Learn To Homebrew Day Reflections: Homebrewing Session IPA Made With Riverbend Malt

 The homebrewing equipment: cleaned.

The grain: spent.

The beer: consumed.

If you can believe it, it’s already been three months since our craft malt (home)brew day and Instagram live. Terminal gravity was achieved in less than ten days, and following a brief cold crash, keg transfer, and carbonation period, our hazy session IPA was ready for drinking.

And I’m here to report that despite high expectations, our hazy session IPA turned out to be even better than anticipated.

Tasting Notes

Tasting a Hazy Session IPA brewed with craft malt can offer some unique characteristics compared to a regular Hazy IPA. If you’re new here, craft malt refers to malt produced by smaller, artisanal malt houses, which can result in more complex and nuanced flavors.

Appearance:

Similar to a standard Hazy IPA, our session homebrew displayed a cloudy and hazy appearance, resembling freshly squeezed orange juice or grapefruit juice. One thing I noticed is that there was a slightly deeper and richer hue compared to other Hazy IPAs I’ve brewed in the past using more standard malts.

Aroma:

This was my first time using Galaxy and Idaho 7 hops, and thanks to a generous dry hop schedule, I immediately noticed huge pineapple and berry aromas from the very first pour.

Taste:

The Riverbend malt introduced flavors like toasted bread, caramel, and honey. I immediately noticed a discernable malt presence cutting through the massive hop flavors. This created a more balanced and rounded tasting experience.

Mouthfeel:

I was surprised by a fuller and silkier mouthfeel that I had anticipated, adding to the “pillowy” and smooth texture typical of Hazy IPAs. I attributed the increased body from the craft malt used, which in my opinion enhanced the overall mouthfeel, making it feel more substantial on the palate.

Finish:

The finish might be longer and more lingering due to the additional malt complexity. The craft malt left a subtle sweetness that contrasts nicely with the fruity hop flavors, leading to a pleasant and balanced aftertaste.

HomebrewingTips from the Maltster

Riverbend malt comes in a variety of types, including base malts, specialty malts, and roasted malts, similar to the large malt producers you are familiar with. Base malts provide the primary source of fermentable sugars, while specialty and roasted malts contribute specific flavors, colors, and aromas. Choosing malt styles that complement the beer style you’re homebrewing requires a knowledge of the specific offerings of each craft maltster.

Thanks to my friends at RadCraft, I was able to work directly with the craft maltsters at Riverbend Malt when I was building my recipe. Starting with the basic idea of brewing a session hazy IPA, we worked out which specific craft malts to use to achieve the desired flavors. While base malts like the Riverbend Basecamp Pale Malt were familiar to me, others like Great Chit were less so. With the help of the Riverbend team, I was able to learn the similarities and nuances of these small batch grains. (For those that are curious, Great Chit is similar to Carafoam or Carapils dextrin malts, both of which add body and foam retention to the brew without compromising color or flavor.)

Homebrewing

Homebrewing checklist with malt

 

 

 

A Homebrewing Recipe for Summer Sipping: Rad River Session Hazy IPA

Below is the 5-gallon recipe I used for homebrewing our session hazy IPA. This brew has been perfect for summer sipping; busting with tons of malt character and hop aromas to keep you coming back for more, while remaining light enough on alcohol for enjoying all evening long.

Ingredients:

  • 8 lbs. of Riverbend Base Camp Pale Malt, milled 
  • 2 lbs. of Riverbend Great Chit, milled
  • 1 lb. of Riverbend Hull & Oats
  • 0.5 lb. of acidulated malt (optional, for pH adjustment)
  • 0.5 oz. of Columbus Hops @ 10 minutes
  • 1 oz of Galaxy Hops @ Whirlpool
  • 1 oz of Idaho 7 Hops @ Whirlpool
  • 3 oz. of Galaxy Hops, 2-3 days post fermentation
  • 3 oz. of Idaho 7 Hops, 2-3 days post fermentation

Instructions:

Heat your strike water and mash in at 1.5 quarts per pound, targeting a mash temperature of 152°F for one hour. Vorlauf the wort by slowly recirculating and then begin the sparge process by slowly adding heated strike water to rinse the grains. Collect enough sparge water to reach your desired boil volume of roughly 6.5 gallons. Boil for 60 minutes, following the hop addition schedule as described above. After a 20-minute whirlpool, chill the wort, transfer to your sanitized vessel, pitch with your desired yeast (for this brew I used Wyeast London Ale III), and ferment for approximately 7-10 days, or until terminal gravity is reached. Package, chill, and enjoy!

