Utah’s beer laws are some of the most anomalous in the country—the state does everything it can to make life hard on brewers—but one byproduct of the laws restricting the sale of beers based on ABV is that Utah brewers have had the commercial incentive to hone their low gravity brewing techniques. Today, at Templin Family Brewing in the granary district of Salt Lake City, you’ll find a dozen or so beers at 5% ABV (or less) on tap at any given time—because anything they make over 5% must be poured from a can. But ask Kevin Templin about it, and he won’t complain—he loves making and drinking low ABV beers, and the beers on their board are perfect for the social focus of their taproom. Come with friends, drink a few, and still get home safely.

That discipline with low gravity beers is paying off—Templin’s Granary Pils, a kellerbier, has won GABF bronze and silver medals every year for the past three years, and recently nabbed a top score of 99 from Craft Beer & Brewing’s blind judging panel. In this episode, Templin discusses his approach to lager brewing, how they lager IPAs, mashing thin and cool for maximum attenuation, shaving the beers each time they’re brewed through a cooperative sensory-driven process, reducing hop matter and contact time for greater hop impact, the importance of a clean brewery, and more.

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