(no subject)

[inahandbasket]

Beer geekery:

Brewed up a Belgian Trippel style beer yesterday morning. It finally started fermenting by this morning, we were worried about it for awhile there. It's bubbling along merrily now, or at least it was when I left this morning and so should still be. I'm really looking forward to drinking this one.

Bought out a local store of the last bottles of Unibrue's "Edition 2004" which we'd dispaired of finding any remaining bottles of about a year ago. They had three bottles left, so we bought them all, drank the one we'd been saving, and still have 3 hanging around for future events. This is probably the best beer I've ever found. We also got an "Edition 2005" to try and see if it compares to the '04. It didn't a year ago, but it was really young then, so maybe by now it'll be better.

Brewed another gallon of ginger ale last week, but it didn't start fermenting for some reason and now has mold on top.
BUMMER!
Got ingredients so that we can try that again. This time I'll make a yeast starter I think.


Belgian Tripple
Batch Size 5 gal.
1.25 lbs. - American Vienna
.5 lbs. - Belgian Aromatic
.25 lbs. - Belgian Biscuit
7 lbs. - Dry Extra Light Malt Extract
1 lbs. - Candi Sugar Clear
1.7 oz. - Hallertau Hersbruck, boiled 60 min.
1 oz. - East Kent Goldings, boiled 15 min.
.5 oz. - Dried Orange Peel, boiled 15 min.
.25 oz. - Goldings (Whole, 5.00 %AA) boiled 3 min.
.5 oz. - Dried Orange Peel, boiled 3 min.
Yeast - White Labs WLP530 Abbey Ale

Original Gravity: ~1.077
Estimated Alcohol/vol: ~9%

Comments

[oceanic.livejournal.com]

That sounds awesome, but not as awesome as possible ginger ale. Oh, and did you guys ever sign up for that beer dinner in March?

[inahandbasket]

yes. the 14th. are you coming? I can add one, or two, to the reservation...
*wiggles eyebrows*

[oceanic.livejournal.com]

So... tempting...

unfortunately I won't be around until late April, so even with my amazing ability to twist time and space, I don't think I'll be able to link those two trips together.

*cries*

[inahandbasket]

your loss.
menu

[wanderyng1.livejournal.com]

That sounds awesome! I wish we had beer dinners around here, we only seem to have wine dinners. Perhaps I should start my own.

[prosicated.livejournal.com]

Clearly the solution is for you to add your powers to the Nortex trying to draw Nora back to the east coast, and in return we'll send homebrew with which to start your beer dinners (I owe mizpurplest some anyway).
There's an awesome book out called The Brewmaster's Table—Disovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food by Garrett Oliver, if'n you're looking for any help in the pairings. Our usual mode of pairing is "mm, tasty," which usually works quite well.

[wanderyng1.livejournal.com]

Well after a lengthy conversation this evening with Nora, it was decided (I think?) that we may have to pay a visit up there in October. That way I'd get to meet you two, and we could celebrate my birthday, her birthday, and Erin's birthday all at the same time. Plus I've never been to Boston so I see this as a good thing all around.

I'll have to pick up a copy of that book, since home brewing has always fascinated and appealed to me. Oh and your method of pairing is definitely my method of choice. I tend to do the same with wine and somehow manage to get it right in the process.

[prosicated.livejournal.com]

I like this plan... Maybe I'll declare an extra birthday somewhere in the mix so that I can be part of the festivities. (Or, you know, offer up futon space for 1-3 of you, depending on whether or not Erin's succumbed to my Nortex offer and moved up here yet. We have 2 sleepable full size futons, with sheets even, and I am absurdly proud of this fact.)
Also, dibs on birthday cake making, if any are to be made. (Or birthday cherry pie for Nora, perhaps.)
If you like beer, you'll like Boston, this is a gross oversimplification, but mostly true. The book I mentioned above is less about homebrew than about pairing commercial beers (or at least commercial styles, against which you might compare a homebrew) with foods. We have an extensive homebrew library, too, and the best intro book, in my opinion, is one called Radical Brewing by Randy Mosher. It isn't the most "welcome to homebrewing, let me hold your hand" of the books, but it's full of all the basic science, lots of recipes, some history, tons and tons of excitement, exuberance, and advice. (It also caters to people who cook and think as I do -- associatively, and/or recipe-less, so be warned.)
October is perfect, Nora's been missing east coast fall like crazy, and hopefully Oct 2006 won't be nearly so wet as 2005's, when I couldn't even gather enough leaves to ship her birthday presents.

[prosicated.livejournal.com]

P.S. If you're going to be around Nora and Ry's LJs to talk to, I'm going to add you to my friendslist, too, so that the silliness can expand by one more journal. =)

[wanderyng1.livejournal.com]

Excellent. I've already added you since Nora identified you and Ry as good folks to know :)

[inahandbasket]

I second all of prosicated's statements. I'm still working out HOW to ship homebrew, but I'll figure it out one of these days.

I'm going to recomend that book to everyone I talk to for the next year or so.

[prosicated.livejournal.com]

Warning: This pacakage contains dr0nk, do not shake, or imbibe without a designated box opener.

[inahandbasket]

bwahahahaha!
dr0nkz0r!

[wanderyng1.livejournal.com]

Now you just need to create "w00+ b33r" the drink for l33t g33k5 everywhere