Posts
The hobby of brewing your own beer at home is growing steadily as more people discover how much fun they can have making their beer at home and how great absolutely fresh beer can be. There may be no more gratifying moment for a home brewer than to serve your own fresh beer to your guests iced down in your favorite beer mugs and hear the rave that your beer is as good as the store bought beer they like best or maybe even better!
Part of the reason for the huge popularity is that getting set up to make beer and finding good supplies and equipment is neither difficult nor overly expensive. You can find or create the equipment fairly easily or get it discounted from others who have retired from the brewing business. And right now there is probably a home brewing store in your town ready and able to provide you with the ingredients as well as instruction books and recipes for all kinds of wonderful tasting beers you can make right at home. And with the explosion of web sites, ebooks and articles out there on the internet about home brewing, all the help you could ask for is at your fingertips to help you get started.
The reason different people get into home brewing vary. Some love the social aspect as you join a large local and international community of brewers. Another reason is that it is just great fun to assemble the equipment, learn the recipes and take a stab at making your own home grown batch of tasty beer. Even if you "botch" a batch of beer, its all in the spirit of learning and it just drives you on to learn from your mistakes to make even better beer next time.
A third great reason is you have so much more control over your beer when you brew it yourself. Because you are not dealing with a beer that is mass produced and shipped from hundreds of miles away, you can control the taste, the consistency and even the level of alcohol to make your beer as strong or mild as you want it to be. And you can make changes with each batch with virtually endless variations on the recipes that are available to the home brewing community.
The supplies you will need to get started are easy to find and not very expensive either. Probably the best way to get a feel for what the best equipment is and who are the suppliers to favor would come from becoming a regular at home brewing clubs and gatherings and making some friends there. If you make it well known that you are a "new recruit" and need some mentoring in how to get set up, you will be overwhelmed with offers for you to sit in on a brewing session or two to get a feel for the process. If you take advantage of their zeal to help you get started, you will be way ahead on the game when you go shopping for the stuff you need to get set up to make your own beer at home.
The equipment you will need is pretty much only used for brewing beer so you will need to think of storage. The pot for boiling your initial wort and the equipment to handle the beer, filter it and ferment it are all made in sizes and at prices to encourage the home brewing markets. You can find them at retail prices at your home brewing retail outlet in town. You can use the internet and shop second hand shops to get better prices. But many like to patronize the home brewing store that helped them get their start just to make sure they stay in business to keep selling you great fresh ingredients.
That same retail outlet will be a good source for the grains, yeasts and hops you need for the actual production of beer. Freshness is the key so communicate with the management of the store to learn of just how fresh those things are. As with the equipment, you can buy these things from the internet and that is fine. But get to know your supplier whoever you use and make sure you are confident you are getting the highest quality materials to make your home made beer. It will make a big difference.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Monday, December 24, 2012
Going to the Source to Learn About Home Brewing
I know from experience that the time between when it first dawns on you that you could start learning to brew your own beer at home and when you actually take a stab at it is often a long one. For one thing, it takes a pretty significant learning curve to even begin to visualize that it possible to make beer at home. Sure, you may have heard about home breweries but to think of doing it in your own home setting is a leap of understanding that takes some time to get through.
The internet is often a source of information that we go to start learning more about a new area of life like home brewing. Perhaps that is how you found this article and that’s good. That means you are off on the right foot and using free information from people who have already learned a few things about brewing at home to get your orientation to what it would take for you to learn to brew your own beer at home.
As often happens with any new area of interest, if your fascination with how to brew beer at home starts to get some momentum, it’s a good way to go to log on to the major home brewing web sites and begin to get oriented to the methods, the equipment and the process of brewing beer at home. Do be aware that some of these sites get very technical and it's easy to get intimidated.
But if you can just get an understanding about the equipment and the ingredients and some basic ideas of how the process would go if you were the one doing the brewing, that is a good start. Because online articles and web sites mix expert knowledge with newcomers orientation, if you do stumble into a section of those sites that you don’t understand, just surf on to pages that are intended to help you where you are and understand that when you get to that level that that technical sophistication, you can always come back to these pages. Just build a good bookmark library because it will serve you well.
But to pick up speed on learning the real details of what brewing is all about, you don’t have to depend just on reading or books. Because brewing beer in your own home is more than just book knowledge, it is handling of equipment and ingredients, the more direct exposure you can get to the brewing process, the better. But it is also very likely that you developed your interest in home brewing while enjoying a good brew at your local brew pub. Most towns have brew pubs where home made beers are sold in just about every flavor, color ant texture. Many times these brew pubs grew up out of a home brewing hobby that just got bigger and bigger until it became an enterprise and a money making business.
That is why most brew pub owners are more than happy to give tours and lessons in home brewing. This is probably some of the most value exposure you can get to how the process of home brewing works. By walking through a brewery where the beer you love is made, you can step through the process to get a feel for how you will proceed. You can see the boiling pots, how the strainers are used and the filters and fermenters and everything that is needed to take beer from raw materials to the finished state of a fine brewed beer. In fact, with a little charm and by working for free, you may be able to apprentice in the brew pub making beer. This time will be tremendously valuable to you to help you learn the ropes of making your own beer.
You combine this hands on knowledge with what you are learning on line and from other training sources along with what you can learn by networking with other experienced home brewers and you have a powerful source of knowledge that will pay you well when you start making your home beer yourself. And that knowledge will result in some great tasting beers from your kitchen so you will be glad you took the time to learn all you can before taking the plunge.
The internet is often a source of information that we go to start learning more about a new area of life like home brewing. Perhaps that is how you found this article and that’s good. That means you are off on the right foot and using free information from people who have already learned a few things about brewing at home to get your orientation to what it would take for you to learn to brew your own beer at home.
As often happens with any new area of interest, if your fascination with how to brew beer at home starts to get some momentum, it’s a good way to go to log on to the major home brewing web sites and begin to get oriented to the methods, the equipment and the process of brewing beer at home. Do be aware that some of these sites get very technical and it's easy to get intimidated.
But if you can just get an understanding about the equipment and the ingredients and some basic ideas of how the process would go if you were the one doing the brewing, that is a good start. Because online articles and web sites mix expert knowledge with newcomers orientation, if you do stumble into a section of those sites that you don’t understand, just surf on to pages that are intended to help you where you are and understand that when you get to that level that that technical sophistication, you can always come back to these pages. Just build a good bookmark library because it will serve you well.
But to pick up speed on learning the real details of what brewing is all about, you don’t have to depend just on reading or books. Because brewing beer in your own home is more than just book knowledge, it is handling of equipment and ingredients, the more direct exposure you can get to the brewing process, the better. But it is also very likely that you developed your interest in home brewing while enjoying a good brew at your local brew pub. Most towns have brew pubs where home made beers are sold in just about every flavor, color ant texture. Many times these brew pubs grew up out of a home brewing hobby that just got bigger and bigger until it became an enterprise and a money making business.
That is why most brew pub owners are more than happy to give tours and lessons in home brewing. This is probably some of the most value exposure you can get to how the process of home brewing works. By walking through a brewery where the beer you love is made, you can step through the process to get a feel for how you will proceed. You can see the boiling pots, how the strainers are used and the filters and fermenters and everything that is needed to take beer from raw materials to the finished state of a fine brewed beer. In fact, with a little charm and by working for free, you may be able to apprentice in the brew pub making beer. This time will be tremendously valuable to you to help you learn the ropes of making your own beer.
You combine this hands on knowledge with what you are learning on line and from other training sources along with what you can learn by networking with other experienced home brewers and you have a powerful source of knowledge that will pay you well when you start making your home beer yourself. And that knowledge will result in some great tasting beers from your kitchen so you will be glad you took the time to learn all you can before taking the plunge.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Great Grains for a Great Beer
One of the great reasons for learning to brew your own beer is to learn more about the various grains and ingredients that makes one beer better than another one. When you first start your hobby of home brewing, you no doubt got connected to a local club or association of home brewers. They can help you learn the lingo and how to tell what the best grains are to use in your beer. But before you go to the first meeting, it might speed things up if you knew the basics.
The use of malts is at the heart of how grain contributes to a great beer. The difference between a light beer that doesn’t have a heavy malt taste and one that virtually tastes like a loaf of bread all go back to what malts you pick and the process that is used during the malting and brewing of your beer. There are actually a big variety of different grains that people commonly use when brewing their own beer and you may have to take some time to brew up a few batches using different grains to see which ones capture what to you is the perfect beer taste that will make your home made beer unique. But understanding how malting works is a good first step.
Now as a home brewing enthusiast, you will probably not actually take grain through the malting process yourself. But you should become familiar with how malting works and why there is so much variety to the outcome of the malting process. In that way you can use that knowledge when buying the malts for your beer so you can get a malt that will give you the flavor, color and intensity of beer that you are looking for.
The malting process starts with the grain to be used. The most common grains are barley, wheat or rye but others can be used from time to time. The grain is used from the seed form and steeped and germinated which gets the active part of the malting and brewing process underway. Germination, which from your high school science class you know is what happens when a seed sprouts out to become a plants, releases the store energy of the seed that was put there to jump start the growth process. We are going to use that energy and convert it into malt mash that you can use to brew your beer.
What happens during the germination process of those grains is that the stored energy in the seed is changed as it is released. When the starches in the seeds changes into sugars by the enzymes that are active part of the germination process, those sugars give us one of the core ingredients for great beer. It is at that exact moment that the germination process is suspended using kilns to dry the grains and all of that good sugar and enzymes that became active remain in the malt for use during the brewing process.
Obviously this description of the basic malting process is simplified but for our purposes it gives you a background into what happens before you buy the malts you will use in your home made beer. But based on this description, you can go on to get a feel for the wide variety of malt types. The more you know about malt, the better informed you will be about what malts you wish to use when you brew your beer. And those decisions will have a big effect on the taste of your beer. So for great tasting beer, use great malts and knowing one malt from the next is the key to knowing which to use for the best home made beer possible from your home brewing efforts.
The use of malts is at the heart of how grain contributes to a great beer. The difference between a light beer that doesn’t have a heavy malt taste and one that virtually tastes like a loaf of bread all go back to what malts you pick and the process that is used during the malting and brewing of your beer. There are actually a big variety of different grains that people commonly use when brewing their own beer and you may have to take some time to brew up a few batches using different grains to see which ones capture what to you is the perfect beer taste that will make your home made beer unique. But understanding how malting works is a good first step.
Now as a home brewing enthusiast, you will probably not actually take grain through the malting process yourself. But you should become familiar with how malting works and why there is so much variety to the outcome of the malting process. In that way you can use that knowledge when buying the malts for your beer so you can get a malt that will give you the flavor, color and intensity of beer that you are looking for.
The malting process starts with the grain to be used. The most common grains are barley, wheat or rye but others can be used from time to time. The grain is used from the seed form and steeped and germinated which gets the active part of the malting and brewing process underway. Germination, which from your high school science class you know is what happens when a seed sprouts out to become a plants, releases the store energy of the seed that was put there to jump start the growth process. We are going to use that energy and convert it into malt mash that you can use to brew your beer.
What happens during the germination process of those grains is that the stored energy in the seed is changed as it is released. When the starches in the seeds changes into sugars by the enzymes that are active part of the germination process, those sugars give us one of the core ingredients for great beer. It is at that exact moment that the germination process is suspended using kilns to dry the grains and all of that good sugar and enzymes that became active remain in the malt for use during the brewing process.
