Mongster (Stian Mong) arrived on this forum with a bang... actually, it was a BOOM. His video was a viral hit here, even before one of our members asked him to join. Now that he's a member, we thought it would be a great idea to get to know him better, and in particular find out where Mong shops for the latest in skullbone brewing garb. The mongster lives in Oslo, Norway, but his desire for blood will make you think he's got roots in Transylvania. What what? Read on.
Note: The video is at the end of this interview. DON'T MISS IT!
Andrew: How long have you been brewing?
Stian: I read an article about Brooklyn Brewery in the start of 2011. At about the same time, I noticed a homebrew shop opening in my neighborhood. I was looking for a new hobby, so I promptly bought a starter kit, and I've been brewing ever since.
Andrew: Did brewing replace some other hobby you got tired of?
Stian: For many years I was an active hobby photographer. First analog (including darkroom work) and then digital, but for some reason I lost interest. I still photograph, but nowadays mostly while travelling.
Andrew: You built an Electric Brewery System. What did you use before that?
Stian: Mashing was done in a plastic vessel without recirculation nor temperature control. I used to boil on my stovetop (even installed a gas burner for that specific purpose). Some of my early equipment is documented here.
Andrew: What type of beers do you brew on that badass system? What's your "goto" beer?
Stian: Looking through my recipes in Beersmith, I notice that my most frequently brewed beers are saison, weizen and IPA.
Andrew: You're in Norway? Is homebrewing big there?
Stian: Yes, I live in Oslo, Norway. Homebrewing has really caught on here. Sometimes when in the homebrew shop, I meet people I've met before, but I had no idea that they were homebrewing. There are a lot of homebrewing clubs around, and some of the homebrewers are successfully making the leap to commercial craft breweries. The price of beer in Norway is quite steep, that may be a motivating factor for many to brew their own.
Andrew: Do you have good availability of yeasts? In the US, I think all our liquid yeast is made in the US. Our dry yeast comes from Canada, France, and elsewhere.
Stian: We have excellent yeast availability. My regular homebrew shop receives weekly shipments of fresh yeast. Wyeast and White Labs are my favorites, but other brands are also available.
Andrew: How about hop availability? Most IPA brewers here are using hops grown in the US.
Stian: I'd almost say that we are spoiled with hops. At least 50 different hops are available, from US, Germany, New Zealand etc. Although leaf hops of many types are available, I prefer pellets, as they don't soak up so much wort.
Andrew: Bottle or keg?
Stian: Bottle. Even though it takes some time to bottle, I like to name my brews and tailor-make bottle labels. Besides, a couple of homebrew bottles make for great gifts to friends and family!
Andrew: Do you have any pictures of labels you've created?
Stian: Boom.
Andrew: What are the commercial beers like in Norway?
Stian: The largest commercial breweries brew mostly pilsners, which taste more or less like any large scale pilsner around the world. But we have some craft breweries with excellent stuff: Ngne , Haandbryggeriet, gir, Kinn and more. Oslo is blessed with many brewpubs, so enjoying great local beer with friends in Oslo is (sometimes literally) a walk in the park.
Andrew: What is in your brewing future? What beers are you planning to brew?
Stian: I have some medium term goals:
-Having beer glasses made with a cool logo of my home brewery
-Successfully brewing a batch for a major event (like a teambuilding or wedding)
-Perfecting 4-5 styles
-Making another video
My very long term goal would be to start up a small brewery or brewpub, preferably in a country with a pleasant climate (like Brazil), where I can brew and sell tasty and/or weird beer to beer geeks.
I've brewed many different styles, and I will continue to brew them to make them even better. Some styles which I haven't brewed yet, but would like to brew:
-Altbier
-Milk stout
-Czech pilsner
-Session IPA
-And in between: Some experimental/weird/metal brews. Before I retire my brewery, it would be interesting to brew..a blood ale (for the sake of good order: animal blood, not human). Not sure it would taste that good though..
