The 2024 World Beer Cup was quite a moment for Issaquah, Washington’s <a href="http://formulabrewing.com" rel="nofollow">Formula.</a> Head brewer Jesse Brown is no stranger to medals, but four in one year at the world’s most prestigious beer competition made a statement. His career as a brewer may look like “Swiss cheese,” with stints in Wyoming, Tennessee, Oregon, and Washington, but it’s hard to poke holes in any of his thoughtfully designed and thoroughly executed lagers or IPAs. 

In this episode, Brown discusses ingredients as well as the labor-intensive process behind his helles, touches on the hot-side versus cold-side fresh-hop controversy, shares his approach to New Zealand hops that won him a silver medal for New Zealand–style IPA at World Beer Cup 2025, and finishes with thoughts on what it takes to win when so many brewers are making such great beer. 

Along the way, he discusses: 

<ul>
<li>front-side decoction without a dedicated vessel</li>
<li>extended saccharification rests to build malt depth</li>
<li>gently handling lager to avoid bruising the beer</li>
<li>the differences between 34/70 strains</li>
<li>transferring before terminal to get a head start on clearing yeast</li>
<li>the fresh-hop “controversy”</li>
<li>the beauty of Dolcita and building mouthfeel with hops</li>
<li>blending base malts for West Coast IPA</li>
<li>selecting early-pick New Zealand hops for lower diesel character</li>
</ul>

And more. 

This episode is brought to you by:
G&D Chillers (<a href="https://gdchillers.com" rel="nofollow">https://gdchillers.com</a>): For years G&D Chillers has chilled the beers you love, partnering with 3,000+ breweries across North America and beyond. Remote monitor your chiller for simple and fast access to all the information you need, and gain peace of mind your operation is running smoothly.
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Old Orchard (<a href="https://www.oldorchard.com/brewer" rel="nofollow">https://www.oldorchard.com/brewer</a>): Whether trending flavor additions or nostalgic favorites, the next best thing is around the corner at Old Orchard. More information and free samples are waiting at oldorchard.com/brewer.
Indie Hops (<a href="https://indiehops.com" rel="nofollow">https://indiehops.com</a>) Celebrating 16 years of delivering compelling new hop varieties along with classics that thrive in Oregon’s terroir, Indie is the original source for Strata, Luminosa, Lórien, Meridian, and their newest variety Audacia. Release your creativity with the magic of pure, uncut Oregon hops from Indie. Indie Hops — Life is short. Let’s make it flavorful.
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