Obviously this description of the basic malting process is simplified but for our purposes it gives you a background into what happens before you buy the malts you will use in your home made beer. But based on this description, you can go on to get a feel for the wide variety of malt types. The more you know about malt, the better informed you will be about what malts you wish to use when you brew your beer. And those decisions will have a big effect on the taste of your beer. So for great tasting beer, use great malts and knowing one malt from the next is the key to knowing which to use for the best home made beer possible from your home brewing efforts.
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Dying to Drink an Awesome Beer? Go German!
The German people are renowned for a lot of things, one of which is brewing. Beer is a crucial piece of their legacy and civilization, with more than 1300 various breweries spread across the land. As far as per capita beer consumption, the German people are only behind the Czechs and the Irish. The history of German beer spans back to the origin of the country when monks began to experiment with brewing around 1000 A.D. The country's leaders eventually began to regulate the production of beer as brewing started to be more and more profitable.
brewers had simply used the yeast found naturally in the air. Because of the stringent standard of quality followed by the purity requirement, Bavarian manufacturers were soon considered the best manufacturers of beer. Other breweries started to adhere to the proclamation as the prominence of the Bavarian breweries continued to rise.
German breweries have a long-standing reputation of producing quality brews made only from the purest ingredients as a result of the Reinheitsgebot. As time passed and Germany started to export beer, many cities became famous brewing spots. By fifteen-hundred, Scandinavia, Holland, England, and even India were getting beer imported from one of the 600 breweries in the city of Bremen. Two more famed brewing towns were Einbeck and Braunschweig.
Next time you're at your local bottle shop or purveyor of fine fermented libations, try perusing the German beer section and taste a thousand years of brewing history!
Reinheitsge-what?
The Bavarian Reinheitsgebot, or purity standard, came about in fifteen-sixteen and remains the most famous and influential aspect of German brewing. The Bavarian Reinheitsgebot was ordered by Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria to ensure that Bavarian beers were all of high quality. Hops, barley, and water were the only ingredients allowed in beer according to the regulation. The Reinheitsgebot is the oldest legislation placed on beverages in the world and has not been changed in nearly five-hundred years with the exception of adding yeast as one of the allowable ingredients. Before that addition,brewers had simply used the yeast found naturally in the air. Because of the stringent standard of quality followed by the purity requirement, Bavarian manufacturers were soon considered the best manufacturers of beer. Other breweries started to adhere to the proclamation as the prominence of the Bavarian breweries continued to rise.
German breweries have a long-standing reputation of producing quality brews made only from the purest ingredients as a result of the Reinheitsgebot. As time passed and Germany started to export beer, many cities became famous brewing spots. By fifteen-hundred, Scandinavia, Holland, England, and even India were getting beer imported from one of the 600 breweries in the city of Bremen. Two more famed brewing towns were Einbeck and Braunschweig.
Plague and Steins
Because of it's full-bodied flavor and right amount of head foam most modern Germans still prefer fabbier, or draft beer, over bottled beer. Used still today, German beer steins became popular around the time the purity standard came about in an effort to prevent the spread of the black plague. Germany made a lot of regulations to stop its citizens from getting ill during the time of the black plague. People discovered that infected flies would fly in people's food and spread the disease. Since Germans were not the type to let a little bit of plague get between them and their beer, this led to the stein, a beverage container with a closed lid that could be used with the thumb so drinkers could stop disease and still be able to drink with one hand. Beer drinking went up exponentially as people started to realize the plague spread in dirty conditions with brackish pools of water. Originally made of stoneware with pewter tops, steins grew in popularity. German beer steins started to be made entirely of pewter for nearly three-hundred years as the pewter guild grew. Still manufactured today, silver and porcelain German beer steins were eventually introduced.Today
More than five-thousand types of beer are made today from over thirteen-hundred and fifty breweries within Germany's borders. The oldest brewery in the world that continues operation today is the Benedictine abbey Weihenstephan, that has been producing beer since one-thousand and forty. The most concentrated area in Germany for breweries is the Franconia region of Bavaria near the city Bamberg. German breweries manufacture a wide variety of tastes and kinds of beer with the majority of them able to be placed under ales or lagers. Most of these beers have an alcoholic content ranging from 4.7% to 5.4% but some kinds can be as high as 12%, making them more potent than a lot of wines.Next time you're at your local bottle shop or purveyor of fine fermented libations, try perusing the German beer section and taste a thousand years of brewing history!
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Benefits of Brewing Your Own Beer
I love beer. Drinking a few bottles of good beer after a stressful workweek is one of the reasons why I am able to maintain a happy disposition in life. As a fan of both beer and cooking, about a decade ago I figured it was a natural progression to making my own beer. Since then, home brewing has not only been a mere hobby for me, but a passion. When I take into account the many benefits home brewing can provide, it's not difficult to see why. I also have no qualms about recommending this wonderful hobby; if you need some convincing, here are several good reasons to take up home brewing.
It's a Rewarding Hobby
Being able to brew your own type of beer with its own unique flavors can give a home brewer a great sense of pride and accomplishment. The act of brewing your own beer also gives you that mad scientist feeling (or at least for me), not to mention the satisfaction that you feel every time your beer-guzzling friends rave about your concoction.
Better Quality For Your Beer
Home brewed beer, unlike commercial beers, doesn't have cheap additives. It's also typically all malt beer, giving it that full bodied taste that you don't normally get from mass-marketed beers purchased from stores or bars. You can also use ingredients that are not normally used for commercial beers to add exotic or traditional flavors.
Cheaper Beer
Home brewed beer is cheaper than commercial beers. Home brew stores have been popping up all over the country and the internet for the past several decades, so you can get ingredients and brew 5 gallons at a lesser cost than the cheapest beer brand in your nearby store. As the popularity of home brewing increases, it can only get better since the cost of malt and hops is bound to get cheaper.
Reduced Hangovers
A beer-drinking sesson doesn't have to provide you misery in the morning. Home brewed beer reduces the severity of hangovers due to high amounts of Vitamin B. It's known that home brewed beer doesn't undergo pasteurization and filtering which can remove huge amounts of Vitamin B. For that reason, beer that you brew yourself has more amounts of yeast with Vitamin B.
Improves Social Life
I've lost count of the good friends I've made and great conversations with strangers I've had because of my interest in beer and brewing. Brewing in particular has led to some great friendships over the years. I find that people who take up home brewing are always brimming with enthusiasm, either about their new hobby or about their old passion if they've been doing it for a while. It seems every brewer is on a quest to find the perfect recipe, and rather than being secretive about their search, they usually bubble over with excitement when they talk about their journey. I don't have a scientific explanation for this--maybe it's the effect of the beer, but if you've spent any time around a home brewer, you know what I mean. I would also recommend joining a home brewing club. At best, you can persuade your friends to take up the same hobby.
Health Benefits
This is perhaps the best benefit of them all. While it's true that overdrinking can have grave consequences to your health, it's been scientifically proven that alcohol in moderation can improve it. Why? It's because of the high flavinoid content contained in dark beers. It's also generally true that a 12 oz serving of beer has fewer calories than 12 ounces of juice, milk or soda.
There you have it! There's no doubt that home brewing has many benefits, and the best part is that you yourself can discover many others on your own.
It's a Rewarding Hobby
Being able to brew your own type of beer with its own unique flavors can give a home brewer a great sense of pride and accomplishment. The act of brewing your own beer also gives you that mad scientist feeling (or at least for me), not to mention the satisfaction that you feel every time your beer-guzzling friends rave about your concoction.
Better Quality For Your Beer
Home brewed beer, unlike commercial beers, doesn't have cheap additives. It's also typically all malt beer, giving it that full bodied taste that you don't normally get from mass-marketed beers purchased from stores or bars. You can also use ingredients that are not normally used for commercial beers to add exotic or traditional flavors.
Cheaper Beer
Home brewed beer is cheaper than commercial beers. Home brew stores have been popping up all over the country and the internet for the past several decades, so you can get ingredients and brew 5 gallons at a lesser cost than the cheapest beer brand in your nearby store. As the popularity of home brewing increases, it can only get better since the cost of malt and hops is bound to get cheaper.
Reduced Hangovers
A beer-drinking sesson doesn't have to provide you misery in the morning. Home brewed beer reduces the severity of hangovers due to high amounts of Vitamin B. It's known that home brewed beer doesn't undergo pasteurization and filtering which can remove huge amounts of Vitamin B. For that reason, beer that you brew yourself has more amounts of yeast with Vitamin B.
Improves Social Life
I've lost count of the good friends I've made and great conversations with strangers I've had because of my interest in beer and brewing. Brewing in particular has led to some great friendships over the years. I find that people who take up home brewing are always brimming with enthusiasm, either about their new hobby or about their old passion if they've been doing it for a while. It seems every brewer is on a quest to find the perfect recipe, and rather than being secretive about their search, they usually bubble over with excitement when they talk about their journey. I don't have a scientific explanation for this--maybe it's the effect of the beer, but if you've spent any time around a home brewer, you know what I mean. I would also recommend joining a home brewing club. At best, you can persuade your friends to take up the same hobby.
Health Benefits
This is perhaps the best benefit of them all. While it's true that overdrinking can have grave consequences to your health, it's been scientifically proven that alcohol in moderation can improve it. Why? It's because of the high flavinoid content contained in dark beers. It's also generally true that a 12 oz serving of beer has fewer calories than 12 ounces of juice, milk or soda.
There you have it! There's no doubt that home brewing has many benefits, and the best part is that you yourself can discover many others on your own.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Common Homebrewing Mistakes
Beer lovers take note. If you're reading this blog, you already know that you can make your own beer at home--and that it doesn't involve any rocket science. The process is much simpler than what many think, and this is the main reason why home brewers are on the rise in the United States and in many other countries.
There new innovations in home brewing equipment being developed almost daily, and there is a growing body of materials available online ready to be downloaded. It's easy to concoct your own brew. But just a little reminder--don't let your over-eagerness get the best out of you. Exercise some restraint as well when trying home brewing for the first time. You don't want to go the way of many first-timers who become frustrated simply because they failed to know some of the more common home brewing mistakes.
To learn from others' mistakes, you must first be aware of them. Listed below are some of the most common ones made by first-timers in the field of beer making at home.
Sanitation. This one is huge. Many upstart home brewers don't realize the importance of sanitation. A single cell of just the wrong wild yeast or bacteria strain can ruin a whole batch of beer. It should be remembered that the unfermented beer (wort) is packed with malt sugar, and bacteria and wild yeast love this. If a brewer is not concerned with cleanliness in the work space, this will often come through in the flavor of the final product, and nobody likes drinking dirty or infected beer! So what needs to be done in order to address this concern?
The best thing to do is to ensure the cleanliness of equipment every time. All the equipment used in home brewing should be sanitized. This doesn't mean that you have to invest in pricey sanitizing products. There are many products available to the home brewer, but I use a simple bleach solution--an ounce of Clorox in a gallon of water--when cleaning anything that will touch the wort in the brewing process. Rinse with hot water.
Another common mistake is not using the right temperature to ferment the beer. As a home brewer, it is important that you know the balance between too hot and too cold a temperature. There is a right temperature for use in home brewing and this is dependent on the kind of yeast strain selected for the brew--ale yeasts typically ferment between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and lager yeasts work in the 40's. Fermenting at a temperature outside these ranges can result in undesirable flavors in your beer.
