Cheers!! Grayson's Kiwit

Grayson's Kiwit. A kiwifruit infused Belgian Wit made with a hefewiezen yeast strain that provides a hint of banana. Prost!!

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Beer Review - Kentucky Bourbon Ale

Aroma - Heavy vanilla and whiskey. Very interesting. Slight honey and peat.
Appearance - Brilliant amber and very clear. The white head dissappeared quickly. Looks like bourbon.
Taste - Bold whiskey, sweet malt, and orange peel(?). It leaves a bit of honey sweetness behind.
Overall a very tastey beverage. Not a session brew since the whiskey is very strong. I would have loved to try a nice stogie with it.


Thanks Maureen!

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Epic Beer Commercial

A Summer Ale

The 'Brewing Lamp' will be lit this afternoon for what looks to be an all day brew session. Three of us will be brewing a summer ale that will resemble Sam Adams Summer Ale. I'd be willing to bet it'll turn out better because that's the way it is around the Seger Brewhaus! With the help of Brett and Chris this should be a fun day to brew 20 gallons (twenty, yes!) of this brew. We'll be doing a partigyle again so lets hope my numbers are correct.
Brew on!

Dogfish Head Brewing is Leaving!

It's unfortunate but it seems the residents of Tennessee, Indiana, Wisconsin and Rhode Island will no longer be able to grab a pint of Dogfish Head at their local pub or even store. According to the Dogfish blog it seems as though the expansion has gotten ahead of production. Canada and the UK will also be suffering. Why those specific states? I don't know but I'm wondering if Ohio will be next. 

Octopus Squeezes Out of a Beer Bottle

Have you ever felt like this?

Barley in Space

This beer from out of this world (literally)! Isn't it amazing how beer can help serve man in so many ways?

Bread Made from Spent Grains

After I started brewing using an all grain method called single infusion I had no idea what to do with the grains I used. I would have 12 to even 20 pounds of "spent" grains that would just get thrown away. They smelled so good I didn't want to just toss them into the garbage. After a few batches I decided to make bread with them. There are conflicting discussions on whether or not bread made from spent barley used for making beers is nutritionally worth anything. Maybe it isn't but I sure love the taste of the recipe I discovered below. The template isn't mine (if I find the website I printed this from I will definitely give them props) but I have tweaked it a little to my taste. If I'm using lighter grains I tend to go with honey as the sweetener, darker grains get molasses. The amount of flour varies batch to batch as well. If the grains are still a little wet I'll add more flour  in 1/2 cup increments switching between the wheat and bread flour. The result is a hearty slightly sweet bread that is hella-licious as a grilled cheese sandwich or with fresh thick cut German bologna. It's even better when you match the cheese to the bread and have a pint of the beer you made along side. Now that I've blown a few minutes of your time I've posted the recipe I use and the resulting bread below. If you try this recipe feel free to tweak and or comment about it here.

I made some changes with my latest batch. They're shown in red. To help relieve the grain of some of the unused wort I put it in a strainer and used the bottom of a coffee cup to pressed as hard as I could. (Jan 20th, 2011) 

3.5 (3 1/3) cups all purpose flour - Remember this varies from batch to batch depending on the wetness of the grain you're using.
2 cup wheat flour (could handle higher ratio of wheat)
2 tsp. salt
3 cups spent grain
¼ cup of sugar, honey or molasses (depending on the grains used when brewing)
¼ cup of slightly melted butter
1 egg (Beaten)
1 (1/2) cup of milk (usually use less, depending on how wet the grain is)

Yeast Starter
1 package of dry bread yeast (Quick rise)
1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon sugar (didn't need sugar this time)
Add sugar to water in a bowl and completely dissolve. Add yeast and cover with aluminum foil. Set aside for about 20 minutes. After 20 minutes you should see some activity in the bowl. When you're dough is ready roll the yeast to the bowl and knead it into the dough mixture.
Using the quick rise yeast I was able to skip the waiting period. I just added the yeast to warm water, waited about 5 minutes then added the batch to the dough. It rose great with no problems.


Mix the dry, then the wet ingredients until the dough is easily pulled away from sides of bowl and all the ingredients are mixed in well. It's a great idea to use a mixer with a dough hook.

