New Brewing Lager Beer: The Most Comprehensive Book for Home and Microbrewers

by Gregory J. Noonan

This book offers a thorough yet practical education on the theory and techniques required to produce high-quality beers using all-grain methods either at home or in a small commercial brewery.

Genres: Brewing, Beer, Nonfiction

363 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

A couple quick thoughts while this is still fresh in my mind after my first reading:

1. I had intended to read anyway, but this was recommended reading from the BJCP as an important source in preparing for the written exam and/or improving my score on the tasting exam.

2. I did NOT make any notes/annotations/marginalia on this read-through, but I think I will on my next read.

3. CONTROVERSIAL OPINION: But given that the BJCP appears to recommend this, it's my belief that there should be some kind of disclaimer or "yeah but" that comes with it. The book was published in 1996 and while the majority of it holds up well, I also think there are some statements (particularly w/r/t/ dry yeast) where the state of the art has changed over the past 26 years.

[Geoff Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not for beginners. Quite technical and, when used in conjunction with more recent sources, quite useful. Outdated in places (best practices have changed and myths been debunked in the 20+ years since its publication), but a solid reference for somewhat experienced brewers looking to take their craft to the next level.

[Josh Skogman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is full of very detailed info for the serious brewer. I consider myself an average home brewer, and found some of the contents interesting while other parts were way over my head. It is a great reference book...meaning there are lots of charts and explanations that I could see myself coming back to. Good info, but to just sit and read is like reading an encyclopedia.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

TMI!

Dry, overly scientific and to bogged down in details. If you want a deep dive into brewing chemistry, this is the book for you. If you just want to learn to brew lagers, this book provides far too much detail to be useful! To make it worse, some of the information is out-dated.

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book repeats much of the content of other popular home brewing books, I found it particularly useful for understanding the process and technical aspects of decoction mashing and lager fermentations, which are rarely addressed in other books. If you want to make German beers, this is the book to have.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit dated, a bit dry (it seems sufficiently technical for a professional brewer), but surprisingly comprehensive; information about lagering, secondary fermentation, lager yeast strains, krausening, decoction mashing, beech filtration, etc. are presented skillfully but not to the exclusion of ale brewing ingredients/techniques.

[Bill · Rating 1 out of 5]

Compared to Plamer's book, this book is almost unreadable. It's mainly geared toward small microbreweries and I think they added the word 'homebrewers' to expand the marketing potential of a poorly readable book.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great information on every aspect of brewing. Section on lagering (surprise surprise) is especially good. Well researched, intermediate level technicality, but a beginner could follow. "How to Brew" by John Palmer is a much better begginer's text.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

COCC TP 570 .N583 1996 Bought a copy a while ago.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a fair bit of dated information in it but still covers numerous areas that helped me gain other insights into the aspects of brewing.

I'll probably use parts of it as a reference in the future.