Perhaps the most common mistake is impatience on the part of the brewer. Novice brewers, for example, will often bottle the brew too early. Remember, good things take time! If you bottle the beer before the fermentation is complete, all you will end up with is a fridge full of bottle grenades.
Bottom line, the best thing you can do is read everything about brewing that you can get your hands on. And be patient. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither is good beer!
There new innovations in home brewing equipment being developed almost daily, and there is a growing body of materials available online ready to be downloaded. It's easy to concoct your own brew. But just a little reminder--don't let your over-eagerness get the best out of you. Exercise some restraint as well when trying home brewing for the first time. You don't want to go the way of many first-timers who become frustrated simply because they failed to know some of the more common home brewing mistakes.
To learn from others' mistakes, you must first be aware of them. Listed below are some of the most common ones made by first-timers in the field of beer making at home.
Sanitation. This one is huge. Many upstart home brewers don't realize the importance of sanitation. A single cell of just the wrong wild yeast or bacteria strain can ruin a whole batch of beer. It should be remembered that the unfermented beer (wort) is packed with malt sugar, and bacteria and wild yeast love this. If a brewer is not concerned with cleanliness in the work space, this will often come through in the flavor of the final product, and nobody likes drinking dirty or infected beer! So what needs to be done in order to address this concern?
The best thing to do is to ensure the cleanliness of equipment every time. All the equipment used in home brewing should be sanitized. This doesn't mean that you have to invest in pricey sanitizing products. There are many products available to the home brewer, but I use a simple bleach solution--an ounce of Clorox in a gallon of water--when cleaning anything that will touch the wort in the brewing process. Rinse with hot water.
Another common mistake is not using the right temperature to ferment the beer. As a home brewer, it is important that you know the balance between too hot and too cold a temperature. There is a right temperature for use in home brewing and this is dependent on the kind of yeast strain selected for the brew--ale yeasts typically ferment between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and lager yeasts work in the 40's. Fermenting at a temperature outside these ranges can result in undesirable flavors in your beer.
Perhaps the most common mistake is impatience on the part of the brewer. Novice brewers, for example, will often bottle the brew too early. Remember, good things take time! If you bottle the beer before the fermentation is complete, all you will end up with is a fridge full of bottle grenades.
Bottom line, the best thing you can do is read everything about brewing that you can get your hands on. And be patient. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither is good beer!
Monday, October 22, 2012
Wild Partridge Recipe
This post isn't precisely about brewing, but without good food, good beer and wine would be rather pointless, so I wanted to share a wild partridge recipe my wife and I made together tonight. Up here where I live in Maine, partridge season is something people anticipate all year long, and with good reason--prepared correctly, they are a taste of heaven! I found the recipe at allrecipes.com:
Recipe makes 4 servings
We served the bacon wrapped breasts with a simple rice pilaf mix, and some steamed broccoli. The wine we used both for cooking and serving was Barefoot Pinot Grigio, but any white will go well with this meal--I've got a few more breasts in the freezer, so I think next time we may try a Sauvignon Blanc. Partridge being a wild game bird, even a mild red would not be inappropriate.
Chew slowly to enjoy this meal to its fullest...and to avoid cracking your teeth on any shotgun pellets you may have missed!
Recipe makes 4 servings
We served the bacon wrapped breasts with a simple rice pilaf mix, and some steamed broccoli. The wine we used both for cooking and serving was Barefoot Pinot Grigio, but any white will go well with this meal--I've got a few more breasts in the freezer, so I think next time we may try a Sauvignon Blanc. Partridge being a wild game bird, even a mild red would not be inappropriate.
Chew slowly to enjoy this meal to its fullest...and to avoid cracking your teeth on any shotgun pellets you may have missed!
Friday, October 19, 2012
Brewing on a Budget--The Poor Man's Guide Learning to Brew Beer at Home
For a true beer lover, one of the most rewarding hobbies is brewing your own signature beer. Once you get set up with the equipment and basic supplies, it’s a fairly affordable hobby and you will get a lot of entertainment value out of going through the brewing and fermentation process. The real enjoyment, however, comes from the sense of pride you get from watching the enjoyment on friends' faces when they taste a beer that you made.
One of the hold ups that keep many people from getting into home brewing is the startup cost. Let's face it--if you've ever taken a tour of a brewery seen the huge machines and storage tanks, it can be hard to see how you can make beer in your kitchen with just a few simple devices. Fortunately, there is an entire home brewing subculture that has risen up based entirely on being able to make beer in small batches and at relatively low costs. It's legal, it's fun, and brewing beer can become a major hobby as well.
All that said, it's true that the initial costs can be a bit intimidating. The cost of the pots, fermenters and other specialized equipment can run into several hundred dollars. It's risky to sink that kind of money into a new hobby before you even know if you will enjoy making beer, whether the beer you make will be drinkable, or if you will stick with it. And during a time when we need most of what we earn just to get by, that is a risk that may be holding you back from getting into the hobby.
Of course one natural solution is to get your first exposure and training in making beer with someone else's equipment. Once you start poking around on home brewing websites and places where the equipment and supplies to make beer are sold in your town, you can find out about clubs and societies that are full of people who have taken the plunge and are making beer all the time right in their own homes.
These people love home brewing, and they can become real boosters for their hobby. Ask if you can sit in on their next brewing session. With very little encouragement, you can enjoy some Saturdays in their shop or kitchen learning how to brew beer with someone who already knows the process. This kind of experience is priceless because you learn what to look for in equipment, as well as what is essential and what is merely optional. You can go through the brewing process and learn a lot about how to make actual beer that is drinkable, and what pitfalls to avoid. Meanwhile, you may not have spent any more than the cost of lunch for your friend, and maybe a bag or two of pretzels for the tasting party when the beer is done.
When you are ready to get started brewing on your own, your knowledge of what you really need will pay off in a big way. You still don't have to pay top dollar for the equipment to get up and running. Lots of people get started with making beer, and then for a variety of reasons, their hobby stops suddenly. The outcome is that there is a pretty brisk market out there for used basic home brewing equipment. You can find discounted equipment in new or like new condition for sale on eBay or
Craigslist all the time. Don't overlook the local sources like home brewing clubs and associations--they may have bulletin boards with listings from people who want to sell or upgrade their own equipment. Pawn shops in the area are another great resource.
Another great way to save money is to go in with a friend or family member and split the costs all the way down the line. This makes brewing beer more fun and social, and each of you can have the equipment and supplies home at different times. If you each learn to make good beer separately, you can also make great beer together! And who knows--you may get so good at it that you start selling your beer to local pubs. When the big bucks come rolling in from that, your investment in learning to
brew beer will have been well worth it!
One of the hold ups that keep many people from getting into home brewing is the startup cost. Let's face it--if you've ever taken a tour of a brewery seen the huge machines and storage tanks, it can be hard to see how you can make beer in your kitchen with just a few simple devices. Fortunately, there is an entire home brewing subculture that has risen up based entirely on being able to make beer in small batches and at relatively low costs. It's legal, it's fun, and brewing beer can become a major hobby as well.
All that said, it's true that the initial costs can be a bit intimidating. The cost of the pots, fermenters and other specialized equipment can run into several hundred dollars. It's risky to sink that kind of money into a new hobby before you even know if you will enjoy making beer, whether the beer you make will be drinkable, or if you will stick with it. And during a time when we need most of what we earn just to get by, that is a risk that may be holding you back from getting into the hobby.
Of course one natural solution is to get your first exposure and training in making beer with someone else's equipment. Once you start poking around on home brewing websites and places where the equipment and supplies to make beer are sold in your town, you can find out about clubs and societies that are full of people who have taken the plunge and are making beer all the time right in their own homes.
These people love home brewing, and they can become real boosters for their hobby. Ask if you can sit in on their next brewing session. With very little encouragement, you can enjoy some Saturdays in their shop or kitchen learning how to brew beer with someone who already knows the process. This kind of experience is priceless because you learn what to look for in equipment, as well as what is essential and what is merely optional. You can go through the brewing process and learn a lot about how to make actual beer that is drinkable, and what pitfalls to avoid. Meanwhile, you may not have spent any more than the cost of lunch for your friend, and maybe a bag or two of pretzels for the tasting party when the beer is done.
When you are ready to get started brewing on your own, your knowledge of what you really need will pay off in a big way. You still don't have to pay top dollar for the equipment to get up and running. Lots of people get started with making beer, and then for a variety of reasons, their hobby stops suddenly. The outcome is that there is a pretty brisk market out there for used basic home brewing equipment. You can find discounted equipment in new or like new condition for sale on eBay or
Craigslist all the time. Don't overlook the local sources like home brewing clubs and associations--they may have bulletin boards with listings from people who want to sell or upgrade their own equipment. Pawn shops in the area are another great resource.
Another great way to save money is to go in with a friend or family member and split the costs all the way down the line. This makes brewing beer more fun and social, and each of you can have the equipment and supplies home at different times. If you each learn to make good beer separately, you can also make great beer together! And who knows--you may get so good at it that you start selling your beer to local pubs. When the big bucks come rolling in from that, your investment in learning to
brew beer will have been well worth it!
Thursday, October 18, 2012
A Brewing Society
One of the reasons the hobby of home brewing is so popular is that you are not just taking up a pastime, you are becoming part of a close-knit society of home brewing that has its own culture, lingo and social structure that is unique to brewers alone.
Of course, the social aspect of drinking beer is well known. The infrastructure of pubs and bars that offers to patrons a place of comfort, friendship, fun and relaxation is about a lot more than just tipping back a delicious drink. It is a part of our social fabric that goes back to revolutionary times when our most important documents were hashed out over an ale. And the importance of sharing a beer is just as powerful today as we all enjoyed thinking about that bar where "everybody knows your name" called Cheers.
So just as the social aspect of enjoying a beer with others is strong and well entrenched in our culture, so too is the art of making beer a deeply rooted part of society that goes back generations. That popularity has regular revivals and we are seeing a surge of interest in brewing today as all over the country brew pubs are springing up around delicious home grown beers that in many cases are far better than the mass produced beers that are heavily advertised during the Super Bowl.
This well developed and sophisticated brewing subculture not only will be of great help to you as you start to learn about becoming a home brewer yourself, it will become a society that is a lot of fun to be part of and where you may make friends for life as you share with others your love of making your own beer. In America the grass roots level subculture of home brewing is growing fast. This is no small concern to the big retail brewers who cannot possibly make the quality and rich kinds of beers that can be made at the local level. But this is a natural evolution as we follow our cousins in the UK where keg beers made locally dominate the world of beer consumption in a culture where pubs are a central part of the fabric of society.
One reason home brewing has such an appeal is the tremendous diversity of beers you can produce and the control you have over flavor, consistency and alcohol levels. In most cases, once you have your basic equipment for brewing beer, it is cheaper to make your own beer. And there is something satisfying about brewing up a big batch of beer to put back to ferment as you enjoy a five gallon batch you made last month. Beer brewers can become quite obsessed with flavor, color and "punch" and always be looking for new ways to become better at this fun and interesting hobby.