Knead for 10 min by hand or 5 min by mixer. Slowly add yeast starter and mix well.

Shape into ball and let rise in oiled bowl until doubled (about 90 min) Punch down and divide. I usually get 3 average sized loaves out of this. Let it rise again in greased loaf pans or cookie sheet until doubled, (or slightly more as this is dense bread, takes about 1 hr.). Score top of loaves with a knife.

Preheat oven. Bake at 350F for 50 min, until deep golden brown. Spray loaves with water just before going into the oven and again 2 min into baking to make a crunchier crust. Rotate pans halfway through. Let cool for 30 min on baking rack before slicing,

See my results below:

From left to right:
Raspberry Porter, Cromwells IPA, and The Eric Stout
I've been a busy guy since the last time we saw each other. I've brewed several beers and there are three in the above photo. The other is a Marzen that isn't making me very happy. I know the reason why too and it's such a goofball maneuver that I don't want to share it. So I have 4 brews on tap at the "brewery" and 3 of them are awesome! I'm going to have to bottle some this week there are a couple competitions I'd like to throw my hat into. The "kegerator" is below.

I'll get into the creation at a later date. I have to go make some spent grain bread.

Here are my scores for The Eric Stout

 

About time huh? I was off making some more brews. I have a goal to have 4 on tap by the 21st. The latest is a 10% Imperial IPA that gave me a massive amount of trouble to start. It's finishing up fermenting now so we'll see if everything went according to plan. Now on to the scores! 

These scores are given to participants involved in homebrewing by certified beer judges. Although it sounds kind of funny this is a very real certification. The purpose of the Beer Judge Certification Program is to promote beer literacy and the appreciation of real beer, and to recognize beer tasting and evaluation skills. I haven't taken the exam yet but I hear it's very detailed. I had two different judges critiquing my entry. Angelo (the head brewer at Barley's Brewpub in downtown Columbus) and Jeff, a certified judge from the area. Jeff, I hear is a bear when it comes to scores so I was quite happy when I read his sheet.

1st up is aroma. Aroma is important in any food you eat isn't it? To be honest my stomach could be completely full and the moment I start smelling pulled pork my mouth starts to water. Who the hell smells a beer right? Some people (admittedly like myself) smell a beer before they drink it. Others just rely on their nose to add to the experience. If someone wanted you to try a beer that they swore was the best damn beer they ever had yet it smelled like a rhino pissed in it you'd probably give it a wide berth. Part of drinking coffee is that awesome aroma when it's being made isn't it? The same should apply with beer. I know not too many people take the time to catch all the aromas coming from their beer but they might be surprised what they smelled if they did. Take for instance a Bud. The next time you open a beer from Anheuser Busch or Miller be a "snob" and put it in a glass. Give it a quick whiff and ask yourself what you smell. I won't tell you what I smell so you can judge for yourself.


Aroma
Angelo - Nice roasty toasty with a hint of fruit, butterscotch and alcohol. 9 out of a possible 12
Jeff -  Medium roasted malt, faint alcohol, fruity esters, and very low diacetyl (pleasant). 10/12


Appearance - I've never used to pay attention to appearance but in the last 6 or so months I've been introduced to the possibility. It's a nice addition to beer when I think about it. I want my stouts to be black as motor oil and my IPA's clear with hints of red in them. It's not huge in my opinion. Seeing as it's only worth 3 of the 50 possible points for a perfect score it doesn't matter to them that much either. I scored 3/3 with Angelo and Jeff. Angelo called it beautiful.


Flavor - Obviously one of the most important factors in any food product but sadly a lot of people miss out on the different flavors real craft beers can have.
Jeff -  Medium roasty grainy malt, moderate bitterness balances (keyword is balance - Fred) without overpowering. Finishes dry from the dark malts or oatmeal (I used 12oz of real quaker oats). 17/20
Angelo -  Alcohol evident - not buggin me though, graininess is present, like the balance (bingo again with the balance!) - good roasty coffee flavor not over done. 17/20


Mouthfeel - The body and carbonation of the beer. Is it light and watery? Heavy and syrup like? Too much or too little carbonation?
Angelo - wonderful, enticing, coats the tongue on all sides 4/5
Jeff -  medium carbonation, medium body, creamy, slight warmth 5/5 (perfect!)