And for those curious, the name Rad River comes from the awesome folks at RadCraft Co-op and Riverbend Malt House that made this brew possible!

When it comes to the brewing and boiling, using a craft malt is no different than using malt from larger producers. No adjustments were made to my system and my efficiencies remained nearly the same as any other standard brew day. My mashing, sparging, boiling, and hopping schedules remained identical to any other brew.

Brewing with craft malt can add unique flavors and characteristics to your beer, enhancing the overall homebrewing experience. The best way to learn about the effects of craft malt on your beer is through experimentation and experience. Enjoy the journey of discovering new flavors and creating distinctive brews with craft malt, and cheers to making great beers!



Hot Steep Comparisons: Crystal Malt, Pilsner Malt, and Double Kilned Munich

At Riverbend, we dedicate a significant amount of time to sensory training. In these panels, we deep dive into the grain selection, recipe development, and in-house procedures that define our products. As with any great craft beer or spirit, there is a ‘true-to-brand profile that we are looking for in each one. The recent release of our Crystal Malt offered an opportunity to compare this product to other examples currently available on the market.

New Crystal Malt, 50 SRM

crystal malt

Over the years, we have learned that each producer of Crystal malt or Caramel malt developed a “house” character that brewers could recognize as either a positive or negative attribute. Given that preference and history, we were interested to see how our version stacked up. For our comparison test, we selected examples with a similar SRM from the United Kingdom and a domestic product too. 

The colors of all three were very similar. Good to know if you are targeting a very specific style or color range for your beer. We noted distinct differences in each, which supports the “house” character thesis. The two commercial examples presented a bit more toast and coffee character compared to Riverbend’s new Crystal 50 malt. Here are a few tasting notes from that panel:

 

 

Riverbend Crystal 50 malt – bright cherry, toffee, with a light syrupy finish

British Crystal malt – dark fruit, bakers chocolate, woody tannins

Domestic Crystal malt – dark fruit, toast, woody tannins

Double Kilned Munich

We also included our Double Kilned Munich in this test, as the SRM is very similar. The goal of this was to explore and define the differences in these two products to avoid any confusion in the market. The most noteable takeaway from this exercise was the difference in mouthfeel. Double Kilned Munich displayed a richer, breadier mouthfeel when compared to Crystal 50, like a mixture of chocolate cake batter and toast. This makes sense when you consider that a higher level of starch conversion has taken place in the Crystal malt, leaving a sweeter, thinner liquid. Some similarities did exist, with both presenting notes of dark fruit and molasses.

Pilsner Malts

Next up was an examination of Pilsner malts. Since the release of our single origin Pilsners, our customers have become more comfortable with the idea of selecting a specific malt from our portfolio for their lager projects. We’ve even fielded a few jabs about the number we offer, which gives me the perfect opportunity to talk about what differentiates them.

The expansion of our offerings of Pilsner malt styles mirrors market trends from the larger producers, with several releasing premium variants or domestic houses advertising the use of barley from Europe. All of which speaks to market demand and the continued rise of craft lager production in the United States market. 

Customers have consistently reported that our Chesapeake Pilsner, made with Violetta barley, is closest to the “Continental” profile from across the pond. Hot take: this comparison did not support that assessment! 

crystal malt

Our comparison of Chesapeake Pilsner to a premium domestic Pilsner malt and a continental Pilsner malt using the traditional hot steep method yielded some interesting results. The continental example delivered a more pronounced bready character than Chesapeake, but with less floral and fruit aromas. In fact, our tasting notes were very similar to our Cumberland Pilsner, made with Calypso barley. The premium domestic sample displayed the least amount of character between the three. Aromas tended to be muted compared to the other two and remained the bread crumb, crust arena with little additional characteristics noted. No flaws or off flavors were detected in any of the three. Always fun when data surprises you, right?!

