Last brew day of the year 2012

I'll be brewing my first SMaSH today. Probably won't get started until at least late afternoon-ish, so I'll be cutting it close for calling it a 2012 batch.

This batch will make for a total of about 50 gallons of beer brewed in my first year of brewing (started last January). I'm hoping I'll top that in 2013, but who knows.

Stauffbier said:

I'd really like to try a good mead to see if it's something I'd want to brew. I've never had one.

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I have a case of mead that I made 17 years ago! I tastes fantastic. It is like drinking fine champagne.:rockin:

I also brewed a milk stout yesterday. Looking forward to that.

graduate said:

I have a case of mead that I made 17 years ago! I tastes fantastic. It is like drinking fine champagne.:rockin:

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That's impressive!

Just racked my vienna lager to a keg, holding steady under my porch at 34F. It'll sit there until Feb, to be enjoyed while ice fishing in MN. Made a Galaxy/Cascade IPA yesterday, pretty pumped for that one, the smells are amazing!

My last beer of the year is a Chocolate Stout!
Need some advice, I put in Dark Chocolate (1/4 cup) cocoa powder in the last 3 min of the boil, and then another 1/4 cup when I transferred to the secondary. I tasted it and did not really get the result I expected, should I put some of the home brewer Chocolate flavoring in when I keg it? Or just roll with what I get?

HurricaneR said:

My last beer of the year is a Chocolate Stout!
Need some advice, I put in Dark Chocolate (1/4 cup) cocoa powder in the last 3 min of the boil, and then another 1/4 cup when I transferred to the secondary. I tasted it and did not really get the result I expected, should I put some of the home brewer Chocolate flavoring in when I keg it? Or just roll with what I get?

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I didn't care for the Chocolate Extract when I used it. I'd either get some cocoa nibs and rack on top of them for a couple weeks or just roll with it. With chocolate stouts or just stouts in general the roast flavors and chocolate flavors come out more with a little bit of aging time....

Final brew session for the year was yesterday. Bottled 15 gallons (last big bottling session EVER since keg set up is in route :rockin and brewed 11 gallons of a basic APA.

Yesterday, I brewed 5 gallons of my 3rd Age IPA. It's bubbling away in the fermenter with the distinctive smell of WLP029 in the air.

Great way to end the year.

Bohemian Pilsener, 5 gallons, partial mash, brewed on Dec 30. Wort tasted awesome. Bubbling right along now.

Brewing a California Common as we speak......My New Years resolution is to have something in my primary everyday in 2013!!!

Thks!!!

Brewed an all grain version of the White House Honey Porter on 12/29 using fresh orange blossom honey. Due to some volume errors, I overshot my volume and undershot my OG (came to 1.060 instead of 1.065) and now I have a bucket that is damn near ready to blow. Hope the bucket doesn't blow before I get off work and can get a blow-off hose and rig it up. Wound up doing my first decoction with it due to a massive temp drop in my cooler mash tun so I expect this one will turn out amazing.

Brewed an AG amber all out of leftover stuff. OG: 1.065, smells good.