Alvarado Street Brewery: Kettle Cooler

ABV: 5.0%

IBU: “Low”

Availability: Rotating

@untappd says: 3.88/5

There’s nothing cooler than today’s Windowsill beer!

How do you make a kettle sour? No, this isn’t an old timey joke, and there’s no corny punchline, this is a quick how to lesson! According to the Home Brewers Association, you can make a kettle sour in five easy steps. •1. Mash, lauter and sparge as you would for any beer. •2. Conduct a brief, 10-15 minute boil for sanitation, and then cool the wort to 100 degrees Farenheit. •3. Pitch a culture of pure lactobacillus into the kettle and cover. Allow the lacto to sour the wort over the next couple of days, using a heater to maintain the temperature. •4. When the wort has reached the desired level of sourness, return the kettle to the heat and boil for 60 to 90 minutes, adding hops to your heart’s content. •5. After the boil, chill and ferment with standard brewer’s yeast.

That’s it! Now go out and try it!

Today’s Windowsill brew is a kettle sour from Monterey, CA’s Alvarado Street Brewery, which came to me courtesy of my good buddy, @beer_shark. It’s called a Kettle Cooler, and is a rotating release from the brewery. It’s inspired by Cactus Cooler soda, with added heaps of mandarin orange, pineapple puree and vanilla beans to Alvarado’s regular kettle sour ale. I’ve never had Cactus Cooler, but if it’s as tart, fruity and refreshing as the Kettle Cooler, I’m all in for one!

Check this one out on Instagram, now. Don’t forget to like it, and follow Beers on Windowsills!