Brew in honor of Revvy, and hopefully a speedy recovery

In honor of all that Revvy has done for us (all the sound advice, etc.) I think we should come up with at least one solid recipe to brew in his honor. Something that will be either close to finished, or being bottled when he's able to drink again (post surgery)... Something that we can send him, for 'testing' when he can drink again...

My thoughts on what some parameters should be...

All grain batch (or a partial mash for those that are not ready for all grain yet)
5 gallons [standard] batch size per person brewing... If you can do 10 gallon batches, go nuts... (2.5 gallon batch size brewers will need to figure the grain bill on their own).
Something that doesn't need to be lagered (not set up with a fermentation chamber yet)
Something with an ABV target of over 5.5%
Primary fermenting only, no secondary fermenting... Ok to rack to secondary ONLY if flavor elements are involved (getting off of, or needing to get onto them)...

Ingredient guidlines (rather lose)
Base Malt: 2 Row, either US or UK
Other grains: open
Hops: prefer US/UK varieties, but something that has good availability. Good hop combinations prefered. Possible dry hopping, if the brew will benefit from it. Every brewer can deviate on this, not following the recipe, brewing to his/her personal taste.

Anyone that deviates from the decided recipe should post up what they did different (or plan to do different) so that it's posted... When we get the bottles to Revvy, include the recipe sheet and as much info as you can...

If you already have something going that you think would be a good match for this, post up the recipe/info... I have an old ale that should be getting bottled in a few days. I'm thinking of brewing an ESB (second shot at the recipe, first one had crappy efficiency, want to do it proper this time), a wee heavy, braggot or maybe even a barleywine (wouldn't be ready for some time though)...

Post your ideas, and if you're in for the brewing...

Golddiggie said:

5 gallons (minimum) per person brewing... If you can do 10 gallon batches, go nuts... NO 2.5 gallon batches allowed.

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What does the overall batch size have to do with anything? (especially considering Revvy is fond of 2.5 gallon batches...)

Looking to avoid the 2.5 gallon batch sized brewers... This IS for Revvy after all, so at least be able to brew a normal sized batch... It also helps figuring out the recipe... It's far easier to increase a 5 gallon batch to 10 gallons, than reduce a 5 gallon batch to 2.5 gallons.

It's no harder to scale down to 2.5 gallons than it is to jump up to 10... also as I edited in my post, Revvy does quite a bit of 2.5 gallon batches himself... so IMO it would be more fitting to limit it to 2.5 gallon batches than 'ban' them.

I'm in.. Let the recipes start flowing so it can flow into my belly...

I'm not going to police your batch size... If YOU want to brew small, go ahead... I'm going to focus on the 5 and 10 gallon batch sizes though... You'll need to crunch the numbers yourself for the smaller batch size... It would be pretty easy for all grain, but toss PM or extract in there, and all bets are off.

My ideas on what to make:
Old Ale
Braggot (around 12-15% ABV )
Porter (coffee)
Stout (mocha anyone? maybe an imperial?)
BarleyWine (all grain, no extra sugars added, but still in the 12-15% ABV range)
SMaSH with Maris Otter and Crystal Maris Otter

I'm partial to either UK 2 Row or Maris Otter for the base malts... I've been focusing on UK hops for most of my brews (since making my own recipes)...

I think we need to make this fairly uncomplicated, as far as ingredients going into it... Open to recipe ideas though... I could post some of mine, if people want to see them...

It is not difficult to scale anything to or form anything. most of us that have software and do it with 2 mouse clicks. Just figure a recipe and post it, let everyone worry about how much they want of it. It won't affect the beer.

Are you against small batches because you think he'd be offended if we only send him 2.5 gallons?

Updated the opening post... If you want to do tiny batches, go ahead... I don't see the point of it... I live alone, and still do 5 gallon batches (bad back and all).

Let's focus LESS on the small batch sized people and get rolling with the recipe generation...

Need to settle on at least one, or two, brew style to make. Then figure the recipe out, and such... I have grain coming next week, so as soon as I get the mill here, I'll be pretty much ready to rock and roll...

Revvy's already got a huge barley wine going....

