Dresden Ale

The southern half of CCB has been busy, and we're subsequently broke. We do have a stand up refrigerator and three corny kegs ready to go now, and we got to pop the system's cherry with the Dresden Ale.

So titled for the late Kurt Vonnegut, the Dresden Ale is a double red that earns its name due to its fiery assault on your palate, and sobriety. We calculated it out to 11.8%, by far our highest content to date (and it makes the 8% IPA taste like Coors light). We also force carbonated this one, due to our extreme impatience at an installed kegerator with nothing to drink. We pumped the system to 30psi and shook the crap out of the keg, by the next day it was carbonated. We will probably continue to force carbonate, but with a slower less violent method.

Kegging beer is like learning to walk, it makes much more possible (including CCB's first lager, suck it nor cal!), and takes other worries away (like saving/cleaning/storing bottles in mass quantities). In the end this refrigerator should house three tapped beers and three fermenting lagers. I should be unemployed by then...

Long live CCB!

Mother FUCKING Cradle of Civilization!!

Last week was crazy we brewed 3 beers. The three beers were an Orange Porter (this beer that will change the world, more on this later)- No Name Yet, American Ale - called The Pilgrim Ale (also more on this later, THE ANTICIPATION it burns) and also a Hefweizen- called The Founders Brew (made for the founders of the company Brian and I work for)

ANYWAY, the Orange Porter was an idea I had when talking to my buddy Chris about making a San Francisco Giants themed beer. I told him I wanted something Black and Orange, then it struck me an Orange Porter. We explained this to the non-Griz (aka the guy that won't yell at you or give you snarky comments) of the Brewcraft, he explained in the years he has been working there no costumer has ever spoke of this recipe, literally his jaw was on the floor. This makes me excited because if it actually works we could be brewing something that will be a cornerstone of the CCB.

Next was the American Ale we named The Pilgrim Ale in honor of the late Kurt Vonnegut. To celebrate his life we made an all American beer. Every ingredient was grow/made in the USA. We named it The Pilgrim Ale for two reasons, Billy Pilgrim of Slaughterhouse Five and Pilgrims founded what has become America. As Joe would say THAT'S A DOUBLE WHAMMY. Don't worry though France (Joe) was not allowed to touch any of the ingredients, this of course was for fear of contamination, mainly Francium. I digress we are hoping for a smooth taste but a little bite at the end, just like works by Vonnegut. On a side note Vonnegut was a thought provoking and truthful voice that will be sorely missed, I can only hope my children will pick up Slaughterhouse Five or Cat's Cradle and be inspired to read.

Here is a random thought by Charlie Bamforth, Professor of Brewing Science at UC Davis. This man is a genius!

"Beer is the basis of modern static civ­ilization," began Bamforth, Anheuser-Busch Endowed Professor of Brewing Science at the University of California, Davis. "Because before beer was discovered, people used to wander around and follow goats from place to place. And then they realized that this grain [barley] could be grown and sprouted and made into a bread and crumbled and converted into a liquid which gave a nice, warm, cozy feeling. So gone were the days that they followed goats around. They stayed put while the grain grew and while the beer was brewed. And they made villages out of their tents. And those villages became towns, and those towns became cities. And so here we are in New York, thanks to beer." Another syllogism ended his address: "He who drinks beer sleeps well. He who sleeps well cannot sin. He who does not sin goes to heaven. The logic is impeccable."

Link to full article-
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa006&articleID=E699E9C7-E7F2-99DF-38A7329520CF67D6&colID=15

mmmmmmmmmm beer.

I figured there should be a picture of the kegerator somewhere on here.







yeah...

CCB Beer Flight.

Honeyed Wheat, CA Pale, Amber, IPA, Spiced Scottish, Irish Stout.

(Harvest, unnamed, Red Mosquito, Misty Mountain Hops, Drury Lane, Number 9)

forward motion.

Homebrew + Nintendo Wii = Crazy Delicious

Tonight we enjoyed a wide variety of home brew, on tap and in the bottle, and bowled on the wii all night. Matt came over to partake. On tap, we had the CA Pale (which, now that its carbonated and has mellowed a little, is one of my favorite of our past brews. Its nicely hopped but not overly bitterly, very drinkable, and good for all occasions) and the Amber, which I'm still very happy with (though I do wish it was a little more carmelly, a little more malty, and more in the AltBier style. This is what I envision for Red Mosquito Ale, a deep red with a nice balance of maltiness for the initial flavor and hop bite for the end).

