Homebrewing Dreams | Reviews of Beer | Craftbrewing Thoughts | Beermaking Ingredients & Equipment | Kegging Wonders | Brewery & Brewpub Travels
My grandma’s 90th birthday is coming this weekend and my mom has asked that I be in charge of supplying the beer! Very cool! Well being the slack off brewer that I am (ok I have an excuse as I have been working on my website business) I only have half of a 5 gallon corny keg of some super-fantastic bourbon barrel old ale which I am not sharing! Nothing personal against my family its just that I have been sitting on this prized beer since July 2007 and I don’t want a munch of folks who really will not be able to appreciate the beer - no wait I just don’t want to share! Anway the point is I did some shopping around and wanted to put on record some of the different keg prices I found around Madison, WI and near my parent’s house in Wheaton, IL.
At all locations I asked if they had 1/4 barrel (7.5 gallongs) of locally made beer, using New Glarus Fat Squirrel as my example.
- First, I called my local Pigley Wigley in my hometown of Dodgeville, WI (really it’s a Dick’s Supermarket that got bought out by Fresh Brands, Inc - otherwise known as Pigley Wigley supermarkets). I was quoted a 1/4 barrel of Fat Squirrel for $81.00 and a deposit of $80.00 for the keg and tapper combined.
- Second, I called Skinny’s Liquors, another retail establishment here in Dodgeville. I was quoted a 1/4 barrel of Fat Squirrel for $85.00 and a deposit of $30.00 for the keg and tapper combined.
- Third, I called Gray’s Tied House (their website is down at the time I published this article) in Verona, WI and this would have been my choice out of all the places I called as they had the best price and great beer! Gray’s quoted me $65.00 for a 1/4 barrel of Rathskeller Amber and I didn’t bother to get the price of the deposit.
- Fourth, I called the Grate Dane Brewery in Fitchburg, WI (their website is really slow) and they did not offer 1/4 barrels, only 1/2 barrels (15 gallons of beer). This location offered their 1/2 barrels for $125 and a $50.00 deposit. For sure worth considdering if I needed that much beer!
- Lastly, I called a local favorite down by my parent’s place…Two Brother Brewery in Warrenville, IL. This will be the one I go with! They have 5.5 gallon kegs for $60 - $80 and the deposit is $60 for the keg and tapper combined.
August 15th, 2008
This article is great! Go Pot! August 07, 2008 - (Probrewer.com) - Mt. Shasta Brewing Co., makers of Weed Ales has been in a legal fight with the Tax and Trade Bureau over their bottle crowns which read “Try Legal Weed.” The brewery is located in the California town of Weed, which was named for an actual person: Abner Weed.
The TTB notified the brewery they had to remove the language because it violated their vague standard prohibiting drug references. The story gained widespread media attention, prompted by owner Vaune Dillmann’s quote that stated if he couldn’t use the term Weed, then Anheuser-Busch shouldn’t be able to use the term “Bud.”
But alas, Dillmann announced that the TTB has reversed their decision and “Try Legal Weed” can once more grace their bottle caps. Dillmann shared the registered letter he received with the Associated Press earlier today, which stated.
“Based on the context of the entire label, we agree that the phrase in question refers to the brand name of the product and does not mislead consumers,” said the letter, dated Thursday.
In a letter to the hundreds of supporters who reached out the brewery, Dillmann added. “Weed fought the law and Weed won!”
Story provided by Probrewer.com
Beer and Brewing News - Brew-Monkey.Com.
August 15th, 2008
Here is a pretty good article about how to force carbonate a corny keg, instructions included explain how to force carbonate in a hurry.
“These 5-gallon stainless steel kegs are ideally suited for dispensing home brewed beer. Their pressure rating of over 100psi makes them far safer and more reliable than plastic pressure barrels, their improved taps retain the condition in the beer and if looked after properly they will last a lifetime.
As these kegs are stainless steel they can be easily cleaned. A chlorine-based cleaner such as VWP can be used, but keep the contact time down to 15 minutes and rinse well. Do not use Sodium Metabisulphite (or Campden Tablets) on stainless steel!
