#IHP2014 - The Style

Sometimes it seems as though if a style of beer is to become popular then it needs a compelling back story, or a completely fabricated, mythological pile of codswallop. Whether it is the disgruntled citizens of Plzeň smashing up barrels of beer on the steps of the city hall in 1839, leading to the creation of the pale lager that now bears the city's name, or IPA being invented with extra hops and alcohol to survive the journey to the mysterious east, it sometimes seems that tall tales and beer go hand in hand. Another beer with a myth of grand proportions is porter, that dark brew that according to legend was invented to replace a mix of beers known as 'three threads', a myth thoroughly debunked by Martyn.

For last year's International Homebrew Project we brewed Burton Ale, a style of beer which has all but disappeared. This year I decided that it would be fun to turn the tables and brew something which is alive and kicking, and so I decided that porter would be the style.

As ever there is a poll in the sidebar with a list of porters for which I have access to the recipe. If you intend to take part, vote for a recipe, and in a couple of weeks I'll post the project recipe. The schedule for this year's project is as follows:

• Poll until January 24th
• Monday January 27th - recipe posted
• Weekend of February 15th/16th - brewday
• Monday March 31st - blog about the beer