Local 12 beers of Christmas
- Thread starter Hernando
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk:
Brent_in_Aurora
Well-Known Member
I can do a beer if you want an even 12. I assume that you are trading them?
Hey, what about me!? Feel so left out...
Oh, just noticed that the signup is closed at 11 beers of Christmas... that technically makes Chessking a grinch, but ok. 
You guys have me thinking though... perhaps this setup isn't a bad idea moving forward where there's perhaps a quarterly beer swap? Maybe this could be done more often then just Christmas?
Another idea would be a simple competition where a seasonal beer is brewed by each, ingredients/process must be shared (for learning), then on the deadline we could meet at a brewery, swap beers, then review online again using the judging format/points system.
In general I like the small/local format tied in with the forums... I think it has a lot of potential for getting to know some local brewers with the added benefit of swapping beers in a laid back competitive environment to keep things interesting.
Any thoughts?
You guys have me thinking though... perhaps this setup isn't a bad idea moving forward where there's perhaps a quarterly beer swap? Maybe this could be done more often then just Christmas?
Another idea would be a simple competition where a seasonal beer is brewed by each, ingredients/process must be shared (for learning), then on the deadline we could meet at a brewery, swap beers, then review online again using the judging format/points system.
In general I like the small/local format tied in with the forums... I think it has a lot of potential for getting to know some local brewers with the added benefit of swapping beers in a laid back competitive environment to keep things interesting.
Any thoughts?
Why am I a Grinch?
![Craft A Brew - Safale BE-256 Yeast - Fermentis - Belgian Ale Dry Yeast - For Belgian & Strong Ales - Ingredients for Home Brewing - Beer Making Supplies - [3 Pack]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51bcKEwQmWL._SL500_.jpg)
Oh, just noticed that the signup is closed at 11 beers of Christmas... that technically makes Chessking a grinch, but ok.
You guys have me thinking though... perhaps this setup isn't a bad idea moving forward where there's perhaps a quarterly beer swap? Maybe this could be done more often then just Christmas?
Another idea would be a simple competition where a seasonal beer is brewed by each, ingredients/process must be shared (for learning), then on the deadline we could meet at a brewery, swap beers, then review online again using the judging format/points system.
In general I like the small/local format tied in with the forums... I think it has a lot of potential for getting to know some local brewers with the added benefit of swapping beers in a laid back competitive environment to keep things interesting.
Any thoughts?
I think this is a great idea and would be interested in doing something like this quarterly.
I will take that grinch title!
Unfortunately if we did the 12 Someone would be short changed 1 beer as I promised 2 of the 4 I have left for help and insight that was provided for this batch. And the two left will have a lot of fruit sediment as I had to really tip the bucket without the wand to get the beer out and in the bottle. I am not trying to give people crap beer, those will be for me so I can at least taste what I made.
We had to hold off at 11. Unfortunately my batch came up a tad short and I will barely have enough to cover the 11 and that will leave me with 2 beers.
Would you be interested if we did another round for the next season, say around Valentines day or St. Patricks Day, something like that?
Just found this. Subscribed for future rounds.
Sorry Chessking! Got the wrong name!
Hernando, what size batches are you making if you don't mind me asking? I can certainly appreciate you not wanting to hand out a sub par beer.
Hernando, what size batches are you making if you don't mind me asking? I can certainly appreciate you not wanting to hand out a sub par beer.
Brent_in_Aurora
Well-Known Member
I would start another group for christmas, if there are people who want to do it. PM me
Pm'd you brent.
davidgsmit said:
+1
Brent_in_Aurora
Well-Known Member
I started a new thread for the second group. Please post there and we will get this going.
HerbieHowells
Well-Known Member
The Gingerbread Ale should be going into primary this Saturday. We bought a house this month, which cut down on my brewing time, plus it's just been too damn hot to brew. That's why I thought I would pick one of the faster turn-around beers.
The plan is to do the Northern Brown from Brewing Classic Styles, and add the spice as directed at the end of the boil. Looking forward to seeing how this turns out, and to the exchange in a few months.
