I’ve given up now on ever thinking I’ll update this blog with any regularity. I try to keep up, but between work and the fam…not a whole lot of free time, but I can’t deny its definitely somewhat therapeutic. My man continues to grow so fast. His 4th birthday is coming up in August, and he’s become quite a smart (and smartass) young man. He’s really taken to my sense of humor and knows how to get Mommy and myself to laugh, thus paving the way to smooth sailing and easy cookies…sometimes anyway.
Yesterday was Father’s Day, and though I had to work, it did my heart good to have him come in and jump on me in bed to wake me up, while yelling “Happy Father’s Day, Daddy!”…maybe cheesy, but it was almost like a Hallmark commercial or something. I loved it, can’t lie…plus there is part of me that always worries that I’m not cherishing these moments enough, and that soon he’s not going to want hugs and kisses from Daddy anymore, so I need to make sure I cherish them while I can…and I do.
Recent goings on:
Work work and more work. Applied for a new position, but don’t think I’m going to get it. Doesn’t hurt to get my name out there, but it sure would be nice. Current position is just too much stress. I’m good at it, and I’ve been recognized as a top analyst a few times, but the processes change hourly, not near enough resources to handle the ever increasing workload, and we’re tasked with finding “new and innovative” ways of squeezing blood from and already blood squeezed stone. I love the company I’m in…but I definitely think it’s time for me to start looking at other departments.
I’ve started making my own craft beer, which is…totally awesome. I’ve got the kegerator in the garage, brew buckets, carboy and the whole ball of wax. I’ve only got about 3 brews under my belt at this point, but they’ve all turned out decent…definitely drinkable, if maybe a bit boring. I’m trying to figure out how to make my own grain bill now and try my hand at a custom recipe. Currently, I’ve got a porter on tap that isn’t bad, but does suffer from the same boring dilemma. It’s okay…nothing to write home (or blog) about, so I think I’m going to try adding espresso to the keg.
[**Warning**: Long diatribe about basic home brewing…you might want to get a snack, or just go watch some TV. You have been warned]
Normally, there are a few ways of doing this. Either during your initial boil (the first step in creating the beer where all ingredients are thrown in a pot and boiled for about an hour...after it's been boiled, it is now know as wort. Yeah, I don't know who named it that, either. Kinda gross.) or you can add the espresso (or whatever flavor, hops, fruit, etc) to the wort while it is in what’s called your “Primary”…which is where the yeast is added to the wort, and those hungry little yeasties begin to chow down on the sugars in the wort, thus creating alcohol!
!!YAY BIOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY!!
I think more traditionally, the added flavor items are usually introduced when you move your beer from the primary to the secondary. The secondary is just another container to hold your beer, after you’ve filtered out the yeast and other sediment from your primary. You can add your additional hops here (called dry hopping), or again…whatever flavors you want to try and cram together and pass off as being artistically viable and a must have if you are really serious about beer. The secondary is becoming more of an optional phase in the brewing process, and generally only used if additional flavors want to be added, or if the brewer wants to get more “clearing” on his brew, which will occur the longer the beer sits in the secondary. Being the crazy and wild rebel that I am... I’m doing none of these. Anyway, as I mentioned, I’m doing none of these things, and I’m going to add it straight to the keg.
Yeah, you heard me.
Right. In. The. Keg…
Told you I was crazy.
I used to return tapes to Blockbuster un-rewound.
Don’t mess with me, bro…I’m loco.
The advantage to this is that I can slowly add bit by bit until I get the taste that I want, without the risk of ruining the whole batch. Plus I only have about half a keg left anyway, so it won’t be that much ruined should I somehow make this into the Hindenburg of beer disasters.
And finally (I know..Thank God, right?) the last beer nugget of knowledge I will drop today is that the kegs I’m referring to aren’t your normal fat boy half barrel kegs that you see in bars and such. Those are half barrel kegs, which hold about 14-16 gallons of beer. While I would love to be able to make that kinda volume, I don’t have the money or the means to do so, and generally don’t want to drink that much of any beer all the time. (I only have one tap, so I gotta drink that until it’s gone). Home brewers use what are called Corny Kegs, or soda kegs. You’ve probably seen these before, too…possibly even at the same bar that you saw the half barrel keg at, you boozer. These are much more home brew friendly in that they’re smaller volume (about 5 gallons), easier to maintain, fill and most importantly, hook up to a kegerator or other distribution device. CO2 is hooked up to the other side of the keg and is what forces the beer out of the keg, as well as carbonating it (in my setup, at least. There are other ways of carbing your beer, but I will spare you.)
Anyway, expect more on this in the future. I’ll try and keep you updated on how my brews are turning out. Another item I think I will start adding to my updates are…
[Drum Roll]
[Still Drumming]
[He’s getting tired now]
[Ok, had to shove a drumstick up hi…well, lets just he’s finished]
Ta daaa!
Mike’s Beer Recommendation For This Update!!!!
For my very first recommendation, I’m proud to submit for your consumption:
Gallows Point: Dead Man’s Porter
Not available in bottles, unfortunately, so this recommendation my not be the most useful ever, but it is possible to get in several bars in the southeast, and if your beverage warehouse has a growler station (expect future updates about this topic, as well) see if they might be able to get a keg in…I assure it is worth it. I’ll spare you the details in describing it, suffice to say it’s delicious, and point you to the link above, where people more eloquent than myself will describe it for you.
Enjoy!
