Beer making is a science, according to home brewer Max Monti-Bovi.
Even the most sober academics would agree with his view because home brewing requires precision. For each batch they use specific amounts of yeast, hops and grains while maintaining a sterile environment: the slightest mistake will ruin any batch of beer.
In less than two months, Monti-Bovi crafted his first home brew: 5-and-a-half gallons of an India pale ale that is bitter yet flavorful, with a subtle citrus taste. Though only a few people have tasted his creation, he is one of several thousand Americans who have collectively altered the country’s beer industry through home brewing, or craft brewing.
As craft brewers—from those like Monti-Bovi who brew for their own enjoyment to regional breweries that produce up to 2 million barrels annually—offer countless varieties of beer to the American palette, they have become a significant force in the overall beer market. Though different groups vary widely on the actual number of home brewers, the most conservative estimates begin around 250,000, as stated by the Boulder, Colorado-based American Homebrewers Association. Other analysts state that there are over 2.5 million home brewers.
Whatever the exact number may be, home brewers across the country are passionate about their work and brew for many reasons besides making a profit. Monti-Bovi, who said he will never sell his own creations, said he enjoys making beer because there is always the possibility to invent new styles that go beyond the simple dimensions of the commercial brewing giants such as Anheuser-Busch and Coors.
“There’s something special about drinking something you made by hand,” he said.
Home brewing has grown over the years from a necessity for beer enthusiasts who could only shop for a limited selection of styles to both a hobby and a rebirth in American beer creation. At the end of the 1970’s, there were only 44 makers of beer in the country: as the 1980’s approached, home brewing gained popularity because there was no other way for Americans to experience diverse flavors of domestic beer, according to the American Brewers Association.
The American Brewers Association added that the “increased homebrewing activity inspired beer enthusiasts to start their own small brewing companies,” and this helped give American beer a history and tradition that some critics believe it lacked for so long.
As of last year, there are now over 1,400 American breweries in existence, the overwhelming majority being craft breweries, according to the American Brewers Association’s Web site.
The American Brewers Association also stated that the craft beer industry, valued at nearly $5 billion last year, produced over 6.7 million barrels or four percent of the total output by the American beer industry. It reported that craft beer sales have risen by over 30 percent over the last three years.
Gary Glass, director of the American Homebrewers Association, said the most popular styles among home brewers are American Ales, followed by Stouts—dark beers made with roasted malts or barley—and India pale ales, such as the one Monti-Bovi created.
He also said there are more people creating brews that are not as heavy or strong-flavored as the pale ales or stouts. “It would seem that homebrewers are now brewing more delicate styles than they have in the past,” he said.
Glass also noted that more brewers are acquiring wood casks to age their beer, which provides yet another dimension of flavor.
Home brewers, unlike the high-output brewers, have the ability to focus on and perfect their 5-and-a-half gallons of beer in order to achieve a unique and desired flavor, Monti-Bovi said. As he explained the process he took while creating his pale ale, he emphasized that potential beer makers should “read about it first” and “find what kind of beer you want to make.”
Monti-Bovi, a senior at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic, Conn., began his first brew by boiling water together with orange pieces and a malted barley extract resembling brown molasses. After stirring the boiled mixture in a large bucket using a sterile paddle, he let it ferment—the process in which yeast eats the sugar in the mixture and puts out alcohol and carbon dioxide—for ten days.
At this point, he said, he was past the hardest part of the entire process. “When you follow it step-by-step, [brewing] is a waiting process”
Then he siphoned the liquid sitting atop the big rim of remaining yeast into another container, where it settled for another two weeks. After that, he delicately mixed in corn syrup to create carbonation and bottled up his creation, 8.5 percent of which was alcohol.
Monti-Bovi again stressed the importance of patience in aging a beer to a desired flavor. “Leave the beer in the bottles for as long as you can,” he said explicitly.
In the entire process, the most common mistake brewers make is being unsanitary when handling the ingredients, Monti-Bovi said. He said that the slightest hint of bacteria in a batch will spread quickly and ruin any brewers’ best intentions.
Monti-Bovi shares several characteristics of craft brewers throughout America. According to the American Brewers Association, craft brewers produce limited quantities of beer, are innovative in their search for new flavors and tend to be “very involved” in their communities.
Monti-Bovi said he often samples different varieties of beer and interacts with other brewers at the Willimantic Brewing Company in Willimantic, Conn. He has also attended beer tastings, which he said offer great opportunities to learn about and taste new beer styles.
Brewers and other beer enthusiasts gather in several other communities aside from the brew house or tasting events. Beer Advocate, an online resource for brewers and enthusiasts run by two brothers from Boston, states it is supported by a community of over 100,000 people “dedicated to supporting and promoting beer.” Zymurgy, a magazine published by the American Homebrewers Association, has been in circulation for almost 30 years.
Jason and Todd Alström, co-founders of Beer Advocate, did not respond to a request for an interview.
When asked about his impressions of craft brewers and their significance on the American beer market, Monti-Bovi said that small brewers like Sierra Nevada have grown into leading competitors and have shown that craft beers can have a mass appeal.
The Sierra Nevada brewing company, founded in 1981, produced around 650,000 barrels—or 19.8 gallons—of its beer in 2006, according to the American Brewers Association. In comparison, the Boston Beer Company, which offers Samuel Adams beer, produced just below 50 million gallons in the same year.
As for Monti-Bovi, he is already working on a new creation, something he calls “winter nut ale.” He said he mashed pecans and macadamias and boiled them in his initial mix to create another interesting flavor, differing from the citrus-hinted offering he had recently bottled.
“The nuts add a dimension to the beer,” he said, “but they won’t dominate the flavor.”
He also said he will begin to submit his brews into contests when he creates one entirely from scratch, instead of using a pre-mixed barley extract. With his creations and the diverse flavors developed by thousands of other craft brewers, the American beer landscape will continue to expand into the future.