Whatever level of involvement in beer making appeals to you, you can probably find new friends in the beer brewing society that you can share your hobby with. There are beer brewing radio stations and ham radio channels devoted to helping amateur brewers share their secret recopies and solve each other's problems. And there are home made beer competitions that can really put some challenge that all on you to make that blue ribbon beer that rally makes the judges sit up and take notice.
So as you find yourself getting more and more enthusiastic and "caught up" in the fun of home brewing, don't be embarrassed by that because you can find a diverse assortment of other beer making enthusiasts to share your hobby with. So have fun, make friends, make good beer and above all, share your beer and your knowledge with others. Because beer is about more than good drink. It's about good times with good people as well.
Of course, the social aspect of drinking beer is well known. The infrastructure of pubs and bars that offers to patrons a place of comfort, friendship, fun and relaxation is about a lot more than just tipping back a delicious drink. It is a part of our social fabric that goes back to revolutionary times when our most important documents were hashed out over an ale. And the importance of sharing a beer is just as powerful today as we all enjoyed thinking about that bar where "everybody knows your name" called Cheers.
So just as the social aspect of enjoying a beer with others is strong and well entrenched in our culture, so too is the art of making beer a deeply rooted part of society that goes back generations. That popularity has regular revivals and we are seeing a surge of interest in brewing today as all over the country brew pubs are springing up around delicious home grown beers that in many cases are far better than the mass produced beers that are heavily advertised during the Super Bowl.
This well developed and sophisticated brewing subculture not only will be of great help to you as you start to learn about becoming a home brewer yourself, it will become a society that is a lot of fun to be part of and where you may make friends for life as you share with others your love of making your own beer. In America the grass roots level subculture of home brewing is growing fast. This is no small concern to the big retail brewers who cannot possibly make the quality and rich kinds of beers that can be made at the local level. But this is a natural evolution as we follow our cousins in the UK where keg beers made locally dominate the world of beer consumption in a culture where pubs are a central part of the fabric of society.
One reason home brewing has such an appeal is the tremendous diversity of beers you can produce and the control you have over flavor, consistency and alcohol levels. In most cases, once you have your basic equipment for brewing beer, it is cheaper to make your own beer. And there is something satisfying about brewing up a big batch of beer to put back to ferment as you enjoy a five gallon batch you made last month. Beer brewers can become quite obsessed with flavor, color and "punch" and always be looking for new ways to become better at this fun and interesting hobby.
Whatever level of involvement in beer making appeals to you, you can probably find new friends in the beer brewing society that you can share your hobby with. There are beer brewing radio stations and ham radio channels devoted to helping amateur brewers share their secret recopies and solve each other's problems. And there are home made beer competitions that can really put some challenge that all on you to make that blue ribbon beer that rally makes the judges sit up and take notice.
So as you find yourself getting more and more enthusiastic and "caught up" in the fun of home brewing, don't be embarrassed by that because you can find a diverse assortment of other beer making enthusiasts to share your hobby with. So have fun, make friends, make good beer and above all, share your beer and your knowledge with others. Because beer is about more than good drink. It's about good times with good people as well.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
A Short History of Home Brewing
Ever since the joys of drinking alcohol was discovered about 7,000 years ago, and with the scarcity of commercial brewing companies at that time, people resorted to brewing beer in the comfort of their own homes. As expected, it only took a short time before commercial breweries started to mass-produce beer. While that made beer more accessible to the general public, beer lovers and hobbyists have never stopped brewing their own beer.
Home brewing was very popular in England during the medieval period, largely because it was customary for feudal manors to make sure beer was available for consumption for the lords and their subjects.
In America, the most influential people who took up home brewing were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and more recently, Barack Obama.
Home brewing took a drastic blow when in the 1800's, brewing was heavily taxed by the government in order for the commercial breweries to get more profit. Eventually, the Prohibition was enacted, causing all types of alcohol to get banned. Since then, home brewing was the only way for people to get their beer, and a risky endeavor at that.
The Prohibition got lifted in 1933, but at this time, only wine was allowed for home production. It was only when President Carter passed the 1979 Cranston Act that home brewing beer became legal again, partly due to the proliferation of crime involving beer smuggling in the previous years.
Home brewing hobby shops steadily increased in number ever since. In 1981, home brewing hobby shops numbered 150. This number grew to 1,000 in 1996. After some retrenchments, the number dwindled to 550, one of the reasons being the rising costs of materials.
Commercial breweries have permeated the fabric of society since then, but while home brewing was still legal, it dropped down in popularity and was relegated to "connoisseurs" and fanatics. It came to a point where being a home brewer became an elitist stance, since the product did not justify the cost of materials and amount of preparation required in brewing beer.
Today, the American Homebrewers Association roughly estimated the amount of home brewers to 1 million. The Internet revolution may have had an influence, but one of the main reasons for the surging popularity is the production of scaled down brewing kits and the easier access to 100 different strains of yeast. The quality of advice and the ingredients has improved dramatically. Years ago, the materials involved in home brewing were a can of Blue Ribbon malt extract, a 10 gallon ceramic crock, and a pile of Fleischmann's bread yeast. Now, home brewers can purchase hundreds of different beer ingredient kits, which are much cheaper and less unwieldy than earlier beer home brewing kits.
Because of these significant changes, home brewers are now producing beers with better quality. A wide range of possibilities has opened up. Different types of beers with unique flavors have come out of the woodwork, and still continue to do so. This is a sign that home brewing is here to stay. In fact, there's no better time to start up the hobby than now!
Home brewing was very popular in England during the medieval period, largely because it was customary for feudal manors to make sure beer was available for consumption for the lords and their subjects.
In America, the most influential people who took up home brewing were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and more recently, Barack Obama.
Home brewing took a drastic blow when in the 1800's, brewing was heavily taxed by the government in order for the commercial breweries to get more profit. Eventually, the Prohibition was enacted, causing all types of alcohol to get banned. Since then, home brewing was the only way for people to get their beer, and a risky endeavor at that.
The Prohibition got lifted in 1933, but at this time, only wine was allowed for home production. It was only when President Carter passed the 1979 Cranston Act that home brewing beer became legal again, partly due to the proliferation of crime involving beer smuggling in the previous years.
Home brewing hobby shops steadily increased in number ever since. In 1981, home brewing hobby shops numbered 150. This number grew to 1,000 in 1996. After some retrenchments, the number dwindled to 550, one of the reasons being the rising costs of materials.
Commercial breweries have permeated the fabric of society since then, but while home brewing was still legal, it dropped down in popularity and was relegated to "connoisseurs" and fanatics. It came to a point where being a home brewer became an elitist stance, since the product did not justify the cost of materials and amount of preparation required in brewing beer.
Today, the American Homebrewers Association roughly estimated the amount of home brewers to 1 million. The Internet revolution may have had an influence, but one of the main reasons for the surging popularity is the production of scaled down brewing kits and the easier access to 100 different strains of yeast. The quality of advice and the ingredients has improved dramatically. Years ago, the materials involved in home brewing were a can of Blue Ribbon malt extract, a 10 gallon ceramic crock, and a pile of Fleischmann's bread yeast. Now, home brewers can purchase hundreds of different beer ingredient kits, which are much cheaper and less unwieldy than earlier beer home brewing kits.
Because of these significant changes, home brewers are now producing beers with better quality. A wide range of possibilities has opened up. Different types of beers with unique flavors have come out of the woodwork, and still continue to do so. This is a sign that home brewing is here to stay. In fact, there's no better time to start up the hobby than now!
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Beer And Fitness – Can You Drink Beer And Stay Fit?
This week I was asked an interesting question concerning drinking beer and exercising. It seems that a former Navy Radioman has developed quite a gut since retiring, and was curious about whether he should give up his beer to lose weight? Not only does the gentleman enjoy drinking about 2-4 beers daily, he also has quit exercising. Moderate beer consumption is actually healthy, so I set out to define “moderate” as well as educate on the basics of caloric intake and caloric expenditure. The radioman is not suffering from a beer belly but an INACTIVITY BELLY! Yes, you can still drink beer and be very fit.
Over 90 million Americans love drinking beer! Drinking in moderationhas been shownby many doctors, as well as the New England Journal of Medicine, to be a healthy component of longevity. In fact, moderate consumption of alcohol, including beer, has been proven to reduce the effects of high cholesterol, heart disease, some forms of cancer and even impotence.
Anything done in excess is naturally unhealthy. “Moderation” is defined by most doctors as 1-2 beers a day. And NO, you cannot save up through the week and catch up on the weekend drinking 10-12 beers in an evening. That is NOT moderation. There is even a US Beer Drinking Team that links beer enthusiasts and promotes moderation, responsibility, and healthy living.
The average can of beer has over 100 calories. Drinking one beer is equivalent to eating a chocolate chip cookie. Drinking four is equal to eating a Big Mac Hamburger. In order to lose weight, you have to burn off these extra calories as well as the other calories that you ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Even the lightest of beers has the empty calories of alcohol, which is the cause of poor health if done in excess and without a regular exercise routine. Unfortunately, too many Americans live under one of the worst stereotypes placed on a human being – the BEER BELLY, or as I call it, the inactivity belly.
The “inactivity” belly is caused by excess calories in your diet AND lack of activity to burn the extra calories. The solution to lose your beer belly is as simple as calories in must be less than calories out (or expended through exercise).
Calories IN < Calories Out (burned) = Weight Loss
If you can add exercise into your schedule for 20-30 minutes a day, your daily consumption of alcohol (1-2 beers) will not have any additional impact on your gut. To lose your beer belly, you REALLY have to watch your food and beverage intake, drink 2-4 quarts of water a day, AND fit fitness into your world. THERE IS NO OTHER HEALTHY ANSWER! The exercise and workout ideas below can get you started on your calorie burning plan:
Workout #1: This is a great full body calorie burner:
Repeat 3-5 times
Walk, run or bike 5:00
Squats – 20
Pushups – 10-20
Situps or Crunches – 20
Workout #2: Swimming and elliptical gliding (cross country skiing) burn the most calories per hour (This workout can burn up to 1000 calories in one hour!)
Swim 20-30 minutes non-stop
Elliptical Glide 20-30 minutes
There is no reason why you cannot have “six pack abs” and still drink a six pack a week. Once again, excessive beer drinking is not recommended by anyone in the health industry. If you simply enjoy drinking beer and are serious about your health, moderation in drinking alcohol and eating foods high in calories, combined with habitual daily exercise is your ticket to reaching your goals. I now have a series of Workout plans that cater to all levels of fitness and can help you with developing a healthy diet with proper food choices – the Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced 45 Day plans sold on StewSmith.com Store. For those who are into strength training, I have recently writtena weight training plan called “Beer and Barbells” that allows you to use the additional calories of beer, or milk shakes if you are under 21, to gain mass and strength.
Adding exercise daily and observing the dietary recommendations in these eBooks will enable you to be the person you were yesterday without changing who you are today.
Over 90 million Americans love drinking beer! Drinking in moderationhas been shownby many doctors, as well as the New England Journal of Medicine, to be a healthy component of longevity. In fact, moderate consumption of alcohol, including beer, has been proven to reduce the effects of high cholesterol, heart disease, some forms of cancer and even impotence.
Anything done in excess is naturally unhealthy. “Moderation” is defined by most doctors as 1-2 beers a day. And NO, you cannot save up through the week and catch up on the weekend drinking 10-12 beers in an evening. That is NOT moderation. There is even a US Beer Drinking Team that links beer enthusiasts and promotes moderation, responsibility, and healthy living.