Overall Impression -
Jeff - very nice beer, hits all the right notes 8/10
Angelo -   WELL DONE - might be too strong or alcoholic for the style but I like it (I like alcohol) 8/10


Totals 
Jeff - 43/50
Angelo 41/50


I'm very happy with my scores. With all the mishaps that happened with it's production I can't wait to make this again and have it come out perfect.


   

Homebrewing Update

I'm brewing the biggest baddest IPA I've ever brewed (once again ha ha ha) in two weeks. Be ready sucker. 1 pound of hops and 16 pounds of grain. Sweet Sophia this is gonna be a muther of a brew. I'll be brewing it on my burner and in my new stock pot. I'm very excited. Next week I'm making an American Lager. Much smaller but using 4oz of a very popular hops, cascade. I'm trying to get my fermenter chiller (let's call him the Wort Hog from now on) to chill and maintain a temp of 47 degrees for lagering the Pils. To be continued.....

Cromwell's IPA

Named in honor of John P Cromwell a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor. During WW2 Captain Cromwell, serving aboard the USS Sculpin, was under Japanese depth charge attack. Sustaining heavy damage Cromwell brought the ship to the surface to engage the enemy in surface combat. This gave the crew a chance to abandon the heavily damage submarine while he stayed on board. Possessing secret knowledge of US naval submarine tactics and movements he went down with the ship as she sunk to her grave preserving the vital intel the Japanese surely would have tortured out of him.
This is the second beer in a series I am making in honor of the men who served above and beyond the call of duty while under the waves.


Another first with this beer. It's officially my 1st all grain India Pale Ale (IPA) and once again I am very happy with the results. Up front and very hopped with a citrus flavor it mellows after the first drink to a smooth malt finish. Decently strong, this comes close to 7% ABV. I've made stronger but this has the alcohol burn - or hotness - hidden better than most. This is the first time I've used simcoe hops. I've always wanted to try them ever since I had Great Lakes Barley Wine. Simcoe has a clean pine-like aroma with hints of citrus. It's mainly used for bittering but has a less astringent attribute so it can be added later on instead of early in the boil. I only used 4oz of hops in this recipe and I think using the simcoe makes one believe I used more.


- Grain Bill - 
13 lbs 2 row
12 oz Munich
1 oz Crystal 20
4 oz Crystal 40


- Hops - 
1oz Horizon (60min)
1oz Centennial (10min)
1oz Simcoe (5min)
1oz Amarillo (0min)


- Yeast - 
Wyeast American Ale 1056


This was a tricky one. I needed the infusion temperature to be 150 and some bad calculations gave me 143 degrees which is very low for the 2 row I was using. I tried recirculating a gallon at 160, then 177, then finally I through caution out the window and sparged 1.5 gallons of 177 degree fresh water into the mash tun. This broght my temperature to the desired 150. I collected 6.5 gallons of wort from the infusion and began to boil.
During the infusion I usually get some time to relax, read, and maybe enjoy a stogie. Not this time. Running back and forth to the kitchen trying to heat the water/wort kept me busy for about the hour it's supposed to "soak". Just for the helluvit I let the mash go for another 30 minutes thiking I'd get a little more bang for my buck. I did. My attenuation turned out to be 81% - the highest I've ever had. Attenuation (use of the grains sugars for extracting wort).
Afterwards I boiled with no problems, added the hops when scheduled and my numbers turned out exactly the way I wanted them. OG = 1/065 and after 1 week at 68 degrees FG turned out to be 1.012.


It's sitting on tap right now and very very tasty! Sweet pine aroma from the simcoe hops, a citrusy stomping on the palette blends smoothly with a sweet yet dry malty finish.

PROST!

The Eric Stout

The Eric Stout

 

My 1st Oatmeal Stout and I couldn't be happier! "Chocolaty" with a roasty slight coffee finish. Smooth and light, easy to drink, too easy, I had 3 last night without noticing. Unfortunately this may be a one time brew and I'll explain why later. See red lettering. What's with the name? A friend of mine had me and another friend out to Oregon last year and after a few rounds he forced me to make a beer in his namesake. Nah I volunteered. It's an ode to the absolute blast the 3 of us had in Oregon. Drinking and hiking, hiking and drinking. Eric is a great friend to have and I'm more than happy I could make this for him. I can't wait to get back out there, I love Portland. I recommend going if you have the opportunity.