Andrew: What type of animal would you suggest for your blood addition?
Stian: Honestly I have no idea. The idea just came to me after a few pints. I would have to do some research before I try that one out.
Andrew: Until you start up Mong's Bleeding Edge Pub, what will you do for a living? Maybe rock the 4-string bass for some metal band, test human wings, a bus driver?
Stian: Office-Mongster is quite different from Brewing-Mongster. I am an electronic engineer by education, working as a quality manager for a major electronic company. Last December I showed my brewing video to a bunch of colleagues at a teambuilding event, and they thought it was hilarious. One of them even decided to start brewing after that, and has recently brewed his first batch.
Andrew: What one piece of advice do you have for new brewers? Perhaps it's something you learned the hard way?
Stian: Take notes of everything you do, including tasting notes (I've failed to completely carry out the latter myself, which I kick myself for). When you strike oil, you would like to be able to repeat that over and over again.
Andrew: What do you use to take notes now? Paper, software (Beersmith), ?
Stian: Beersmith. It's a great tool, and I love Brad Smith's videos.
Andrew: Your system looks like win, all day long. But let's face it, we've all had some failures. Those are hard-earned lessons that we learn from, and it's necessary. What lesson have you learned, the hard way?
Stian: The only epic fail I can think of is when a buddy and I made a split batch (we tried to clone Trooper ale). His fermentation eventually produced a decent brew, but mine was awful. It is the only batch I've had to dump. I guess I got some unwanted guests into the fermentor.
It may not be noticeable, but the brewday on the video was the worst I've had, technically speaking. Some wires had gotten loose, so we had problems with pumps, PIDs and one heating element. We were on the verge of giving up, but eventually we managed to finish gracefully. Lesson Learned: Check your equipment before brewing day.
Andrew: You had a heating element burn up? How'd that happen? Is it 220V there?
Stian: It wasn't that dramatic. The control box wouldn't feed the heating element with power. But we managed to fix it. And yes, we have 220V in Norway (or 230V to be precise)
Andrew: You say Boom every hop addition. Is that something you've always done, or is that an effect for your video?
Stian: The BOOM was born after watching all episodes of brewingtv (sadly discontinued, but episodes are still available on the net). One of the guys was using BLAM when he tossed in the hops. I thought that sounded really cool! But blam didn't really work so well for me, so I changed it to boom.
Andrew: I hope you are OK with the American sense of humor. Homebrewtalk can push a guy with a porn 'stashe and an attitude. But believe me, your big personality is appreciated. Why do we love you so much?
Stian: Good question
I didn't imagine that my video would reach such large and enthusiastic audience (thanks folks, you've really made my day!). I spent a lot of time and money building up my home brewery, and when completed, I wanted to make a showcase of it in some way. I've had a photo site for a long time, so my first thought was to upload some photos to my site. But instead I decided to make a movie of it. I partnered with my brother, who is an avid video maker. And then I guess I managed to hit the sweet spot between information, badassity, and humor
Andrew: Make sure to tell your brother he did a fine job. His effort was appreciated. Does he brew, or just drink yours?
Stian: I will tell him that for sure. I've sent him a draft script for the next video, and we will work further with that. He is my favorite "homebrew tester", and he has started to like several styles he didn't like before (like IPA). Homebrewing is on his bucketlist, but with two small kids, his spare time is limited.
Andrew: Fans want to know: do you listen to music while you brew? What?
Stian: When I am brewing alone, I normally listen to music. Sometimes I go black: Dimmu Borgir is great for brewing (hell..DB is great for anything!). Sometimes I turn on some good old p-funk (Bootsy Collins / George Clinton). I find great music in most styles..I've even brewed to classical music.
Andrew: One final question: Dude, where can one score a skullbone sweater?
Stian: I bought mine in Tokyo (Shibuya or Shinjuku) in 2009. They have a lot of awesome clothing stores there; only problem is that the sizes are generally really small. Luckily the skull sweater fit me well. After purchase, the seller gave me a skull ring as a token of good sell... Japan is definitively metal!
