In 2013 construction began on a unique brewhouse project in Bamberg, Germany. This job was trusted to the one of the oldest & famous brewing equipment manufacturers: Kaspar Schulz. Kaspar Schulz has been manufacturing brewing systems since 1677 and is one of the only companies in the world skilled in working with both copper and stainless steel. The system manufactured for OEC Brewing took 12 months and combines both modern & old world technology.
After many months of eager waiting the brewhouse was finally completed in February of 2014. Then it endured a short trip across the Atlantic Ocean and arrived in Oxford on March 12th. It was now time for a lengthy installation process. To get the equipment into our brewery it was necessary to remove a wall temporarily to get the mash tun/kettle, lautern tun and coolship into the structure. Of course this was done on one of the most painfully cold and windy days of the winter. Alas, after painstaking efforts the brewhouse was in place and ready for use.
Our brewhouse is based on a historic German brew system as would have been found in the 1800s. We have a mash/brew kettle & lauter tun rather than a mash tun & brew kettle. This is an ideal setup for many of the antiquated mashing methods we use for our recipes including decoctions and turbid mashing. These outdated methods create dextrins and complicated sugars adding great depth and body to the final beer. Our brewhouse is a 15 hectoliter system, which is roughly equivalent to 12 barrels.
Of course for cooling we use a very traditional continental European set up as well. After the hot wort leaves the kettle it is directed into a copper coolship for its initial cooling period. We treat different recipes uniquely in the coolship envirmoment. For our more “standard” beers the liquid only rests in the coolship for about 45 minutes before moving onto to the next part of its journey. Also, much of our spice or herb additions (direct from our Horticultural Area) are done in the coolship as opposed to during the boil or flame out. For our more “wild” or “spontaneous” beers, once the wort is pumped in the coolship it is left overnight before moving to fermentation.
The second part of the cooling process is the beaudelot cooler, which allows the wort to trickle down cooled copper tubing, both further cooling and very importantly aerating to the unfermented beer for the yeast. The two primary fermentation vessels are both rectangular open containers, one steel and one concrete. The shape of a fermenter effects flavor of the beer. Also having an open top allows the yeast to create more esters.
We use several different yeast strains to help influence the character of our beers along with the uniqueness of our system. There are two “regular” brewing strains in our portfolio, a German ale and a German lager strain, but of course it does not end there. All of our beers will also get an addition at some point in their lives from one of our very own house yeast strains. Our house yeast strains have been harvested from the fruits of our Horticultural Area and out of the spent barrels of our Zymatore Project, adding unique flavors and aromas.
Once Zymatore barrels are exhausted we incorporate them back into some our beers in special way. We smoke our malt over the open flame from the old barrels. The barrels are made from some of the finest oak from France & the USA. The smoke from these barrels adds flavor and aroma from the oak in addition to subtle notes from what has soaked in the wood over its years of use, both as Zymatore barrels and the original use (spirit, wine, etc).
Our goal at OEC Brewing is to combine these old world techniques and recipes with modern brewing equipment. Come with an open mind and be ready to taste a myriad of interesting and exiting concoctions.
Opening June 7th, 2014 – 7 Fox Hollow Rd, Oxford, CT 06478 – 12p.m
This article is by Anthony Pellino & Ben Neidhart