I think the brewing and friendship spirits where present when I made this. Even though there were multiple undesirable events it still came out great. I may even enter it into the National Homebrewers Competition in April.  

 - Grain Bill - 
10 lbs 2 Row 
8 oz Roasted Barley
1 lb Crystal 120
12 oz Quaker Oats (not the minute oats, I used the original)
12 oz American Chocolate Malt
4 oz American Black Malt

 - Hops - 
.5 oz Cascade (90min)
.5 oz Willamette (90min)
.5 oz Cascade (30min)
.5 oz Willamette (15min) 
  
Yeast  
Wyeast 1056 American Ale 


My strike water was 165 and once the grain was added it brought it down to 149. Panic ensued - not really but I was concerned about the temp. I needed 153 (yes it makes a difference, I found out with last years Christmas Ale) so I drained off about a gallon and brought it to 177 degrees then sparged back into the grain bed. Miraculously it did the trick and the grain bed was brought up to 153. This is one of the problems I encounter with not having a recirculated mashing system but I'm slowly getting there. If the mash isn't exposed to a heating source then the possibility of low temperature exists. 
After an hour of sitting at 153 degrees I "mashed out" with 170 degree water and extracted 6.5 gallons of wort.
Added the hops and brought the wort to a hard boil which boiled over once but was under control after that. In doing that I know I must've lost a bunch of the Cascade and Willamette in the beginning stages. Life goes on.
After a 90 minute boil and 2 hop additions I got ready for the cooling. I inserted my chiller and the damn thing ruptured inside the wort releasing a little hose water into the wort. After pulling the chiller out of the wort I threw the pot into a vat of ice water and salt. Salt? It was a whim. I read an article where it's possible to chill a can of soda in about 3 minutes submerging it in. ice water and salt. So I thought the same principle should apply here. It did. The wort cooled from 180 degrees to 70 degrees in about 15 minutes. Outstanding. 
I took an initial gravity reading (1.056) and pitched the yeast starter at 64 degrees. Then placed it into the fermenter chiller where it sat at around 68 degrees for a couple hours until the unit chilled it to 62 degrees. Fermentation started in about 12 hours (ALWAYS MAKE A STARTER! It really helps.).
After fermentation was complete (FG 1.016) I took it out of the chiller unit and placed it in a vat of water and ice bottles for about two weeks. It sat at around 46 degrees (yeah I know it's lagering temperature folks) for the duration. This is called crashing the yeast I think but I'm not sure. 
I kegged it and set the the psi to 30 for about 48 hours then dropped it to 5 psi. I'm not quite sure on the numbers but it feels great to me. The resulting brew is pictured above.

Cheers!   
 .    

Happy Saint Patrick's Day - Rogue Kells Irish Style Lager

Been a while since I reviewed a beer. Since it's St. Patties I thought I might give it whirl.

I picked this up at Kroger tonight. It cost $4.99 which isn't a bad price considering the brewery. I went all out as (note: sarcasm) I was able to with my favorite keep sake from Las Vegas. I look back on the days of swilling at least one green beer, several pints of Guiness, and shots of Irish Mist with a quiet solitude knowing those days are behind me - what I remember anyway.

It's easy to see the hazy orange color and great foamy head but it's the taste that really stands out. This is a great bottle of beer, even for non-craft drinkers(!). The haziness is due to small amounts of wheat which probably adds to the smoothness of this lager. There's a slight biscuit aroma and mild fruity "notes". Taste isn't overwhelming but there's some apple flavor - green apples - and an orange lemony zest at the end which makes this an all aound good session brew. I think I may try to reproduce this some time. It may make for a popular addition to the kegerator.

Was it worth the $5? Yes, indeed, pick one of these up and enjoy it on a nice spring evening.

Ambitious Brew - Maureen Ogle

An interesting book. A little dry at times but there are very interesting facts about the US's brewing history. There's even some great looks into the politics of the past and how beer held an important roll in the shaping of our country.

