Parkville Microbrew Festival

It seems natural for Iowa-based Confluence to offer a corn-based brew. But while Iowa corn makes great bourbon, it’s not so good for beer. So we use open-pollinated, heritage organic blue corn grown in New Mexico. First we perform a cereal mash by boiling the milled blue corn to expose the starches. The resulting purple porridge is then mashed conventionally with barley malt causing the color to magically disappear and creating a super sweet, almost clear wort. The entire wort is boiled and we add enough Saaz hops for bittering without overwhelming the blue corn flavor. It’s then fermented with German lager yeast and lagered as normal. The resulting beer is refreshing on warm days, yet big for its style and with higher alcohol content than the classic American pilsner.

Glowing like the Iowa Capitol dome in Iowa’s capital city, Des Moines, this golden lager is brewed with time-honored German brewing methods. Its slightly sweet, bready, malty flavor is balanced perfectly by traditional German noble hops with medium-low hop bitterness. Like building the magnificent 23-karat gold leaf Iowa Capitol dome itself, this beer can’t be rushed. We create it with the finest domestic and imported German two-row barley malt and noble German hops as well as traditional lager yeast. This delicate beauty undergoes a lagering period of three to four weeks after initial fermentation to bring out the best this beer has to offer. The result is a beer which, much like Iowa, has something for everyone — satisfying to the experienced craft beer drinker, yet welcoming to those new to the world of craft beer.

Many Iowans are descendants from German immigrants so it’s fitting that we make a Bock, one of the most famous German beers. In the 18th century, during their long Lenten fast, when they could drink but not eat, monks brewed rich, bready bock beers for sustenance. Our bock came out big, burly, and chewy, hence the name, ChewBOCKa. This beast of a beer is made with a Munich malt base and German hops for a rich, full-bodied yet balanced, malty sweetness. A long, cool lagering period mellows this deep brown beer and brings flavors of toasted brown bread, as well as a hint of chocolate. Our ChewBOCKa embodies a filling, sustaining Bock beer. After all, we wouldn't want you thinking with your stomach...

As the capital of Iowa, Des Moines constantly surprises first-time visitors with its mix of expected agrarian heritage and influences and unanticipated cosmopolitan flare. So too, with Des Moines IPA, an American take on a world beer: India Pale Ale (IPA). Iowa’s steady, well balanced nature is reflected in this IPA with its mix of medium body, lighter color and plenty of malt flavor to balance the massive hop impact. Citrusy and piney hops from the Pacific Northwest offset the robust malt flavor of the two-row barley and medium crystal malts. Des Moines IPA proudly represents the Hawkeye State in the category of American IPA, a favorite of beer connoisseurs all across the country.

When most people think of Iowa, they picture flowing fields of grain for miles and miles. Created by a third-generation farm boy, Farmer John’s Multi-Grain Ale is amber waves of grain in a glass. A refreshing, blonde ale, it features a base of two row American barley malt along with a large portion of wheat malt, a small dose of rye malt and un-malted oats, corn and wheat. Lightly hopped with English East Kent Goldings hops chosen for their subtle, earthy qualities and finished with Czech Saaz hops for their sweet, floral essence to create a beer that’s light in body and color, with a velvety texture and an aroma as sweet as a freshly cut field of hay. Farmer John’s captures the endless bounty of Iowa in an easy-drinking, blonde ale.

It took us some time to break into the sour beer scene but like most things, time makes all the difference. Rather than use the recently popular method of kettle souring, we aged this beer in our 30bbl oak foeder (FOOD-er) letting a naturally acquired lactobacillus culture from our very own brewery do the “souring.” Residual saison yeast from the initial seasoning of the wood tank enhances the complexity. The result of this souring process on our Farmer John’s Multi-Grain Ale is nothing less than spectacular. Refreshingly tart and palate-pleasingly sour, our Foeder John’s Sour Ale is a perfect choice for a hot summer day or, if you’re like us, any day will do!