I vote for one of his favorite styles: SMa2H

5 gallon batch (adjust as needed)

10lbs 2-row (1lb home roasted if you wish) (or 7lbs LME and 0.5lb 60L steeped if you don't do all-grain)

1 oz Centennial @ 60 (since we hope Revvy lives to 100)
0.5 oz Centennial @ 15
0.5 oz Cascade @ 5
1 oz Cascade @ 5

Mash @155*F

Wyeast 1056, WLP001, or US-05

Primary for 4 weeks. No secondary allowed

Umm, maybe I'm out in left field here, but shouldn't we all pick a DIFFERENT recipe so he will have variety

My MO SMaSH recipe:

10# Maris Otter
1# Crystal Marris Otter (55 SRM)
40g EKG (5% AA) @60
16g EKG (5% AA) @20
10g EKG (5% AA) flame-out

Mash @152-154F for 60-90 minutes (your choice)

3-4 weeks in primary, NO SECONDARY (need to put this in the first post)...
Wyeast #1728, use what you like...
Prime to 2.2 CO2 volumes and bottle.

I am brewing a honey cream ale next weekend (10 gallon batch with a bud)...

Honey Cream Ale
20# UK 2 Row
2# Honey Malt
1# Cara-Pils
56g Fuggles (4% AA) @60
22g EKG @20
20g EKG @5 (might move that to flame-out)

Yeast: Wyeast British Ale II (#1335)

Mashing @152F for 90 minutes

Ferment plan 3-4 weeks, no secondary.
Prime to 2.6 CO2 volumes and bottle her up!

This seems really weird to me (good intentions, don't get me wrong). First off, if we all brew the same batch shouldn't Revvy choose the recipe, especially since he'll have 20 cases of the stuff. Secondly, why would Revvy want 20 cases of the exact same recipe? Doesn't he like variety? Third, is this just a ploy to get Revvy to tell you your beer is awesome? It sounds like a contest (having requirments and all). And lastly, you say you want it ready to go relatively soon yet the list I see has Old Ale, Braggot, Coffee Porter, and Mocha Imperial Stout. That stuff needs a lot of time to age properly. SMaSH is ok if you're going to do this.

My recommendation, if you want to thank Revvy, is to send him a 6 pack or less of whatever you think you brew best. Tell him what it is, tell him why you sent it and hope he enjoys it. I would much prefer this approach to people sending me 20 cases of the exact same recipe.

Sheesh! Give a guy a hard time for trying to do something nice. The intentions are great! What if everyone just takes a bottle or two of a good beer and ships it off to Revvy on the same day? I will. I need to know an address though.

this seems really weird to me (good intentions, don't get me wrong). First off, if we all brew the same batch shouldn't Revvy choose the recipe, especially since he'll have 20 cases of the stuff. Secondly, why would Revvy want 20 cases of the exact same recipe? Doesn't he like variety? ....

My recommendation, if you want to thank Revvy, is to send him a 6 pack or less of whatever you think you brew best. Tell him what it is, tell him why you sent it and hope he enjoys it. I would much prefer this approach to people sending me 20 cases of the exact same recipe.

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This sums up my feelings completely. Plus, saying it has to be all grain (or PM) is just silly. You probably excluded over 75% of the members on this forum.

theschick said:

This sums up my feelings completely. Plus, saying it has to be all grain (or PM) is just silly. You probably excluded over 75% of the members on this forum.

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Kinda agree with this too. Bombarding him with a ton of beer bottles just seems unusual, especially for a guy who probably has so much stock already on hand.

Personally, I think something like a toast to him and a posted pic of the toast to Revvy would be much nicer and more thoughtful in a sense. But that's just my two cents, I've only been on here since January so I'm still a new guy 'round these parts.


Rev.

ok people, everyone take 10, plus drink a pint...

First, the parameters were preceded by "My thoughts on what some parameters should be..." I guess people just skipped right over that...

Second, even if everyone agrees on just one recipe (not saying we need to, or should) chances are they'll all be different.

IF we do the same recipe, or same few recipes, then Revvy is the judge... He can pick the favorite from a recipe and let us know...

If you want to brew something, or have something ready to send him, post it... I just think we need to send him SOMETHING good/great for when he can drink again.

As for my leaning away from extract brews... I think using extracts (especially hopped extracts) is like heating up sauce you buy in a jar... Or buying wort that someone else has already boiled, hopped, and all you need to do is put some yeast into... Very little effort on your part. To HONOR Revvy, we need to step up our game, make something that's really, really good if not great, and honor HIM with it...

