It’s a fortified beverage, not beer by definition. Yeast dies above a 14% alcohol concentration so they are adding alcohol to make it 28%.
Just get a beer and add a jigger of vodka. You won’t notice the taste difference after the 2nd or 3rd one.
I live in bourbon country. I’ve learned that all bourbon starts with beer (and not a very tasty beer). They then distill from that to get the full alcohol level. Then it gets the rest of its taste from the barrel in which it is aged.
And yeah, to get that much alcohol in it it is no longer beer. You could say that all bourbon is just “distilled beer”.
“It’s a fortified beverage, not beer by definition.”
Please source that.
“Yeast dies above a 14% alcohol concentration so they are adding alcohol to make it 28%.”
It is 22% by volume. Article should say 28% by weight. Champaign yeasts routinely go to 18%. Other yeasts can go to 22%.
“It’s a fortified beverage, not beer by definition. Yeast dies above a 14% alcohol concentration so they are adding alcohol to make it 28%.”
https://www.sakesocial.com/blogs/guide/genshu-the-undiluted-brew
NATURALLY OCCURRING ABV
Of all the fermented beverages in the world, sake has the highest naturally occurring alcohol content! Yes it is true, and I did say naturally occurring! There are many beer fundies out there who will speak about certain beers constructed using things such as champagne yeasts that produce a beer with 25-28% alcohol content. That’s crazy and truly not naturally occurring! And yes some wines pump pretty high, but when I speak about sake I am speaking about the norm and not the exceptions.
Sake will ferment “naturally” up to 18-19-20%. (And there is a certain very good friend of mine who is a toji, or head brewer, in a kura in Kyoto Prefecture by the name of Philip Harper who is blowing way past these levels – and for the life of me I don’t know how! Philip has written several great books on sake and is very much worth being a fixture in your sake library.) But back to the point! Sake can ferment up to 19-20% no problem.
“It’s a fortified beverage, not beer by definition. Yeast dies above a 14% alcohol concentration so they are adding alcohol to make it 28%.”
From England, this yeast can ferment up to 25% alcohol when used correctly. It produces ester characters that increase with increasing gravity. Malt character dominates at lower gravities. To achieve >25% ABV, sugar needs to be fed over the course of the fermentation.
https://www.whitelabs.com/yeast-single?id=146&type=YEAST&style_type=0
From the Samuel Adams website:
"The brewers utilized several yeast strains during fermentation, including one typically reserved for champagne, and a “ninja yeast,” created for its ability to survive and continue fermenting in an environment that has such a high alcohol level."
Now, I have no idea what ninja yeast is.
So! Fortified beverage it is!