All of this begs the question, do you have a comparison you’d like to try? Our team can bring our hot steep kits to your facility and compare what you currently use with a comparable Riverbend product. This collaboration is a great way to try before you buy!

Give us a shout to learn more. 

Beer to Bags: Upcycling for a Cause

upcycling

 

Over the years, we’ve participated in some fun with upcycling projects in line with our environmental objectives; but the Beer to Bags partnership is taking our efforts to another level!

Happy North Carolina Craft Beer Month everyone! This month, we are proud to announce that Riverbend Malt House is now the first malt house licensor for Beer To Bags. Beer To Bags upcycles spent malt bags to create stylish totes.

Why Upcycling?

Due to the amount of polypropylene in malt bags, they are a difficult product to recycle because they decompose at a very slow rate. Beer to Bags has found a solution to that problem by upcycling spent malt bags and turning them into customizable tote bags. Upcycling is preferred over recycling do to the amount of energy recycling takes. Rather than destroying the old bags and trying to make them into a new resource, Beer To Bags is able to modify them and turn them into a cool, useful product for beer lovers.

We’re working to remove millions of malt bags from landfills, but that’s just one material and industry. There is so much work to be done, so I welcome anyone who wants to join to make an impact where you can,” Emily Neville, the Founder of Beer To Bags told Authority Magazine earlier this year. “It takes the small, intentional efforts of all of us to make a difference.”

Upcycling For A Cause

Beer to Bags gives 1% of every sale to a good cause. For the totes made with Riverbend malt bags, they decided to give that 1% to the American Malting Barley Association (AMBA) because of the work that they do for us and craft maltsters all over the country. AMBA aims to help with the research and development of public sector malting barley varieties, helping farmers sustain the crops we use.

As part of this license, all totes made with our spent malt bags will include our logo on the inside of the tote. You can shop for totes made with Riverbend malt bags on the Beer To Bags website or you can customize a bag for yourself or your business using their Custom Order Consultation. With the holidays coming up, the timing couldn’t be better to treat the beer lovers in your life to these creative gifts.

Thanks to Beer To Bags and the AMBA for collaborating with us on this exciting partnership!

Falling For Festbier

Oktoberfest Is In Full Effect. 

Since we launched the malt house, Oktoberfest season sales calls were met with a similar refrain…. “I only use German malt for those recipes”. 

Of course this makes sense; these events are wrapped in hundreds of years of history and tradition. Add to this, the relative lack of experience of an upstart malt house and new barley varieties, and you have a recipe for hesitation.

Over the years, we have honed the recipes of our Munich “family”, coaxing a nice mix of bread, sweet aromatics, and floral character from our locally-sourced grain. These aromas combined with consistent color and extract levels have given us a bit more confidence to hit the streets and ask for that coveted Märzen or Festbier spot.

The increase in quality and consistency combined with a global supply chain meltdown helped us gain traction in 2022, and we have built on that momentum this year. Breweries across the Southeast have taken the leap and reimagined these classic lagers with freshly kilned malt from Riverbend Malt House— as opposed to the Atlantic Ocean.

This harvest season, we saw plenty of Chesapeake Pilsner, Vienna, Light Munich, and Dark Munich go in recipes across the region. Heavier on the Munich malts if a richer, maltier Oktoberfest was the target; More Vienna and Pilsner if a Festbier was on the schedule. 

Over the past few weeks we’ve received positive feedback from our customers as these beers have gone into packaging, and gotten tapped for Oktoberfest celebrations. Hearing that makes it feels like we’ve torn down one of the last barriers for craft malt. 

As these releases make their way to the taprooms and storefronts, our hearts are filled with pride. We know there is a tremendous amount of time and effort tied up in this liquid and we are proud to be a part of each of these expressions of the season. If your Festbier (or any other style you might want to tell us about) was #madewithRiverbend, we’d love to hear about it. 

A sincere thank you goes out to everyone that chose to make their Oktoberfest Lager with Riverbend this season. We look forward to raising a frothy stein with you in the coming weeks!

Prost y’all!