It also has some insight into why the US is stuck on Budweiser. Adolphus Busch and company created it for the US not to be the cheap flavorless lager it is today but a light low alcohol beverage for the "capitalist on the go". It actually cost a lot more to make it at the time. I'm happy we Americans are slowing down a bit and enjoying our food and beer.

Another Oktoberfest another round

Slick, oily pour with a nice orange/sienna hue holding a two-fingered beige head. It has a slight nutty aroma and a small hop profile. I'll guess some magnum hops but the rest I can't even guess. Several toasty flavors hide the big 9.3 ABV. Don't get fooled by it's subtlty. It's still a bit sweet for an Oktoberfest but since it's an Imperial style I can't fault it that much. Smooth and creamy with a velevety texture, it leaves a little of itself behind after every drink. Overall this is an exceptional brew from Avery and probably one of my favorites.

Not a bad buy for $7.99 I'll have it again sometime but it doesn't beat Great Lakes.

The Battle of the Oktoberfests Round One

Sam Adam's VS Great Lakes Brewing Comapany

I love this time of the year. I love it for brewing and drinking, the fests, and the weather. I swore I'd do my best to drink only my brews this year but since I haven't even started on my Oktoberfest I had to break down.
Sam Adams Oktoberfest started me on the path to better beer. I picked up a sixer the first time I saw it in the store and bought it every year after. This is a very good beer. Although it's no longer a favorite I still enjoy it on occassion. If you have a friend that's stuck on bud/miller/coors give him one of these and I'm willing to bet they'll convert. Oktoberfests are meant to be fuller bodied, copper in color, rich in flavor with a low hop profile. Sam Adam's does that on the lower end. It has a decent slightly sweet toasted bread aroma but my nose isn't picking up any hops. The taste is as always, good. I like this it's very drinkable. Malty but not overly sweet, kind of like a nice dark bread. There's a small amount of bitterness due to the hops but very indistinct. Too indistinct. It doesn't have the crisp grassy-like finish I like in an Oktoberfest. it's not heavy at all yet it suffers when compared to it's challenger.
Great Lakes Brewing Company Oktoberfest is my pick between the two of these. It's almost hopless putting anyone against the guys on the lake. The beer/lager in question has a great hop aroma. In a blind tasting I was able to pick it right away. It has a ton more on the aroma scale and it doesn't stop there. The taste is very malty but not sweet by any stretch of the imagination. Toasted bread, dark fruits (raisin, figs), and much crisper finish put this way ahead of Sam's in the taste department. No cloying aftertaste, very easy to drink, and having more than one or two won't fill your belly. I love this and can't wait to pit it against Gordon Biersch's Marzen which is another one of my favorites.

Great Lakes Brewing Comapany Oktoberfest Lager - $8.99
Sam Adam's (Boston Beer Company) Oktoberfest Lager - $7.99
Pick some up. Drink them down and tell me what you think.

.

Fermentation sign, the Amber has awaken!

It was a stretch but there is a very subtle reference to Dune in the title (yep very nerdly indeed). OK So I woke this morning to find the hefe at 62 degrees which means my chiller is working properly - awesome (like I expected anything else?). What else did I see? An actively fermenting Amber. What a relief to have this sucker finally kickin in on day 3. (Note to self....make a damn starter next time). I also need another "fermometer" for the second carboy.
My son caught my excitement this morning and wanted to know why I was jumping up and down making an arse of myself at 7am. I explained to him that "daddy's" beer is fermenting. Not too many 6yr olds know about fermentation. I explained that there are little creatures, so small that you can't see them, these creatures (I call them the Yeastie Boys for reference since the Beastie Boys are his favorite band right now) eat sugar in the beer and produce alcohol. During this time they "fart" leaving bubbles in the beer. He laughed and went back to his cartoon which I think is "Johnny Test" right now. It's about a boy, his dog, and his two genius sisters who perform experiments on them. Hilarity ensues.
Below is a video of some active fermentation. Not mine, only for demonstration purposes.