The average can of beer has over 100 calories. Drinking one beer is equivalent to eating a chocolate chip cookie. Drinking four is equal to eating a Big Mac Hamburger. In order to lose weight, you have to burn off these extra calories as well as the other calories that you ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Even the lightest of beers has the empty calories of alcohol, which is the cause of poor health if done in excess and without a regular exercise routine. Unfortunately, too many Americans live under one of the worst stereotypes placed on a human being – the BEER BELLY, or as I call it, the inactivity belly.
The “inactivity” belly is caused by excess calories in your diet AND lack of activity to burn the extra calories. The solution to lose your beer belly is as simple as calories in must be less than calories out (or expended through exercise).
Calories IN < Calories Out (burned) = Weight Loss
If you can add exercise into your schedule for 20-30 minutes a day, your daily consumption of alcohol (1-2 beers) will not have any additional impact on your gut. To lose your beer belly, you REALLY have to watch your food and beverage intake, drink 2-4 quarts of water a day, AND fit fitness into your world. THERE IS NO OTHER HEALTHY ANSWER! The exercise and workout ideas below can get you started on your calorie burning plan:
Workout #1: This is a great full body calorie burner:
Repeat 3-5 times
Walk, run or bike 5:00
Squats – 20
Pushups – 10-20
Situps or Crunches – 20
Workout #2: Swimming and elliptical gliding (cross country skiing) burn the most calories per hour (This workout can burn up to 1000 calories in one hour!)
Swim 20-30 minutes non-stop
Elliptical Glide 20-30 minutes
There is no reason why you cannot have “six pack abs” and still drink a six pack a week. Once again, excessive beer drinking is not recommended by anyone in the health industry. If you simply enjoy drinking beer and are serious about your health, moderation in drinking alcohol and eating foods high in calories, combined with habitual daily exercise is your ticket to reaching your goals. I now have a series of Workout plans that cater to all levels of fitness and can help you with developing a healthy diet with proper food choices – the Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced 45 Day plans sold on StewSmith.com Store. For those who are into strength training, I have recently writtena weight training plan called “Beer and Barbells” that allows you to use the additional calories of beer, or milk shakes if you are under 21, to gain mass and strength.
Adding exercise daily and observing the dietary recommendations in these eBooks will enable you to be the person you were yesterday without changing who you are today.
Monday, October 15, 2012
All About Beer
Prohibitionists and other conservatives have long viewed beer as the devil’s brew. Beer itself isn’t so bad; it’s people that have given it a bad rap. When used in a controlled, social setting, beer is nothing more than a cold, refreshing break time treat. Here are some of my thoughts on some of the different facets of beer.
Served warm or cold, from a bottle or glass, beer is an important part of society from Montana to Mongolia. And sometimes, even those so-called little old ladies will gather to enjoy a pint with their mates.
Rich History
There is evidence that beer has been around almost along as history itself. Pre-historic man is said to have created beer before learning that grains could also be used to produce another dietary staple called “bread”. Noah is said to have stocked his ark with beer. Ancient Babylonian clay tables revealing recipes for beer date back to 4300 BC.Social Acceptance
Clearly, beer has always been in important element in social gatherings. It’s a staple at sport arenas, card games and dart matches. Problems can arise, however, when beer drinkers indulge privately or believe they can drink away their troubles. Of course, binge drinking or drinking in excess also brews trouble.Worldwide Acclaim
Beer is consumed all over the world. North America, South America, Asia and Europe all have rich beer histories. Breweries can be found in Mongolia, many African countries, and Middle East countries including Iraq and Syria. Virtually anywhere a thirsty traveler stops to rest, a cold pint can easily be found. Many beers of the world are imported and readily available to North American beer drinkers looking to explore new flavours.Rating Systems
Some avid beer drinkers actually rate the beers they consume, tally the scores and post their comments on Internet websites to determine the world’s most popular brews. Beer drinkers in America can correspond online with their Russian counterparts and swap bottles of beer through the mail. Others drink a variety of beers to keep and collect the bottles and caps. Pubs sometimes host beer clubs, awarding plaques or personalized steins to those who have purchased and quaffed every brand of beer on the menu.Glass or Cans?
Some beer drinkers prefer to quaff from a proper pint glass, and others downright refuse to drink from a bottle or can. Drinking from a glass or stein helps to release the aromas of the beer, so the drinker is able to appreciate more than just the taste of the brew. Pouring beer into a vessel also allows a head to form on the beer, an important element for many beer drinkers. Similar to wine and spirits, there are specific glasses available for different types of beer. Many brewers produce glassware intended for use with their own brand of beer.Temperature
The ideal beer temperature varies depending on a number of factors. More experienced beer drinkers will tell you that a warmer temperature enhances the flavour, while colder temperatures inhibit the senses of the tongue and throat. Subtle nuances are weakened, and the main flavour is downright destroyed by low temperatures. On the other hand, those who work hard and play hard expect an ice-cold beer, served in a frosty mug. Irish beer drinkers insist that a pint of Irish Guinness is best served at room temperature.Pouring
The way beer is poured has influence over the presentation of beer. The flow rate from the tap, position of the pour and the tilting of the glass all affect the outcome. How the beer is poured determines the size and longevity of the head, and the turbulence of the pour affects how the carbonization is released. More heavily carbonated beers, such as German pilsners, need time to settle before they’re served. Many barkeeps will serve the beer with remaining yeast at the bottom of the glass to add extra color and flavor.Served warm or cold, from a bottle or glass, beer is an important part of society from Montana to Mongolia. And sometimes, even those so-called little old ladies will gather to enjoy a pint with their mates.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
REVIEW: Samuel Adams Octoberfest Seasonal Beer
If you 're like me, you love tasting new beers. I also love going back to some of my old favorites, which is why I'm glad the Boston Brewery continues year after year to brew Samuel Adams Octoberfest Seasonal Beer. While I usually prefer hoppy over malty, there is just something about a nice roasted malt flavor when you've spent the day outside where the chill of autumn has been caressing your face.
Samuel Adams Brewery
From the brewery:"Samuel Adams® Octoberfest is a malt lover's dream, masterfully blending together five roasts of barley to create a delicious harmony of sweet flavors including caramel and toffee. The beer is kept from being overly sweet by the elegant bitterness imparted by the German Noble hops."
This beer is best consumed just slightly below room temperature. I know, I know, warm beer. Seriously, you ice-cold beer fans would really do well to broaden your horizons and try something with some flavor for a change, and that flavor is only unlocked by serving slightly less cold than the mass-market "cold as the mountains" stuff.
The first thing to note about this beer is its deep orange color, and that it won't have much head because the carbonation is a bit lower than the Boston Lager. this is typical for this type of beer, so not to worry. When you take a whiff, you shouldn't notice too much hops, but instead you should catch some fruity and floral aroma.
When you take a sip, you'll notice that the mouthfeel is substantially bigger than those mass-market beers as well. This is a good thing. Beer shouldn't feel like water any more than it should taste that way. Speaking of flavor, the first thing I noticed was sweet maltiness, with a bit of maple syrup flavor in the background. There is definitely some hops in there, but it hangs out in the background instead of asserting its presence like it would were this beer an IPA. The most memorable part of my first sip, however, was the malty aftertaste, which reminded me of roasted coffee.
Take your first sip on a clean palate, and then enjoy the rest with a good hearty meal. I had mine with a nice juicy burger topped with pungent blue cheese. Yum!
Samuel Adams Octoberfest is readily available at a reasonable price. Boston Lager is my old standby, but no matter what beer you choose from their line, you can’t go wrong with Sam. Be careful—while this beer is not super strong at over 5% abv, it can pack a punch if you don't watch your intake!
Please always enjoy your beer responsibly!
Samuel Adams Brewery
This beer is best consumed just slightly below room temperature. I know, I know, warm beer. Seriously, you ice-cold beer fans would really do well to broaden your horizons and try something with some flavor for a change, and that flavor is only unlocked by serving slightly less cold than the mass-market "cold as the mountains" stuff.
The first thing to note about this beer is its deep orange color, and that it won't have much head because the carbonation is a bit lower than the Boston Lager. this is typical for this type of beer, so not to worry. When you take a whiff, you shouldn't notice too much hops, but instead you should catch some fruity and floral aroma.
When you take a sip, you'll notice that the mouthfeel is substantially bigger than those mass-market beers as well. This is a good thing. Beer shouldn't feel like water any more than it should taste that way. Speaking of flavor, the first thing I noticed was sweet maltiness, with a bit of maple syrup flavor in the background. There is definitely some hops in there, but it hangs out in the background instead of asserting its presence like it would were this beer an IPA. The most memorable part of my first sip, however, was the malty aftertaste, which reminded me of roasted coffee.
Take your first sip on a clean palate, and then enjoy the rest with a good hearty meal. I had mine with a nice juicy burger topped with pungent blue cheese. Yum!
Samuel Adams Octoberfest is readily available at a reasonable price. Boston Lager is my old standby, but no matter what beer you choose from their line, you can’t go wrong with Sam. Be careful—while this beer is not super strong at over 5% abv, it can pack a punch if you don't watch your intake!
Please always enjoy your beer responsibly!
Saturday, October 13, 2012
A Hoppy Marriage: Gourmet Cheese & Beer Pairing Guide
By Sara Kahn
Is there really a season for beer? I certainly enjoy beer year round but find myself opting for a cold brew more often during warmer weather. This time of year seems to call for lighter and more refreshing beverages but did you know beer just may be the better beverage choice to enjoy with gourmet cheese?
Beer, like wine, has something in common with cheese. All of these products are pastoral and crafted using traditional methods that date back centuries. Wine, beer and cheese speak of a particular culture, a place and a time. The connection between beer and cheese is particularly strong since the animals milked for cheese ate the grains used for brewing beer. It’s possible that your nose and palate may pick up similar flavor profiles. Putting aside their natural affinity, perhaps the most important reason to pair beer with cheese is that the carbonation and brisk qualities of beer refresh the mouth and wash away the tongue-coating richness of the cheese. Simply put, they taste good together.
With the wide variety of domestic, imported, and craft beers now available, selecting the right one can be just as overwhelming as choosing an appropriate wine. Fortunately, we have teamed up with Peter Estaniel, founder of Better Beer Blog (www.betterbeerblog.com) to give us an assist. Take a look at our Gourmet Cheese and Beer Pairing Guide for Peter’s recommendations for your next gourmet cheese and BEER tasting.
Cheese Type: Fresh
Fresh cheeses are not aged and usually are white and light in flavor, smooth and sometimes tangy. Try chevre (goat cheese), buffalo mozzarella or feta.
Peter’s Picks: The light citrus character of White Beers (Unibroue Blanche de Chambly, Wittekerke) and Wheat Beers (Erdinger Weissbier, Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier) marries well with the lactic tang of fresh cheeses.
Cheese Type: Bloomy
Encased in a whitish, edible rind, bloomy cheeses are often velvety, gooey with a mild flavor. Add Brie, Camembert or Pierre-Robert to the cheese board for a decadent treat.
Peter’s Picks: Pilsner, with its balanced flavor and mildly bitter finish, washes the palate of creamy, bloomy cheeses. Try Trumer Pils, Spaten Pils.