— Brent

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Riverbend Craft Malt Showcase Returns To Brick Store Pub September 21

DECATUR, GA— Brick Store Pub will host the second annual Riverbend Craft Malt Showcase on Thursday, September 21. This tap takeover will boast a stylistic range of 15 beers brewed with malt from Riverbend Malt House. 

 

WHAT

Craft breweries across the Southeast have united to build this one-of-a-kind tap list that includes a wide array of beer styles such as German-style Lagers crafted for Oktoberfest season, IPAs, cask ales, and much more— all made with Riverbend malt. 

This event will feature beers made by many of the region’s tastemakers— Akademia Brewing Company, Arches Brewing, Beacon Beer Co., The Brutalist, Cellarest Beer Project, Cherry Street Brewing Co., DSSOLVR, Fonta Flora Brewery, Fullsteam Brewery, Leveller Brewing Co., NoFo Brew Co., Redlight Redlight in collaboration with Alga Beer Co., Southern Brewing Company, TrimTab Brewing Co., and Zilicoah Beer Co. 

“We’re thrilled to host so many of our favorite breweries here at the Brick Store Pub to showcase Riverbend Malt House’s incredible malts,” says Neil Callaghan, Brick Store Pub’s Beer Director. “The Riverbend team has brought together a killer line-up of beers to showcase the quality of their craft malt offerings and create a unique experience for our guests to learn about the malting process and taste the difference that Riverbend’s products make in ales and lagers.”  

 

WHERE & WHEN

Brick Store Pub

125 E Court Square

Decatur, GA 30030

 

Thursday,  September 21, 2023 

Taps flowing at 6pm

 

Media interested in covering this event can contact Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com. 

 

ABOUT BRICK STORE PUB

Since 1997, the Brick Store Pub has been celebrating craft, community and culture to it’s Decatur, Georgia neighborhood.  With an internationally renowned beer program featuring thousands of vintage ales and lagers and a kitchen offering beer-inspired cuisine, the Brick Store Pub has carved a distinctive niche for itself over its quarter century history.  It is currently ranked as the #1 Beer Bar in North America by RateBeer.com and has been recognized by dozens of media outlets as an international beer destination.

Riverbend Malt House 2023 Harvest Report

“The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.” – Leo Tolstoy

Photo courtesy HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology

When the temperature begins to warm and the days get longer, we start to watch the weather a bit more closely around the Southeast. Calls go out to our small grains growers in late April and early May to get an early read on the crop. Have we had enough rain? Enough warm weather? Any disease pressure? It’s a laundry list of questions designed to gauge what we’ll be working with by the end of the summer.

In the early days, we held our collective breaths as the combines headed out into the fields of family farms. There were many variables to consider; best practices were still in development and the whole idea of harvest felt like a roll of the dice. Late afternoon rains and large storm fronts would inevitably take their toll. These events would lower test weights and increase vomitoxin levels rendering the harvest unusable. 

With each passing year, we (along with our network of growers) learned something about growing barley in our region. Observations around microclimates, planting windows, and post harvest storage all helped build institutional knowledge. Updated guidelines and advice from our extension partners helped improve our odds of success. Mother Nature still threw us plenty of curveballs, but we were much better prepared to weather her storms.

As we sat down to review the data from this year’s harvest, it was clear that we had turned a corner. The samples looked bright and plump with solid test weights to match. Nearly 100 percent of the grain samples we received from ASR Grain Company, Bay’s Best Feed, and Teeter Farm and Seed met the necessary standards for malting. This includes newcomers to the malting barley game, Alabama and Georgia!

 

New Malt On The Block

Towerhouse Farm Brewery

 

We have partnered with the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology in Huntsville, Alabama to improve and expand malting barley production in their area. This year’s variety trials included a 6-row variety called Secretariat as well as the 2-row Avalon variety. Both met our quality standards and malting is currently underway. These malts will go out to brewers and distillers throughout the state as part of an “Alabama grown” campaign.

Our friends at Towerhouse Farm Brewery in Georgia are continuing their quest to provide a grain to glass experience for their patrons. This year marks the second successful harvest of 2-row Calypso at their farm and we are looking forward to producing some exceptional malt for them! 