If you see Mongster around the forum, please say hi. He's brand new here, but I hope we will see a lot more of him in the near future.
Note: The video is at the end of this interview. DON'T MISS IT!
Andrew: How long have you been brewing?
Stian: I read an article about Brooklyn Brewery in the start of 2011. At about the same time, I noticed a homebrew shop opening in my neighborhood. I was looking for a new hobby, so I promptly bought a starter kit, and I've been brewing ever since.
Andrew: Did brewing replace some other hobby you got tired of?
Stian: For many years I was an active hobby photographer. First analog (including darkroom work) and then digital, but for some reason I lost interest. I still photograph, but nowadays mostly while travelling.
Andrew: You built an Electric Brewery System. What did you use before that?
Stian: Mashing was done in a plastic vessel without recirculation nor temperature control. I used to boil on my stovetop (even installed a gas burner for that specific purpose). Some of my early equipment is documented here.
Andrew: What type of beers do you brew on that badass system? What's your "goto" beer?
Stian: Looking through my recipes in Beersmith, I notice that my most frequently brewed beers are saison, weizen and IPA.
Andrew: You're in Norway? Is homebrewing big there?
Stian: Yes, I live in Oslo, Norway. Homebrewing has really caught on here. Sometimes when in the homebrew shop, I meet people I've met before, but I had no idea that they were homebrewing. There are a lot of homebrewing clubs around, and some of the homebrewers are successfully making the leap to commercial craft breweries. The price of beer in Norway is quite steep, that may be a motivating factor for many to brew their own.
Andrew: Do you have good availability of yeasts? In the US, I think all our liquid yeast is made in the US. Our dry yeast comes from Canada, France, and elsewhere.
Stian: We have excellent yeast availability. My regular homebrew shop receives weekly shipments of fresh yeast. Wyeast and White Labs are my favorites, but other brands are also available.
Andrew: How about hop availability? Most IPA brewers here are using hops grown in the US.
Stian: I'd almost say that we are spoiled with hops. At least 50 different hops are available, from US, Germany, New Zealand etc. Although leaf hops of many types are available, I prefer pellets, as they don't soak up so much wort.
Andrew: Bottle or keg?
Stian: Bottle. Even though it takes some time to bottle, I like to name my brews and tailor-make bottle labels. Besides, a couple of homebrew bottles make for great gifts to friends and family!
Andrew: Do you have any pictures of labels you've created?
Stian: Boom.
Andrew: What are the commercial beers like in Norway?
Stian: The largest commercial breweries brew mostly pilsners, which taste more or less like any large scale pilsner around the world. But we have some craft breweries with excellent stuff: Ngne , Haandbryggeriet, gir, Kinn and more. Oslo is blessed with many brewpubs, so enjoying great local beer with friends in Oslo is (sometimes literally) a walk in the park.
Andrew: What is in your brewing future? What beers are you planning to brew?
Stian: I have some medium term goals:
-Having beer glasses made with a cool logo of my home brewery
-Successfully brewing a batch for a major event (like a teambuilding or wedding)
-Perfecting 4-5 styles
-Making another video
My very long term goal would be to start up a small brewery or brewpub, preferably in a country with a pleasant climate (like Brazil), where I can brew and sell tasty and/or weird beer to beer geeks.
I've brewed many different styles, and I will continue to brew them to make them even better. Some styles which I haven't brewed yet, but would like to brew:
-Altbier
-Milk stout
-Czech pilsner
-Session IPA
-And in between: Some experimental/weird/metal brews. Before I retire my brewery, it would be interesting to brew..a blood ale (for the sake of good order: animal blood, not human). Not sure it would taste that good though..
Andrew: What type of animal would you suggest for your blood addition?
Stian: Honestly I have no idea. The idea just came to me after a few pints. I would have to do some research before I try that one out.