By bottle we sampled the Honeyed Wheat, a new addition to the lineup, and the Drury Lane, quickly becoming a staple in small amounts. We've already spoken about the Drury, but there's much to say about the Honeyed Wheat. It's actually a very crisp beer, unlike past things we've made which kind of consume your taste buds. It tends to finish clean with little aftertaste, and is nicely carbonated. I think this is largely because its a wheat beer, and so tastes less malty than other beers. The Honey adds a nice sweetness because it isn't completely fermentable, and gives it a characteristic to set it apart from other Wheat Beers. I'm pretty sure this is the perfect ale for warm weather, just kickin it in the back yard around a barbeque, throwin horse shoes and drinking beer on a sunday. By the way, next year we should spend a solid amount of sundays just kickin it in the back yard around a barbeque, throwin horse shoes and drinking beer. MAKE IT SO!

I still need to keg the Oatmeal Stout, which I'm hoping is nicely roasted like the Irish Dry was, but with a smoothness and fullness the oatmeal should impart. Kegging beer is amazing; few things are as awesome as pulling forward on a handle and watching delicious beer you brewed yourself pour into a glass. Also, some time this weekend I'm gonna start working on CCB Tap Handles, which I envision being carved out of a relatively light but hard wood, maybe a white oak or maple. First up, the Misty Mountain Hops handle, partly because I already have a vision of it, and because an IPA should be a staple brew. Then I'll move on to a general brand handle (non-beer specific), and maybe a Number 9 Stout after that (this is where I want a dark, chocolately, and 9 % stout to head, or maybe a porter). So that's my update. As always, long winded. Life is good.

Good things from down south.

So this week has been good for brewing. I want to congratulate Bob and Kevin for their stout and, though i know it isnt their favorite, i enjoyed the honey beer as a light, easy to drink beer with a different flavor to it. Also, im interested to see how that IPA turns out since i basically made the recipe on the fly, similar to our last two batches but with variations. 7 pounds extract, 2 lbs domestic 2 row, half pound victory, quarter pound barley flakes, ounce and a half summit, two ounces cascade, california ale yeast. Rest at 154F for 45 minutes. I hope I knew what I was talking about.

Also! The Brown Ale you guys made? Excellent. I was glad I was around when Bob cracked open a few bottles for the first time. A little heavier and darker than a newcastle, good flavor, hints of molasses, I think it will become amazing with age, but its great now. Makes me excited for our brown ale, but I dont even remember when that's gonna be done. We need to start keeping better track of stuff, somewhere other than in my head. Kevin's notebook is a good idea. I started to record stuff in my laptop, but then it became a pain. We should just buy a notebook.

Also, I've chosen a target date for opening a brewery/bar/whatever, and its my 28th birthday. Now I've thought about this, and that gives us 5 solid years to get our act together after Bob (and maybe Kevin) has moved up to SF. I dont see any reason that cant happen. Next stop, all-grain.

Do you know the muffin man?

Kevin inspired me to write. I would have to concur that it is a great feeling to brew a beer that is well received and tastes great. I would also say that the Stout is brilliant. We will have to send down the recipe for the porter which is also very good.

My main reason for this post, is our latest bottled beer which was called the Scottish Spiced Ale, we have now decided to call it the Drury Lane for reasons that will soon be mentioned. The basic premise of the beer is a brown ale, with spices; nutmeg, cinnamon, zest of orange and ginger. The spices are made into a tea which is thrown into the beer when putting it in the carboy, also! we added full sticks of cinnamon and grated ginger and zest of orange before sealing the beer. That part is not an exact science and was actually done in a slightly inebriated state. I detract, when we first tried it the beer was too spiced and was not tolerable, it was also not very carbonated. About a week later I decided to try it again, and oh man does it get better with age, the beer has little to no haze and a full bodied taste that reminds one of gingerbread. The gingerbread taste is where the name Drury Lane comes from, think Shrek and The Muffin Man poem. The beer can be intimidating at first smell but the gingerbread is not overpowering and becomes complimentary to the brown ale. Like the Stout and IPA this has become a favorite of people visiting our house. The beer is not something that you down or drink massive qualities of, but with a desert it is excellent. It is also a great way to start or end your night.

This has got me very excited because though your base beers are fun to make, I really think beer should be a unique flavor and idea. I can't wait to see what the Drury Lane taste like in a month. Check back later for my newest idea an Orange Stout!

Do you know the muffin man, the muffin man, the muffin man?
Do you know the muffin man who lives on Drury Lane?"