It's been a while since I updated this. Lots has happened and a few beers brewed.
The last one got 3rd place in the Philly Homebrew Club Winter Warmer contest. Brewed for our club, Barley Legal Homebrewers, a Foreign Export Stout. This was a random selection for me in that contest, and turned out to be a good deal. I'd recently gotten some GI Bourbon County Stout, and then a bourbon barrel called out to me, so now it looks like a barrel aged Stout is on the plan. The Foreign Extra Stout will be amped up to 10% or so, Be nice to do the Chocolate Milk Stout again too.
I've been busy my DIY projects, and have pretty much all my brewing equipment in good order. I got a new 10 gal brew pot from a club member. I'll need to add a heating element to it before I can use it, and may make this a DIY night for the club. A couple people came over to my shop a couple weeks ago, and made a hop screen basket. The May meeting will have a DIY topic, and hop management is the theme. I hope to do monthly sessions at the shop as interest from the group leads.
Kegging has come to JonnyCakes Brewing. I bought a couple used 5 gal kegs and they just barely fit into my Redi Whip cooler. Learning the fine are of CO2 has been interesting. I've been using CO2 for some time, but only in small containers. The Stout for the competition tested this whole program. I had to force carb some to meet the deadline, and when I tried to bottle it chaos ensued. I managed to get 2 bottles filled and 1 glass leftover from more than a 1/2 gallon. Took third place, so...yea?
The second annual Walnut Grove Wineberry Wheat for July 4th at the farm is coming up before too long. I made a stop at the farm a week or 2 after last years party and the berries were just about done for the year. I filled up a couple buckets in about an hour or so, and off I went. My mother was with me, so she sat on the porch of the house while I walked the fields to the berry trail. I need to pick them when we're there for the part this year.
The 2014 Christmas present my kids got me finally arrived, the Ukeg64 from Growler Werks. I've been anxiously awaiting it's arrival so I was pretty excited. But, all was not good. The regulator is not working right, and has to be rebuilt. I managed to get it to dispense a full fill, but only because it was done in a timely manner. It would not work overnight. GW finally responded to my email, and will repair and return it. Time to wait some more.
Happy Brewing, John
Saturday, March 5, 2016
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Yearly Update
Or is it a year late update? Been busy brewing beer, making beer brewing tools, and wishing the results were better.
The most recent adventure was Big Brew Day at Iron Hill Maple Shade NJ, celebrating National Homebrew Day. Ashley joined me and we brewed up a couple of goodies - Very Heffelberry III and a Dunkelweizen. We also had a couple food goodies, Shrimp Boil and Smoked BBQ pork. The shrimp boil was amazing, and will be a feature at gatherings in the future. Not many takers though, so into the cooler it went and I had leftovers for 2 meals. Yummy. I thought the smoked BBQ pork was going to be a bust, but in the end people really liked it. No leftovers there. I smoked it over hickory blocks instead of charcoal, and it was too much smoke. Next time I'll 'season' with the hickory blocks.
The head brewer at Iron Hill did a special pale malt mash for the group, some to use for the Iron Brewer competition, but I opted to use mine for a (not so) pale ale. The gravity was a smidgen low, so I mashed 14 lbs more Pale, & Victory (and maybe a few more?) in my new mash cylinder, but that was a disaster as it basically clogged totally, and I ended up spooning the wet mash into the BIAB bag, and continued on. In the end I might be OK anyway. I split the wort into 2 batches, and hopped with UK Fuggles in 1 and Kohatu in the other. Here's the mash cylinder in the pot before I mashed in. I'm going to try a standard grain crush the next time, and see if I can get it to act more like a mash tun, and sparge with it. I'll see how it goes.
The Kohatu was inspired by Cigar City Brewing Hopped on the High Seas: Kohatu. This is a New Zealand hop that is really good. I can't wait for it to be ready. Since it's not so pale I may have to reclassify it at an IPA. Then I can dry hop it too!
More brew tools discussion to follow.
The most recent adventure was Big Brew Day at Iron Hill Maple Shade NJ, celebrating National Homebrew Day. Ashley joined me and we brewed up a couple of goodies - Very Heffelberry III and a Dunkelweizen. We also had a couple food goodies, Shrimp Boil and Smoked BBQ pork. The shrimp boil was amazing, and will be a feature at gatherings in the future. Not many takers though, so into the cooler it went and I had leftovers for 2 meals. Yummy. I thought the smoked BBQ pork was going to be a bust, but in the end people really liked it. No leftovers there. I smoked it over hickory blocks instead of charcoal, and it was too much smoke. Next time I'll 'season' with the hickory blocks.
The head brewer at Iron Hill did a special pale malt mash for the group, some to use for the Iron Brewer competition, but I opted to use mine for a (not so) pale ale. The gravity was a smidgen low, so I mashed 14 lbs more Pale, & Victory (and maybe a few more?) in my new mash cylinder, but that was a disaster as it basically clogged totally, and I ended up spooning the wet mash into the BIAB bag, and continued on. In the end I might be OK anyway. I split the wort into 2 batches, and hopped with UK Fuggles in 1 and Kohatu in the other. Here's the mash cylinder in the pot before I mashed in. I'm going to try a standard grain crush the next time, and see if I can get it to act more like a mash tun, and sparge with it. I'll see how it goes.
