A Hoppy Collab: Kweza and Yakima Chief Hops
Sorghum Brewing & Hops
Kweza & Yakima Chief Hops teamed up to bring you a new hops bundle formulated for sorghum.
We worked with Master Brewers Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela, Christian Von Der Heide, and Danie Odendaal to develop a hops bundle that showcases the flavor profile of sorghum.
Brewing with Sorghum
What is Sorghum?
Sorghum is a naturally gluten free and environmentally friendly grain you can add to your recipes in full or in part.
In the US and Europe, sorghum is available from a variety of suppliers as either extract or malted grain. In Africa, malt is fairly readily available. In Rwanda, we brew with malted red sorghum, which is also used in a milled, powder form to make Ikigage, Rwandan traditional sorghum beer.
Flavor
Flavor: Sorghum alone has a thin character compared to barley. To add body and mouthfeel, we use a small amount of barley grains, as well as honey, and high oil percentage hops. But you can brew with 100% sorghum to make a gluten free beer!
To make a neutral/ light bodied beer base, we brew with a majority sorghum as our base grain. We then add a small amount of speciality barley malts based on style.
Milling
Milling: If you are working with whole sorghum malt, we use the same setting as barley for our mill, but a slower speed.
Mashing
Mashing: Saccharification of malted sorghum is at a higher temperature than barley. We do a 30 minute mash at 85C (185F) with sorghum only first, then add cold water to lower the temperature to 65C (149C). At that point we add any barley, and continue brewing as we would for a standard barley based mash.
Sorghum is naturally sour, so if you lower your mash temperatures, you will get a naturally sour beer (but watch your OG levels - as saccharification won’t be complete at lower temps)
A hybrid or blending process could be used to produce sour beers without additional bacteria or yeast.
Hops
Hops: A little hops go a LONG way in a sorghum based beer. In our experience, using primarily Saaz hops early for light bittering, and focusing more on aroma hops complements the lightness of a sorghum beer. We have recently tried Yakima Chief Hops Eukanot, Idaho 7, and Talus to great success with sorghum.
Brewers have been successful in making hoppy beers/ IPAs on a sorghum base. Adding fruit and honey to sorghum beers creates a nice balance also. Explore the possibilities with sorghum, and share what you find out!
Questions about brewing with sorghum?
Sorghum questions? Jessi@KwezaBrewery.com or contact us through our socials.
Malted red sorghum
Sorghum Grain
Did you know sorghum is:
Native to Africa
Gluten Free
Climate resilient (heat and drought resistant)
Does not require irrigation, pesticides and fertilizers
About Kweza
We make world-class beer using native ingredients and sustainable processes - all while supporting the empowerment of women in Africa.
