The perfect pint

Maybe not perfect.....but a damned good one anyway!


Kölsch!

Kölsch test no.1

I popped a Kölsch with the smoked brisket last night and I was very pleased indeed. What I saw was a light golden brew with a fluffy white head. What I smelled was a nice hint of hops. What I tasted was a crisp, mild, and clean brew.

Nukey racked....finally

I racked the Nukey into the secondary today, and it's about time. It's been two weeks and one day since it was brewed and it's flattened down enough to make the trip. The cooler temperature I've been storing the carboy in really extends the time it takes for fermentation. It really smells good though!
I moved a bottle of Kölsch to the refrigerator today for a taste test later....we'll see how this one turned out as I enjoy it with the brisket that is smoking on the deck right now.
We were at the liquor store on Saturday and picked up a sixer of Smithwick's Irish Ale. I've heard people mention how much they've liked it so I had to give it a try, and found it to be pretty good with a mix of slight dry hoppiness with a hint of sweet malt character. I'd give it a 7.5.

Bottle Bombs

Last Saturday morning's silence was broken by the shotgun like blast of a bottle bomb in the pantry. the week before the Knucklehead Porter seemed like it could use a bit more carbonation so I let it sit out on the shelf before cooling it down in the fridge. I must have left it out at room temp a little long for two bottles anyway. Luckily the beer was in a cardboard case and the glass didn't fly everywhere! I might have to bump my priming sugar down a little in future brews. y the way have I mentioned how damned good the Knucklehead Porter is? Very complex nutty taste with a good kick to it.
Mmmmmm beer.

One more round of Nukey Brown

Last weekend Nancy and I enjoyed a couple nice Newcastles with our meal at Applebees and it got us thinking that we haven't brewed the Nukey Brown in some time....so today was the day. I also added a yeast starter kit to my brewing arsenal. A yeast starter is made by adding the yeast to wort and building a bigger sample. The addition of a bigger yeast solution adds more yeast cells to encourage quicker and larger fermentations thus decreasing lag time and potential off flavors derived from said lag time. The method works well because in less than 7 hours the fermentation was very active.

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Yeast Starter