The Kohatu was inspired by Cigar City Brewing Hopped on the High Seas: Kohatu. This is a New Zealand hop that is really good. I can't wait for it to be ready. Since it's not so pale I may have to reclassify it at an IPA. Then I can dry hop it too!
More brew tools discussion to follow.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Catching up
It's been far too long since the last post. Between work and projects it's been tough keeping up with the daily deeds.
The Basement Brewery is pretty much done now. Since the last post I've brewed several batches, Winter Warmer (aka JC Xmas Ale), Lola's Legacy Lager, Randy's Rye IPA and Piper's Pilsner. The last of the Bad Dog Brew series is Pru's Porter and on schedule for next week.
Lola's lager was renamed Lola's Legacy Lager as she succumbed to the long term affects of Lyme disease just a few days before I brewed the batch. It was a pretty tough time for us all, especially her 'dad' Calvin. Still hard to 'talk' about it. She was such an awesome dog, and taken way too soon. Here's the picture I used on the caps.
I've also built a new fermenting chamber. 4 compartments each with it's own temperature control. I tried several ideas on making my own heating coils, especially since we have a heating element business, but in the end I gave up and bought these cool heater units from Mcmaster. They mount right to standard 4" fans, which I found on ebay cheap. You can see them in the upper right of the top pic. I'm still working on the control mounting and making a panel that will sit on top housing the 4 controls and various wiring. A chance to play with electronics again, yeah! Not sure what to do for cooling yet. The controls and panel will accommodate it, but the cooling source is TBD.
Here is an action shot of the brewery, but not sure what's about to be bottled here.
I also upgraded the burner on the brew pot system. The original burner was sooooo cheap it did not heat evenly. I spent about $20 and got a much better unit that seems to be pretty even. I need to raise it up an inch or so for ideal heating.
Ashley and I will be brewing the Heffleberry II batch in a few weeks. I spent the last month or so reading up on the BIAB process at HomeBrewTalk. 151 pages covering about 2 years. Lots of great info, and enough to convince me that it's time to try it. I stopped at Princeton Homebrew and picked up the supplies we'll need yesterday. The proprietor there has a very negative view on this process. I guess he's never tried it, and thinks traditional All Grain is the only option. I hope the Heffelberry II comes out great so I can give him one!
I've been reading the Mitch Steel IPA book Mary gave me for Christmas, and looking forward to trying some of the original recipes from the mid 1800's. I also found an interesting pdf from him online that includes the recipes not specifically listed in the book for the earliest IPAs. I picked up some Marris Otter grains and a variety of English hops while at the LHBS, and plan to do an IPA batch, with different finishing hops. I've got Cascade risomes ready to plant so I am looking to use them as a base hop in future brews.
Also made up a load of custom cases for standard 24's and the Franz 20 from Jim. Here is a case of Marshy's Maibock. Looks good and tastes pretty good too.
Enough for now. Oh, a good closing line - Brew Strong! (Lance is in no position to complain!)
The Basement Brewery is pretty much done now. Since the last post I've brewed several batches, Winter Warmer (aka JC Xmas Ale), Lola's Legacy Lager, Randy's Rye IPA and Piper's Pilsner. The last of the Bad Dog Brew series is Pru's Porter and on schedule for next week.
Lola's lager was renamed Lola's Legacy Lager as she succumbed to the long term affects of Lyme disease just a few days before I brewed the batch. It was a pretty tough time for us all, especially her 'dad' Calvin. Still hard to 'talk' about it. She was such an awesome dog, and taken way too soon. Here's the picture I used on the caps.
I've also built a new fermenting chamber. 4 compartments each with it's own temperature control. I tried several ideas on making my own heating coils, especially since we have a heating element business, but in the end I gave up and bought these cool heater units from Mcmaster. They mount right to standard 4" fans, which I found on ebay cheap. You can see them in the upper right of the top pic. I'm still working on the control mounting and making a panel that will sit on top housing the 4 controls and various wiring. A chance to play with electronics again, yeah! Not sure what to do for cooling yet. The controls and panel will accommodate it, but the cooling source is TBD.
Here is an action shot of the brewery, but not sure what's about to be bottled here.
I also upgraded the burner on the brew pot system. The original burner was sooooo cheap it did not heat evenly. I spent about $20 and got a much better unit that seems to be pretty even. I need to raise it up an inch or so for ideal heating.
Ashley and I will be brewing the Heffleberry II batch in a few weeks. I spent the last month or so reading up on the BIAB process at HomeBrewTalk. 151 pages covering about 2 years. Lots of great info, and enough to convince me that it's time to try it. I stopped at Princeton Homebrew and picked up the supplies we'll need yesterday. The proprietor there has a very negative view on this process. I guess he's never tried it, and thinks traditional All Grain is the only option. I hope the Heffelberry II comes out great so I can give him one!
