I broke my hydrometer tonight. And I bottled. SO this means that the brew I bottled (sitting in the fermenter for 6 weeks now) I have no idea what the ABV will be. This is going to be a TOTAL mystery beer. I'm marking all the bottle caps with a "?". I brewed it with excess grain that I had. No recipe, but there are some nice dark malts included. I tasted it tonight after I finished with all the bottles and it seems it will be a little smokey, a little chocolatey, and a bit bitter. I plan on enjoying the first trainer bottle during Sunday's Duke ACC Championship game VS. whoever.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
It is a pale ale originally brewed by the British and shipped to India with their soldiers/sailors to uh, tide them over on the long journey. In order to preserve it for the long trip, they added larger amounts of hops than usual to make the ale. This gave the beer a more complex flavor (which was typically more bitter or floral or citrus-like, depending on which types of hops were used), a higher alcohol content and the hops made a nice preservative for the beverage. Hence the name, India Pale Ale. I read that years ago and some of the details may be slightly off but that's about as accurately as I can 'splain it.
I haven't forgotten about the "aging" question either. Perhaps tomorrow night.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
Likewise with your reviews...I live outside of Boston and I frequent 2 stores--1 in town and 1 in the burbs..both have a great selection of microbrews and imports. They are also both very good at rotating in new beers though I've sampled so much this winter that my options are dwindling. Hopefully Spring/Summer will bring an influx of new offerings.
I thought about putting this in the main beer thread but then thought it might warrant a separate thread. Hoping that Cameronbornandbred or others might offer some guidance on getting started on brewing your own beer. I've scoped out a few local supply stores which offer complete kits, as well as general supplies for taking a less pre-packaged approach..any advice?
Must be beer brewing time...I was just toying with idea of trying some home brewing and done a little research myself...I'll be looking forward to any advice!
I would start with a kit, just because it's a real good way to prepare yourself for the more involved processes that will come later. There are also some great resources online, one of my favorites is this one. http://www.howtobrew.com/intro.html
I own the book, but that's it in it's entirety online and free.
If you do get a kit, make sure it includes some specialty grains. Some kits only include extract, which is ok if you want to drink alcoholic pond water. The grains give the beer it's character. The extracts are grains that have already gone through the conversion process from starches to sugar, so a long step is skipped for you.
One of my favorite suppliers is these folks in Asheville.
http://www.ashevillebrewers.com/
They have great prices, even with shipping they often will beat a local supply shop. Their kits are very good, Devildeac and Lavabe can attest to the outcome.
The advantage of a local supplier of course is proximity and if you have questions they will be more than happy to help you out.
For a good starter kit as far as supplies go, this is what I started with and still use today. Very hardy. It's the Brewer's Best Equipment kit.
Brewer's Best beer kits are also good ones to go with as far as the actual beer itself.
One other online store that I've used and liked is this one.
http://www.homebrewit.com/ Lots to choose from there. Best of luck, if you get to brewing and get to any football games, we'll have to do some trading and comparing!
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
Wow..thanks so much for all the info..Just flipping through that book online and it seems to give a lot of detail which I will definitely need. The equipment kit and actual beer kits that you linked are also a lot more reasonable than what I have found locally. Hope you don't mind if I hit you up for more advice as I go through the process.
thanks again..
No problem, glad to help. One last bit advice...start buying beer in bottles only, no twist off caps. You drink the beer, save the bottle. One 5 gallon batch (which is what the kits make) will fill at least 48 12oz. bottles. Brown bottles are the best, but any will work. Also save the boxes for storing later on. Rinse the bottles out after drinking them, it will make sanitizing them that much easier.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."