Andrew: Until you start up Mong's Bleeding Edge Pub, what will you do for a living? Maybe rock the 4-string bass for some metal band, test human wings, a bus driver?
Stian: Office-Mongster is quite different from Brewing-Mongster. I am an electronic engineer by education, working as a quality manager for a major electronic company. Last December I showed my brewing video to a bunch of colleagues at a teambuilding event, and they thought it was hilarious. One of them even decided to start brewing after that, and has recently brewed his first batch.
Andrew: What one piece of advice do you have for new brewers? Perhaps it's something you learned the hard way?
Stian: Take notes of everything you do, including tasting notes (I've failed to completely carry out the latter myself, which I kick myself for). When you strike oil, you would like to be able to repeat that over and over again.
Andrew: What do you use to take notes now? Paper, software (Beersmith), ?
Stian: Beersmith. It's a great tool, and I love Brad Smith's videos.
Andrew: Your system looks like win, all day long. But let's face it, we've all had some failures. Those are hard-earned lessons that we learn from, and it's necessary. What lesson have you learned, the hard way?
Stian: The only epic fail I can think of is when a buddy and I made a split batch (we tried to clone Trooper ale). His fermentation eventually produced a decent brew, but mine was awful. It is the only batch I've had to dump. I guess I got some unwanted guests into the fermentor.
It may not be noticeable, but the brewday on the video was the worst I've had, technically speaking. Some wires had gotten loose, so we had problems with pumps, PIDs and one heating element. We were on the verge of giving up, but eventually we managed to finish gracefully. Lesson Learned: Check your equipment before brewing day.
Andrew: You had a heating element burn up? How'd that happen? Is it 220V there?
Stian: It wasn't that dramatic. The control box wouldn't feed the heating element with power. But we managed to fix it. And yes, we have 220V in Norway (or 230V to be precise)
Andrew: You say Boom every hop addition. Is that something you've always done, or is that an effect for your video?
Stian: The BOOM was born after watching all episodes of brewingtv (sadly discontinued, but episodes are still available on the net). One of the guys was using BLAM when he tossed in the hops. I thought that sounded really cool! But blam didn't really work so well for me, so I changed it to boom.
Andrew: I hope you are OK with the American sense of humor. Homebrewtalk can push a guy with a porn 'stashe and an attitude. But believe me, your big personality is appreciated. Why do we love you so much?
Stian: Good question
I didn't imagine that my video would reach such large and enthusiastic audience (thanks folks, you've really made my day!). I spent a lot of time and money building up my home brewery, and when completed, I wanted to make a showcase of it in some way. I've had a photo site for a long time, so my first thought was to upload some photos to my site. But instead I decided to make a movie of it. I partnered with my brother, who is an avid video maker. And then I guess I managed to hit the sweet spot between information, badassity, and humor
Andrew: Make sure to tell your brother he did a fine job. His effort was appreciated. Does he brew, or just drink yours?
Stian: I will tell him that for sure. I've sent him a draft script for the next video, and we will work further with that. He is my favorite "homebrew tester", and he has started to like several styles he didn't like before (like IPA). Homebrewing is on his bucketlist, but with two small kids, his spare time is limited.
Andrew: Fans want to know: do you listen to music while you brew? What?
Stian: When I am brewing alone, I normally listen to music. Sometimes I go black: Dimmu Borgir is great for brewing (hell..DB is great for anything!). Sometimes I turn on some good old p-funk (Bootsy Collins / George Clinton). I find great music in most styles..I've even brewed to classical music.
Andrew: One final question: Dude, where can one score a skullbone sweater?
Stian: I bought mine in Tokyo (Shibuya or Shinjuku) in 2009. They have a lot of awesome clothing stores there; only problem is that the sizes are generally really small. Luckily the skull sweater fit me well. After purchase, the seller gave me a skull ring as a token of good sell... Japan is definitively metal!
If you see Mongster around the forum, please say hi. He's brand new here, but I hope we will see a lot more of him in the near future.