Personally, I'll probably be sending him more than one bottle/brew... I have an old ale that's almost ready to be bottled up now (should be either by the end of this weekend, or during next week)... It's probably going to need better part of a month (or more) to carbonate... After that, I have a specialty brew based on a strong Scotch ale that I might send him (still under a week in primary)... I plan on brewing something else on the 5th/6th that could be sent too... Hell, I might even send one of the honey cream ale's we're brewing on the 26th.

I would like it if we had at least a few of each brew that's going his way... But, if you just want to send him something you whip up, go for it...

I'm sorry man, it's hard to take the seriously when you are trying to 'honor' Revvy by proposing things that go against his homebrew philosophy.

Revvy said:

I don't do any one type of brewing...I'm not elitist and believe that All grain is the Holy grail mecca of brewing...It's not the type of brewing you do that makes good beer...it's YOUR PROCESS...

I'm a homebrewer, not an extract brewer or an allgrain brewer...I make beer. And depending on the recipe or the mood, the ingredients I use are different for each batch...AND except for a couple of exceptions, they all have been either pretty good or freaking amazing..

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IffyG said:

I'm sorry man, it's hard to take the seriously when you are trying to 'honor' Revvy by proposing things that go against his homebrew philosophy.

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I honor the Mexican Army's unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862 by chugging Dos Equis and Coronas, usually while wakeboarding behind a boat. Lol... Anyhow, I think this is awesome that someone would want to get something together like this for Revvy. I personally doubt the Rev would want to touch any of my homebrew as I'm still the complete noob, but I would def. send a toast to him.

P.s. IffyG... heading to your town tomorrow... Go Preds!

IffyG said:

I'm sorry man, it's hard to take the seriously when you are trying to 'honor' Revvy by proposing things that go against his homebrew philosophy.

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I think Golddiggie's intentions are great and I think its an interesting idea. But I also have to go with Iffy.

As someone who has been a member of this forum for a long time, I've read and learned extensive amounts from Revvy and, although I'm nowhere near as "close" to him as some of you guys are, I'd like to do something for Revvy that is homebrew related, no matter how small or grand in design.

When I originally read Golddiggie's OP, I thought he was simply trying to come up with a HBT Community created recipe in honor of Revvy, as a fellow homebrewer. I like the thought of this idea. Seeing as this thread is already started. Why don't we come up with something simple, brew it in the next couple weeks and crack it open when Revvy comes out with a full recovery. You can send him a bottle, send him a case or don't send him anything at all. Just brew a good beer with him in mind, and in your prayers if that's your thing, and we all crack one open when Revvy's back to good health, post a picture, etc.

I'm VERY new around here and haven't had a sufficient amount of time to converse with a lot of the members, but Revvy was the first to answer my first question in the Beginners section and the fact that he didn't lash out at me for asking a question that I now know has been asked a million times around here makes him good in my book, that and he seems like a very well respected vet of the community.

I like the idea of a "(C)Heer's to you" topic, post up a pic holding your HB high and put one back for your fellow brewer.

A community tribute beer would be very neat as well, perhaps tied into the pic topic. Instead of participants sending him beers which is a very nice thought but could get a little overwhelming especially on his end, the community develops the Revvy Recipe, those who would like to participate just brews a batch for themselves, then move on to posting your pics in the "(C)Heer's to you" topic?

Or,

you could all make your own "motivational poster" with a picture of you holding up a pint and your favorite Revvy phrase....

http://www.bighugelabs.com/motivator.php

I hope he gets better soon but this whole thing is really weird

This started off with so much promise... Figuring some of us could brew something really good, to send off to Revvy to enjoy on his road to recovery... Something that maybe he hasn't made, or not made in some time... Especially since it will probably be a while before he's cleared to actually brew on his own again. I don't know how much inventory he has on hand, so who knows how much he's going to want to accept...

Personally, I cringe every time someone posts up about using a pre-hopped extract kit and has problems with it. I know some people will be using extract kits (hopefully with specialty grain) for who knows how long. Hell, I hadn't planned (originally) to go all grain until I read about BIAB... Makes the jump to PM or AG ultra-easy...

