Lab-First
Bochet & Brewing Sugars - Reduction and Browning
Intentional browning of sugars has a long tradition in brewing and mead-making. Here's the science.
experiment
Brew-Magic
Practical Guide - Low Oxygen Brewing on the Brew-Magic
Discussions of brewing with low oxygen have returned to the home brewing world with some controversy. I will be using LO2 as a short cut to describe what has been termed LoDO or low oxygen brewing. If you follow this blog, you are aware that I have been exploring low
Experiment
Farmhouse Ales, Revisited: Part 2
The Farmhouse I set out in October of 2015 to redefine my understanding of Farmhouse Ales in a more personal way, connecting to my heritage in agriculture. While a bit narcissistic, this was inspired by visiting my family's homestead in Smith County, Kansas. I have since been back
Experiment
Alkalinity, Tannins, Astringency
I was cruising through Facebook the other day, and the ebullient Malcolm Frazer (one of the Brülosophy crew) posted a picture of tea brewed with tap water and with distilled water. It was a tremendous example of the effects of alkalinity and the extraction of tannins (polyphenols) from plant matter.
Brewer's Notes
Farmhouse Ales, Revisited; Part 1
Much of my childhood was spent around agriculture, and Northern Kansas has a wonderful history. From pioneers (Little House on the Prairie) to brave farmers that worked the soil through the Depression, the Dust Bowl and two world wars, my mother's German family has very deep roots in
Rambling
Grainfather... unboxing and first brewday gallery
I bought a Grainfather to let me continue to brew in the very hot summers here in Texas. Below are pictures of the unboxing and the first brewday. There have been some concerns about the boil strength. So while this took a bit longer to come up to boil (which
Brewer's Notes
Brewing Water Series - Tasting Minerals, Sensory Evaluation
In February 2015, I brewed Brülosopher’s Best Brown Ale which naturally turned into a series of experiments. The intention was to ship beer off to Marshall from Brülosphy.com for evaluation, and that twisted into preparing some bottles, doctored, for sensory evaluation. I kept a set of the evaluation
Experiment
Damn the Torpedo... or Hopback - Part Two
Well, the jury is in on this first stage experiment. Fail. Crash and burn... In the spirit of honesty the beer sucked. This is all hop flavor soup and way too much sweetness. A lesson in the need for balance, especially bitterness. Tastes like overly back sweetened Bud soaked in
Brew-Magic
Hopback, a shiny new toy in the brewery
For a while I have been looking for a solution to limit the amount of hop and hot break material that may get trapped in my plate chiller. I use a Chill Wizard system, from Sabco, which integrates a pump, a plate chiller, inline oxygen stone and thermometer into a
Brewer's Notes
The Experimental Test Batch...
I do like to mix things up a bit. One of the more frustrating problems I have with small batches on the stove is the consistency of temperature. I am so spoiled by the Brew Magic’s ability to maintain a consistent temperature – I have been seeking ways to replicate
Brewer's Notes
Random Musings...
Well, I promised more stuff on water, and haven't gotten around to it. Apologies. I got detoured with the Blacklands Malt, the malt analysis sheets, etc. All around - poorly planned on my part. The Brew-Magic is sitting waiting for the PLC to arrive. I got the software
Brewer's Notes
"Blather and bother," some effing Hobbit
Rather than revisit the past, despite a rather disappointing and very annoyed viewing of The Hobbit 2 (if you have to ask, you will never understand), I thought this space is better spent looking forward to 2014. Seriously, what was Peter Jackson thinking?I do have some goals, but not