The Year in Beer 2024
Dear Friends,
We’ve been through a whole heck of a lot in 2024. There was a total solar eclipse. And a Twisters sequel. And a Mike Tyson comeback. We also faced hurricanes. And fought blood cancer together. And found creative solutions to unexpected problems. Before we break for the holidays and barrel into the new year, let’s pause for a minute and celebrate some of the stuff that turned out alright. As always, RahrBSG is here to support you and lift up your beer any way we can!
Brewers Meet Gambrinus IPA Malt
After getting their hands on an all-new IPA Malt from Gambrinus early this year, the brewers at the Rahr Technical Center in Shakopee, Minnesota, cranked out a stellar West Coast IPA for brewing customers to sample. It was gone in days. A few weeks later in Las Vegas at CBC, Gambrinus IPA Malt made another splash, this time in a beautiful collaboration brew from TapRoom Beer Company and Original 40. Also gone in days. We can’t wait to see what you’ll do with the heart of hop-forward beer in your next brew!
2 Become 1: RahrBSG Rebrands
In February, Rahr Malting Co. and Brewers Supply Group teamed up to become RahrBSG, a single business unit dedicated to providing brewers, distillers, and more with world-class ingredients and service. While our name has changed and there’s a new logo on our hats and shirts, our commitment to our customers and this fantastic industry remains the same.
Jake Keeler Joins the BA Hill Climb in DC
Rahr V.P. of Strategic Management Jake Keeler joined industry partners at the Brewers Association’s Hill Climb in Washington D.C. in June. Along with Bob Galligan, the Director Legislative and Public Affairs for the MN Craft Brewers Guild, Keeler tag-teamed eight meetings at various Congressional buildings and offices. We’d like to thank Jake, Bob, and everyone else who was among more than 100 brewery representatives, guild leaders, and other supplier partners to advocate for small and independent breweries in the U.S.
Breweries Against Blood Cancer
This year we teamed up with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to create Helles For Hope, a collaboration beer featuring ingredients from Rahr Malting, Weyermann® Specialty Malts, HVG German Hops, and Fermentis yeast. Brewers across North America joined us in the fight, helping us celebrate an iconic lager style and support a fantastic cause. We’re grateful for all we accomplished together.
Love Letter to Lager
Much more than fizzy yellow basic beer, lager has been the dominant global beer style for at least a couple centuries. Craft brewers and drinkers around the world embrace lager for being approachable, elegant, and endlessly refreshing. Crisp, clean, flavorful, and always evolving, we invite you to lean into lager with us. In case you missed our Love Letter to Lager, hit the link and learn why we believe double-decocted could be the new double dry-hopped.
World Brewing Congress
In August, 800 attendees from 22 countries descended on Minneapolis, Minnesota, for the 3-day World Brewing Congress 2024. We sent our team to early morning sessions on sustainability, and we hosted guests for late-night malt house tours down in Shakopee. On the WBC’s final day, President and CEO of Rahr Corporation Willie Rahr delivered a well-received keynote that touched on balancing short-term demands and disruptions against long-term goals and sustainability. Through it all, we learned lots, laughed more, and loved spending time with the people who make great beer happen all over the world. Let’s do it again soon, yeah?
Rahr Debuts GN Zero Distillers Malt
It’s not every day you get to bring a new malt into the world, and we’re proud as can be that Rahr GN Zero Distillers malt debuted this past year. Rahr GN Zero is composed of Glycosidic Nitrile-free North American 2-Row barley. That means it contains little to no glycosidic nitrile (GN), essentially eliminating carcinogenic ethyl carbamate (EC) formation from malt in spirits. If you’re looking to guarantee future compliance, increase spirit yield, and incorporate exceptional malt flavor in your final product, Rahr GN Zero is where it’s at.
Cryo Hops, Welcome Aboard
New to RahrBSG, Cryo Hops® pellets are the concentrated lupulin of whole-leaf hops containing resins and aromatic oils. Designed to provide intense hop flavor and aroma, Cryo Hops® enable brewers to efficiently dose large quantities of alpha acids and oils without introducing astringent flavors or vegetative material. Cryo Hops® pellets can be utilized anywhere whole-leaf hops and hop pellets are traditionally applied. Order Citra®, Mosaic®, and Simcoe® from RahrBSG!
That’s it for now! Once more we wish you a happy holiday season, and we look forward to seeing what the new beer year brings!