Well, it has been about 4 months since I last updated this site.  After the failed IPA, things got a little hectic at work and at home - so this site fell to the bottom of the to-do list.  So it goes.  (I'm currently reading "Slaughterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut - if you get that reference)

Well, since the new year, I have made 3 additional batches of beer, and all have been at the very least, drinkable!  In fact, I still have some beer from all 3 batches available to drink.
Astonishing, really!  Since my last post, I have taken up a fitness routine and cut down on the number of daily beers I consume.  The extra calories just aren't worth it (right now anyway).  I'm trying to get down to a decent weight, but also just trying for some general physical fit-ness.  So far it is going alright, and I am happy with the progress.  An added benefit is being able to keep more of my homebrew around the house than before.  Man, I was really going through kegs back then.  

The weather has turned for the better, and I've been trying to get ready to get a couple of spring brews in.  I hope to keep posted on that.  I'll also pull some thoughts together on my experience with the last couple of batches, which have been pretty good  both in terms of flavor, but also in dialing in my system and my process.

Well, the results of my experiment with steel wool pads are in:  DO NOT USE THEM!
I am an idiot, that is for sure.  I had a feeling while I was using them that it may not be a good idea, but I stuck with it and the results are conclusive.  I now have a beer that tastes like metal.  Not palatable at all.
Apparently, steel wool is just nasty.  It has all sorts of machined oil on it and it is not treated at all, like stainless steel is.  Do not confuse plain ole steel wool with anything stainless.  There are vast differences.  Someone on the forums also mentioned that the process of transferring the beer from the fermenter to the keg through the steel wool would cause oxidation which is also not good.  Good to know.
So, this will be my first batch to dump.  I knew one was gonna be bad for some reason, I'm glad it turned out to be because of my stupidity, and not a bacteria or something (which, I guess would be my fault also...)
I was finally in a position to roll from one batch right into the other, with another batch in the works, but that is out of the question now.  I got another 4 weeks until the Porter is ready, so I'll have to figure something out in the meantime...
Lesson learned.  It's evolution baby!

Title says it all.  Happy Birthday little brother!!

Salute.

I spoke in my other post about the changes I made in the recent brew, and here is a recap...
Temperature:
On all of my prior batches, I have been hard pressed to actually hit a mash temp of 154 (give or take a couple degrees).  This time I used some tips and heated my strike water to about 190 degrees.  The water went into the cooler (mash tun) and I let it sit and heat the cooler up a bit.  After dumping the grains, I took some temp readings and noticed it was still a little high.  Incidentally, there seemed to be a little light on the water (I had poured 4 gallons of strike water) -  the mash seemed a little too doughy.  So, I put another ~1 gallon of tap water in the mash and it brought the temp down to 154.
Volume:
In time past, I would use the brew program (which wasn't set up right for my system) or just winged it.  Well, I read some great advice (probably from "Denny") that said to basically do 1 mash and 1 sparge of close to equal volumes.  So, I put between 4 and 5 gallons of water in initially, and followed that up with another 4.5 gallons for the sparge.  I actually was a bit short on the boil volume still, so I put another gallon of water into the mash and let it sit for about 8 minutes.  I took temperatures at the time, and the mash was at ~144 degrees - which was fine for me because there are brews that i have made that mashed at that temp. 
Anyway, with that I was able to get 7 gallons into the boiler and 5.5 gallons into the fermenter.

This ones going to be good, I can feel it!  I say that with every batch, but honestly, that is one of the great things with this "hobby" - each time you have a chance to apply new knowledge or try something different.  
This time, for the first time, I was able to actually hit my target temperatures AND my target volume.  I took it a little slow, and used some of the info I recently gathered and bingo - a good brew.   Now, only time will tell of course - but I am hopeful.
I brewed a Porter, which is a darker stronger and fuller bodied brown ale.  I had previously brewed a Porter from an extract kit.  For that brew, I had a stroke of creativity, and made it a coffee bourbon Porter, by adding french-pressed, cold brewed coffee, and about a pint of Knob Creek bourbon.  It was only my 6th brew ever, and it came out great.  For the present Porter, I think I am going to leave it straight up as is.  I used some "coffee" grains (not actual coffee grains, but grains that have a coffee smell and color to them), so it should have a hint of coffee to it.  
Also, I used an English yeast (S-04) which fits the style, and should work well with my basement temperatures (around 60 degrees).  I'll post the recipe when I can.  In the meantime, I'm going to check on the bubbling, and hopefully get a nice sniff from the airlock...

We went to the great Madison Square Garden to see the even greater Neil Young the other night.  As usual, I was pretty thirsty when we got there, having traveled an hour and a half through some terrible snow/sleet/ice road conditions.  So, I was ready to pay what was necessary for a brew.  Well, it turns out that the beers are $9.25!  At first glance, that is a complete outrage - but there are 2 points that make it hurt not as much.  First, the beers are actually 22ozs, which is close to 2 actual beers.  Second, the beer selection was great.  They had Anchor Steam, Smithwick's, Guinness, Harp, etc.  A truly great selection, and a price on par for NYC.  So, it made it not that bad.  I guess we can rationalize anything when thirsty.

I recently did a calculation for how much I have spent for the year on ingredients and equipment.  The straight up price for one of my own 12oz homebrews come in around $1.10, and that includes all the equipment start-up costs.  For just the ingredients, the cost is about $0.62 pre 12 ozs.  A bargain really, and delicious.

In case anyone is wondering, Neil Young put on a great show.  I've been trying to see him live for over 10 years now.  It was worth the wait.  I've been to many live concerts before, and I must say - Neil's "Cortez the Killer" was unreal.  Probably the best single song performance I have ever heard.  Thanks Neil!