September 11, 2007
25 Gallons Of Beer
Ahh, it feels good to know that we’ve got 25 gallons fermenting right now… I’ve been pretty much out of homebrew (with the exception of a little less than a case of barleywine that has questionable carbonation and won’t be drinkable for a few more months anyway)… I had limited supply before moving back to CA, and then I’ve already cleared out my Raspberry Wheat and Agave Wheat. I hate it when I have no beer AND the pipeline is empty.
But no longer. Here’s what we’ve got going right now:
Belgian Lighthouse Ale (10 gallons): This has been fermenting for about 4 weeks now, which is probably more than long enough for a beer of this type, but I noticed that the yeast and coagulated proteins weren’t dropping out of suspension quite that well, so I decided to transfer to the secondary fermenter for 2-3 weeks. However, we tasted in during the transfer, and it’s already pretty nice 
Tripel Threat (10 gallons): Named because there are three of us who brew together, and I couldn’t think of anything snappier… Should be a good recipe, with 20 lbs pilsner, 8 lbs Vienna, 1 lb Aromatic and 1 lb Caravienne, 2 lbs brown sugar, and light bitterness but spicy aroma hops. Will probably come in around 9%. I haven’t been successful with any of my high-gravity beers to date, but given the balance of the recipe I’m using, rather than just trying for “more”, should hopefully improve this considerably. Give it 2 months or so in the fermenter, another 2 months in bottles, and this should make a very nice winter warmer.
Belgian Wit (5 gallons): No snappy name whatsoever for this one. My brother-in-law is a huge witbier fan, so we decided to give this one a try. It’s definitely the first time I’ve used coriander and orange peel in a brew. He asked me during the brew process whether I thought this recipe would be more like Hoegaarden or Blue Moon, and since I rarely drink either, I have no clue. But hopefully it’s tasty!
We’re starting to move out of the hot season, so our upcoming brews might leave Belgium and return back to some more common styles. We’ll definitely want to re-brew an amber ale that we did earlier this year and all loved, as well as a nice IPA similar to the one I did for the Sam Adams competition. Potentially I may add a 5-gallon experimental Smoked IPA to the group, and whatever else hits our fancy. The goal will be to get a brew session in right at the end of this month, and at least one in October, so we can make sure the pipeline is completely full from this point on.
And last, I think the wife might have come up with the name for the brewery tonight… “South Swell Brewing Company”… I like it
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Man, wish I could partake in some of the beer taste testing. Good luck with your brews!
Well I have to say the name ‘Sth Well Brewing Co.’ sounds like a swell name. Go Joanna…..
Brad, I was in my Liquid Town last night and ‘oh my god’ they have 589 beers in their fridge AND they could order my Tooheys New from OZ for me (under pressure). I’m not being funny BUT how many beers CAN there be? And how many beers can one person taste in one life time? Jeff says “Brad and I could start a shop brewery” but is not everyone doing this right now? And is it going to be like garage stall beer – where most people are doing hobbs in their garage? I think it’s great and I saw a show on HBO in New Hampshire that there were pubs that only sold home brewer beer. Is this the nw thing? Just asking….. ANd yes I’ve had a few Tooheys New to ask this?????
Okay it’s hopps…. .or whatever….
So who is this “Jacki” character leaving comments willy-nilly?
It feels soooo good to have beer in the pipeline…
That would be my sister in law… One taste of the Belgian Strong Dark Ale I sent them last year, and she and my brother are believers in me