Do not prime the beer in these kegs, as this will produce a sediment and will result in a cloudy beer, and may also block the small diameter discharge tube. It is preferable to force carbonate the beer with CO2. The beer must be both fully fermented and crystal clear before kegging. The best way to achieve this is to rack the beer from the primary fermenter into a secondary fermenter such as a glass carboy fitted with an airlock. Then fine the beer using Brupaks BeerClear which is a top grade kieselsol fining developed for Carlsberg which gives a brilliantly clear beer without affecting head retention. Rest the beer in the secondary fermenter for 2-3 days until it is crystal clear.
Remove the keg cover and gently pass CO2 into the sterilised keg to displace the air, as you don’t want to spoil a good beer by oxidising it at this stage. Then gently rack the beer into the keg keeping the outflow from the pipe close to the keg bottom. Don’t just let the beer splash in from the top!
Replace the sealing cover on the keg, and add just a small amount of gas to check that you have made a good seal. Then slowly raise the pressure to 20psi using the gas bottle. You will now have a keg of flat beer with 20psi of gas pressure. Lay the keg on its side and roll it back and forth for 5 minutes or so topping up the gas to 20 psi as necessary. Then drop the pressure to 10-15psi and again shake the keg well. Finally reduce the pressure to 6 psi and leave the keg upright for 24 hours.
Attach the tap and draw off some beer. The first few glasses may be cloudy, but the beer should then run clear. 6 psi is a good starting point, but you may well want to vary this between say 4 and 12 psi depending on the style of beer.
The benefits of kegging over bottling include:-
Less work as there are no bottles to wash, sterilise, rinse, fill and cap.
No sediment in the bottom, so the keg can be taken to a party without clouding the beer
The beer is ready to drink 24 hours after kegging as no secondary fermentation is needed
Superior taps ensure that you don’t get a glass of foam that collapses into a flat beer
You won’t need a bottle opener!”
May 27th, 2008
This is a great article for anyone who is using dynamic php/mysql webpages and interested in SEO site promotion.
“…PHP pages have a reputation of being more difficult (or at least different) to SEO than static HTML pages. Here?s an overview of the major issues encountered when trying to optimize PHP script for search engines. While this focuses on PHP much of it is still relevant to SEO’ing dynamic pages in general….”
May 20th, 2008
Fatty Picture Push Photos
Now that Spring is here, my hop rhizomes have really started growing aggressively. I decided it was time to setup a new trellis method using my existing hop trellis, a tree and the soffits on the second story of my home.
I opened a new account at PicturePush for all the great pictures I have been taking to document the hop gardening. I also opened a second PicturePush account for my family photos.
On a similar note, the Coppermine Photo Gallery script on Fatty Matty Brewing still has some glitches with being f-in hacked! It was down for more than a month or two. Don’t get me started- f*@kers!!! Only time will tell if I can ever get it to work again with out completely reinstalling the file intense PHP’ers!
May 15th, 2008
Crannog Ales - Our Farm
Hops Project
With the assistance of BC Investment Agriculture, they have created a hops growing manual for small-scale and organic producers. This is a basic manual, including extensive cultivation information as well as tips on how to build and design hops trellising, home dryers, and packaging for market. Please see the table of contents below for a guide to what’s in the manual. Hardcopy of the manual can be purchased from Crannog Ales for $10 plus $2.50 S&H. You can also download the manual in PDF format.
What’s in the Small-Scale Organic Hops Manual:
Download the manual
Hardcopy $10 plus $2.50 S&H. Please contact Crannog Ales for ordering information. Free shipping for manual only with rhizome purchase.
