I bought my first kit at Midwest Brew Supply, a Copper Ale. It so happened that my brother Dave was in town and since he is and even bigger beer geek than me, I though it only right that we should brew my first batch together. Looking back on that first attempt its amazing how much I've learned in the four batches I've brewed since then. Copper Ale was really good and gave me the confidence to try a second batch. I was so proud that I ended up giving most of this batch away, I probably only had about 7 of them myself!
My most recent batch, and my first recipe kit from Northern Brewer a Brickwarmer Holiday Red just finished bottle conditioning yesterday. It is for sure my best batch yet. It has a nice full head, a rich red color and a pretty high gravity level, with is code in brewing for alcohol content!
The best thing about brewing is that it is a process. Each step is a self contained and rewarding in its own right. The boil is how it all kits off incorporating grains, malts and hops each one has its own unique aroma. Once the beer is in the fermentor the smell of the wort interacting with the yeast fills the brew room with the great smell of "almost beer"! After the first stage of fermentation is done, transferring the almost beer to the clear secondary fermenter allows all the still floating bits of malt and hops to settle to the bottom leaving me with a clear, beautifully colored liquid. Now it's ready to bottle, so we add a little bit of sugar to the mix in our bottling bucket so the yeast that has gone dormant will have something to eat while it's in the bottle. This will give me the carbonation that makes a finished beer complete. After patiently waiting for two weeks (who am I kidding, I'm never patient at this point!) the beer is carbonated and ready to drink.
I have created a Facebook fan page for Wunrow Brew Haus to take my brewing progress and keep my growing list of fans up to date on my latest activities. So, needless to say this is a hobby that has brought me joy and of course an excuse to drink beer. Thanks Dad for finally getting me off the fence and into the art of brewing!
