Category: Homebrew

The mystery of the low original gravity of my last two beers has been solved! It turns out the 7 gallon brew kettle that Michelle got me is actually a 10 gallon (40 quart) kettle. The last two beers I brewed had lackluster gravities, including my cream stout, whose OG was under 1.030!

After purchasing a 1 gallon jug of distilled H₂O, I filled the kettle to 5 gallons and marked a line. The line was half way up the kettle. Do I feel stupid? Yes, I do.

Well, as this new batch starts, the OG should be much closer to the estimated OG. Lets hope it tastes better too!

While cruising for news on the Martian lander, I came across a Plush Yeast Doll. It has eyes, which help makes it more adorable, but does it really need eyes? Heck, it makes beer good.

Brewing is a fairly simple process. The hardest part of making a good beer is sanitation. Or so I thought. This chapburned down his apartment while trying to brew beer. I don’t think I’ve warned of that anywhere on my site, so here’s the suggestion: Don’t leave your home when trying to make beer.

Oh, and don’t just use sugar.

I dreamt that I was the first person to brew beer on Neptune. Naturally, it was a lager. What else could take the extreme colds? It was a strange dream, but after waking I figured I should brew a Neptune Lager. I’ll make sure to brew it as soon as I have the time and space to lager. But I call dibs on the name.

I added my recipe for my pumpkin ale to this site. I have brewed this twice with the same recipe and am really pleased with how it has turned out. It has a really nice balance of pumpkin and spices (not to spicy) and makes a good seasonal beer.

Give it a try and let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions.

My In-laws have an antique shop, and travel around quite a bit shopping for stuff to re-sell. Because of this, my father-in-law has quite a collection of beer and hop related antiques. One such item is an old box of Three Star Brand hops. Its a small package of maybe 1-2 oz of hops, roughly 60 years old. The most interesting item though is the recipes on the side of the box. I’m almost tempted to try these:

TO START YEAST – Boil one-half pound Three Star Brand Hops in one gallon water, half an hour; strain, and stir in one-half pint fine malt flour, strain again through a course cloth, and boil for ten minutes; when lukewarm, stir in one-half pound brown sugar, place in a jug and keep in a warm place until it works over, then cork tight and keep in a cool place for use.

HOP YEAST – Boil one ounce of Three Star Brand Hops in three points of water, twenty minutes. Strain into a jar, and stir in one teacupful flour, one tablespoonful brown sugar, a one teaspounfull salt. When cooled to blood heat, add one gill yeast. After standing four or five hours, put away for use in jugs, with cork securely tied.

Neither really sounds any good, and the thought of pitching yeast and securing the bottle with a cork seems like asking for disaster. I guess they were simple times.

Last night I tapped the keg of Amarillo Red – a nicely hoped red/amber style ale. Its quite amber in color, slightly hazy, and depending on when you pour, you either get an excessive head, or a nice, appropriate amount. I’ll have to work the carbonation down.

The aroma is telling of Amarillo hops – spicey, baudy, and floral. Wonderful, in short. The taste is pleasantly balanced between sweet malts and the various affects that the hops add; both spicey and bright.

I’ve only bottled 4, and 2 are already spoken for. The remaining two are both duvel stubbies. If you’d like to try it, better just come have it on tap.