Introduction: The project
Brewers Gold: Hops History in BC
How hops fit in a diversified farm
* Market potential
* Getting to Market
* Pricing
General Hops Horticulture
* Lupulin
* Hop Varietal Specifications
* Soil and Fertility
* pH and nutrients
* Drainage
* Water
* Climate
Diseases
* Powdery Mildew
* Downy Mildew
* Verticillium Wilt
* Nutritional deficiencies
* Other Diseases
Pests
* Aphids
* Spider mites
Covering the Soil
* Mulch
* Paper mulch
* Straw or hay mulch
* Wood chips/Bark mulch
* Green Manure
Hopyard design & trellising
* Site Selection
* Proximity
* Internal Considerations
* Layout
o Single-pole trellising
o Horizontal Trellising
o Modern Trellising
o Spacing
* Materials
o Poles
o Cables & Wire
o Hardware
o Anchors
o Twine
* Putting it all Up
Annual maintenance
Spring Activities
* Root Prune or divide rhizomes
* Set out new plants
* Top-dressing, mulch & cover crops
* Check irrigation
* Twine Bines
Summer Activities
* Harvest Time
* Methods of harvesting
* Drying
* Packaging
* Factors in hop storage
* Judging hop quality
* Post Harvest
Resources
* Books & Magazines
* Websites
* Rhizomes
March 1st, 2008
BYO - The Bitter End
The Bitter End: The Great 2008 Hop Shortage Jan, 2008
by Chris Colby
Where did all the hops go? When are they coming back? We put these questions — and more — to industry experts.
This is a great article which anyone involved in the brewing industry from brewmaster, homebrew shop owner, homebrewer or organic hop farmer should read.
February 26th, 2008
If I have 2 six packs of 12 oz. bottles, two 22 oz. bombers, two - one liter swing top bottles and a growler than how many gallons of beer do I need to fill all the different sizes of bottles? With that, if I am using priming sugar to naturally carbonate each bottle, how much dextrose do I need for that many bottles? Plus, I also need some of my five gallon batch of craftbrew to go into my corny keg right?
We already know that five oz. of priming sugar works for a five gal. batch of beer and if…
For winemaking you will need 5 - 750ml wine bottles for every gallon of wine to be bottled or 25 - 750ml wine bottles for every 5 gallon carboy you are planning on bottling.
February 26th, 2008
Well its that time of year again for all you homebrew gardeners. If you are thinking about growing your own hops starting this Spring, now is the time to get your hop rhizome pre-orders in with your local homebrew shop. If you need a recommendation on where to pre-order hop rhizomes than may we recommend
Freshop.com,
Northern Brewer or
Midwest Homebrew Supply. Below is also a list of what you might want to look or ask for and included with each hop variety is a brief description of bittering potential in AA% and growing notes.
Cascade - 4.5-7% alpha. Grows well in all climates. Susceptible to aphids.
Centennial - 9.5-11.5% alpha. Grows well in all climates. Susceptible to downy mildew.
Chinook - 11-13% alpha. Grows well in dry, hot climates. Does not grow well in moist. Subject to spider mite
Fuggle - 4-5.5% alpha. Grows well in damp climates, suffers a little in hot.
Glacier - 5.8% alpha. Grows well in all climates
Goldings - 4-5% alpha. Grows well in mild, moist climates, does ok in hot.
Hallertau - 3.5-5.5% alpha. Grows well in mild, moist climates. Suffers a little in dry, hot climates
Horizon - 12-13.5% alpha. Grows well in all climates
Liberty - 3-5.5% alpha. Grows well in mild climates. Can grow in hot climates.
Mt. Hood - 5-8% alpha. Grows well in all climates
Nugget - 12-14% alpha. Grows well in all climates
Santiam - 6-7% alpha. Grows well in a moderate climate, does ok in hot climate
Sterling - 5.5-7% alpha. Grows well in a moderate climate, does ok in hot climate.
Tettnang - 4-5% alpha. Grows well in a moderate climate, suffers a little in hot climate.
Willamette - 4-6% alpha. Grows well in all climates.
February 25th, 2008
In this competitive craft brewing market of ours, Flying Dog Brewery is packing up their Denver plant and moving into their Maryland location. “I have an entire brewery that’s getting sold out here.” You can find a listing for a 120 bbl fermenter for sale on eBay and also listed on ProBrewer.com as they clean house to get rid of their equipment from their Denver location. Read more about Flying Dog Brewery’s move out of Denver on ProBrewer.com or from the Rocky Mountain News. Apparently Flying Dog is loosing money by not taking advantage of their newly aquired location in MD and are offering to pay for the move of the Denver employees to go east. Their beers will still be distributed in CO too.
January 30th, 2008
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