I've been reading the Mitch Steel IPA book Mary gave me for Christmas, and looking forward to trying some of the original recipes from the mid 1800's. I also found an interesting pdf from him online that includes the recipes not specifically listed in the book for the earliest IPAs. I picked up some Marris Otter grains and a variety of English hops while at the LHBS, and plan to do an IPA batch, with different finishing hops. I've got Cascade risomes ready to plant so I am looking to use them as a base hop in future brews.
Also made up a load of custom cases for standard 24's and the Franz 20 from Jim. Here is a case of Marshy's Maibock. Looks good and tastes pretty good too.
Enough for now. Oh, a good closing line - Brew Strong! (Lance is in no position to complain!)
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Holiday Checkin
Lots of things going on since the last post. More beer brewing of course, more new brewery work, and the Barley Legal Homebrewers Holiday party.
The Bad Dog Beer Series is underway. Marshy's Maibock was brewed on 12/8 and Dante's Dunkel on 12/13. Both are in the Redi Whip cooler on the way to lager temps. The Dunkel is a 4 week lager, so that will be replaced by Lola's Lager when it comes out. The Maibock and Lager will both be done near the end of Feb. Assuming I can keep on schedule the whole series will be done mid March. The others are Diana's Dubbel, Pipers Pilsner, Pru's Porter and Randy's Rye.
Ashley and I traded beer goodies for Christmas, but quite frankly I think I made out. They got me Mark's Keg Washer, aka carboy cleaner, and 2 beer kits: Winter Warmer and Nut Brown Ale. The keg washer is amazing and saved 10 gallons of water and an over night soak, for 30 minutes of high pressure washing on the first use. I'm going to make the Brown Ale a cherry flavored version. Can't wait.
We got Ashley the Bavarian Hefeweizen kit which we promptly brewed up on the weekend. On our way to Peddler's Village near New Hope, we stopped at the LHBS Princeton Homebrew for some supplies. Casey suggested that Ashley should personalize the kit and the obvious choice was Elderberries. We're hoping for some hint of them in the end. She's still working on what to call it. I posted it as Hefeberryweizen on Untappd when we brewed it.
While at PHB we had to pick up some grains to make up for a lack of grains in the hefe kit. She wanted to make bread with the grain leftovers. So, we threw together an all grain shot in the dark. We steeped the grains, rinsed and added the leftover DME from the yeast starter, and some honey for flavor and to raise the gravity. Also used a couple left over hops that all together were perfect as a Bavarian Ale, specifically the Drunken Reindeer Bavarian Ale. We added chicory and bitter orange peel for a little flavor. Considering the total shot in the dark at the LHBS we picked a fairly good assortment or parts based on post buy research.
The Barley Legal Home Brewers had their holiday party at Yards Brewery a week ago. Frank, Bela and I went and had a good time. They've been there before, but I'd not been. They broke out a special cask brewed just for the group, the Cask Trubble De Yards a Belgian Strong Dark Ale with a distinct orange flavor. Not bad, but not something I could drink several of. I had a few others which were all quite good, and I got a bottle of Flying Fish Exit 8 Chestnut Brown Ale in the gift exchange.
Making slow progress on the new brewery in the basement. Too much going on the last couple weeks. I've gotten a bunch of pieces parts on hand, but need a big block of time to make the sink/counter come together. The pump that came with the carboy cleaner is perfect for the immersion chiller. Blows the impeller off the fountain pump I was using, and far better than the drill pump I was working on, (belted to a small motor). The sink pump I found on craigs list near Ashley is as perfect as it could be. That would have been a budget killer at $150 more. Also learned that when using the IC you pump the first 5 gal into a bucket for cleanup, then recirc after that. Worked great on Ashley's Hefe.
Also 'claimed' my brewery on Untappd today. Now I can manage my beers like I'm a professional. Yea!
Cheers!
The Bad Dog Beer Series is underway. Marshy's Maibock was brewed on 12/8 and Dante's Dunkel on 12/13. Both are in the Redi Whip cooler on the way to lager temps. The Dunkel is a 4 week lager, so that will be replaced by Lola's Lager when it comes out. The Maibock and Lager will both be done near the end of Feb. Assuming I can keep on schedule the whole series will be done mid March. The others are Diana's Dubbel, Pipers Pilsner, Pru's Porter and Randy's Rye.
Ashley and I traded beer goodies for Christmas, but quite frankly I think I made out. They got me Mark's Keg Washer, aka carboy cleaner, and 2 beer kits: Winter Warmer and Nut Brown Ale. The keg washer is amazing and saved 10 gallons of water and an over night soak, for 30 minutes of high pressure washing on the first use. I'm going to make the Brown Ale a cherry flavored version. Can't wait.
We got Ashley the Bavarian Hefeweizen kit which we promptly brewed up on the weekend. On our way to Peddler's Village near New Hope, we stopped at the LHBS Princeton Homebrew for some supplies. Casey suggested that Ashley should personalize the kit and the obvious choice was Elderberries. We're hoping for some hint of them in the end. She's still working on what to call it. I posted it as Hefeberryweizen on Untappd when we brewed it.
