Introduction

There’s more to German-style beer than just lager, and Cedar Springs Brewing Co. is out to preach the gospel of weissbier to anyone who will listen. Their Kusterer Original Weissbier has a couple GABF medals to its name, and their dedication to foundational brewing methods—step mashing, open fermentation—along with a knack for storytelling that’s necessitated by their focus on the weissbier family (they generally have two or three different weissbiers on tap at any given moment) makes for a brewery experience far different from today’s norm.

In this episode, founder David Ringler discusses the Cedar Springs approach to weissbier, from the historical roots of the beer style to the choices they’ve made in process and recipe. Along the way, he touches on:

• building balance and subtlety
• step mashing everything
• designing open fermenters for softer fermentation
• working through different weissbier yeasts
• tracking down and brewing historical iterations of weissbier
• brewing the all-barley take, called dampfbier
• adjusting fermentation temperatures for ester production

And more.

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