398: River North Explores the Outer Limits of High ABV Brewing

Jan 31, 2025

Join Matt Hess, founder of River North Brewery, and head brewer Matt Malloy as they dive into the art of high-ABV brewing. They discuss extraordinary techniques for making potent yet drinkable beers, exploring topics like healthy yeast management, careful malt selection, and innovative fermentation processes. Discover how they balance intense flavors in their award-winning brews and the challenges of barrel aging. This conversation unpacks years of experience, illuminating the complex, delicious world of ultra-high gravity beers.

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ANECDOTE

River North's History

River North Brewery, founded in 2012, initially focused on Belgian beers.
The brewery relocated in 2015 due to neighborhood development, expanding operations and beer styles.

ANECDOTE

Inspiration for High-ABV Beers

Matt Hess's passion for Belgian beers and Boulevard Brewing's Smokestack Series inspired River North's high-ABV focus.
Belgian styles were trending when River North launched, aligning with Hess's brewing preferences.

ADVICE

High-Gravity Brewing Techniques

Maximize mash efficiency and limit boil collection for high-gravity beers.
Use dehusked grains and layer crystal malts like Special B, 20L, 40L, and 70L for balanced flavor.

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Over the past few years, Denver's River North Brewery has collected accolades from top beer competitions around the world—four GABF medals, four World Beer Cup medals, four European Beer Star medals just to name a few—and beers like Father Time and Anniversary 11 have earned top scores from our blind panel. They most recently earned midsize brewery of the year honors at the inaugural Colorado Brewers Cup. While they brew a wide range of beers, including frequent medal winner Nightmare Fuel coffee stout, they're probably most well-known for the beers that push into the peaks of the ABV range—stouts, Belgian-style strong ales, and barleywines that regularly hit 15% and higher.

In this episode, founder Matt Hess and head brewer Matt Malloy share their techniques for making beers that not only turn heads for the their sky-high numbers, but also remain drinkable and as balanced as such beers could be. From controlling fusel alcohols through careful fermentation management, to building layers of flavors through malt selection, they share insights garnered from ten years of pushing the envelope. In this episode, they touch on:

using very high pitch rates and over-oxygenation to maintain healthy yeast
employing dehusked malts to soften roast character in big stouts
pushing yeast into an additional growth phase to increase cell count
keeping osmotic pressure low and feeding fermentations
selecting and adding coffee into stout
managing the oxidative process in barrel aging

And more.

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