About 15 years ago I was getting ready to build my own 15-20 gal system, bought a tig welder, took a refresher course on welding, took a brewing class, was investigating PIDs, pumps, and then, well, life happened. So now many of those ideas I had are now being made, and can be bought right off the shelf, and I'm thinking about getting a Clawhammer system.
What I wanted to do 15 years ago is the same thing I want to do now, and that is create a German lager I used to drink in the early to mid 1970s. The beer was from Dinkel Acker it came in a brown 5L mini keg. The beer was amber, pretty strong alcohol wise, very malt forward, but balanced, it left a very sticky residue on the sides of your glass, so it was attenuated to anything like the CD Pils (I'll get to that in a moment), it was not nearly as dark or as strong as the Dopplebocks. So I was happily drinking this when suddenly Dinkel Acker did a switcheroo and now inside the little brown keg was CD Pils. What an abomination, not even close to what I had been drinking, they could have filled it with Bud, it was the same thing as far as I was concerned.
Dinkel Acker had caved to the blase American market that seemed to be a competition about who could make the most tasteless beer. Now mind you, this was 50 years ago, so I'll cut Dinkel Acker some slack now, but back then I was pissed. I searched high, and low and found the last few kegs of the original brew, and have not seen it since. I saved one of the original kegs, and took it to the brewing class I took at Santa Rosa City College that was being run by the Beerocrats. The instructor was their founder or one of them, he was highly regarded, and the class was worthwhile. I showed him the original brown Dinkel Acker keg, and I asked do you know what kind of beer this is, and how could I go about replicating it? He said he had no idea. That was a good 15 years ago, and I have since lost the keg.
I have tried finding a picture online, but have not found the original, plenty of CD Pils ones though. I raise my shaking fist to the sky, and shout "Damn you CD Pils." So this is an unfulfilled aspiration, and I am in the process of evaluating what is going to be needed. I am pleasantly surprised how things have changed since I last had an interest in brewing, at least that's my perception. It appears the newer equipment has made it easier to brew while having better control over the processes, pressure fermentation is more accessible, more forgiving yeast strains, I'm looking at you NovaLager, and of course the free exchange of information like this site provides. And when I think how far this hobby has come from the days when my buddy and I had to get our brewing supplies (canned malt extract from the UK) from a wine making shop because it was not legal to brew beer it blows my mind.
Well, that's why I am here, and that's my story. Thanks to all of you that are willing to share your information, and give your opinions.
What I wanted to do 15 years ago is the same thing I want to do now, and that is create a German lager I used to drink in the early to mid 1970s. The beer was from Dinkel Acker it came in a brown 5L mini keg. The beer was amber, pretty strong alcohol wise, very malt forward, but balanced, it left a very sticky residue on the sides of your glass, so it was attenuated to anything like the CD Pils (I'll get to that in a moment), it was not nearly as dark or as strong as the Dopplebocks. So I was happily drinking this when suddenly Dinkel Acker did a switcheroo and now inside the little brown keg was CD Pils. What an abomination, not even close to what I had been drinking, they could have filled it with Bud, it was the same thing as far as I was concerned.
Dinkel Acker had caved to the blase American market that seemed to be a competition about who could make the most tasteless beer. Now mind you, this was 50 years ago, so I'll cut Dinkel Acker some slack now, but back then I was pissed. I searched high, and low and found the last few kegs of the original brew, and have not seen it since. I saved one of the original kegs, and took it to the brewing class I took at Santa Rosa City College that was being run by the Beerocrats. The instructor was their founder or one of them, he was highly regarded, and the class was worthwhile. I showed him the original brown Dinkel Acker keg, and I asked do you know what kind of beer this is, and how could I go about replicating it? He said he had no idea. That was a good 15 years ago, and I have since lost the keg.
I have tried finding a picture online, but have not found the original, plenty of CD Pils ones though. I raise my shaking fist to the sky, and shout "Damn you CD Pils." So this is an unfulfilled aspiration, and I am in the process of evaluating what is going to be needed. I am pleasantly surprised how things have changed since I last had an interest in brewing, at least that's my perception. It appears the newer equipment has made it easier to brew while having better control over the processes, pressure fermentation is more accessible, more forgiving yeast strains, I'm looking at you NovaLager, and of course the free exchange of information like this site provides. And when I think how far this hobby has come from the days when my buddy and I had to get our brewing supplies (canned malt extract from the UK) from a wine making shop because it was not legal to brew beer it blows my mind.
Well, that's why I am here, and that's my story. Thanks to all of you that are willing to share your information, and give your opinions.
