot by plunging a glowing iron stick in your beer. Amino acids and Sugars react to create fantastic flavors. Just like searing a steak in a pan. You can call it “searing your beer”. Works even better by the campfire.
Spice Up Your Beer
The Wassail is a medieval Christmastide English drinking ritual intended to ensure a good cider apple harvest the following year. Mulled wine was invented by Romans in the 2nd Century to defend their bodies against the cold winter. Now is time for Cold mulled beer. Spice up a Stout with vanilla beans? A Saison with pink pepper ? A German Weissbier with Cardamom (Wait this must be forbidden by the German Purity Law). Here we play with our pestle and mortar by the campfire with an apple beer, some crispy spices and our trademarked French Press!.