Cheese Type: Washed Rind
AKA “Stinky Cheeses”. During the aging process, washed-rind cheeses are usually bathed in a brine or washed with liquor such as wine, beer or a spirits. It’s this brining process that gives the cheese an aromatic quality. Almost all have orange or reddish hued rinds. Not mild and not sharp, washed rind cheeses are full-flavored. Give Taleggio or Epoisses a taste.
Peter’s Picks: India Pale Ale (Blind Pig IPA, Stone IPA) and Belgian-style Dark Strong ales (Chimay Grande Reserve, Gouden Carolus Grand Cru of the Emperor) have enough gusto to stand up to the power of these cheeses.
Cheese Type: Aged, Hard Cheeses
As cheeses matures, it hardens and concentrates in flavor. Try our 3 Year Old Cheddar, Aged Gouda and Piave.
Peter’s Picks: A pint of English ale (Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale, Newcastle Brown Ale) is the traditional beverage of choice for Cheddar. The nutty and caramelized flavors of aged Gouda and Piave match well with brown ales, as well.
Cheese Type: Blue
The bluish-green veins give blue cheese its punch. Listed from strong to strongest in pungency are creamy Gorgonzola, nutty Stilton and salty Roquefort.
Peter’s Picks: Intense cheeses like blues can be tamed with sweet, fruity beers. For a unique treat, try a raspberry flavored beer like Belgian Lambic (Lindemans Framboise) with blue cheese for dessert.
Is there really a season for beer? I certainly enjoy beer year round but find myself opting for a cold brew more often during warmer weather. This time of year seems to call for lighter and more refreshing beverages but did you know beer just may be the better beverage choice to enjoy with gourmet cheese?
Beer, like wine, has something in common with cheese. All of these products are pastoral and crafted using traditional methods that date back centuries. Wine, beer and cheese speak of a particular culture, a place and a time. The connection between beer and cheese is particularly strong since the animals milked for cheese ate the grains used for brewing beer. It’s possible that your nose and palate may pick up similar flavor profiles. Putting aside their natural affinity, perhaps the most important reason to pair beer with cheese is that the carbonation and brisk qualities of beer refresh the mouth and wash away the tongue-coating richness of the cheese. Simply put, they taste good together.
With the wide variety of domestic, imported, and craft beers now available, selecting the right one can be just as overwhelming as choosing an appropriate wine. Fortunately, we have teamed up with Peter Estaniel, founder of Better Beer Blog (www.betterbeerblog.com) to give us an assist. Take a look at our Gourmet Cheese and Beer Pairing Guide for Peter’s recommendations for your next gourmet cheese and BEER tasting.
Cheese Type: Fresh
Fresh cheeses are not aged and usually are white and light in flavor, smooth and sometimes tangy. Try chevre (goat cheese), buffalo mozzarella or feta.
Peter’s Picks: The light citrus character of White Beers (Unibroue Blanche de Chambly, Wittekerke) and Wheat Beers (Erdinger Weissbier, Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier) marries well with the lactic tang of fresh cheeses.
Cheese Type: Bloomy
Encased in a whitish, edible rind, bloomy cheeses are often velvety, gooey with a mild flavor. Add Brie, Camembert or Pierre-Robert to the cheese board for a decadent treat.
Peter’s Picks: Pilsner, with its balanced flavor and mildly bitter finish, washes the palate of creamy, bloomy cheeses. Try Trumer Pils, Spaten Pils.
Cheese Type: Washed Rind
AKA “Stinky Cheeses”. During the aging process, washed-rind cheeses are usually bathed in a brine or washed with liquor such as wine, beer or a spirits. It’s this brining process that gives the cheese an aromatic quality. Almost all have orange or reddish hued rinds. Not mild and not sharp, washed rind cheeses are full-flavored. Give Taleggio or Epoisses a taste.
Peter’s Picks: India Pale Ale (Blind Pig IPA, Stone IPA) and Belgian-style Dark Strong ales (Chimay Grande Reserve, Gouden Carolus Grand Cru of the Emperor) have enough gusto to stand up to the power of these cheeses.
Cheese Type: Aged, Hard Cheeses
As cheeses matures, it hardens and concentrates in flavor. Try our 3 Year Old Cheddar, Aged Gouda and Piave.
Peter’s Picks: A pint of English ale (Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale, Newcastle Brown Ale) is the traditional beverage of choice for Cheddar. The nutty and caramelized flavors of aged Gouda and Piave match well with brown ales, as well.
Cheese Type: Blue
The bluish-green veins give blue cheese its punch. Listed from strong to strongest in pungency are creamy Gorgonzola, nutty Stilton and salty Roquefort.
Peter’s Picks: Intense cheeses like blues can be tamed with sweet, fruity beers. For a unique treat, try a raspberry flavored beer like Belgian Lambic (Lindemans Framboise) with blue cheese for dessert.
| About The Author
Even though her passion for gourmet cheese was undying,
Sara Kahn found shopping for it to be overwhelming, time consuming and
confusing. She established www.thecheeseambassador.com to offer a simple way to
select and serve the world’s finest cheeses either for home entertaining or as a
unique cheese gift. By providing the perfect combination of fine cheese along
with a comprehensive cheese course guide, enjoying gourmet cheese is now a
deliciously enriching experience.
|
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Upgrading to a 5-gallon System
Greetings Alehounds! Alemonger here.
So, I promised you last time that I'd tell you about upgrading to a 5-gallon homebrewing system. Upgrading your equipment and your batch size can have a huge effect on the overall quality of your beer. After about nine or ten batches with the Mr. Beer
kit for homebrewing beer, I realized that I was in this hobby to stay, and that it was time for bigger and better equipment. I did some research and some talking to my local homebrew guy (yeah, we became pretty good friends!), and I learned that five gallons is sort of the standard homebrew batch size. I searched around and settled on a homebrew equipment kit very much like this one
, which includes most of what you need to make some excellent beers from ingredient kits. This kit includes the Fermtech Auto Siphon, which makes transfers from the fermenter to the bottling bucket a simple task. It's also got a brewing book, 6.5 gallon primary fermenting bucket with lid, bottling bucket with a spigot, fermentation thermometer, bottle filler, 5ft of 5/16in flex vinyl tubing, hydrometer, bottle capper, bottle Brush, 3 piece airlock, and sanitizer. You may want to pick up some Beer Bottle Caps
as well. The great thing about a kit like this is that you can further upgrade your equipment and improve your beer later on without replacing any of what you already have.The first few beers I made with this kit were just as easy to make as the ones I did with Mr. Beer (See my Homebrew Beer Recipes page), but were of far better quality because of the larger batches.
Now, I tend to prefer hoppy beers over malty ones, so I picked up a Muntons Gold India Pale Ale Home Brew Beer Ingredient Kit
from my local brew shop. Like the Mr. Beer kits, this is a pre-hopped malt extract kit in two cans and a packet of dry yeast. The process goes like this:-"Wake up" the yeast by pouring it into a small sanitized container (a coffee mug will do) with some lukewarm water and a teaspoon of sugar. Set this aside for later;
-Sanitize your primary fermentation bucket (VERY IMPORTANT!);
-Pour the contents of the two cans into the bucket. I recommend soaking the cans in some hot water first to soften the malt syrup and make it pour a little easier;
-Pour boiling water--about two gallons or a little more--into the bucket on top of the extract;
-Top off the remaining volume of the bucket to the five gallon mark with cold water;
-Check the temperature of the wort to see if it is within the zone tolerated by the yeast (this can be found on the yeast packet or in the kit instructions). Set the bucket aside to cool if necessary;
-Measure the sugar content with the hydrometer (see the instructions included with it). This can take a little practice!
-Record the measurement someplace you won't lose it. You're measuring Specific Gravity, but in this case, this measurement is called Original Gravity, or O.G. It will help you later to determine your beer's alcohol content. Now would be a good time to get a notebook and start a Beer Log if you haven't already done so!
-If your wort is cool enough, pour the yeast mixture from step one into it, and cap the bucket tightly. Place the airlock with a little bit of water in it into the hole on the top of the bucket. Set the bucket aside, preferably someplace cool and dark and out of the way.
Almost as easy as making jello, huh?
After a day or two, you may notice the airlock bubbling rather vigorously--this is completely normal! When the airlock stops bubbling or slows to one bubble every minute or so, take a measurement with your hydrometer. When this measurement reads the same on two consecutive days, your beer is ready to bottle.
You may want to bribe a friend with beer to get him or her to help you out on bottling day. Wash and sanitize some bottles. About 50 12-oz. bottles will probably do, but you may want to do a few extra, just in case! You can either use plastic PET bottles as I mentioned in another post, or buy/reuse amber glass beer bottles. If you're using glass, make sure not to use twist-off bottles (Coors, Bud Light, Bud, etc.), but only use the kind where you have to pry off the caps (Sam Adams, Bass, etc.). Transfer your beer to the sanitized bottling bucket using the Auto Siphon (this is called racking), and mix in the proper amount of priming sugar indicated in the kit instructions. Attach the bottle filler to the spigot on the bottling bucket (this step is easier if you place the bucket on a table with the spigot hanging over the edge. Use the bottle filler as the kit instructions state to fill your bottles, and then cap them tightly with the bottle capper if using glass bottles, or plastic caps if using PET plastic bottles.
Put the capped bottles in a cool dark place and leave them alone for a week or two, then chill and enjoy!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Start at the Beginning
Greetings Alehounds--Alemonger here.
There are no two brewers out there with exactly the same tastes or levels of brewing knowledge and experience. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I resisted for a long time becoming a brewer because I thought it was not only complex, but also expensive. My simplest response to that is while it can be both, it needn't be either. With that in mind, I'd like to take you back a few years to when I started homebrewing beer to prove that it can be a very simple and inexpensive yet rewarding hobby even at its most basic levels. I'll also walk you through a few of my earliest adventures in homebrewing, and share a trick or two I discovered along the way.
It all started in 2002. I had a new job in a new city, and new points of view on a lot of things. Once I got set up in my new place, I started exploring the area and found out there was a homebrewing supply store just a few blocks from my apartment. I stopped by one day, and when I walked through the door the first thing I noticed was the aroma. No, it didn't smell like beer, but it was intoxicating. The exotic air tickling my nostrils spoke of grain and spice and sweetness and, as I found out later, pure awesome!
But I'm getting ahead of myself. I was a clean slate the day I stepped through that door, an empty mug. I found myself confronted with an amazing array of items: sacks of grain and powdery stuff, hops, yeast, and cans of syrup, buckets and beakers and bottles, oh my! I had no idea where to begin.
Apparently the blank stare on my face labeling me as a first-timer was nothing new to the gentleman behind the counter. Long story short, I walked out with a Mr. Beer Home Microbrewery System
. Looking back now, I realize that the shop owner could have up-sold me and made three times as much as he did on that sale, but in me he seemed to recognize someone who was on the fence. He'd probably heard a thousand times the same story I've heard about the brother or cousin or uncle or buddy who'd tried making beer once upon a time, only to have it turn out horrible. He knew the kit was a high quality, yet inexpensive place for beginners to learn about the craft of brewing.Unpacking the kit, I found a two and a half gallon fermenter; an ingredient kit with a can of pre-hopped malt extract, a packet of brewers' yeast, and a "Booster Pack" of brewer's sugar; some PET plastic screw-top bottles for the finished product; and a recipe book with a short explanation of the brewing process. A single ingredient kit for this system is good for about a case of beer--that is, twenty four 12 oz. bottles. Using this kit is as simple as boiling water and combining all the ingredients together in the brewing container. It is probably one of the most basic types of kit out there, and I highly recommend it as a way to dabble a little and find out if brewing is something you want to explore more. You can always get bigger and better equipment, as I eventually did; on the other hand, if you decide that brewing is not your mug of ale, you're out less than fifty bucks.
