The art of homemade ale

"If you can boil water, you can brew your own beer at home." I had heard this statement from amateur home brewers recently. When I said it to German brewer Andreas Roehrl, who works at Beijing's Drei Kronen 1308 brewery, I was met by a laugh.

Although it takes only minutes to mix up your own cocktail at home, a home brew of beer is far from simple, said Roehrl. There might be home brewing supplies, guidelines and books, which are easy enough to get online or in stores locally, but, he noted, "brewing beer is a science." It not only requires professional supplies, such as a lauter whirlpool combined tank and distillation equipment, but also quality raw ingredients like malt, hops and yeast.

And the brewing process involves patience. It generally takes four weeks for a brewery to brew beer. At home, beers produced within a few days are hardly drinkable, according to Roehrl.

So what is one to do when the craving comes for wholesome beer in Beijing? Apparently leave the house. Starting around 2010, in-house brewing in Beijing became de rigueur. Now there are a number of spots that supply their own brews. Kevin Ji, who also works at Drei Kronen 1308, which serves traditional Bavarian home-brewed beer, says of this: "It has become a trend in recent years. Despite being a tradition in the West, it is a craft that requires skilled knowledge and craftsmanship." In order to maintain the quality of the beer and make sure it is still fresh, most breweries do not sell the drink outside, Ji explained.

Usually in-house breweries do not filter their ales. As a result, both the color and flavor of the stout is richer than its mass-produced cousins. Unfiltered beers also have more nutrients. These come from the barley malt and yeast, which provide vitamins to reduce the affects of hangovers, explained Roehrl, who has been in the industry for 25 years.

Beijing has a number of breweries. Long established ones include Paulaner Brauhaus in the Kempinski Hotel and the Hopfenstube (Munich brewery) in the Crowne Plaza Beijing, Chaoyang district.