The journey to my becoming a BJCP judge is in its 9th week at Beers In Sacramento. This week I passed the entrance exam!
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Cheers!
Sunday, October 26, 2014
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
Week 8 at Beers in Sacramento
Photo credit: The Wife |
Week 8 of my journey to become a BJCP judge is up at Beers in Sacramento. This week we discussed grain and its contributions to the beautiful beverage that we call beer.
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Cheers!
Sunday, October 12, 2014
Tiny
William Edgar Fowler III was born on October 10, 1937 and passed almost three years ago. He was a man of large stature both in size and of heart. Friends of his called him Tiny and I called him Dad. My love of music and food and drink most certainly come from being reared by this man. In his honor, this October 10, 2014, I brewed a Wee Heavy (Strong Scotch Ale) that I have dubbed Tiny. If you would care to try a Wee Heavy, I'd recommend AleSmith Wee Heavy. I have seen it in bottles around the Sacramento area on occasion. If you can't find that, another good option would be Belhaven Wee Heavy. Here's to Tiny!
Cheers!
Tiny dressed as Santa, my sister and myself circa the late 80's |
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Week 7 at Beers in Sacramento
Week 7 of my journey is up. This week's focus was on yeast's role in beer styles. Travel yeastward with me over at Beers in Sacramento.
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Cheers!
Follow me on Twitter or like my Facebook page for sneak peaks into upcoming posts.
Cheers!
Cafe Au Ale
Amanda Branahm of From House Parties to Housewife wrote up an article for Beers in Sacramento about the competition that I brewed Coffee Nap for. She interviewed me and Deb of Rebel Confectionery & Jams. Check out the article at the following: Cafe Au Ale
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Cheers!
Friday, October 3, 2014
Coffee Nap
My
passion for beer doesn't end at visiting breweries and tasting great beers.
I have been interested in brewing beer since well before my being able to
purchase it legally. Even though my good friend Ryan and I dreamed of brewing beer back then, I didn't get started until Learn
to Homebrew Day, 2012. I have another good couple of friends, Janie & Nikki, to thank
for the gift of Charlie Papazian’s book, “The Complete Joy of Homebrewing”. Papazian's book tapped my appreciation and seeking of beer knowledge and lead me to John Palmer’s, "How
to Brew". The fact that Palmer has
his whole book online for free, makes me want to hug the man. He really makes brewing easy to understand and goes into the scientific details of the art of brewing.
Since beginning to brew in 2012, I have brewed many batches of beer and have started entering my homebrews into competitions. One such competition that I will be entering is Café
Au Ale, a coffee beer competition that is being held at a local coffee shop during Sacramento Specialty Coffee Week. I brewed a Robust Porter to which I
added a cold brew of Old Soul's Whiskey Dreams. I have dubbed that beer Coffee Nap, follow the
link for the recipe. To help me with documenting the process, the wife took periodic pictures throughout the brew day.
I am pretty happy with this beer and look forward to tasting it again in another couple weeks. By that point it should be fully carbonated and the coffee flavor should have mellowed a bit. I am also eager to have it judged, receive my score sheets and learn the outcome of the competition. As of now it is an opaque black with burgundy edges. The aroma is of a dark roasted coffee, bittersweet chocolate and dark dried fruits (i.e. raisins, prunes). The flavor follows the aroma and in the same order but is paired with a subtle earthy hop presence that lingers in the finish along with rich coffee. The mouthfeel is not quite ready to judge due to not being fully carbonated, but my initial tasting was pleasing. It is creamy and has a medium-full body. There is a soft warming in the chest from the, slightly higher than I was going for, ABV of 7.11%. I am proud of my first attempt at a coffee beer and will most certainly brew it again.
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Cheers!
Water in the kettle coming up to temperature. The cooler is my mash tun (it's where the grain gets wet). The paper bag is my grain and the little bags are my hops. |
A layer of grain is being infused with 162° F water. |
Another layer, this process is called "doughing-in". |
More water, then more grain, etc... |
After a few minutes the temperature is taken, I was shooting for 154° F. Not bad! |
Here begins the collection of the first runnings. Notice that the valve handle is only partially open. |
The wort is poured over the back of a spoon so as to not disturb the grain bed. |
The collection of the wort should go slowly in order to avoid splashing which would lead to oxidation of the wort and ultimately off flavors. |
During the boil, hops were added. The wort was then cooled via my Immersion Chiller. Notice that is is now dark outside, this brew day took about 6 hours from set up to clean up. Here I am transferring the wort to my fermentation vessel. I move the hose around and up and down in order to introduce a fair amount of oxygen to the wort. This gives the yeast the oxygen that they need. The yeast will be added after the fermenter is filled. |
I am pretty happy with this beer and look forward to tasting it again in another couple weeks. By that point it should be fully carbonated and the coffee flavor should have mellowed a bit. I am also eager to have it judged, receive my score sheets and learn the outcome of the competition. As of now it is an opaque black with burgundy edges. The aroma is of a dark roasted coffee, bittersweet chocolate and dark dried fruits (i.e. raisins, prunes). The flavor follows the aroma and in the same order but is paired with a subtle earthy hop presence that lingers in the finish along with rich coffee. The mouthfeel is not quite ready to judge due to not being fully carbonated, but my initial tasting was pleasing. It is creamy and has a medium-full body. There is a soft warming in the chest from the, slightly higher than I was going for, ABV of 7.11%. I am proud of my first attempt at a coffee beer and will most certainly brew it again.
Follow me on Twitter or like my Facebook page for sneak peaks into upcoming posts.
Cheers!