246: Zack Frasher of Slice Brews West Coast and Hazy IPAs that Rip

Jul 8, 2022

Join Zack Frasher, co-owner and head brewer at Slice Beer Company, known for his award-winning West Coast and hazy IPAs, as he dives into the world of hoppy beers. He shares his innovative brewing techniques, focusing on optimizing hop expression and water treatment for IPAs. Zack discusses balancing different malt bases, blending yeast for hazy IPAs, and the small details that elevate a beer's quality. With accolades from prestigious competitions, he reveals the art of brewing that transforms good beers into great ones!

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ANECDOTE

Zach's Brewing Journey

Zach Frasher started homebrewing in 2008, inspired by craft beers like Pliny the Elder.
He pursued his brewing passion, working at Knee Deep Brewing and winning homebrew awards.

ANECDOTE

Moonraker and Hazy IPA

Frasher gained experience at a homebrew shop and Mirage Brewing, before becoming Moonraker's founding brewer.
At Moonraker, he championed hazy IPAs in cans, despite initial skepticism from the owners.

ANECDOTE

Joining Slice

Frasher left Moonraker after four years to co-found and become head brewer of Slice Beer Company.
The opportunity for creative freedom and partnership at Slice was too enticing to refuse.

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Zack Frasher loves hoppy beers about as much as he loves exploring new techniques for maximizing their expression. His past decade and a half of brewing—first as a homebrewer then as a pro—has been marked by research and testing in the hoppy genre, dialing in recipes and processes for clean and tight hop presentation. Over the past year at Slice—in Lincoln, California, just north of Sacramento—that determined work has borne fruit: a bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival and a gold at World Beer Cup, both for juicy or hazy strong pale ales. Frasher is no stranger to winning; his beers also won four GABF medals in five years at his last brewery, nearby Moonraker in Auburn.

In this episode, he dives deep into brewing hop-forward beers, both West Coast and hazy, and discusses:

water treatment for IPAs and the benefit of keeping dissolved solids low
building simplified and leaner but structured West Coast IPA
varying malt bases depending on the hop recipe
changing recipes when moving from steam to direct fire
taking a hop variety–specific approach to IBUs
blending yeast in hazy IPA
the small things that elevate beers from good to great

And more.

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