Carboy to keg

Today I kegged the St. Patrick's Day Stout (no. 165). It was a little short of the opaque black I like in a stout so I cooked up a batch of black malt and malt extract. I soaked 1/4 pound of Carafa 2 (Weyermann organic from 7 Bridges) in a quart of warm water. The crushed malt was in a cloth straining bag, and the process was not unlike steeping a tea bag. I warmed up the water and added 200 grams (just about 7 oz.) of dried malt extract. I boiled the whole concotion for about 15 minutes. The brewery smelled of chocolate for the rest of the afternoon. As I siphoned the brew into the priming bucket, I added the priming mixture. It seemed to do the trick. A much darker brew went into the kegs! I could have added more, in fact. The beer finished at 1.012 (3ºP) and I should expect no more than 4% abv. This is almost a "session" beer, but with typical FSB rule-bending, it will be a dark lager and not a light ale. I think it will be quite refreshing and delicious and can't wait to try it.


a.d. VI Id. Feb.

CLXV

Batch number one hundred sixty-five is this year's St. Patrick's Day Stout. I kept it simple. It was cold and wet, and the short brew day was a good way to ease back into the new year. I used an extract--Briess from 7 Bridges--and flavored it with a mix of chocolate, CaraMunich, and roasted barley. I should have included black malt, and it looks like I will have to touch it up at kegging time to get the color right. Regardless, I got 5 gallons at 1.040, just right for a dry stout. I used New Zealand Saaz hops, 42 grams for 60 minutes, or about 35-44 IBUs. I'm hoping for something on the lighter side with this one, and I used SF Lager yeast from White Labs (no. 810). The closet is a little cooler than normal and maybe I can get a run of days under 65ºF.

Today we also finished the last two bottles of no. 163, Harvest Ale. It was clean and fresh and bright despite over three months in the bottle! Points out the benefits of cleanliness and good sanitation. Or just plain luck. Either way I get some tasty brews.

a.d. VI Kal. Feb.

Last Call

Winterfest was laid to rest. We pulled the final draughts from the keg today and sucked them down greedily. I'd made a point to save a few pints for the annus novus and it was great to enjoy them on this bright, sunny day. It is winter in the State of Jefferson, but the skies are clear and the nearby hills are free of snow. We've had the cold, just not the moisture we need for snow. We like to ski here at French Street Brewery, so that is a discouraging thing.

The next important brew event is Nancy's St. Patrick's Day party. I bring a stout, of course, and my deadline for that brew is Groundhog Day. That time of year--the first week in February--is host to a number of traditions that mark, in some form or another, the halfway point between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox. Seems like a good time to cook up a hearty batch for a celebration that welcomes the coming spring. The pagan festival of Imbolc was the rootstock that Irish monastics and the Roman Church used to graft on the Feast of St. Brigid and Candlemas. So whatever your spiritual pleasures, St. Patrick's Day Stout is the next item on the FSB agenda.


a.d. IV Id. Feb.

Happy Christmas!

We never made it to Andrei's killer bash, but weather and circumstances made it possible to share our "Namesday" Winterfest brew with the aforementioned Mr. Rockshop and his lovely bride.

The verdict? All good. Everyone loved the beer and we consumed it for both Xmas Eve and Xmas Eve eve. The brew is nicely balanced--no one flavor dominates. There's a nice hoppy tang and a rich malty sweetness that work in concert to give you a full-flavored easy-drinking ale. We noticed today that the beer in the glass is the color of our cherry wood kitchen table! Thus it also matches the cherry wood cabinets and mouldings. A lovely dark honey hue, perhaps best described as amber. Whatever we label it, it was beautiful. Great batch of brew.

Happy Holidays!


a.d. VII Kal. Ian.

Winterfest tapped!

Alas, we never made it to Andrei's killer bash, for a number of reasons, but we did celebrate Namesday (for two, actually) by tapping the Winterfest.

Mmmm-mm! Damn! That's what I said. It was good. Very good. The rich, complex maltiness was evident from the nose to the tip of the tongue to the back of the mouth to the final swallow. The hops were there, just a hint up front, then coming on in the finish to balance the sweetness. The 6% abv (approx., I used OG 1.057 and FG 1.010 with RealBeer's calculator) was detectable in the aroma and flavor but not detrimental at all. In fact, this is a superb beer. The color is by no means yellow, and certainly not red. Let's say dark honey or light amber.

A frighteningly quaffable brew. Next time? Perhaps spike up the keg priming a tad. Just a tad, mind you, I like to see bubbles rise. This brew looked great out of the tap, with a thick and creamy head, but the retention was poor and the fizz seemed to peter out. A quibble, to be sure, this one had too much flavor to argue with.

Sorry, Andy. Na Zydorovye!



Id. Dec.