The plan is to do the Northern Brown from Brewing Classic Styles, and add the spice as directed at the end of the boil. Looking forward to seeing how this turns out, and to the exchange in a few months.
Congrats on the new house! Sounds pretty tasty to me. We had one person drop out. I was out of town doing some backpacking and just came back to a message saying that the he won't be able to do the Christmas Gruit. Sheet happens and it is what it is so we are down to the 10 beers of Christmas.
Mine have been bottle conditioning for a bit now and it is SO very hard not to crack on open to see how it tastes. I usually, in normal practice, open one a week to see how flavors develop. But, I am being patient; oh sooo very patient.
Got the Old Ale brewed a few weeks ago. Not sure wtf happened, but missed my OG by almost 10 points (1.056) It still tasted good, but just not going to have the punch it should.
Hoping next week to rack it over on to the fruit.
It still tasted good, but just not going to have the punch it should.Hoping next week to rack it over on to the fruit.
HerbieHowells
Well-Known Member
There was a lovely gingerbread smell wafting out of my airlock yesterday afternoon, making the whole brew room smell like a wonderful bakery. That was before the WLP550 Belgian Ale in the second carboy took off, and made the whole room smell like a frat house. But based on the earlier smell, I have high hopes for this ale.
Had a bit of a stressful weekend (and I am going to vent) but my good friend and I took over the caramel quad. The guy who was supposed to do it kinda struck a nerve with me; he was to meet us at the brewhut Sat. to pick up the ingredients and since he was confsed on what to get I decided to meet them at the brewhut to help them out. He never showed, never called and never responded. My friend said he'll buy the stuff for the no-show and have him pay him back and I thought that was pretty commendable. We had a few Oktoberfests too so the evening wasn't a loss.
We had told the guy that we needed to start brewing mid to late morning, with the understanding that this is his beer and I am there to help with whatever questions or help he needed but brewing and clean up and the rest, was on him. (I figured since I am providing the equipment, propane & lunch, that this was fair) It's pushing noon and this guy, again, is a no-show, so we went and picked up some ice for cooling, I bought stuff lunch of course, he didn't show up. So, my friend Harry and I begin brewing and this guy calls around 1 to say he is showing up around 3 PM. We're cool with that but of course he missed the entire all-grain process. So this guys shows up around 3 and the boil is just begining. I am cooking up some food and the caramel for the brew while they watch the boil. My friend ends up leaving at 5:30 (we just transferred the beer to the ice tub) Harry says don't forget, you have to clean up and stuff.
I offer the guy a beer and he is telling me it's very good, blah-blah. He finishes off his beer and then leaves. While the beer is still cooling. He tells me, "I gotta go man. Are you cool with handling everything?" I am pissed and speechless and tell him I don't really have a choice, do I? So he bails, leaves me to do all the transferring and cleanup. This guys literally did nothing for this beer but stir the boil for 5 minutes.
I called Harry and told him what happened and he was pissed off too. We agreed to have the dude keep his money and we'll keep the batch since he did nothing for this beer at all. Do you guys think this was the right thing to do or am I being over-dramatic?
The Caramel Quad is happily fermenting in my basement. The final gravity was 1.106. With that being said, I would open this beer last or late as possible. It is October and I don't foresee this beer being mellow by December but I could be wrong. Had I known the procrastination was going to take so long I would have done this beer and left the dubbel for someone else. So, I apologize for this beer possibly not being ready by the time we exchange. And, thanks for letting me vent (not that I gave you a choice).
We had told the guy that we needed to start brewing mid to late morning, with the understanding that this is his beer and I am there to help with whatever questions or help he needed but brewing and clean up and the rest, was on him. (I figured since I am providing the equipment, propane & lunch, that this was fair) It's pushing noon and this guy, again, is a no-show, so we went and picked up some ice for cooling, I bought stuff lunch of course, he didn't show up. So, my friend Harry and I begin brewing and this guy calls around 1 to say he is showing up around 3 PM. We're cool with that but of course he missed the entire all-grain process. So this guys shows up around 3 and the boil is just begining. I am cooking up some food and the caramel for the brew while they watch the boil. My friend ends up leaving at 5:30 (we just transferred the beer to the ice tub) Harry says don't forget, you have to clean up and stuff.
