Get ready for an exciting collaboration that brings together a hometown favorite, a Philadelphia lager, and a unique malt with a legacy! Josh Wurzbacher, our US Technical Sales Manager, took a quick trip to his beloved Human Robot Brewery in Philadelphia—a place that’s not just down the road for him but also one of his all-time favorite breweries. But the fun doesn’t stop there! This collab also brought in Schilling Beer Co., a modern European-inspired brewery from New Hampshire, to create something truly special.
This project was extra personal for Josh: “Getting to brew with Andrew and Murph was a dream come true. I’ve been a fan of Human Robot and Schilling for years, and I knew Hana Malt would bring something unique to the brew day. It’s a heritage variety with a legacy that I think every brewer wants to tap into.” – Josh Wurzbacher, Crisp Malt.
And the best part? Andrew Foss from Human Robot is sharing a step-by-step guide on how to brew this incredible lager, including the full recipe—just for you!
Publican’s Lager Human Robot x Schilling Brew Co.
OG 11 FG:3 ABV 4.25%
Begin by mashing all of the maize and one bag of Hana into the mash cooker with 225l water, targeting a temperature of 60c. Once mashed in, turn on the heat, targeting 1c/minute, and raise the temperature to 72c, hold for 15 minutes at 72, and then bring to a boil for 10 minutes.
Once the kettle mash is in, begin mashing 87.5kg Hana malt and 3kg Chocolate Malt into the Lauter Tun with 325L water, targeting a temperature of 65c. Hold at 65c until the kettle mash is finished cooking, then pump the kettle mash into the Lauter Tun and gently stir/fold the mashes together, targeting a temperature of 75c.
Rest the mash for 10 minutes, then vorlauf for 15 minutes or until the wort is clear.
We do a 90-minute lauter and a 75-minute wort boil.
Hops are a 50/50 blend of Styrian Goldings (5.6aa) and Hallertau Mittlefru (3.2aa).
At first wort add 1.5KG
At 15 minutes add 1 kg
At flameout/whirlpool add 1.5kg
Around the 30-minute mark, add 25kg of the dark kettle sugar.
Knock out into the FV at 7.5c adding oxygen as normal.
We used 34/70 lager yeast from a previous fermentation. For 10HL we added about 12.5l of slurry. We also dosed the FV with .5ml/HL ALDC enzyme, and 1ml/HL Brewers clarex.
Hold the tank at 7.5c for 24 hours, drop the break material from the cone, and then set the tank to 10c.
Once the beer hits 6p, cap the fermenter to build about 12psi of head pressure. Drop the temperature to 8c as the beer finishes fermenting, and then hold it at 5c until the beer clears VDK and generally tastes mature (about 10 days).
Deep cool the beer to 0c and hold for 3-5 days. Once carbonation and clarity are in spec, the beer is ready to package.
“Crisp Hana Malt was the perfect malt for this beer. A fresh hay like flavour carries through, making a bright flavour in a dark beer. Even with the adjunct, the beer retains a nice round mouthfeel that you can’t achieve with more modern, overly modified malts. Thanks again for working with us on this. I would not have thought to bring in the Hana malt and I really think it made a big difference in the finished beer!” – Andrew Foss, Human Robot Brewery.
If you find yourself in the Philadelphia area, don’t miss the chance to try this incredible new lager—it’s a must!
A huge thank you to the teams at Human Robot Brewery and Schilling Beer Co. for letting us be a part of this awesome collab and for showcasing Crisp Malt.
Until next time—cheers!
