National Lager Day

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By Chef Diane

When I went to my parents for Thanksgiving, my son had already arrived.  He was sitting outside with my father and aunt and uncle, and was drinking a beer.  I was a bit surprised.  Not that he was drinking, he is over the age of 21, but the fact that he was grown up.  I have never been a beer drinker, but my father has one occasionally, and keeps them outside in his shop and has them available for any guests who care for one.

I have a cousin who's friend makes their own brew.  He tries different ingredients to change the flavor, and is always taking pictures to send to my cousin.  I remember when I was in high school, we learned about making beer, and the process of fermentation, and hops and yeast.

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According to punchbowl.com, lager is a type of German beer that is bottom fermented and lightly hopped. It is usually stored for at least three weeks after brewing before it is served.  Lager is the dominant style of beer throughout the world, except in England where ale is the favorite style. The only real difference between ale and lager is that ales ferment and age quickly at warm temperatures, while lagers ferment and age slowly at cool temperatures. These different types of fermentation allow for a vast difference in flavor and aroma.

Today is National Lager Day.  So to celebrate why not blow the froth off a couple of cool ones at your local pub, or in the comfort of your own home.  If you don't want to down a few, you can use it to make some bread.  Below is a recipe from food.com for beer bread that is the latest rage these days.

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Beer Bread

Ingredients

• 3 cups flour (sifted)
• 3 teaspoons baking powder (omit if using Self-Rising Flour)
• 1 teaspoon salt (omit if using Self-Rising Flour)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 (12 ounce) can beer
• 1/2 cup melted butter (1/4 cup will do just fine)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix dry ingredients and beer.
3. Pour into a greased loaf pan.
4. Pour melted butter over mixture.
5. Bake 1 hour, remove from pan and cool for at least 15 minutes.

National Lager Day

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By Diane Forrest,

I am not much of a beer drinker, and when I say not much, I have probably had 3 in my life. Well unless you count root beer, cause I drink that every day.  I remember every day when my father came home from work he would grab a can of beer, sit in his favorite chair and relax.  When I became of age to drink, I went to get a can of beer to drink while sitting back and relaxing, but the taste to me was very good at all.  I tried again a couple more times, but each time the same result, so I changed over to root beer.

Since I am not a beer connoisseur, I don't know about all the types, brands or other things that makes one different from the other.  I remember that in high school science class we learned the process using yeast and hops, fermenting and storage, but that is the extent of my knowledge.  I have a cousin who tells me about his friend that brews his own, and sends pictures, but he tells me they all look the same to him.

Today is National Lager Day.  Lager is a beer that that is made from malted barley that is brewed and stored in cold temperatures.  A bottom fermenting yeast is one of the ingredients and was first discovered in the 1400's during the Medieval Period.  The term Lager means storage.  Once the beer was brewed, it was stored in cold caves while it fermented, for at least 3 weeks.  There is a Pale Lager, and a Dark Lager, before the 19th century, there was only dark lager.  The introduction of the pale lager in the mid-19th century was so successful that it spread all over the world, and is now the most successful lager.

There are many lagers for you to try, here is a list of some you may want to look for:

• Ayinger Altbairisch Dunkel
• Bell’s Consecrator
• Dixie Blackened Voodoo
• Dock Street’s Royal Bohemian Pilsner
• Heavy Seas Marzen
• Iron Hill’s Vienna Lager
• Riverhorse Lager
• Sly Fox Oktoberfest
• Stoudt’s Gold
• Stoudt’s Pils
• Victory’s Festbier
• Victory’s Prima Pils

To celebrate National Lager day, why not head to your local pub and blow the froth off one.  Just be sure to drink and drive responsibly.