Our new Micro-Brewery is now brewing! After several months of planning and formulation our BOOT Beers have been very well received over an 8 day preview tasting programme. Using the very best malts and hops we have produced beers we are exceptionally proud of, beers that will stand the test of time and beers that we are positive will satisfy the most ardent of real ale drinkers. Initially, we will be supplying our own venues but very shortly Boot Beer will be available all over! Small Batch Craft Brews It has long been our dream to produce our own beers, brewed especially with our customers in mind, so we invested in a 6 barrel micro-brewing plant, which we have installed at The Boot in Repton to produce our own Boot Beer. We can now not only make the styles of beer our customers like but we can also create a series of exciting, dynamic tastes to match the seasons and challenge both our customers and Brewers. Brewing Each brew starts with our carefully guarded recipes. We then blend specially selected malted barley, coloured malts, and malted wheat to give us the grist. This is then gently mixed with hot water (or liquor as we Brewers like to call it..) in the Mash Tun to create the mash, which is allowed to stand for 75 minutes so the starch is converted into sugar. The resultant sweet malty solution, which we call Wort, is then run into the Copper. It's the sugars in the Wort that will be fermented by the yeast to produce alcohol. The brew' is then boiled with our specially selected hops to provide a variety of complex bitter flavours and a wonderful blend of aromas. Hops are added at a number of stages during the boil. Early additions give bitterness. Late additions give flavour and aroma. The boiled wort is then strained through the hop back to remove the hops, before being cooled on the way to the fermenting vessels. Fermenting Our Fermenters have been specifically designed to allow fermentation and conditioning (maturation). Once cooled, we add a slurry of our specially selected yeast to the wort. Over the next 4 to 5 days yeast converts the sugars into alcohol, carbon dioxide and heat. We have to make sure that the Fermenter doesn't get too hot as this will give off flavours and kill the yeast. When sufficient fermentation has occurred we cool the Fermenter down to flocculate out most of the yeast. Conditioning For some beers, we will add even more hops to the Fermenter in a process called Dry Hopping. This imparts a delightful fresh hop aroma. The resultant “Green” or immature Beer has a bitter flavour which mellows over time. We keep the beer in the Fermenter for at least another 3 days to start the essential maturation process before packaging. Racking The beer is now transferred into casks for maturation to continue. Residual yeast will continue to ferment any remaining fermentable sugars in the beer to produce a little extra alcohol and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide dissolves in the beer, producing a wonderful balance of natural tingling carbonation, taste and aroma that only cask beer can offer. Like anything in life, maturation cannot be rushed. Our beers take at least another 10 days to reach perfect condition. A little isinglass finings are added to our beers during racking. This natural product helps the yeast to settle in the cask, producing a perfectly clear pint. If you would like to learn more about brewing or Boot Beer, please call us. You can arrange a look around the brewery or even spend a day brewing with us.