Brewing Process

Hopefully by now you have tasted one of our award-winning beers, brewed right here at The Kirkwood Highlands! If not, you owe it to yourself to explore the wonderful world of craft brewing and taste what you’ve been missing. When we pour your glass of Kirkwood Highlands beer, it flows directly from our serving tank – beer just doesn’t get any fresher than that! The Kirkwood Highlands follows the traditional eight steps for creating quality brews:

1.Grain selection

The first step in the brewing process. Grains contribute to the color, body, and fermentables in beer.

2. Grist Mill

Used to crack open the mixed grain in order to expose starch.

3. Mash Tun

Mixed grain is blended with warm water which converts the grains into a “mash.”

4. Lauter Tun

The mash is transferred to the Lauter Tun and sparged (rinsed) with hot water.

5. Brew Kettle

The sweet liquid (wort) extracted from the mash is transferred to the brew kettle and boiled. Hops are added to give flavor, aroma and bitterness.

6. Heat Exchanger

The hopped wort is pumped through the heat exchanger to cool it down before entering the fermentation tank.

7. Fermentation Tank

Cultured yeast is added to the wort. The yeast consumes the sugar of the brew, creating carbon dioxide and alcohol.

8. Serving Tank

A temperature controlled storage unit, where beer is held until drawn at the tapper.

Please ask your server about guided brewery tours. Beer is our passion and we love sharing it with our guests!