Wednesday, February 6th, 2008
I opened up my new Coopers Home Brew kit last night and got to work. I was pretty excited to see how I should put together the ingredients. I had already watched the DVD that came with the package on YouTube, so I was a bit familiar with what to do.
There was something that came off as a bit confusing. In the can with the beer type and yeast packet, came one set of instructions. Then, in a booklet, there was another set of instructions. Then, the DVD offered very similar, but different instructions. I know that each type of beer will have it’s own instructions, but I really wasn’t sure which one to follow. Really, the only thing that was different was whether or not to stir in the yeast. One set of instructions (the one that I was following) said to sprinkle the yeast on top of the mixture (wort) and immediately seal the container. Then, the video said to sprinkle on the yeast and immediately stir it in, then seal the container. Unfortunately, I didn’t stir it in. I had to go back later and agitate the container to stir it in. I know how sensitive yeast can be, so I have my fingers crossed. When I woke up this morning, the air seal thingy up on top of the lid was bubbling, so I know there is some fermentation going on.
Here are some photos of what it looks like…
Basically, you mix together the concentrate, sugar, water and yeast and seal the container. Then, you have to keep the mixture between 21 and 27 degrees celsius. That’s the best temperature for the yeast to work. You have to keep it that way for 4-7 days, until the bubbles stop. Then, you have to check the mixture with a hydrometer to check it’s alcohol content. After that, bottle the beer and wait a little more. I will write more about that when I get to it. For now, I am just hoping that it ferments properly.
Related posts
Posted in Food & Drink | 4 Comments »
Thursday, January 31st, 2008
Today, we took another trip up to Emmanuel’s Supermarket in Stone Ridge. The season premier of “Lost” is on tonight and that called for some Sushi. We got around seven boxes of it, along with some more beer. I also got those bagels I told you about before. Ohhh, so nice.
Today’s beer is “Smuttynose Robust Porter” from New Hampshire. It’s a nice dark beer with a dark/light taste, if that means anything. The reviewers over at Beer Advocate gave it high marks. The reason I say it has a dark/light taste is because it looks dark and does have some rich qualities, but it doesn’t get stuck in my gums. If I have to floss after drinking a beer…to me, that’s dark. For regular people, this is an excellent beer. I think this company does an excellent job brewing it.
I checked the tracking on my Coopers Brew Kit and UPS is telling my it will be here on Feb.5. That’s a while away, but I think I have enough beer in the fridge to hold me over.
Related posts
Posted in Food & Drink | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, January 30th, 2008
I received an email today from Amazon that told me my beer kit is on its way. That makes me quite excited. I told Laura last night that we will have some heavy duty drinking to do, once my first six gallons are ready.
I saw some videos on YouTube last night about the Coopers Home Brew Kit. It’s a pretty simple process. I think it’s kind of hard to screw up with this kit. I can tell that I am going to go through the different types of beer rather quickly and then expand onto more complex brews. I just want to make my mud.
Related posts
Posted in Food & Drink | 1 Comment »
Monday, January 28th, 2008
I am wicked excited. I just placed an order on Amazon for my soon-to-be home brewery kit. It’s the Coopers Brewery Micro Brewery Kit. My brother-in-law got me all wound up tonight when we were talking about his first batch of home brew. Do you know what kind of jealousy I have when I see a nice home brewed beer sitting on someone else’s table? For some reason, whenever I think of home brew, I always think of that nice sampler of 4oz. beers I had at Liberty Steakhouse and Brewery at Broadway at the Beach in Myrtle Beach. I had the best non-filtered raspberry beer there.
Anyway, Steve had great luck with his first batch and is now going to dive into a batch of Stout. Now, that’s what I am talking about. That’s what stout’s about, no doubt. HAHAHAHHAHA.
The home brew kit I am getting makes six gallon batches. That should be good for a while to see if I like doing this kind of stuff. Then, as soon as summer rolls around and we open the new porch back up, we can rock out to Crosby, Stills & Nash and drink beer out of the bucket all day, every day.
Now, that’s what I’m talkin’ bout.
Related posts
Posted in Entertainment, Food & Drink | 3 Comments »
Monday, January 7th, 2008
Now this is a beer. I am very pleased to announce that Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout pleases me.
My first sip of the beer tonight put a smile on my face. Many people reviewed this beer over at “Beer Advocate” and I kind of agree with some of them. One person wrote, “Pours a syrupy black color with a lace of head. Smell is very malty with lots of chocolate aroma.” Oh, that is music to my freakin’ ears.
When I took my first taste tonight, I thought, “How thick and smooth.” Then, there was kind of a strong taste. It wasn’t as bad as the “alcohol taste” that some people described, but it is strong. Also, as I write this, I am about half-way done with one beer and am feeling the effects of the alcohol. If I were to drink three of these, I would be dancing on a table. I guess they are kind of strong. When I poured the bottle of beer into my trusty beer mug, I noticed the color of the beer…it’s almost black and I couldn’t see through it.
So, my review of this beer is a good one. I am not sure it is going to replace Guinness, but I will say it is up there with Saranac Black Forest.
Related posts
Posted in Food & Drink | 1 Comment »