The Chiller

It's ugly but functional. I call it the Wort Hog 5. Not too bad for my first attempt. I am definitely not a handy-tool type guy. I learned a lot from this adventure so next time it'll be much prettier and have a higher efficiency.
OH. What the hell is it? It's a fermentation chiller. What's it do? It chills the wort (fermenting beer)to a set temperature using blocks of ice and a "hacked" thermostat. Ice (frozen plastic jugs) sit in the bottom chamber and when the temperature gets above a certain range set in the thermostat a small 12v fan (a computer fan I scavenged) starts blowing air across the blocks of ice forcing cold air into the upper chamber until the chamber reaches a set temp. Why do I want to keep fermenting beer at a certain temperature? It tastes better and I get to manage the flavor in each batch. Different temps make the little "Yeastie Boys" (what a cool name for a homebrewing club) produce different flavors. The example to the left is water only. It was a test run to see what the difference between the ambient air and the actual temperature of a 5 gallon container of liquid is. To my joy it's only 1. I found the plans for this online and after I fix some flaws in my work I plan on building another. The duct tapes gotta go. I'd love to make one out of wood.
I plan on utilizing this the first time come Saturday. The hefewiezen I'm making needs to ferment at 62 degrees. I made the same recipe a couple years ago fermenting at around 70. I can't wait to try this under controlled conditions..

The Pub (at Polaris)

"The Pub instead of Taco Bell?" Was the text I sent to my wife hoping to get back The Pub in response. Well lucky me I did. Minus a babysitter we met at the outdoor mall at the Polaris mall. I beat her there and put our names at the front door. Instead of giving a pager to me the young woman at the front asked for my number so she could text me instead. Technologies great isn't it? Not only for the ease of just sending a text but now I could roam around Polaris' lovely outdoor mall and not have to be confined to the front of the restaurant. Normally I'd hang at the bar and wait but it's not a great idea with two little ones in tow.
After a fairly long wait (45min for a quoted 30) I got the text and we were seated. The inside of this place is very nice. Deep mahogany wood and brass is everywhere. A few bits of "flair" including a Union Jack adorn the walls and ceiling but it doesn't look like a junkyard tossed up in the middle of the place. In the center one of the best looking bars I've ever seen. More brass, more wood, and beautiful taps, not just the Bud/Miller/Coors usually seen at every other place in Columbus. These taps have a more than decent selection of English Ales and Lagers as well as Scottish, Irish and some domestics. Oh did I mention they have a firkin? Another cask conditioned ale in Columbus? Oh how nice is that? Now I don't have to travel to Barley's anymore if I want a cask conditioned* ale. The waitstaff wear kilts. Men and women alike. Funny but the women's kilts seemed to be a few inches higher than the men's ........which of course is preferable to me.
On cask they had a killer DIPA from BrewDog Brewing. I've never heard of these guys and have never had the beer so I gave it a shot. Citrus hops and toffee aromas, grapefruit, pine, and maybe a hint of chocolate (very small) came through in my first sip. The alcohol hottness wasn't too obvious but it was there. Our lovely waitress Andrea told me it was 11%. If you like hoppy beers give this one a go. it was great.
The drinks came fast. The appetizer (fried onions and 'shrooms) was a bit of a wait. And soon after came the food. I had Fish-n-Chips, and my lovely wife had the Welsh Dip. The fish was ok and worth the $12.95 but the sandwich was great. Loved it. Next time I plan on having the Bangers and Mash which is what I would have had if I had seen it. They don't have much of a kids menu but I don't think this place is really ready for them. The next time I go I hope to be with my wife or some friends. I will also join the tour. Which as far as I can remember entails drinking 50 of their beers and getting $4 pints for life. If you ask me it's a much better deal than the Winking Lizard's tour.
All in all it's a great place to go. The prices are about right but not over the top. The food is good but what stands out to me was the atmosphere and beer. I'll keep you guys posted on the other selections once they're eaten. I'll definitely go again.

*Just what the heck is cask conditioned? It's much lower in carbon dioxide than keg conditioned beer. The smooth effect of the lower amount of fizz heightens the mouth feel and draws your attention to the layer of other flavors. It is served at a temperature of 45-50°F, which is about 10-15° above your run of the mill Bud and such. This allows you to taste the many different flavors in the malt and hop profles. It's the way our founders and those that settled the US enjoyed their beer. It's not "warm" like some would have you believe but it's definitely not cold.