While at PHB we had to pick up some grains to make up for a lack of grains in the hefe kit. She wanted to make bread with the grain leftovers. So, we threw together an all grain shot in the dark. We steeped the grains, rinsed and added the leftover DME from the yeast starter, and some honey for flavor and to raise the gravity. Also used a couple left over hops that all together were perfect as a Bavarian Ale, specifically the Drunken Reindeer Bavarian Ale. We added chicory and bitter orange peel for a little flavor. Considering the total shot in the dark at the LHBS we picked a fairly good assortment or parts based on post buy research.
The Barley Legal Home Brewers had their holiday party at Yards Brewery a week ago. Frank, Bela and I went and had a good time. They've been there before, but I'd not been. They broke out a special cask brewed just for the group, the Cask Trubble De Yards a Belgian Strong Dark Ale with a distinct orange flavor. Not bad, but not something I could drink several of. I had a few others which were all quite good, and I got a bottle of Flying Fish Exit 8 Chestnut Brown Ale in the gift exchange.
Making slow progress on the new brewery in the basement. Too much going on the last couple weeks. I've gotten a bunch of pieces parts on hand, but need a big block of time to make the sink/counter come together. The pump that came with the carboy cleaner is perfect for the immersion chiller. Blows the impeller off the fountain pump I was using, and far better than the drill pump I was working on, (belted to a small motor). The sink pump I found on craigs list near Ashley is as perfect as it could be. That would have been a budget killer at $150 more. Also learned that when using the IC you pump the first 5 gal into a bucket for cleanup, then recirc after that. Worked great on Ashley's Hefe.
Also 'claimed' my brewery on Untappd today. Now I can manage my beers like I'm a professional. Yea!
Cheers!
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Beer Tasting In Florida
Special bonus double post tonight!
While we were in Florida on vacation it was perfect opportunity to try out some brews that are not available at home. First stop was the Publix grocery store. Gotta love buying beer at every store!! I found a very promising one from Florida Brewing, Swamp Ape IPA. I really like IPAs so it sounded perfect.
Wow, glad it was only a 4 pack! While I'm sure there are people that like it, it was one of the worst beers I've ever had. Not sure exactly why I found it so bad, and it took every ounce of effort I could muster to finish the 4. That was disappointing! I can't waste a beer, even bad ones. Also picked up some Woodchuck Amber Cider with Mary in mind, but I ended up drinking them.
Another visit to the Publix and 2 more to try, Leffe Blond and Hopsecutioner IPA. The Leffe was OK, but not my style, and the Hopsecutioner was pretty good. Stretched them all the way to the end of the trip.
The Hilton Grand Vacation we were at has a really nice pool-side bar, but only a few taps, and the only one worth drinking was Blue Moon, so that was the staple at the bar. A couple bottles they had were new to me, but nothing to write home about. They did a beer tasting one night, but they were all bland pilsners from other counties. No shortage of that blandness here in the US, and they offered up more!
We visited all the key Disney parks, skipping the water parks, and while the Magic Kingdom is dry, Epcot, MGM and Animal Kingdom are not. Turns out that the annual Food & Wine Festival was in progress at Epcot. Mmmmmmm beer too! We ended up there 3 times to best appreciate what they had to offer. The first day was on the weekend, and it was mobbed beyond belief. Lines for beer (and wine) were 30, 40 and 50 people deep. We found a few that were not too bad, but in the end decided to go back to the Magic Kingdom where there were no significant crowds. We ended up back on 2 weekdays and found the lines short, and I tried quite a few brews. Seems Sam Adams is VERY popular in FL, so 1 location had nearly every one they make. I've had a bunch, and can find them at home, so I limited myself to 2 and 1 was a duplicate anyway! The best deals were 6 oz samplers, but not all booths were doing them, so I was stuck with a couple pints. Bummer!
We went to the Kennedy Space Center for the "Atlantis Rollover" hoopla event on the first Friday. This was a special ticketed event to keep the crowds in check, and we watched as they rolled the space shuttle Atlantis on it's way from the VAB to it's new $100 million home at the Visitor Center. This was the last of the shuttles to make it's way to it's final destination. Seems even Kennedy Space Center had to compete to get one. The first stop on the journey was at a special location where it stopped for 3 hours for up close viewing. This was the biggest event of the day and each of the companies working on new space vehicles were there with booths and mockup craft. It was quite a view to see the shuttle roll in in front of us. And no event is complete without BEER! They had a beer truck set up and serving at 10:00. What a country we live in! Better yet they had 1 real beer, Becks. Rather good I might add.
We spent a couple days wandering around Downtown Disney, the first of which ended with the Cirque du Soleil show La Nuba. An amazing show! I will say one thing about it, it was organized chaos. There was something going on everywhere non-stop. Wonderful show.
And of course, there was BEER! Found a few new ones to try, and one particular one on the first day we were there at the Portabello restaurant - Olde Pelican Ale. Made by the Orlando Brewing Company, one of about 20 USDA certified organic breweries in the country.