Expanding our grower network into these states has been especially gratifying as we look towards the future of Riverbend. Since our start we’ve heard the question “what do you have that is grown in my state?” The answer is often quite complicated, involving several stakeholders and a potentially steep learning curve. It often takes several years to bring these projects to fruition, but the result is often a big leap for local agriculture and innovation within the neighboring brewhouses.

 

More Avalon, Please 

Speaking of big leaps forward, our stock of Avalon barley bred by the Eastern Virginia Agricultural Research and Extension Center has increased exponentially with this year’s harvest. Adoption of this variety has happened quickly throughout the Southeast and we are excited to have lots from North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee to work with this year. The first batch is currently in production and will be available soon.

 

Last Kernels

Photo courtesy ASR Grain Co.

Calypso and Violetta also performed well this season and will continue to play leading roles in Riverbend Base Camp and Southern Select malt styles. 

Finally, we are also welcoming back an old favorite, Seashore Black Rye grown at Tidewater Grain Company in Oriental, North Carolina. This heirloom variety can be traced back to the 1830’s. Stay tuned for details on product release dates.

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Riverbend Malt House Named On Inc. 5000 List Of Fastest Growing Private Companies in America For Second Year

Today Inc. Magazine named Riverbend Malt House 3992 on the list of the 5000 fastest growing private companies in America. Riverbend ranked #96 on the list of fastest growing North Carolina companies.

2023 marks the second consecutive year that Riverbend has made the Inc. 5000 list, one of the most prestigious rankings of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies, representing top tier independent small businesses in America. Inc. 5000 status is conferred based upon a company’s cumulative revenue growth over the preceding three years. At Riverbend Malt House, the revenue growth over the past three years was 116 percent. 

“We are gratified to make the Inc. 5000 fastest growing  list for the second consecutive year,” remarked Scott Hickman, Riverbend’s CEO. “High quality malt, carefully made from grain sourced from local, family owned farms clearly continues to be a value proposition that appeals to our craft brewing and distilling customers.  In an increasingly crowded space, using— and talking about— quality ingredients is proving to be an effective way for our customers to stand out.”

A full list of winners including Riverbend Malt House can be found on the inc.com website.

Contact Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com with media inquiries.

Mainstays Made With Riverbend Carolina Rye

Carolina RyeFor the Love of Malted Rye

For a decade, Riverbend Malt House has worked with Carter Farms in Eagle Springs, North Carolina, North Carolina, to source the Abruzzi rye variety for its Carolina Rye malt. This malted Rye pays homage to a crop that has been grown in the South for more than 200 years, and it’s no surprise that brewers and distillers love it for its unique flavor blend of herbal spice, black peppercorn, and citrus. Here is an assortment of those craft brewers and distillers crafting mainstays made with Riverbend Carolina Rye.

End of Days Distillery Rye Whiskey – Wilmington, NC

The ⁣⁠Survivor’s Cut Series Rye Whiskey by End Of Days Distillery— the first whiskey of this type to be produced in Wilmington, NC since prior to Prohibition— features Carolina Rye among other Riverbend malt styles. ⁣⁠”The quality of the grains and the love and care used in the distillation and maturation process show our continued commitment to the craft,” says the distillery website.

Beacon Brewing Co. BOM: Red Rye DIPA – La Grange, GA

“Probably my favorite usage of Riverbend malts are the Munich Rye and Carolina Rye malts in our Red Rye DIPA,” says Dave Hash, the Head Brewer at Beacon Brewing Co. “The spicy rye malt characteristics pair really well with English crystal malt and citrusy hop bitterness, and you can really get that tingling, slightly cooling mouthfeel that you’d get from a rye whiskey.”

Oak & Grist Distilling Company Rye Whiskey – Black Mountain, NC

Oak & Grist Distilling loves a good rye malt. Four years in the making, Oak & Grist’s Rye Whiskey is their smallest-batch spirit to date. Spicy, fruity, and locally produced from grain-to-glass with Riverbend Carolina Rye and Southern Select malts, this distillery-only exclusive spirit has garnered a cult-like following from locals and tourists alike.

Leveller Brewing Four Horned Farmhouse IPA – Weaverville, NC

This Farmhouse IPA made with Riverbend Carolina Rye and Oats has well-balanced bitterness, notes of pith, freshly cut flower stems, red raspberries, and overripe tropical fruit. It’s slightly hazy, and a touch juicy—a great example of a rye malt, well placed.