I offer the guy a beer and he is telling me it's very good, blah-blah. He finishes off his beer and then leaves. While the beer is still cooling. He tells me, "I gotta go man. Are you cool with handling everything?" I am pissed and speechless and tell him I don't really have a choice, do I? So he bails, leaves me to do all the transferring and cleanup. This guys literally did nothing for this beer but stir the boil for 5 minutes.
I called Harry and told him what happened and he was pissed off too. We agreed to have the dude keep his money and we'll keep the batch since he did nothing for this beer at all. Do you guys think this was the right thing to do or am I being over-dramatic?
The Caramel Quad is happily fermenting in my basement. The final gravity was 1.106. With that being said, I would open this beer last or late as possible. It is October and I don't foresee this beer being mellow by December but I could be wrong. Had I known the procrastination was going to take so long I would have done this beer and left the dubbel for someone else. So, I apologize for this beer possibly not being ready by the time we exchange. And, thanks for letting me vent (not that I gave you a choice).
First of all, don't be concerned about the beer not being ready in time. We can deal with that. Patience is our game. On the issue of dude and the non-contribution, I think you are correct in excluding him at this point. I have put some effort into my beer and expect no less form a brother brewer. Both you and Harry have gone out of your way to get this beer brewed, and when the accounting comes in December, you should get the rewards. I wouldn't feel right if dude got some of my hard earned beer without the effort on his part. To paraphrase the President, "He didn't brew that". I look forward to the sampling of your now doubled workload, and to the December gathering of local brewers. Prosit.
Yea, I'm on your side. It would have irritated me as well, and I would be doing the same thing as you.
On a side note - feedback is welcome with the Fruitcake Old Ale. Put all the fruit in to it the other week, but it doesnt state how long to keep it on the fruit. Should it be aged the entire time on the fruit, or should I treat is usual and only keep it there a week or two?
On a side note - feedback is welcome with the Fruitcake Old Ale. Put all the fruit in to it the other week, but it doesnt state how long to keep it on the fruit. Should it be aged the entire time on the fruit, or should I treat is usual and only keep it there a week or two?
Thanks.
On a much lighter note; I helped Harry bottle his first ever batch of homebrew, the Honey Ginger IPA. I must say from the sampling, this beer is very good. I think the hops we used kinda took over the Ginger, I wasn't picking up on the ginger all that much but still good.
On a much lighter note; I helped Harry bottle his first ever batch of homebrew, the Honey Ginger IPA. I must say from the sampling, this beer is very good. I think the hops we used kinda took over the Ginger, I wasn't picking up on the ginger all that much but still good.
You might want to let some of it age, and see if the ginger comes out more. But if not at least you have a baseline for the next batch. Cheers.
Brent_in_Aurora
Well-Known Member
Ginger is a subtle flavor that will probably blend with the hops. Cinnamon is another warm flavor that blends well.
On another note, I saw some fully laden juniper shrubs on my daily walk with my dogs. The house is vacant and I can get a few ounces if anyone wants some fresh juniper berries.
On another note, I saw some fully laden juniper shrubs on my daily walk with my dogs. The house is vacant and I can get a few ounces if anyone wants some fresh juniper berries.
Just saw this. Is there any way I can get a copy of the ginger bread ale. I would love to get it right and get in on this next year
I think the problem lies in the hops that he used. Initially the recipe says to pick your favorite IPA recipe, so he picked one that uses Simcoe, amarillo and columbus hops. Then after buying the ingredients, we and combing over the Ginger IPA notations in the book it says to use Kent Goldings exclusively. Still should be a good beer.
Sent
HerbieHowells
Well-Known Member
I am planning on getting the gingerbread ale into bottles this weekend. That should give it plenty of time to carb up before Christmas.
Between singing in my church choir and parties, my December calendar will be filling up soon. Has anyone given any thought to the actual exchange?
Between singing in my church choir and parties, my December calendar will be filling up soon. Has anyone given any thought to the actual exchange?