Turns out they are only a 20 minute ride up the highway, and they do tours. Yea! So, the last day before we left we planned a visit and did the tour. It's more like a nano brewery. They have 10 fermenters, but only 1 brew kettle, and all in a pretty tiny building. The front is a tasting bar, and all they serve is their beer including several that they only offer there. Here is the line up, 24 taps!
The owner/bremaster did the tour, and was quite a guy. He is also a judge for one the major beer groups, and travels around the country for their annual competition. He's got more than few awards of his own, actually a lot more than a few. I had 6 more there and only the Pumpkin was less than great. It was a real home town kind of place where the regulars gather regularly. The kind of place I'd love to see around here.
We found a really nice restaurant in downtown Orlando near Lake Eola Park (well, on the lake - sort of), and I found another local brew there from the Cigar City Brewing, Jai Alai IPA. A serious hoppy IPA, and really good. I had to have 2! We liked the place so much we went back for lunch again and had another, Long Hammer IPA from Redhook Ale Brewery. Another very good one, but not quite so hoppy.
In the end I tried 44 unique beers in the 16 days, doubles of a few, and a number of duplicates. What a vacation! Mary only found a few wines at Epcot to try as her taste is somewhat limited, but almost everyone serves Romancokes.
While we were in Florida on vacation it was perfect opportunity to try out some brews that are not available at home. First stop was the Publix grocery store. Gotta love buying beer at every store!! I found a very promising one from Florida Brewing, Swamp Ape IPA. I really like IPAs so it sounded perfect.
Wow, glad it was only a 4 pack! While I'm sure there are people that like it, it was one of the worst beers I've ever had. Not sure exactly why I found it so bad, and it took every ounce of effort I could muster to finish the 4. That was disappointing! I can't waste a beer, even bad ones. Also picked up some Woodchuck Amber Cider with Mary in mind, but I ended up drinking them.
Another visit to the Publix and 2 more to try, Leffe Blond and Hopsecutioner IPA. The Leffe was OK, but not my style, and the Hopsecutioner was pretty good. Stretched them all the way to the end of the trip.
The Hilton Grand Vacation we were at has a really nice pool-side bar, but only a few taps, and the only one worth drinking was Blue Moon, so that was the staple at the bar. A couple bottles they had were new to me, but nothing to write home about. They did a beer tasting one night, but they were all bland pilsners from other counties. No shortage of that blandness here in the US, and they offered up more!
We visited all the key Disney parks, skipping the water parks, and while the Magic Kingdom is dry, Epcot, MGM and Animal Kingdom are not. Turns out that the annual Food & Wine Festival was in progress at Epcot. Mmmmmmm beer too! We ended up there 3 times to best appreciate what they had to offer. The first day was on the weekend, and it was mobbed beyond belief. Lines for beer (and wine) were 30, 40 and 50 people deep. We found a few that were not too bad, but in the end decided to go back to the Magic Kingdom where there were no significant crowds. We ended up back on 2 weekdays and found the lines short, and I tried quite a few brews. Seems Sam Adams is VERY popular in FL, so 1 location had nearly every one they make. I've had a bunch, and can find them at home, so I limited myself to 2 and 1 was a duplicate anyway! The best deals were 6 oz samplers, but not all booths were doing them, so I was stuck with a couple pints. Bummer!
We went to the Kennedy Space Center for the "Atlantis Rollover" hoopla event on the first Friday. This was a special ticketed event to keep the crowds in check, and we watched as they rolled the space shuttle Atlantis on it's way from the VAB to it's new $100 million home at the Visitor Center. This was the last of the shuttles to make it's way to it's final destination. Seems even Kennedy Space Center had to compete to get one. The first stop on the journey was at a special location where it stopped for 3 hours for up close viewing. This was the biggest event of the day and each of the companies working on new space vehicles were there with booths and mockup craft. It was quite a view to see the shuttle roll in in front of us. And no event is complete without BEER! They had a beer truck set up and serving at 10:00. What a country we live in! Better yet they had 1 real beer, Becks. Rather good I might add.
We spent a couple days wandering around Downtown Disney, the first of which ended with the Cirque du Soleil show La Nuba. An amazing show! I will say one thing about it, it was organized chaos. There was something going on everywhere non-stop. Wonderful show.
And of course, there was BEER! Found a few new ones to try, and one particular one on the first day we were there at the Portabello restaurant - Olde Pelican Ale. Made by the Orlando Brewing Company, one of about 20 USDA certified organic breweries in the country.
Turns out they are only a 20 minute ride up the highway, and they do tours. Yea! So, the last day before we left we planned a visit and did the tour. It's more like a nano brewery. They have 10 fermenters, but only 1 brew kettle, and all in a pretty tiny building. The front is a tasting bar, and all they serve is their beer including several that they only offer there. Here is the line up, 24 taps!
The owner/bremaster did the tour, and was quite a guy. He is also a judge for one the major beer groups, and travels around the country for their annual competition. He's got more than few awards of his own, actually a lot more than a few. I had 6 more there and only the Pumpkin was less than great. It was a real home town kind of place where the regulars gather regularly. The kind of place I'd love to see around here.