Personally, I'm not one to have other people make parts of what I make/cook that I can do myself. Going AG gives me more control over the finished product. So, as long as I don't F something up along the way (only had one cooler issue, not repeated since I'm not using the cooler for a mash tun) I'm 99% sure I'll get something really good, if not great. Since I don't plan on doing anything else on brew day, time is zero issue for me.

So, if you guys want to come up with a recipe to drink to a picture of Revvy, then lets... Or even a few different brews (to get more people to actually be involved)... IF you're going to change something about a recipe that's decided upon, post the changes. Who knows, others might do that too...

Personally, I'm still planning on sending Revvy a couple of bottles. I want HIS input/opinion of some of my brews... These are going to be either partial mash (only made one) or all grain since my extract brews are pretty much gone. I might even do an all grain version of my very first brew (a honey porter) to see how it compares to what I made first.

Still looking for recipe's to narrow down to a smaller list... Post up what you want to brew to speed Revvy's recovery along... Maybe we can get some regional get-together's to happen where we can try out different recipes, maybe made by a few different people, while we toast to Revvy...

Above all else...

RDWHAHB

Jsmith82 said:

I like the idea of a "(C)Heer's tA community tribute beer would be very neat as well, perhaps tied into the pic topic. Instead of participants sending him beers which is a very nice thought but could get a little overwhelming especially on his end

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Yeah that's what I was thinking. It's not meant to shoot down the OP's thoughtful idea, but can you imagine all the boxes, some probably heavy, he would receive? I hate getting shipments primarily due to all the waste (boxes, packing peanuts/paper, etc). And if for sending cases, after surgery heavy lifting is out of the question, thereby leaving it to his wife to schlep?

Yeah, even a homebrew that we can all toast with would be nice. Still, I think even if we toast with our own homebrew and have a thread with "Toast to Revvy" pics would still be awful sweet and thoughtful. It would also allow people to participate that for whatever reason can't get the brew done - time, money, full fermenters, experience, etc.


Rev.

Golddiggie said:

Personally, I cringe every time someone posts up about using a pre-hopped extract kit and has problems with it.

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You've mentioned prehopped kits twice now. Where has anyone said they recommend or want to do a "pre-hopped extract kit"? You're beginning to come across as unusually offended that your idea isn't being 100% accepted. Please remember there are many people on this forum and you will indeed come across differences in opinion. *You* certainly still can do your plan exactly as you intended.


Rev.

Still waiting for a recipe to make while thinking of him and then to drink and think of him too.. Thats what I thought this thread was about.. Send him, don't send him that's a personal choice. Just thinking well for him its what it's all about!

edmanster said:

still waiting for a recipe to make while thinking of him and then to drink and think of him too.. Thats what i thought this thread was about.. Send him, don't send him that's a personal choice. Just thinking well for him its what it's all about!

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+1

Holy confusion!... sending someone 5 gallons of beer is what I thought I read. And that everyone makes the same recipe, is also what I thought I read. Oh, and it can't be an extract batch... (because extract brewers aren't ready to make a beer that's good enough?). Um... I think I will just brew an original and keep him in mind and post something about it when that thread forms... which it will.

Golddiggie said:

Personally, I'm still planning on sending Revvy a couple of bottles. I want HIS input/opinion of some of my brews...

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... I thought this was about Revvy?:cross:

Can we name it "Does this look infected" ?

After reading this whole thread I have a couple questions... Has anyone asked HIM about this? I'm sure the last thing Revvy wants to deal with is processing 500+ bottles of beer and then having to drink them and give feedback to everyone. If he wanted to run a competition I'm sure he would be more than happy to volunteer for the HBT competition. Another point, if he's having surgery; chances are he is going to be on some type of narcotic/pain killer. Not necessarily the best time to be drinking dozens of beer. With all that being said.... Feel better Revvy, I'm having one for you right now.

veritas524 said:

I'm sure the last thing Revvy wants to deal with is processing 500+ bottles of beer and then having to drink them and give feedback to everyone. If he wanted to run a competition I'm sure he would be more than happy to volunteer for the HBT competition

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I can't help but feel offset with, "Personally, I'm still planning on sending Revvy a couple of bottles. I want HIS input/opinion of some of my brews...".

When is Revvy's surgery taking place?


Rev.

This thread was born under a bad sign and went downhill from there.

Last I heard surgery has been delayed until Monday. Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Revvy.