Did You Know...?

...It is estimated that one out of every one-hundred people in the United States is a homebrewer. I guess they said the same thing about some of the Hell's Angels, but those "one-percenters" were known for something very, very, very different.

So, the next time YOU think about crashing a plane into a building because you're angry with the IRS, consider doing something more productive with your time*.

*Unless you're a really crummy angry drunk. In that case, try a cool, refreshing Fresca. The bitter citrus flavor and bite of aspartame will melt your troubles away and calm your Type II Diabetes.

2010 Brew Day #1: We're All Clones...

At least getting started in the homebrew world, I suppose that most of our beers are. It's in our nature. We like it, then we try to make it - or a reasonable facsimile thereof.

For me, it was Old Speckled Hen (not pictured above). Found a great deal on brewing equipment one day, drove up a mountain to get everything, came back and started looking up recipes.

But since this is about 2010's Inaugural Brew Day, enough with the blah blah. Let's make with more drinky.

2010's INAUGURAL BREW DAY: Dogfish Head 60-Minute IPA CLONE Recipe (pictured above).

Grain Bill:
9 lbs 8 oz Pale Liquid Malt Extract
1 lbs Crystal 40L
0 lbs 8 oz Carapils

Hops:
1.00 oz Warrior [15.00 %]
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %]
1.00 oz Simcoe [12.00 %]

1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] (Dry Hop)
1.00 oz Simcoe [12.00 %] (Dry Hop)

Yeast:
White Labs WLP001 - California Ale Yeast


This recipe couldn't be much simpler. The only thing involving about brewing this beauty is the 'continuous hop addition' over a period of 60 minutes. Thus the name "60 Minute IPA." But you knew that. You also knew that the 60 Minute IPA stands head-and-shoulders over the possibly even more renown "90 Minute IPA," which is maltier than your high school summer job. Enough digression.

Standing over a boiling kettle of hot wort, tossing in a hop pellet or three at a time felt silly at first, but should really take this brew somewhere. After dry-hopping...watch out.

Only technical snafu was the pitching of the yeast at about 60F. White Labs suggests pitching at 70F and, well, nothing else. This homebrewer never had to wait more than eight hours to see a boisterous fermentation occurring. This time around, it took about 30 hours to really get roiling. BUT! The kreuzen is the prettiest of all homebrews so far. Looking forward to a tall, clean crisp one sometime after Easter.