Ferment, Rack, Age

So, a few things have happened since last I posted - I'm lazy, I guess that's why I've never blogged before.

It's been about a week since I brewed the first batch of beer. Since that time the beer has gone through the primary fermenting stage, then it was racked into a carboy where it now sits going through the aging process. I racked the beer on day 4 when it had a gravity of 1.021 - which seemed about right - it could have used a few more days fermenting, but I was impatient.

I also "dry hopped" the beer with about 1.5 ounces of Cascade hop plugs. Having nothing to base this on, I know fear my beer may turn out too sweet with a low alcohol level. But, never fear, I've received supplies to make two more batches in the coming weeks to build upon what I've learnt. Stay tuned.

Home Brew #1 - Stage 1, Brewing

Home Brew #1 (2-24-2007)
Originally uploaded by krisswanson2.

Home Brew #1 - Brewing Stage:

• 3 gallons Brooklyn tap water, boiled
• 6.6 lbs Munton's Light Malt Extract, plain
  
• 3 Tbs Fuggles pellets (60 mins)
• .5 Tbs Fuggles pellets (15 mins)
• 2 Tbs Fuggles & 1 Tbs Cascade pellets (5 mins)
• 2 gallons Poland Springs water, frozen
• 1 package ale yeast (Munton's)

This took about 4 hours - mainly cleaning and waiting for the water to boil (that takes forever). Also, something I will take into consideration next time - cooling the wort (that's what the brewing makes, pronounced "wert") with 2 gallons of ice & water doesn't work fast enough. Next time I'll try to cool the wort externally by filling the sink with cold water repeatedly until I get the wort down to 60 degrees. I'll let you know how that goes.

Relax. Don't Worry. Have a Home Brew.

So, I've decided to try a new hobby - home brewing - at the same time I figured I'd do something I'm surprised I don't do already - blogging. Ever since I moved to NYC about a year ago, I've been drinking more and more complex craft beers. Ever the curious one I started looking into hops and the creation of malt - all fascinating stuff...thousands of years in the making.

Home brewing is quite new to America thanks to an apparent screw-up on the government that made it illegal until the mid 1970s - longer than prohibition. Even more amusing (and I think I remember reading about this in college) is that there's no longer an alcolhol limit to beer - meaning craft brewers can pretty much do what they want to their beers (case in point - the 40 proof Sam Adams.) Amazing how much of an expert I am without having done any research? I've really taken a liking to IPAs, so my initial goal will be to create a hoppy IPA that is drinkable. Today I started with my first home brew, which I think is a simple ale...I'll find out in 3 weeks - at which time I'll publish my home brew #1 recipe and stats, and this blog will serve as my home brew journal over the coming brews.