Give me five ways in which I can make my homebrew beer more interesting


There are infinite ways to create interesting flavours, that are either personal favourites or attempt to replicate classic beers and beer styles. There are a number of factors that make up a beers flavour profile and part of the enjoyment brewing your own beer at home, is that you can play around with each of these to change the flavour and character of your homebrew beer. Here are five ways in which you can change your own homebrew recipe to add interesting flavours or alternatively you can alter an existing homebrew recipe shared by somebody else or a brewery.

1. Use different hops
There is a huge variety of hops available to homebrewers and each of these can introduce its own particular flavour and aroma to your beer, ranging from pineapple and apricots, to pine trees and woods, to grapefruit pith and lemon zest. By using a different hop in your recipe either from the same family or from an entirely different family of hops, you can easily add interesting and often radical changes to the flavour profile of your beer. However, depending on when the hops are added in the brewing process, you can also increase/decrease the levels of bitterness of your beer, due to different hop varieties having different levels of alpha acids.

2. Use a different yeast
Besides fermenting the beer, yeast leave behind lots of interesting flavours and can give your homebrew it's own subtle character. For example, English yeast strains can add malty and sweet flavours, California yeast tends to create a clean and crisp beer, whilst saison yeast adds bright and fruity flavours to your beer.

3. Use different grains
Changing the amount of base malts can increase or decrease the alcohol in your finished beer. Trying swapping one base malt for another, like American pale malts for a British variety, and look for the subtle differences between them. You can also play around with the specialty grains, like using a slightly darker roast.

4. Add fruit, spices or herbs
Fruits, spices, herbs, and other ingredients are a great way to add an entirely personal character to your homebrew. Anything from fresh strawberries and basil to vanilla beans and cardamom can really complement the other malty, hoppy flavours in a beer. 

5. Alter your water profile
Different beer styles will typically be best achieved with a suitable water profile, with different levels of minerals to achieve the desired flavour profile. By adjusting the amounts of specific minerals found in your brewing water, beer can be made to taste fuller bodied, sweeter, drier, more bitter, or even sour.