Weathered Ground Brewery Scrappy Rye Pale – Ghent, WV

A taproom favorite soon-to-hit cans, this rye malt-forward Pale Ale features Carolina Rye and also includes Riverbend Heritage Malt and Great Chit in the recipe.

 

Winner’s Circle: International Craft Producer of the Year and Award-Winning Beers Made With Riverbend Malt

Winner's Circle

It’s time once again to give a shout-out to the Riverbend customers who have taken home hardware at recent industry competitions. We are honored to support the makers of some of the world’s finest beers and spirits!

Craft Producer of the Year

To start this Winner’s Circle, we couldn’t be happier to congratulate Chattanooga Whiskey for some exceptional distilling.  This Tennessee-based distillery scored the title of Craft Producers of the Year, not only here in the US as awarded by American Whiskey Magazine but, over the pond, in London, was recognized by the 2023 Icons of Whisky Awards as well. Way to go, folks! 

2023 World Beer Cup Winners

The May 10th, 2023, awards ceremony, known as “the Olympics of beer,” is the most prestigious beer competition in the world. We couldn’t be happier to congratulate Monday Night Brewing for securing the silver in the Mixed-Culture Brett Beer category with Barrel Farm, and Hi-Wire Brewing who also took home a silver in the Best Experimental Beer category for their Japanese Dry Rice Lager. Other winners who snagged bronze medals include Lenny Boy Brewing Co for their Spaghetti Handshake Italian-Style Pilsner and New Belgium Brewing for their Voodoo Ranger Juice Force IPA (this IPA also won the Gold in 2021 at the GABF). See the complete list of winners here.  

The 2023 Florida Brewers Cup

In March, several of our brewery customers in The Sunshine State took home medals at the 2023 Florida Brewers Cup. Here’s a proper congratulations to Gulfport Brewery for grabbing the gold with their hazy, crushable Hippie Oasis. Red Light Red Light won gold for Mixed Culture Brett Beer with their New Wave Biere de Garde, and Deadwords Beer won the gold for Best Saison with Harvest Moon.

Bringing home the silver, Grand Central Brewhouse⁠ took home two medals, one for Speed Wobble and one for their Grodziskie. The Brutalist claimed silver with their West Coast IPA. Perfect Plain Brewing Co was a double winner, receiving a silver medal for Yachtside and the bronze for their Czech Pils. ⁠Alga Beer Co grabbed some hardware for the second year in a row for their Neighborhood Beer. Other winners include Green Bench Brewing⁠, Hourglass Brewing, King State Beer, and Woven Water Brewing.

2023 South Carolina Brewers Cup Award Winners

Also, back in March, an array of Riverbend malt supporters won medals at the SC Brewers Cup. The awards ceremony took place as a part of the 2023 SCBG Conference and Trade Show at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center, where more than 200 representatives from breweries and affiliate industries were present. New Groove Brew was a two-time winner, scoring gold hardware with Rainbow Lake Modern IPA and silver for their specialty beer, Pageantry Pils, and Kite Hill Brewing scored gold hardware for their French Pilsner, That Girl from Alsace. Other winners included Peak Drift Brewing, Plankowner Brewing Co, and The Southern Growl. 

The 2023 World Beer Championships

The World Beer Championships (WBC) was founded by the Beverage Testing Institute (BTI) in 1994 as the first international beer competition in the United States. Our customer Fireforge Crafted Beer earned three medals in the 2023 WBC. Day on the Lake Pilsner, Game Time Decision American Light Lager (both made with Riverbend Cumberland Pilsner malt), and Novemberfest Märzen got the Gold “exceptional” distinction by scoring more than 90 in the Beverage Testing Institute’s rating system! ⁠

⁠Hickory Hops Festival 

Hosted in Hickory, North Carolina, the Hickory Hops Festival hosts more than 50 local and regional breweries annually. This year, One World Brewing snagged the gold with their Pre-Prohibition Pilsner made with 100 percent Riverbend malts, as well as a gold for Citra Bomb and bronze for Legacy Lager. 

