Primary fermentation is done.  The FG (final gravity) for the LeftoverIPA ended up at 1.008.  Looks like another solid alcohol content beer.  Oh, and it tasted good, too!

I experimented with using a stainless steal pad as a filter, but I don't know if it was worth the effort.  We shall see.

I'm going to let the brew sit in the corny for a couple of days, and then toss it in the fridge to carbonate.  It will be nice to have 2 beers on tap - that's if the Pale Ale makes it through this weekend.  Ha!

I declare my Progressive Pale Ale fit for consumption!  Brewed on Election Day, 2008.

I tried something a little different this time and let it "secondary ferment" in the keg for over 2 weeks.  All told, it spent about 10 days in primary fermentation, over 2 weeks in secondary and a little over a week in the fridge, carbonating.  A total of about 5 weeks, which is longer than I have been able to let other brews sit for!

It has a nice head on it, but is a bit on the dark side and also a little cloudy.  I think the creamy head and cloudiness is due to the use of flaked oats.  While the flaked oats give a nice smooth mouthfeel - I think I am going to use the oats on future Stouts/Porters and maybe some brown ales and leave it out of these others.

I have had a few pints of it already, and it is damn good.  Another success!  I fear it wont last too long, though, so come and get it while you can.

Salute!

I use "StarSan" to sanitize my equipment.  Works great.  Like a lot of people I started out using bleach and lots of water.  After I listened to this podcast: (link) - i ordered some StarSan and haven't looked back.  [the podcast can be opened in your browser, or you can right-click and save as to have for later listening.  The good part of the interview starts about a quarter of the way in, lots of great information regarding sanitizing in general and Bleach and StarSan also.]

Anyway, I usually make between 2.5 and 5 gallons of StarSan solution and keep it covered for many weeks of usage.  I check the ph with a strip every so often, and change it out when the ph is off or when the solution gets funky looking/smelling.

Another positive is that it is no-rinse.  So I use less water - a definite bonus. 

Many people get worried about the no-rinse, but fear not.  As the saying goes... "don't fear the foam."  Think of the foam as peace of mind.

Not quite!  I came across an article that said that brewers in Japan had made a "Space Beer".  As this combines 2 of my favorite things (beer and space) I was very interested.  It turns out not to be that sexy of a thing for a number of reasons....
1.  It is 100% Barley (which makes me assume it has no hops or anything else)
2.  The beer was brewed on earth with the barley seeds that were in space for 5 months a couple of years ago.  The seeds were planted on earth and harvested here.  (See: article)
3.  Further research led me to the understanding that beer in low gravity and especially no gravity, just doesn't work.  Without gravity, the bubbles don't rise, so there is no head.  Also, apparently the drinking of 'fuzzy' beverages leads to what is referred to as 'wet burps' ie: throwing up in your mouth a little with each burp.  Yuck.

It is disappointing on another level as well, cause how the heck are humans going to colonize other planets and/or the moon without BEER?  This is important stuff!  We humans must tackle this if there is any hope of colonizing space.  We are definitely going to need the ability to grow hops and barley - AND, we are going to need to be able to enjoy these beverages for relaxation and good times.  Otherwise there is no hope - as I am convinced that we would not have made it this far without precious beer...!  What would an Earthrise be without a nice cold glass of moonbrew to enjoy it with?

Further Reading:  here

I love my iPhone - it is one of the single greatest inventions ever.  I'd love to see one of the brewing applications ported over to the iPhone, but I wont hold my breath.In the meantime, the iPhone is great to use for conversion calculations and to use as a timer.  There is also an app called beermath, or something like that, but it is 5 bucks and I am not willing to spend my money on an app where I can get the info for free on any number of websites (which I can easily access with the iPhone).One great app that is free that I downloaded is the "Beer Judge Certification" (BJCP) program.  It is laid out nicely and provides all the information one needs for almost all beer types.  I recommend it for brewers and non-brewers alike, as it has a bunch of interesting information related to the various beer styles.For those without an iPhone, you can still get this information at the BJCP website.For those with an iPhone here is a link to the app in the appstore.On a related note - there are a bunch of great podcasts that are available for free that relate to beer, craft brewing, and homebrewing.  There is one out there on sanitation that was great.  I'll try and locate it to post in the future.

It is hard to imagine life before the internet.  I remember first stumbling upon it in college, and was blown away.  I used up a lot of computer lab time surfing the net, usually to sites that had something to do with Pearl Jam information and bootlegs.  This was back in the day when a decent bootleg would cost you close to fifty bucks and you'd be lucky to get it on a CD, but the internet leveled the playing field.
Well, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be where I am right now in terms of brewing if it weren't for the internet.  So much information out there, and so many people willing to help - really a wonderful thing.  And, as much as it applies to brewing, or your favorite band, it applies to everything else.  You can "Google" anything you want and get an answer - there aren't any more excuses for not knowing anything, except for the fact that you haven't googled it yet!
So, this is part of the reason for this website.  I wanted it to be a place for myself to keep track of what I am doing, and also a repository of all of the links, youtube videos, etc that I have visited along the way.  I plan on using this as a gateway for myself as well as anyone else out there who is trying to get through the vast amounts of information to the good stuff.  Part of the problem with all this information is getting down to the bare bones essential information.  Otherwise, you can spend weeks locked in a message board battle regarding the proper way to stir your mash - or whether you even need to stir the mash.  You get my point.
So, check out the "Links" page on this site, and come back for future updates...
I have already added some youtube videos that I am fond of.  Check 'em out.