We found a really nice restaurant in downtown Orlando near Lake Eola Park (well, on the lake - sort of), and I found another local brew there from the Cigar City Brewing, Jai Alai IPA. A serious hoppy IPA, and really good. I had to have 2! We liked the place so much we went back for lunch again and had another, Long Hammer IPA from Redhook Ale Brewery. Another very good one, but not quite so hoppy.
In the end I tried 44 unique beers in the 16 days, doubles of a few, and a number of duplicates. What a vacation! Mary only found a few wines at Epcot to try as her taste is somewhat limited, but almost everyone serves Romancokes.
Johnnycakes
Hail to the Chief's Ale
While I am pleased with the outcome of the election, there is always some aspect that is not to my liking, but I'll save that for those that prefer to debate politics. I'll stick to White House beer discussions.
I look forward to the White House Honey Ale I brewed up a few weeks ago. A lot has happened since then, 'Superstorm Sandy', the first snow, and 2 weeks enjoying the 70's & 80's in Florida. Our house and property made out fine, only a single branch down and lost power for a day or so. Matt kept watch and he and Calvin cleaned up the branch for us. Sure wish the other millions affected by the storm faired so well. We wish them the best in their recovery.
I got the Honey Ale bottled a couple days ago, and will bring a few to Ashley & Casey's for Thanksgiving. A little early but can't pass up the chance. I forgot to check the SG before I added the bottling sugar, and the sample is awfully sweet. Hopefully the carbonation will tone it down a bit. Hopefully it will age well, too.
A pretty generic shot here as I was in a rush to get it done. Got 44 bottles from the batch.
Brewed up The Innkeeper tonight. A fairly typical Ale with lower ABV for more drink-ability. I used the new plastic carboy, but did not plan ahead with the yeast starter which I just got. The weight difference on the plastic is pretty obvious. It also is much shorter than the glass ones, and fits in the cooler! Not that I need the cooler now that it's gotten cold outside. I'll probably fire it up after Christmas with a Lager.
Here's the Innkeeper getting started.
Trying a few things differently this time. I maxed out the brewpot at about 3+ gallons as I've been reading that full boils are better. Also learned that you should not boil with even a partial lid cover. Seems the boiling gets rid of some unwanted stuff. I'm also looking bigger brew pots to do full boils. Lots of options, but not cheap. Just found a deal that's hard to pass up - Tractor Supply has a 32 qt aluminum pot and propane burner for $50. That's a major deal for both. Only available in select stores, so hopefully the local one has them. They are technically turkey fryers, but so what. I was skeptical about using aluminum, but read that it really makes no difference in flavor. The burner is a bonus as I really don't need it, but it could be useful in the future, especially if I start doing bigger batches.
I made a very deliberate effort to not get the brew pot dregs into the fermenter. It 'cost' about 1 qt of volume, as again I was reading that you really don't want that stuff in the fermenter. Since I don't have any batch to compare to, yet, I'm just hoping for a cleaner taste. Mostly the hops, but some malt residue, probably 'hot break' is a better term.
The Great Pumpkin was released this week. I'm undecided about it. I burned out on Pumpkin and Oktoberfest beers over the last few months, and was concerned that I would be disappointed, but it's not bad. I sent a six pack to Ashley when Mary went down to pickup the Woofer D (the dog), but no word yet from her.
Johnnycakes
I look forward to the White House Honey Ale I brewed up a few weeks ago. A lot has happened since then, 'Superstorm Sandy', the first snow, and 2 weeks enjoying the 70's & 80's in Florida. Our house and property made out fine, only a single branch down and lost power for a day or so. Matt kept watch and he and Calvin cleaned up the branch for us. Sure wish the other millions affected by the storm faired so well. We wish them the best in their recovery.
I got the Honey Ale bottled a couple days ago, and will bring a few to Ashley & Casey's for Thanksgiving. A little early but can't pass up the chance. I forgot to check the SG before I added the bottling sugar, and the sample is awfully sweet. Hopefully the carbonation will tone it down a bit. Hopefully it will age well, too.
A pretty generic shot here as I was in a rush to get it done. Got 44 bottles from the batch.
Brewed up The Innkeeper tonight. A fairly typical Ale with lower ABV for more drink-ability. I used the new plastic carboy, but did not plan ahead with the yeast starter which I just got. The weight difference on the plastic is pretty obvious. It also is much shorter than the glass ones, and fits in the cooler! Not that I need the cooler now that it's gotten cold outside. I'll probably fire it up after Christmas with a Lager.
Here's the Innkeeper getting started.
I made a very deliberate effort to not get the brew pot dregs into the fermenter. It 'cost' about 1 qt of volume, as again I was reading that you really don't want that stuff in the fermenter. Since I don't have any batch to compare to, yet, I'm just hoping for a cleaner taste. Mostly the hops, but some malt residue, probably 'hot break' is a better term.