2023 Good Food Awards

The Good Food Awards are committed to honoring exceptional crafters who produce quality beer while demonstrating a deep commitment to sustainability, as well as environmental and social responsibility. Each year they receive more than 2,000 entrants from all over the United States. Say hello to the 10-time winner, Fullsteam Brewery! For 2023, they take home this honorable distinction for their Wheat Ale, Biscuit.

Has your beer #madewithRiverbend won a competition? Local, regional, national, or international— we want to hear about it! Submit your beers here to be featured.

 

Riverbend Malt House 2023 Oktoberfest Planning Guide

Oktoberfest

It’s almost time to fill those tanks with German-style lagers to serve during this Oktoberfest season. Here is an Oktoberfest planning guide to our standard malt offerings to help plan all of your 2023 recipes. 

Czech-Style Pilsner (<2 SRM)

This product was inspired by the malts hailing from the Hana valley in the eastern portion of the Czech Republic that remain truly under-modified and low in color. In order to reign in these traits, we reduced our steep out moisture and reduced germination temperatures, and coupled this approach with a cool, gentle kiln recipe to ensure minimal color development. The result is a malt with a distinct flavor and color of 2 SRM or less.

The lack of modification opens the door for brewers to utilize step mashing or multiple decoctions to increase efficiency and build flavor. Don’t have that capability in your brew house? Not to worry– we aimed for a level modification that doesn’t require these steps.

Great For: Czech Pilsner, Saison

 

Chesapeake Pilsner (2 SRM)

One of our best selling flagships, this malt has been featured in a wide array of lagers around the Southeast. Produced using 100% VA-grown barley, this malt contributes notes of fresh-baked crackers and honeysuckle. 

Great For: German Pilsner

 

Cumberland Pilsner (2 SRM)

This Pilsner is produced using 100% Calypso barley. Calypso imparts a breadier, fruitier profile when compared to the Chesapeake Pilsner Malt. 

Great For: Helles, American Pilsner

 

Vienna Malt (4-6 SRM)

We kiln this style similarly to our Light Munich malt, with a cooler curing temperature to minimize color development. Vienna Malt helps to create full body and smooth mouthfeel, while importing honey and biscuit flavors. 

Great For: Marzen, Festbier 

 

Heritage Malt (6-8 SRM)

Notes of caramel and toasted bread are prominently featured in this product, developed to perform like a light Munich or Vienna style malt. This versatile style packs enough diastastic power to perform as a base malt to boot. 

Great For: Vienna Lager, ESB

 

Light Munich (8-12 SRM)

Producing a high-quality Munich-style malt requires a completely different approach to the process. Higher kilning temperatures and extended times combine to create the rich, bready flavor profile that these malts are known for. We use a proprietary blend of 2-row barley varieties as the base for this product. Try it as a base malt for your next Doppelbock recipe or in smaller percentages in a Helles!

Great For: Helles, Doppelbock 

 

Dark Munich (25-35 SRM)

A continuation of the Munich-style, this product is crafted using an intense 30+ hour kiln cycle that utilizes high temperatures and different air flow management techniques. The result is an aromatic malt that delivers notes of baker’s chocolate, toast, and dark fruit. 

Great For: Doppelbock 

 

Double Kilned Munich (50 SRM)

As its name suggests, Double Kilned Munich makes two trips through the kiln, a process that helps develop the complex flavors and increases color to approximately 50 SRM. This malt will contribute a beautiful, ruby red hue and notes of dark fruit and toffee with a touch of fresh roasted coffee flavor. 

Great For: Czech Dark Lager, Baltic Porter 

 

Munich Rye (40 SRM)

This malt is kilned at higher temperatures throughout and delivers notes of pumpernickel bread, cardamon, and allspice.

Great For: Belgian Dubbel, Brown Ale

 

There is also plenty of time to reach out about designing a malt blend to create signature flavor profiles. Please reach out to your Riverbend representative or email sales@riverbendmalt.com for more information about our custom malt program. 

Sample Grain Bills

Festbier 

Czech Pilsner – 70%

Vienna – 23%

Dark Munich – 7%

 

Oktoberfest 

Cumberland Pilsner – 45%

Light Munich – 45%

Double Kilned Munich – 10%