BEER Tips
After selectrion of your beer, probably the best tip is to keep
it at the right temperature. In practice, that means keeping it
as cold as possible. Several Fests have suffered from inattention
to beer temperature.
Below we list the proper drinking temperature for each of
the beer sytles recommended under "Menu, Beer" above.
At home you will have better control over the serving temperatures.
At an actual Fest, in the heat of Autumn in Arizona or
Colorado, the beer in a glass can quickly exceed the proper
temperature. Thus, the recommendation to store and serve
the beer at or below the proper temperature. There is nothing
worse than a warm Pilsner with your brat.
- Märzen (Oktoberfest) 48 deg F
- IPA 50 deg F
- Pilsner 38 deg F
- Saison / Farmhouse Ale 38-55 deg F
- cheap, American lagers 33 deg F
For our operation in Colorado, we use two 2-tap jockey boxes with
a 50-ft stainless-steel coil in each for best chilling. The lines
are pressurized with CO2 to avoid any need to pump on them
and to maintain uniform flow. The kegs are continuously
fully iced on all sides.
I know, I know. This is ridiculous. How are we supposed to
know the temperature of a beer in a glass? Well, before you
have too much of a fit over it, go down to Home Depot and
pick up a Klein Tools NCVT-41R Voltage Tester-Thermometer
for about $38. It's in with the volmeters and stuff. It
can detect presence of AC voltage just by proximity (not for your beer),
but also has a laser-guided IR thermometer that can measure
temperatures remotely over -22 to 482 deg F, and seems to
be accurate to within a few deg F. Good
for measuring the temp of hot water from your tap, checking
refrigerator or freezer temps, oven temps, meat temps, etc.
Have a look:
(click to enlarge)
That is all.