Homebrew Summer: Shark Bait

In addition to providing a mechanism for sharing information, ales and lagers, homebrew clubs serve as the starting point for friendships based on shared interests and respect. Often, members with similar approaches to brewing gravitate to one another. Such was the case with two guys sharing the same name and nth-level processes, Chris Banker (pictured above, far right) and Chris van Hamersveld (pictured above, second from left). The former, the head brewer for Barrel & Stave Brewing, invited the latter, an accomplished local amateur brewer, to partner with him to produce a pro-am beer as part of San Diego Beer News‘ fourth-annual Homebrew Summer program. The resultant “tropical pale ale”, Shark Bait, will hit Barrel & Stave’s taps inside Vista beverage collective, CoLab Public House, on Friday, August 9, but you can download the recipe for it right now. Scroll on!

New pro-am beers will debut weekly throughout the summer, so be sure to check back with San Diego Beer News on a regular basis (or subscribe to our free weekly email newsletter and we’ll send all the recipes and release information straight to your inbox). Cheers and happy homebrewing!

Chris van Hamersveld
Homebrewer

How does it feel to have your recipe selected to be brewed on a pro scale?
Brewing with Chris Banker at Barrel & Stave Brewing was a fun and rewarding experience. Leading up to brew day, we worked via email to scale up my recipe. We made some decisions about ingredient substitutions and quantities to adapt to his system and processes. I was pleased with how close we were able to make a 12-barrel commercial version of my homebrew recipe. On brew day, I found Chris’ approach to be very similar to mine. His attention to the details and actively steering the brew matches the precision I strive for at home. It made for a smooth brew day, which is always good. A couple of times, a technical decision was needed in order to move forward. I really appreciated that Chris turned to me to make the decision, giving me a real “head brewer’s” experience. One nugget I learned was how Chris managed the total IBUs (international bittering units) of the beer by initially targeting a lower IBU, accounting for the physics of his system. Since the kettle was going to sit for an extended time at high temp during whirlpool and knockout, instead of a quick cool down like I have at home, he accounted for the increase in the AA (alpha acid) conversion from the various hop additions. This would give us as close to the desired IBUs as I get in my home brew. That was smart thinking!

Chris Banker
Head Brewer, Barrel & Stave Brewing

What led you to select this beer recipe?
Chris van Hamersveld has been a longtime active member of the Society of Barley Engineers (SBE) and QUAFF, and is someone who consistently produces outstanding homebrews. As the deadline approached for the Homebrew Summer program, I was attending a technical brewing talk that Chris was giving to SBE. Between his beer quality, attention to detail and dedication to the craft of homebrewing, I felt he would be a great choice for this year’s collaboration. I checked that he hadn’t already been selected for a collab and we discussed some ideas for some of his brews. I liked a number of the beers he brewed and we settled on a New Zealand-hopped pale ale as a great summer release. The style is a light, yet aromatic pale ale that utilizes some great New Zealand hops. I really liked the idea of a hoppy yet easy-drinking pale ale with some unique hop characteristics. One of the hops we selected was Nectaron. That varietal is a hot commodity right now and availability through suppliers was almost non-existent. Thankfully, a friend who runs another local brewery was able to sell us some.  

Fun fact: We already have three Chrises involved in Barrel and Stave, so there are four Chrises who are part of this collaboration. 

Tips for Brewing this Beer at Home: This beer involves a reduced-temperature whirlpool for aroma and flavor without too much additional bitterness. Consider setting up your wort-chilling setup toward the end of the boil to heat-sanitize it, and use that to do your temperature drop. That will ensure your chiller is sanitized, set up and ready to go for the final chilling.  

Barrel & Stave Brewing is located inside CoLab Public House at 2129 Industrial Court, Suite B, in Vista