Musings Fermentation Underground opening!

Home brewing is rarely a solitary endeavor. Years ago when I started, I had two other friends who also took the same exploratory journey. Scott channeled his inner nerd and took fastidious notes. Joe had a more curious and open spirit. All three of us eventually brewed good beers all over the spectrum. We even schemed about one day opening something formal. Scott and I went nowhere. I think I hung up the apron first. Scott still owns his equipment, but I don’t know when he last brewed a batch. But early on, Joe got serious.

Joe and Lindsay at the Sasquatch Brew Fest in Eugene, OR in 2008.

Joe went to school at UC Davis and got a proper education. Then, he had a series of jobs of increasing importance in the industry in Oregon. He made a name for himself (which he will deny) for being a quiet and patient presence, but also for creating great beers with incredibly consistent and predictable (and supremely drinkable) product.

Joe checking on fermentation at a place he made into a functioning brewery with good beer.

After a few years of working for notable breweries out west, he and his partner moved east for school. He brewed for a giant out east, but also had his sights on doing something himself. He and his partner Lindsay (a dope Geographer) explored the world of wild and open fermentation, both in Europe, and the few places it was being done at the time here. On the verge of launching a place, COVID made things impossible. But now, they’re on the verge of their first open house.

So if you’re out east in Delaware, go see their open house this Saturday. Musings Fermentation Underground is finally launching. Congratulations, friends! I know it is going to be great. Joe is an incredible brewer and I’m thrilled for the two of them that this day has finally arrived.

Plug for Hop Exploration Kit

I just wanted to put in a plug for the Hop Exploration Kit from 33books.com. The kit allows you to try a couple different hop varieties to see what each offers.

It’s not easy to learn hop varieties unless you live near a brewer who does single hop series. And even then, you can really only try one at a time usually. I’m a fan of single hop beers for the purpose of learning more about hops. I’m also a fan of brewing single varieties (though I no longer have my gear). But extracts allow you an easy way to learn more about single hops.

I’ll readily admit that hop extracts aren’t as good as brewing with whole hops. But that just isn’t convenient. This kit will allow the budding lupulin fan to really learn more about which varietals really speak to you.

Selling the Rooftop Brewery

Here goes nothing. I haven’t brewed in nearly 3 years. And when I find spare time, there are like 8 other things I’d rather do first. So I’m selling the full Rooftop Brewery in it’s complete glory. If you’re in the market, now might be the time to pick up a brewery capable of brewing 10 gallons of god’s pure nectar. Not to brag, but it has made some stellar beers. Beers that are better on average than the mediocre stuff you tend to get at McMenamins for like $6 a pint. You can do better.

a kettle, keg kettle, and mash tun

A bunch of adjuncts two carboys, two buckets, a flask, and a bottle capper

SaveSave

No posts in over 2 years

I’ve not brewed in 2 years. It’s not that I’ve stopped drinking beer, it’s just that I’ve seen the 6 hours it takes to brew a batch of beer and decided to use my time in some other way. Kids, Fishing, Camping, etc. I’m dragging my feet, but I’m prepping to sell my brewing gear at some point. Just need to pull the cord. It takes up a ton of room and someone could be making wonderful beer with it.

I’m not going to shut down the site just yet. The ads pay for the hosting, and I’m fairly proud of the content and time I spent on it over the years. The process of reflection (posting) is incredibly important to learning. And I really enjoyed the DIY aspects of brewing and setting up my brewery. So I’ll keep that online for some other prospective brewer to find and hopefully get some use out of.

Yakima Chief and HopUnion merging

Yakima chief hops logo
Yakima Chief logo. Cool, huh?

From the hop desk at Brewpublic: Yakima Chief and Hop Union to combine operations.

This is probably of limited interest to most, but I’ve been a fan of the work of both for several years and have posters from each with hop varietals (including storability) and cone pictures that have adorned previous office walls, the garage, etc. I’m hopeful that this means that Yakima Chief will pick up some of the cult marketing acumen that Hop Union has created, and that I’ll be able to one day order a ball cap or a beer koozie with the Yakima Chief logo on it. Or maybe just a big ‘ol Simcoe hop cone. Yup, Simcoes are awesome.

I wonder if they’ll use the opportunity to change their name to Yakama? (i to a – it’s a tribal thing)

Roscoe Simcoe, a red IPA

I dusted off my Amarillo Red recipe and decided to change it up a little for a fall brew. I have an abundance of Simcoe hops at the moment and a relatively small amount of Amarillo pellets, so I’me going to tweak the recipe for this brew.

Grain bill

  • 15 lbs. domestic 2-row
  • 5 lbs German Pilsner malt
  • 1.5 lbs Crystal 60L
  • 1 lbs Crystal 120L
  • 1  lbs malted wheat

Hops

  • 2oz Simcoe (whole cone) @ 60 minutes
  • 2oz Simcoe @ 10 minutes
  • 2oz Amarillo pellets @ 5 min
  • 1oz Amarillo @ flameout
  • 1oz Simcoe @ flameout
  • 1oz Simcoe dry hopped

Yeast

  • Safale S-05 (1st carboy)
  • Wyeast British Ale Yeast (2nd carboy)

Instructions?

You know the drill, right? Get up at 6am on a Sunday, start heating the water in the HLT, go back and get some more coffee, etc. The SRM should come out around 13-14L. f

Map of 2012 Craft Beer-ness

After a delay, I finally noticed a post from Linds regarding this NYT interactive map of Craft Brewing. The data are from 2012, but it’s still an interesting ecosystem that seems to ignore the trend of larger mergers and acquisitions. My attention to the craft industry has waned a little in the last couple years, but I’m not surprised by the number of new pubs opening. Good luck, young upstarts!