One of The Youngest Cicerones Ever Shares His Insane Flavor Combos (93 Octane Brewery)

A young master brewer of craft beer shares the science behind fresh, shelf-stable beer, cake batter cream ales, coffee beer off-flavors, and more.93 Octane Head Brewer Alex Makowski details his journey from becoming one of the youngest certified Cicerones to scaling 93 Octane from a tiny gas-station nano brewery to a full Elmhurst taproom. He also dives into the technical science of avoiding off-flavors in coffee beer and his philosophy of crafting a diverse lineup that appeals to both casual drinkers and craft beer geeks.0:00 Intro: Whimsical Brewing at 93 Octane0:41 Meet Alex Makowski2:06 93 Octane’s Origins: The Gas Station Brewery3:51 Nano Brewery Life: From a 400 Sq Ft Closet to Expansion5:14 Scaling Challenges: Mobile Canning & Palate Positions6:47 Expanding to Elmhurst: A One-Month Renovation8:05 Brewing Philosophy: "Make Great Beer, Period"9:18 Community Support & Maintaining Two Taprooms11:00 Homebrewing Roots: A Father-Son Project at 1812:22 Youngest Certified Cicerone: Studying Underage13:33 Inside the Cicerone Exam: Off-Flavors & Glassware15:25 Industry Reality Check: Lessons from Finch’s Brewing17:01 Rising Through the Ranks at Two Brothers Brewing19:39 Global Brewing Science: Learning from International Experts22:02 Underrated Styles: The Love (and Struggle) for Alt Beer24:03 The Elmhurst Vision & Designing the New Space26:10 Passion Project: Crafting the Perfect Coffee Porter28:21 Diversity on Draft: From Lagers to Sours30:08 The Evolution of "Piper" Hazy IPA32:05 Pro Tip: How to Identify Beer Bitterness (IBUs vs. Palate)34:16 The Comeback of Classic Styles & Shelf Life Realities36:13 Freshness First: Why Pack Dates & "Facing" Cans Matter38:16 Spotting "Bad" Beer: Cardboard & Library Book Smells40:05 The Science of Off-Flavors: Trans-2-nonenal41:30 Redefining Porters: Why This One is Different43:23 The Secret to Mouthfeel: Using Flaked Oats45:20 Rotating Cream Ales: Keeping the "Clown Car" Fresh47:36 Brewing for a Cause: Golden Pour Purpose49:18 Innovative Techniques & The Whimsical Approach51:02 Barrel-Aging Experiments: Bourbon & Maple52:57 The Great Pumpkin Beer Debate54:40 Understanding Salinity & Salt in Fermentation56:18 Mastering American Pilsners & Lager Timelines57:58 Taproom Culture: Legit Nachos & Community59:38 Behind the Design: Moving Motorcycles with Scissor Lifts1:01:18 Final Thoughts & Supporting the Channel1:01:55 Closing Toast: Knight Rider Black IPAAbout 93 Octane Brewery: Born from a passion for craft beer and quality, 93 Octane Brewery offers an innovative, rotating tap list of IPAs, stouts, pilsners, sours, and creative seasonals at their taprooms in St. Charles and Elmhurst, Illinois. Learn more on their website at https://93octanebrewery.com/ —Learn more about Crafty Brewers at https://craftybrewerspod.com Support Crafty Brewers on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/c/craftybrewers Crafty Brewers is a production of Quantum Podcasts, LLC, an enterprise podcast growth consultancy. If your brand would like to capture a loyal audience to drive business results with the power of podcasting, then visit https://quantum-podcasts.com/Our executive producer and editor is award-winning podcaster Cody Gough. He insists that we tell you that in this episode, you’ll learn about: cold extraction coffee method, espresso-strength coffee additions, green bell pepper flavor in coffee beer, parts-per-billion flavor detection, off-flavor blind tasting, Cicerone certification exam structure, draft system cleaning and maintenance, craft beer freshness dating, best-by date on beer cans, IBU measurement, bittering hops vs. aroma hops, no-boil IPA hopping technique, cold-side dry hopping, hazy IPA vs. West Coast IPA, perceived bitterness in craft beer, Folds of Honor military scholarship program, craft beer veteran support, Siebel Institute, international brewing school Germany, metric system in brewing, barrel measurement system, and craft brewery career paths.