Oogy Wawa! 

Who doesn't love leftovers?  I didn't get a chance to purchase any new grains before the holiday break, but I did have some ingredients around from the last couple of batches.  Leftovers.  So, after gathering all my leftover beer making and Thanksgiving dinner ingredients I heated up some delicious leftover mashed potatoes, stuffing, turnkey, and gravy and commenced another brew.  The recipe turned out alright - something that should resemble an IPA.  I'm calling it my LeftoverIPA.  Alcohol content should be north of 6.0, so I'm happy.  I got 4.5 gallons into the fermenter, so I was a little off there - would have loved to get 5.5 gallons..  
I decided to use a stainless steel pad to act as a filter.  It worked great.  For a little bit.  The first one clogged pretty quick.  I was able to change it out smoothly though, and kept going.  I had never seen wort that clear!  Then I started getting tired standing there, and the wort started draining slower - and then, bingo, I'm sucking up all sorts of 'trub' (the 'sludge', pronounced 'troob').  It was good while it lasted.  I'll work on it for next time.  I was impressed with the possibilities.
I drank some Dogfish 60 minute IPA during the mash - I always like to try and drink the type of beer I am brewing when I am brewing it, it's good mojo..  Then I moved on to a Sierra Nevada Harvest Wet Hop Ale, during the boil.  These beers, coincidentally, were also leftovers from the Thanksgiving celebretaion at my house.  All good mojo.  All bringiing it together to what should be a great LeftoverIPA.
sidenote:  the Sierra Nevada Harvest Wet Hop Ale is fantastic.  Apparently it is the "12th Release" - but this is the first I ever heard of it, thanks to Lumbeer John (and JD, for bringing it to the feast)!

Like many American's, I love the feast and celebration of Thanksgiving. A time for getting the family together for a delicious meal, beverage, and good times.  It is actually my favorite holiday - it's Christmas without all of the commercial and religious overtones.  I do love Christmas, though, too - it's the happy time of year and people actually go out of their way to be nice.
Like most human traditions, the Thanksgiving holiday has evolved over time - from a time to be thankful for the end of the harvest, to thanking the almighty for allowing for a peaceful government to exist.  It is not a tradition specific to America either, as many countries have their own days of Thanksgiving.
As millions of us will be doing, I plan on eating and drinking a bunch, and celebrating my family - and maybe even taking a nap at some point!
So, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.  Enjoy, be thankful, and be safe.


Slainte!  Cheers!  Prost!  Salute!  Oogy Wawa! L'Chaim!

Well, evolution has a couple of parts to it.  Trial and error gets some results that are good and continue on, and other results that are not so good, and don't live on.
My JTR Irish Red Ale is one of those that will likely go by the wayside.  It is actually tasty, but since I'm still dialing in my brewing setup - I ended up with a much 'lighter' beer than I wanted.  Lighter as in alcohol content, which is upsetting to me.  In past batches, I have sacrificed volume for alcohol content, but this time I wanted to get a full 5 gallons of drinkable beer.  Turns out, I think I used too much water and blah blah blah... the beer is bit on the BudLight side of Alcohol content.  
Now, this will likely be alright as my family and I will be able to drink all day and not be completely hammered.  But damn, I like me some decent percentage alcohol in my beers.
I'll figure it out, though, don't worry about that!

So, my dad got a new motorcycle - good for him (that is his bike in the picture to the left).  I personally have driven a motorcycle a handful of times.  The first time was ridiculous - I had a couple of beers in me, and my cousin actually let me get on the "Ninja" he just got.  I made it all of 15 feet - literally not further than across the street, where I hit a patch of sand and dropped the bike!  I wasn't going that fast, and there wasn't much damage, so it worked out I guess.  I did eventually get to ride some other bikes - a Honda, which I drove with my brother on the back (holding on for dear life) a few miles up and down the boulevard and a 1969 Triumph Bonneville.  I like to say I actually helped restore that '69 Triumph bike with my dad - I did help, and learned a bunch about the bike and how it works.  I'm pretty sure all I did was hold the damn flashlight, though.  I spent a lot of my youth holding a flashlight.
Anyway, my dad is now crazy about this bike (obsessed?).  And now, apparently, he's a "Harley-Guy".  I remember the days when he was a "Triumph-Guy", but things change I guess.  That may be the point of this post.  Not anything major.  It isn't earth shattering or anything like that - just that people change.  
So, as you can see, these posts aren't always going to be about homebrewing and beer per se - but I'd like to try and tie it all back together to brewing or beer or something if I can - cause I think that things that you are passionate about can get tied into most everything that happens - or at least one can make it seem that way.
While I spent a lot of time holding a flashlight for my dad as a youth, I also spent a good amount of time 'helping' him in his winemaking endeavors.  Mostly, I cleaned out carboys and helped sanitize bottles - oh yeah, and helping to carry hundreds of pounds of grapes into the basement was fun too!  I learned a bunch of things that I didn't think I'd use when I 'grew up'.  Turns out I do use some of those things - like cleaning and rinsing carboys - I do that a lot nowadays.  And, if there were an olympic sport for it, I'd be the Michael Phelps of flashlight holding!
I'll likely write more in the future about my old days as a winemaker, maybe get my dad to contribute something, who knows.  But this is it for now.
Cheers!