It’s not you – we’ve all been seeing a lot of green recently with Saint Patrick’s Day happening next week.
If you like your beer dyed green, an Irish Stout… or maybe a crisp glass of water… Raleigh Water is a big part of sipping on that holiday beverage. We’re talking about a pint of beer. In a few days you might indulge in a local beer or two. Thanks to the brewers here in the City of Oaks you won’t have to look far to satisfy that need. Before you belly-up to the bar, local brewer and owner of the Sneaky Penguin Brewing Company, Chris Nadeau, gives us a lesson in beer… and the water behind it.
Reliable water means, reliable beer.
Water is vital to the beer brewing process. From filling the beer fermenters up with water, to cleaning the distillery floor at the end of the day. Think about it this way, Nadeau says he aims to use about six to eight gallons of water per gallon of beer produced. This water usage can vary depending on the season due to the heating and cooling of the water during the brewing process. Those numbers are just for what ends up in your glass. Raleigh Water cleans the instruments in the process and the taproom you sit in.
Beer water needs a little razzle dazzle.
Nadeau said, when asked what makes a good beer, “Clean water that we can adjust depending on the beer style we are brewing. Raleigh has good water for brewing, so we just run it through some filters and kind of build it back to the profile we need for the beer that we’re brewing.”
Don't worry filtering the water isn't because it's dirty. The filtering process helps him get an accurate read on the profile of the water. Nadeau is then able to adjust other chemicals used in the fermenting process. The water mixture then spends time in several different tanks with varying amounts of grain to craft the different varieties of beer.
Great water, great beer and great community.
There are dozens of breweries all around the City and many of them have Raleigh Water pumped right to their doors. As the City continues to grow and the brewery scene follows, the Raleigh Water team is ready to uphold its part in the brewing process.
Nadeau bragged about the brewing community saying “We have a great beer scene here in Raleigh. We have a lot of people that are enthusiasts and care a lot about great beer, which forces the breweries to make great beer. We’re up in as one of the top in the state.”
Let’s end today’s Beer Water lesson with a Raleigh Water saying considering the holiday…
Raise a glass of water… that might soon be beer to the local brewers ahead of the holiday. May Raleigh Water always keep the water flowing and your beer taps never run dry.