OR/WA Brew Day v2.0??

[explosivebeer]

Here's the shipping info. Brian I didn't catch your last name but hopefully the UPS guy won't mind.

Scheduled Delivery: 20-November-2008

Mod Edit: Address has been removed.
Number of Packages 1
UPS Service: GROUND
Weight: 27.0 LBS

Tracking Number: 1Z2559XX0374845893: UPS: Tracking Information

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Thanks Brandon...would you mind taking my address out of the above post though?

 

[explosivebeer]

Sorry about that Brian. Hopefully no crazy HBTers showed up at your doorstep this weekend looking for some homebrew.

 

[McKBrew]

I had a mod remove your address out for you this morning, should have caught it earlier.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

I've got a few folks back east that may be interested in where I am right now but they're probably not smart enough to find me!

No biggy, it's all good.

 

[explosivebeer]

Thanks McKBrew. Also, let me know when you want to pick up your keg. We gave it a rinse down at Kilted Brewer's place so it shouldn't be too funky. Just let me know when is good for you. Or I'll let you know if I'm heading up your way in the next few weeks.

 

[EvilTOJ]

Sorry about that Brian. Hopefully no crazy HBTers showed up at your doorstep this weekend looking for some homebrew.

Oh, I showed up alright, but no one would answer the door

 

[McKBrew]

Thanks McKBrew. Also, let me know when you want to pick up your keg. We gave it a rinse down at Kilted Brewer's place so it shouldn't be too funky. Just let me know when is good for you. Or I'll let you know if I'm heading up your way in the next few weeks.

Not a problem Brandon. I should be able to make a quick run down in the next week or so. Either that or I'll likely be heading to Naked City the weekend of Thanksgiving if you have a chance to meet there..

 

[explosivebeer]

Hey Jess,

I'm not sure what my post-Thanksgiving plans are but I might be able to meet you up there. I'll let you know when I figure things out. Keep in touch.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Added 1/2 of one of the 2 cases of cherries tonight. Also pulled off a tiny sample. There are hints of things going on (sourness, cherries, pinot, oak, etc) but nothing too convincing yet. Base beer tastes great. Also saw evidence of the peliculegetting going.

I know, I know, it's only been a month.

 

[EvilTOJ]

Hey, no sampling! You'll ruin your appetite for dinner!!

 

[blacklab]

Brian;

How's it looking now?

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

I honestly haven't touched it since my last post. I'll pop the airlock off tonight and see if I can spy any action.

 

[AgoristBrewer]

I've been lurking for a while, and this looks fantastic!

Quick Q: When you take it out of the barrel, what are you doing then? Are you kegging? Bottling? drinking it flat?

I'm really curious, because I have no familiarity with barreling beer.

 

[McKBrew]

We will be dividing it up and transferring it into kegs for carbonation or bottling.

 

[blacklab]

I'm just going to beer bong mine flat, at KB's house.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Man, I was just starting to forget about that big barrel in the corner of my basement. Then you come along and bring the thread back to life.

This reminds me though, I'll need to get some more kegs for this.

 

[explosivebeer]

So have you taken any samples lately? I'm just curious how this thing is coming along.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Hey Brandon...I have not taken any samples. I've peaked in once or twice to make sure things are happening, and they are but that's about it. I'd be more than happy to pull a little out if everyone's interested...

 

[explosivebeer]

Yeah I'm sure it'll take a lot of arm twisting to dip into that and see how it's progressing. I would like to hear but there's no rush. