Recent content by craigd

Agree sloppy has a bad connotation - I'm not OC about some things when I brew though. I do measure most ingredients but am not above eyeballing water levels. I also usually leave gravity measurements to the end (if at all) and may or may not bother adjusting with some water if needed. Now...

I agree, no reason to force it. Just relax, have someone else's homebrew :-) I have taken a couple of breaks over the years and came back later.

I like Yeungling but its the fruitiest smelling lager I have ever had. I have to believe they ferment this one a bit high. It has serious ale-like flavors.

Pretty awesome prize list this year. Count me in!

A pic of the Abbey Ale brew: [/IMG]

2/11/2012 Abbey Ale

Never ended up doing a true smash with it but I did do an Abbey Ale with it as the bulk of the mash. I did 10lb abbey ale, 5 lb belgian pils, and 2lb sucrose. 1 addition of Hallertauer to 18 IBUs. It is a very malty beer and came out a wonderful color. I'd say the bread crusty flavor is a...

I keep the roux lighter (peanut butter shade) for seafood and dark (milk chocolate) for game/red meats. I really enjoy smoked ham and andouille sausage in mine but I generally just use whatever leftover meat is around and rarely buy meat specifically for a gumbo. I generally find that meat...

I'm one of the fairly rare people who go back and forth. I use all grain when I have the time but I do extracts when I have to do an evening brew. As long as I get fresh extract and I'm doing a recipe with common ingredients I don't see a significant difference in the beer (but I'll admit my...

Local shop had some abbey malt and after a little taste I was intrigued so I'm going to do a SMaSH. Specs look a lot like a mid-range Munich and looks like it should convert itself. It may be over-the-top bready but we'll see. I'm going with Hallertauer for hops and Wyeast Trappist Ale for...

Interesting new item.

I'm one of those rare AG brewers who still does extract and partials on occasion. Doing partial mash well can be as complex as AG brewing or more so. It used to be seen as an "intermediate step" but really it's just like AG brewing at smaller volumes which you then build up with extract and...

Probably better to say "very similar" than "same thing." Crystal and Caramel refer to the same treatment of the malt and are pretty interchangeable. Although I have never done a side-by-side of M&F Crystal and Briess caramel I would imagine you could find some slight differences due to the...

If you can do your boil within about 12 hours you'll be fine. After that you might be fine too but you might start to get some lacto souring as you approach the 24 hour mark. I have done a sour mash for 36 hours and got some pucker at that point and didn't have to do any spiking of the grains...

I love Shipyard but I find the barleywine to bit a little too dry. It's very drinkable but just not what I'm thinking of when I look for a barleywine...