A great aspect of the Mr. Beer system is how cheaply expandable it is with a little ingenuity. When I realized that the fermenter was nothing more than a barrel-shaped plastic jug with a spigot, I went to Wal-Mart and tripled my brewing capacity for about the cost of a good twelve pack. After that, I was able to stagger my batches and have three different ones fermenting at the same time.
When it came to packaging, I found that the bottles included in the Mr. Beer kit were useful, but functionally not much different from other PET plastic bottles. At the time, I lived in a place where the tap water had way too much chlorine, so I just happened to have a couple of cases of 12 oz. bottles of Dasani spring water. Batch after batch, I used the water (which was just enough) to brew the beer, and the bottles (also just enough) to store it. Put a teaspoon of sugar in the bottom of each bottle, fill with beer and screw the cap on tightly--a week or so later, your beer is carbonated and ready to enjoy! Two warnings, though, if you're re-using water bottles as I did: first, most beer bottles are colored brown in order to keep out sunlight that can change the flavor of your beer, so store any beer bottled in clear water bottles in a dark place; and second, some bottled water companies have changed their packaging over the last few years in order to use less plastic, so it's possible that the ones on the market now might not stand up to the pressure that develops in beer during the carbonation process.
Well, that's it! In my next post, I'll talk about stepping up to a five-gallon brewing setup, and to more complex brews. If you've brewed with Mr. Beer before, leave me a comment and tell me all about it. And don't forget to check out my Recipes page, where I've got recipes for all the beers I've made, including these first few with Mr. Beer ingredient kits
.Happy Brewing!
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Five Easy Steps to Brewing
Greetings, Alehounds--Alemonger here.
You know, for a long time I wanted to be a homebrewer, but I held off because I thought it was such an involved process that I was scared away. I suspect many budding homebrewers are in the same boat, so I want to share some of my thoughts on how to begin.
I'd first like to address the notion that homebrewing is or has to be difficult. Sure, it can be as complicated or involved as you want, but in its most basic form it's as easy as cooking, and just as rewarding! I posted a basic explanation of how beer is made a couple of posts ago, so check that out along with these five easy steps, and you could be having your first homebrew in just a few days.
Five Easy Steps to Homebrewing
• Equipment. It all starts with selecting the right equipment. Home brewing will not be successful if you are not armed with the right equipment. Now don't be distracted by the costs associated with buying these items--for less than $100 you can have your own basic set of tools that you can use to make many batches of great beer. At a minimum, to start out you'll need a brewing bucket, air lock (which lets carbon dioxide out, but doesn't let outside air come back in), bottles, and a big cooking pot--two gallons or bigger. You should have a hydrometer as well. There is more equipment available out there that you can get later, but this will get you started.
• Ingredients. You can either buy the ingredients separately, or pick up an ingredient kit from one of the many homebrew supply companies out there. If you're a first time brewer, I'd suggest using a kit for whatever style of beer you find most appealing. The kit should include the malt extract, hops, and yeast at a minimum, plus a set of instructions on how to use these ingredients. Additionally, the kit may include a mesh muslin or cheesecloth bag for infusing the hops, brewing sugar for the bottling process, specialty grains, and spices or flavorings if applicable to your beer.
• Preparing the beer. This is where the cooking part comes in. Start by making sure all your equipment is cleaned and sanitized. I cannot overstress the importance of cleanliness in brewing--there's nothing more disappointing than spending time and money to make a great beer, only to have it contaminated by bacteria or wild yeasts. Following the directions that come with your kit, start with one to two gallons of water in your cooking pot and heat it to the proper temperature. You will then add the malt extract and bring to a boil. Once the wort (that's what it's called before it becomes beer!) is boiling, add the hops and other ingredients according to the schedule in the instructions--the boil should go for about an hour. It's very important during process this that you stay close and keep stirring--all that sweet syrupy goodness can make quite a nasty mess if it boils over, and if you look away even for a minute, chances are that it will! Once the boil is done, it is important that you cool down the wort as quickly as you can. More advanced brewers will use fancy counterflow chilling aparatus, but when I started out, I used a simple ice-water bath in the kitchen sink. When the wort is cool enough, pour it into the brewing bucket, add cold water to make the proper volume, and add the yeast--this step is called pitching the yeast. Cap the bucket and add the airlock.
• Monitoring the fermenting process. This is where the yeast does its job. There is little to do but wait during this process, which takes anywhere from a week to a month, depending on a host of factors. Just make sure the temperature stays constant, and check daily to see if carbon dioxide is still bubbling out of the air lock. When this stops, or slows down to about one bubble a minute, it's time to check the beer with a hydrometer. We'll talk about this tool in another post, but for now, just use it to measure the specific gravity of your beer. When the reading is the same on two consecutive days, you're ready to bottle.
• Priming and Bottling. There are lots of options for packaging your beer. When I started out, I reused 12 ounce plastic water bottles, which worked great. You can also purchase or re-use glass beer bottles. Some advanced brewers will even keg their beer, which saves time. Priming the beer means adding a small amount of sugar to the beer to "wake up" the yeast cells for a small amount of fermentation. The primed beer is then put into bottles, which are capped tightly. Meanwhile, the yeast cells consume the priming sugar and make carbon dioxide, which goes into solution inside the capped bottles, creating carbonation. This process takes about a week or so. After that, chill a few down, open one up, and enjoy!
You know, for a long time I wanted to be a homebrewer, but I held off because I thought it was such an involved process that I was scared away. I suspect many budding homebrewers are in the same boat, so I want to share some of my thoughts on how to begin.
I'd first like to address the notion that homebrewing is or has to be difficult. Sure, it can be as complicated or involved as you want, but in its most basic form it's as easy as cooking, and just as rewarding! I posted a basic explanation of how beer is made a couple of posts ago, so check that out along with these five easy steps, and you could be having your first homebrew in just a few days.
Five Easy Steps to Homebrewing
• Equipment. It all starts with selecting the right equipment. Home brewing will not be successful if you are not armed with the right equipment. Now don't be distracted by the costs associated with buying these items--for less than $100 you can have your own basic set of tools that you can use to make many batches of great beer. At a minimum, to start out you'll need a brewing bucket, air lock (which lets carbon dioxide out, but doesn't let outside air come back in), bottles, and a big cooking pot--two gallons or bigger. You should have a hydrometer as well. There is more equipment available out there that you can get later, but this will get you started.
• Ingredients. You can either buy the ingredients separately, or pick up an ingredient kit from one of the many homebrew supply companies out there. If you're a first time brewer, I'd suggest using a kit for whatever style of beer you find most appealing. The kit should include the malt extract, hops, and yeast at a minimum, plus a set of instructions on how to use these ingredients. Additionally, the kit may include a mesh muslin or cheesecloth bag for infusing the hops, brewing sugar for the bottling process, specialty grains, and spices or flavorings if applicable to your beer.
• Preparing the beer. This is where the cooking part comes in. Start by making sure all your equipment is cleaned and sanitized. I cannot overstress the importance of cleanliness in brewing--there's nothing more disappointing than spending time and money to make a great beer, only to have it contaminated by bacteria or wild yeasts. Following the directions that come with your kit, start with one to two gallons of water in your cooking pot and heat it to the proper temperature. You will then add the malt extract and bring to a boil. Once the wort (that's what it's called before it becomes beer!) is boiling, add the hops and other ingredients according to the schedule in the instructions--the boil should go for about an hour. It's very important during process this that you stay close and keep stirring--all that sweet syrupy goodness can make quite a nasty mess if it boils over, and if you look away even for a minute, chances are that it will! Once the boil is done, it is important that you cool down the wort as quickly as you can. More advanced brewers will use fancy counterflow chilling aparatus, but when I started out, I used a simple ice-water bath in the kitchen sink. When the wort is cool enough, pour it into the brewing bucket, add cold water to make the proper volume, and add the yeast--this step is called pitching the yeast. Cap the bucket and add the airlock.
• Monitoring the fermenting process. This is where the yeast does its job. There is little to do but wait during this process, which takes anywhere from a week to a month, depending on a host of factors. Just make sure the temperature stays constant, and check daily to see if carbon dioxide is still bubbling out of the air lock. When this stops, or slows down to about one bubble a minute, it's time to check the beer with a hydrometer. We'll talk about this tool in another post, but for now, just use it to measure the specific gravity of your beer. When the reading is the same on two consecutive days, you're ready to bottle.
• Priming and Bottling. There are lots of options for packaging your beer. When I started out, I reused 12 ounce plastic water bottles, which worked great. You can also purchase or re-use glass beer bottles. Some advanced brewers will even keg their beer, which saves time. Priming the beer means adding a small amount of sugar to the beer to "wake up" the yeast cells for a small amount of fermentation. The primed beer is then put into bottles, which are capped tightly. Meanwhile, the yeast cells consume the priming sugar and make carbon dioxide, which goes into solution inside the capped bottles, creating carbonation. This process takes about a week or so. After that, chill a few down, open one up, and enjoy!
Friday, February 3, 2012
A Real Character
Greetings Alehounds--Alemonger here. I figured if we're going to be talking about our favorite subject (and just so we're all on the same page, that would be BEER!), we should get to know how to taste it (YAY!) and how to describe it. In other words, what do all those fancy words like "hoppy" and "malty" mean, and what does carbonation have to do with flavor, anyway?
I found this article out in the ethers of cyberspace, and thought it explained how all the flavor components of a beer work together to give it its character. Don't worry--it's reprinted with permission! Go grab a pint and settle in for an educational read.
Na zdrovyeh!
Beer Character - Breaking Down the Flavor Equation
By Dustin Canestorp
American beer drinkers once had only watery, weak options when it came to their beer choices. However, the rise of craft brewing has changed that irrevocably and consumers today have access to a very wide range of beer options with a variety of different characteristics. In fact, sampling the various styles of beer out there can be an incredible experience. Beer tastings give you the chance to explore your various options but those new to "tasting" their beer can find some of the terms used to describe a beer a bit confusing. For instance, what exactly is a "hoppy" beer? What does a "malty" beer taste like?
Words Pale in Comparison
It's important to understand that the terms used to describe a beer's flavor and character profile are really very poor alternatives to tasting it yourself. For instance, one person might describe a particular brew as having mild citrus overtones but that really doesn't tell you much. Does it mean that there's a hint of lemon? Does the beer taste like oranges?
The terms used to describe a beer are hard to pin down unless you have a point of reference in your own experience. The best option here is to conduct your own taste testing with some beers with easily identifiable qualities and characteristics.
Beer Tastings Increasing
The good news for beer lovers is that an increasing number of breweries and pubs are holding tastings. These make for excellent options if you want to develop your understanding of what goes into making a beer's flavor. You will find that these are excellent places to learn from others, compare notes and learn what you are looking for in a beer's taste before you drink it.
Quite a few pubs and brewers are holding tastings during which the host will describe the flavor character of the beer beforehand. Often, the host will also be available for questions from burgeoning tasters during and after the tasting. You will even find tasting classes out there, but these are still a bit rare outside of major metropolitan areas.