The Great Pumpkin was released this week. I'm undecided about it. I burned out on Pumpkin and Oktoberfest beers over the last few months, and was concerned that I would be disappointed, but it's not bad. I sent a six pack to Ashley when Mary went down to pickup the Woofer D (the dog), but no word yet from her.
Johnnycakes
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Catching up
Time to catch up on whats been going on, and get set for a couple weeks on vacation. Brewing continues.
Here is a rare behind the scene view of Johnnycakes Brewery. Not many get a chance to pay homage.
The cider is in the green bucket. It's been about 6 weeks so far, and hopefully Ashley and Mary can help taste test for sugar additions before it goes to bottle in a few weeks. Probably split half and half still & sparkling. The primary in the back has the Whitehouse Honey Ale going to secondary Saturday. Bottled the Pumpkin Ale about a week ago. I labeled 2 bottles from the middle of the bottling bucket for the Barley Legal competition. Sure wish I could be there, but vacation's much better.
The cooler will be doing lagers this winter. Northern Brewer had a 2 for 1 sale on Better Bottle carboys so Franz got the 5's and I got 6's so we can swap. Hoping that 6 with the other style air lock just might fit below the sliding doors. Looking at Pilsners, tasting the Victory Prima Pils this week. NB has a couple kits that would make a quick adjustment for the recipes I found. Might even find a lager Calvin likes, a Yuengling knock off?
Brewing up a beer Saturday that I read great reviews about, the Innkeeper from NB. A light Ale with low ABV so they drink nicely. We'll have to see how that goes. Found a great image online for the caps.
Still have the Dead Ringer IPA on the shelf from an August buy 2 sale. Sounds like an after vacation brew. That's going to be a very busy time. Hmm too much too soon maybe... No post vacation brew till the rest is in bottles. The Innkeeper goes right to bottles after the primary, it's light. And the Honey Ale will be ready for bottles, too. Then probably time for the cider. Wow, lots of bottles and all custom caps, yea. I'm thinking the 22 oz Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier Naturtrüb bottles Jim gave me for the cider. It drinks better from a glass anyway. Hopefully I'll have enough 12's for the other 2. Could be close.
Also got a yeast starter kit with the new carboys. The IPA kits came in at 90+ temps, and the Chinook was OK, the Dead Ringer is still waiting. The starter kit ought to be just the ticket, and great for making every pitch a success. I should stick to dry yeast in the summers to be safe.
Brew haha.
Here is a rare behind the scene view of Johnnycakes Brewery. Not many get a chance to pay homage.
The cider is in the green bucket. It's been about 6 weeks so far, and hopefully Ashley and Mary can help taste test for sugar additions before it goes to bottle in a few weeks. Probably split half and half still & sparkling. The primary in the back has the Whitehouse Honey Ale going to secondary Saturday. Bottled the Pumpkin Ale about a week ago. I labeled 2 bottles from the middle of the bottling bucket for the Barley Legal competition. Sure wish I could be there, but vacation's much better.
The cooler will be doing lagers this winter. Northern Brewer had a 2 for 1 sale on Better Bottle carboys so Franz got the 5's and I got 6's so we can swap. Hoping that 6 with the other style air lock just might fit below the sliding doors. Looking at Pilsners, tasting the Victory Prima Pils this week. NB has a couple kits that would make a quick adjustment for the recipes I found. Might even find a lager Calvin likes, a Yuengling knock off?
Brewing up a beer Saturday that I read great reviews about, the Innkeeper from NB. A light Ale with low ABV so they drink nicely. We'll have to see how that goes. Found a great image online for the caps.
Still have the Dead Ringer IPA on the shelf from an August buy 2 sale. Sounds like an after vacation brew. That's going to be a very busy time. Hmm too much too soon maybe... No post vacation brew till the rest is in bottles. The Innkeeper goes right to bottles after the primary, it's light. And the Honey Ale will be ready for bottles, too. Then probably time for the cider. Wow, lots of bottles and all custom caps, yea. I'm thinking the 22 oz Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier Naturtrüb bottles Jim gave me for the cider. It drinks better from a glass anyway. Hopefully I'll have enough 12's for the other 2. Could be close.
Also got a yeast starter kit with the new carboys. The IPA kits came in at 90+ temps, and the Chinook was OK, the Dead Ringer is still waiting. The starter kit ought to be just the ticket, and great for making every pitch a success. I should stick to dry yeast in the summers to be safe.
Brew haha.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Chinook, Pumpkin and Barley Legal HB
Chinook IPA
With help from Mary the Chinook IPA is bottled. This was the first batch with dry hops, and that last bottle from the bucket will be interesting! Maybe a simple cheese cloth filter would help.
The caps are from Bottlemark. At 12 cents a piece it's great! Since I don't currently label my own stock they're great for keeping them straight in the future. I'm trying to decide about saving some for the future. At this point I'm thinking 10 bottles, and break open a couple each year.
Pumpkin Update!
I tested the SG on the Pumpkin Rye and got the first taste. It's about 6.5% ABV so far.
