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FYI... Evolution Brewing

9/4/2009

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Just in case there is any confusion...  I have received some comments and emails that appear to be misdirected to me, with the intended target being a craft brewing outfit in Delaware:  Evolution Craft Brewing.
I am not that entity.  I will continue, as I have in the past, to forward all communications I get in error to Evolution Craft Brewing - until of course it becomes too much for me.
I have not spoken with the people at Evolution Craft Brewing, but obviously, I respect what they are doing (a start-up craft brewery), and can appreciate their name, and wish them all the best.  I have linked above to their website, but they also have a blog located here.

I have not had a chance to taste their brews - I would go for the Porter if I could - I haven't seen them around my neck of the woods (central Jersey) yet.  Incidentally, I lived in Wilmington/Newcastle, Delaware for a bit when I went to school.  Had some good times.  Drank much beer.  It is where I had my first Sierra Nevada and Newcastle (and Yuengling!)- fond memories indeed.


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R.I.P. - Michael Jackson

9/4/2009

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Beer fans around the world know which Michael Jackson I'm talking about...


From the NY Times:

"Michael Jackson, a leading beer critic who helped start a renaissance of interest in beer and breweries worldwide in the 1970s, was found dead on Thursday at his home in West London. He was 65."


I'll be raising a glass to toast Mr. Jackson today, maybe at lunch, maybe later.  Either way - cheers and rest in peace...


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Back in the Saddle...

8/21/2009

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After much too long of a break, I have come out of the darkness to brew again.  I couldn't be happier.
I went into a long weekend with the goal of brewing... something.  I came out of the weekend with 3 brews under my belt.  A whopping 15 gallons of beer.  
My first batch was an 'easy' Pale Ale that i brewed using some of the grain I had leftover from my last purchase.  I figured I would go ahead and jump back in with a simple recipe, just so I could convince myself that I still had what it takes.  Well, it's kind of like riding a bike I guess, cause it went pretty well, If I do say so myself.
My next two batches were All-Grain recipe kits I ordered from Northern Brewer.  First up was their "Old Ale" which I have been interested in for some time.  They say to let it age for 2 months before serving, so we shall see how it goes.
My last brew happened to occur on what is becoming an annual tradition of mine - brewing on my birthday.  For that I chose the Norther Brewer kit "St. Paul Porter".  I had brewed this one before (my 6th brew, and it was one of my first all-grain brews).  When I brewed it last, I added coffee and bourbon (I know, a bold move for a novice brewer!) - and it turned out great.  I think I will do that again with this one.
So I got these in the hole, and now we just have to wait...

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iBrewMaster

8/20/2009

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I spoke before about brewing with the iPhone here.  I recently came across this great new app ($4.99) for the iPhone called iBrewMaster (app store link).  This is a great app that brings even more useful brewing tools into the palm of your hand.
The app comes with about 50 or so recipes, but also lets you create and edit your own.  It has a nice selection of grains, hops, adjuncts, and yeast as well as a place to enter notes for the brew.
Also great is a "Schedule" function which tracks your batch and what should be done when (ie: transfer to secondary, bottle, serve, etc).
You enter each batch as you go.  The app auto-calculates a number of things, including ABV% and calories.  You also have the option to enter all of your information regarding OG, temp to ferment at, and duration.
Recent updates added the ability to email a recipe, and also added additional options for sorting recipes, including by color (which is also included when you create a batch).
I'd love to see calculations for amount of water to use and temps, but for now this is a great addition to my brewing space.
Now, during a brew, I can use my iPhone to make unit conversions, control my brewing tunes on the radio, and create and track my batches.  I can also send texts and emails, make phone calls, and surf the web - all without sitting down in front of a computer.

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Been Awhile...

4/6/2009

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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.


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Update: LeftoverIPA

12/29/2008

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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!


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Happy Birthday Brother...

12/28/2008

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Title says it all.  Happy Birthday little brother!!

Salute.

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Brewing Adjustments

12/28/2008

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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.

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JTR Porter

12/28/2008

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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...

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Ten Dollar Beer!

12/19/2008

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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!


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    JTR

    Aspiring Brewmaster.

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