If you find that you have no options nearby to attend a tasting, you can actually buy some pretty decent tasting guides and do your own analysis for the various beer types listed in the guide. That might be a great excuse to get some friends together to explore some of the options available to you in the realm of beer.
Look for Clues
If you're new to tasting beer, a few helpful pointers will get you going in the right direction. One of the most important clues you'll have is the beer's color. While you can't always pin a beer's taste on its coloration, it usually does have a lot to do with it. For instance, very dark beers usually have a heavier malt taste than lighter beers, while lighter beers are often more hoppy in nature.
Another clue is the amount of visible carbonation in the beer. Staring at the bubbles rising from the bottom isn't a good indicator of carbonation, though. You need to look toward the head. Good head retention and "lacing" as the head subsides are excellent indicators that a beer has plenty of carbonation. Too little carbonation results in a "flat" or stale taste. Too much carbonation is not a good thing either.
Getting to the Meat of the Matter
All beers have two main components when it comes to flavor - bitter and sweet. The bitter usually comes from the hops (particularly from bittering hops). The sweetness is usually from the malt used, though there can be many other things that increase the sweet and bitterness of a particular beer (additives, flavorings, etc.).
If a beer is defined as being "hoppy", it is usually relatively bitter with lots of plant-like flavor from the hops used. Bitter hops give beer its bite while aromatic hops give it a "grassy" aroma and flavor. Malty beers usually have a sweetish flavor. Heavier roasts to the malt will color the beer darker but also impart a roasted flavor to the finished brew as well. Malty beer can also have an "earthy" flavor.
The flavor of your beer is not all about what your mouth experiences, though. The aroma of the brew also goes a long way in creating what your brain ultimately decides is "flavor". Quite a few factors go into creating a beer's aroma, including any additives (fruit extracts, etc.) that are used, the type of hops used and the type and roast of the malt in the brew.
Mouthfeel is another important consideration that goes into the drinking experience. The best way to get a good idea of what mouthfeel is all about is to drink a good stout or robust porter and then compare it to something like a pale ale. You will find that the stout has a very "smooth" feel in your mouth while the pale ale will be lighter in body.
The final part of the equation is the "finish" or the aftertaste left by the beer. Different styles will have different finishes. Some will last for quite some time while others will begin to fade almost immediately. Some beers even have a completely different finish than their original taste while you are drinking them.
As a note, when you hear someone saying a beer has a particular "odor" it refers to an unwanted quality of the beer. Odors are usually caused by something going wrong in the brewing process or by the beer being too old and becoming "skunky". Sulfur, vegetables, oil and chlorine are all terms used to describe odors found in beer that's either been brewed incorrectly or has aged past its prime.
Get Out There and Experience It
As mentioned at the beginning, it is very difficult to develop an understanding of beer's characteristics without experiencing them yourself. If you want to get more involved with beer tasting, find a brewery or pub in your area that offers regular tasting events. You'll find quite a few options, particularly with craft breweries. In addition, attending this type of event can help you learn from those with more experience and really develop your palate.
Poto Cervesia,
Dustin Canestorp
Dustin Canestorp is the Founder and General of the Beer Army. Join the ranks of the Beer Army at http://www.BeerArmy.com. Take a stand and let the world know your position. If you are going to drink, drink BEER!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dustin_Canestorp
I found this article out in the ethers of cyberspace, and thought it explained how all the flavor components of a beer work together to give it its character. Don't worry--it's reprinted with permission! Go grab a pint and settle in for an educational read.
Na zdrovyeh!
Beer Character - Breaking Down the Flavor Equation
By Dustin Canestorp
American beer drinkers once had only watery, weak options when it came to their beer choices. However, the rise of craft brewing has changed that irrevocably and consumers today have access to a very wide range of beer options with a variety of different characteristics. In fact, sampling the various styles of beer out there can be an incredible experience. Beer tastings give you the chance to explore your various options but those new to "tasting" their beer can find some of the terms used to describe a beer a bit confusing. For instance, what exactly is a "hoppy" beer? What does a "malty" beer taste like?
Words Pale in Comparison
It's important to understand that the terms used to describe a beer's flavor and character profile are really very poor alternatives to tasting it yourself. For instance, one person might describe a particular brew as having mild citrus overtones but that really doesn't tell you much. Does it mean that there's a hint of lemon? Does the beer taste like oranges?
The terms used to describe a beer are hard to pin down unless you have a point of reference in your own experience. The best option here is to conduct your own taste testing with some beers with easily identifiable qualities and characteristics.
Beer Tastings Increasing
The good news for beer lovers is that an increasing number of breweries and pubs are holding tastings. These make for excellent options if you want to develop your understanding of what goes into making a beer's flavor. You will find that these are excellent places to learn from others, compare notes and learn what you are looking for in a beer's taste before you drink it.
Quite a few pubs and brewers are holding tastings during which the host will describe the flavor character of the beer beforehand. Often, the host will also be available for questions from burgeoning tasters during and after the tasting. You will even find tasting classes out there, but these are still a bit rare outside of major metropolitan areas.
If you find that you have no options nearby to attend a tasting, you can actually buy some pretty decent tasting guides and do your own analysis for the various beer types listed in the guide. That might be a great excuse to get some friends together to explore some of the options available to you in the realm of beer.
Look for Clues
If you're new to tasting beer, a few helpful pointers will get you going in the right direction. One of the most important clues you'll have is the beer's color. While you can't always pin a beer's taste on its coloration, it usually does have a lot to do with it. For instance, very dark beers usually have a heavier malt taste than lighter beers, while lighter beers are often more hoppy in nature.
Another clue is the amount of visible carbonation in the beer. Staring at the bubbles rising from the bottom isn't a good indicator of carbonation, though. You need to look toward the head. Good head retention and "lacing" as the head subsides are excellent indicators that a beer has plenty of carbonation. Too little carbonation results in a "flat" or stale taste. Too much carbonation is not a good thing either.
Getting to the Meat of the Matter
All beers have two main components when it comes to flavor - bitter and sweet. The bitter usually comes from the hops (particularly from bittering hops). The sweetness is usually from the malt used, though there can be many other things that increase the sweet and bitterness of a particular beer (additives, flavorings, etc.).
If a beer is defined as being "hoppy", it is usually relatively bitter with lots of plant-like flavor from the hops used. Bitter hops give beer its bite while aromatic hops give it a "grassy" aroma and flavor. Malty beers usually have a sweetish flavor. Heavier roasts to the malt will color the beer darker but also impart a roasted flavor to the finished brew as well. Malty beer can also have an "earthy" flavor.
The flavor of your beer is not all about what your mouth experiences, though. The aroma of the brew also goes a long way in creating what your brain ultimately decides is "flavor". Quite a few factors go into creating a beer's aroma, including any additives (fruit extracts, etc.) that are used, the type of hops used and the type and roast of the malt in the brew.
Mouthfeel is another important consideration that goes into the drinking experience. The best way to get a good idea of what mouthfeel is all about is to drink a good stout or robust porter and then compare it to something like a pale ale. You will find that the stout has a very "smooth" feel in your mouth while the pale ale will be lighter in body.
The final part of the equation is the "finish" or the aftertaste left by the beer. Different styles will have different finishes. Some will last for quite some time while others will begin to fade almost immediately. Some beers even have a completely different finish than their original taste while you are drinking them.
As a note, when you hear someone saying a beer has a particular "odor" it refers to an unwanted quality of the beer. Odors are usually caused by something going wrong in the brewing process or by the beer being too old and becoming "skunky". Sulfur, vegetables, oil and chlorine are all terms used to describe odors found in beer that's either been brewed incorrectly or has aged past its prime.
Get Out There and Experience It
As mentioned at the beginning, it is very difficult to develop an understanding of beer's characteristics without experiencing them yourself. If you want to get more involved with beer tasting, find a brewery or pub in your area that offers regular tasting events. You'll find quite a few options, particularly with craft breweries. In addition, attending this type of event can help you learn from those with more experience and really develop your palate.
Poto Cervesia,
Dustin Canestorp
Dustin Canestorp is the Founder and General of the Beer Army. Join the ranks of the Beer Army at http://www.BeerArmy.com. Take a stand and let the world know your position. If you are going to drink, drink BEER!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dustin_Canestorp
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Let's try this again!
Howdy Alehounds--Alemonger here. So I started this blog, jeez, about three years ago, and then walked away. Dumb, dumb, dumb, on my part. I love homebrewing, I love beer, and I want to share it with you all, so I'm going to try again with this whole blogging thing. Thought I'd start with a basic how-to for budding brewers. Check later postings for more in-depth discussion, as well as some links to my favorite websites. Happy Brewing!
The typical homebrewed beer is produced by boiling water, malt extract and hops together in a large kettle, cooling the resulting wort, and adding yeast for fermenting. Some experienced homebrewers brew without extract, instead using an all-grain recipe and a mashing process to extract the sugars from crushed malt barley.
In both cases, the wort is boiled for 15 min to an hour to help remove some impurities and infuse the character of the hops. The wort is then cooled down to a pitching temperature.
The cooled wort is poured into the primary fermenter in a manner that aerates the wort. Sufficient oxygen is necessary for the yeast's growth. The yeast is then put into the wort.
The primary fermentation will take place in a large food bucket or carboy. Sometimes it is left open but often stoppered with the carbon dioxide gas that's produced venting through a fermentation lock.
A couple of weeks later, it's beer, ready to be bottled and carbonated, which we will discuss in a later post.
The process of making beer takes a lot of time indeed, although you can take the necessary short cuts once you learn more about how the process works. If this is your first time brewing, you should always use common sense and know what you are doing.
One of the best things about making your own homebrews is the fact that you can experiment with ingredients and brew your own creations. You can brew almost anything, providing you have the right type of equipment - which can easily be found on the internet or in homebrew shops.
We'll talk more about all these topics in later posts, so check back often. Happy brewing, Alehounds!
Process Of Homebrewing
The typical batch of homebrew beer is five gallons, which is enough for about 2 cases, or 48 to 50 twelve ounce bottles of beer.The typical homebrewed beer is produced by boiling water, malt extract and hops together in a large kettle, cooling the resulting wort, and adding yeast for fermenting. Some experienced homebrewers brew without extract, instead using an all-grain recipe and a mashing process to extract the sugars from crushed malt barley.
In both cases, the wort is boiled for 15 min to an hour to help remove some impurities and infuse the character of the hops. The wort is then cooled down to a pitching temperature.
The cooled wort is poured into the primary fermenter in a manner that aerates the wort. Sufficient oxygen is necessary for the yeast's growth. The yeast is then put into the wort.
The primary fermentation will take place in a large food bucket or carboy. Sometimes it is left open but often stoppered with the carbon dioxide gas that's produced venting through a fermentation lock.
A couple of weeks later, it's beer, ready to be bottled and carbonated, which we will discuss in a later post.
The process of making beer takes a lot of time indeed, although you can take the necessary short cuts once you learn more about how the process works. If this is your first time brewing, you should always use common sense and know what you are doing.
One of the best things about making your own homebrews is the fact that you can experiment with ingredients and brew your own creations. You can brew almost anything, providing you have the right type of equipment - which can easily be found on the internet or in homebrew shops.
We'll talk more about all these topics in later posts, so check back often. Happy brewing, Alehounds!
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