It's still young, but I'm very pleased with the flavor at this point. It's got another day or 2 before the fermenting is done. We're going away this weekend, so moving to the secondary will happen next week. I put the sample in the fridge for a while and there was a heavy coating on the bottom, so it's clearly still active.
Homebrew club
I joined the Barley Legal Homebrewers today and found out that they have a Pumpkin brew contest. Just might jump in on that and get some feedback, but won't be around during the meeting when they do the review. Bummer. I'm looking forward to interacting wit the group.John
Friday, September 28, 2012
More Brewing
Looks like I'll never get caught up on posts, so I'm going to do the speed reading version.
The Irish red is all gone but 3 bottles I'm saving, and 1 of Matt's. Ashley do you have any left? The Wheat got rave reviews from Matt's friends, but I'm not convinced it's that good. The fermenting temp was rather high, and I think it gave an off flavor. I've got 21 of these stashed away.
With the cooler weather the temps were better for the Chinook IPA, and the latest batch, Rye Pumpkin Ale, is fermenting comfortably in the Reddi Wip cooler.
The $20 digital controller is working nicely. Got the shop temperature chart recorder on it to see what's happening. Both are C not F, set at 17.5 +1 differential. Just started on the carboy temp, but it's looking like 18C (64.4F) with a 1.5C drop when the cooler kicks on. Only runs about 4 min every 50.
Also 'brewed' up a batch of Hard Apple Cider. Got that started on 9/15 and it's mostly done fermenting, but the SG check the other day was not a pleasant taste test. The sugars are totally gone (1.000) and it has a rather sour taste. But I hear that young cider is usually not too good and it mellows with age. We'll see.
I'm brewing this in a bucket, and will probably not do a secondary. I may split the batch into 2 or 3 'flavors'. We'll see when we get there.
The Pumpkin Rye is a sort of kit bashed brew. I started with the Brewers Best Rye Pale Ale and left out the Columbus hops, and no Cascade dry hop. Don't want to over power the pumpkin and spices with hops. I hope this comes out good! OG was 1066, so this ought to be a high ABV. It's been chugging nicely for 4 days so far. Oh yeah, 2 pounds of pumpkin too.
Here's the grain steeping. The kit has a steep to convert grain component.
Next task is to bottle the Chinook IPA. Dry hopped 8 days ago so it's ready. Here it is going into the secondary a while back.
Then the best part - Custom Printed Caps! from BottleMark excellent quality, great price and quick delivery. Here are the images I created (Ashley did the Apple) and the caps are an almost perfect match.
And more labels.
Still working on what to print on. Might try tracing paper.
John
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Irish Ale Release Party
The Irish Red Ale was unveiled at Dad's house (Gpa) a little over a month ago. I think I mentioned the crowd that was down for a deck rebuild. Originally we were looking to go to a crab feast at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum then thought our own crab feast was a better idea. We took a break from the deck work on Sunday for the BBQ and crabs. Coincidentally an old friend of the family from boating all the way back to the 60's had called dad a few days earlier and asked if they wanted to join them for lunch on Sunday, and instead were invited to our BBQ. Charlie Thiabalt (sp??), son Chips and his wife, Linda (IIRC) came by a little after noon, and we set up some chairs in the yard for them to all catch up.
Charlie and dad have known each other since possibly the late 50's when they both had boats at Anchor Yacht Club in Bristol PA. Not sure what Charlie had to start, but the boat I remember was Teddybold a 42 foot Elco Flattop Cruiser, minus the back cabin. Dad had a 32 foot Elco Cruisette which Charlie helped him recover from the beach after the hurricane of '62. In 1966 Dad upgraded to a 50 foot Elco, and we ran into Charlie and family here and there over many years of boating. Now in his mid ninties, Charlie is doing very well.
We picked up the crabs from the local crab shack and fired up the grill. Jim & Gale brought a pile of marinated steaks, and we got corn and greens from the local truck bed produce stand. Once we got settled it was time to break out the Irish Red. I brought along 8, not expecting extra guests, but it worked out just right, and even Charlie got one. While not anything to boast about they were pretty good. Shame there are only about a dozen left, and not all mine! American Wheat is almost ready, yea.
John
Charlie and dad have known each other since possibly the late 50's when they both had boats at Anchor Yacht Club in Bristol PA. Not sure what Charlie had to start, but the boat I remember was Teddybold a 42 foot Elco Flattop Cruiser, minus the back cabin. Dad had a 32 foot Elco Cruisette which Charlie helped him recover from the beach after the hurricane of '62. In 1966 Dad upgraded to a 50 foot Elco, and we ran into Charlie and family here and there over many years of boating. Now in his mid ninties, Charlie is doing very well.
We picked up the crabs from the local crab shack and fired up the grill. Jim & Gale brought a pile of marinated steaks, and we got corn and greens from the local truck bed produce stand. Once we got settled it was time to break out the Irish Red. I brought along 8, not expecting extra guests, but it worked out just right, and even Charlie got one. While not anything to boast about they were pretty good. Shame there are only about a dozen left, and not all mine! American Wheat is almost ready, yea.
John
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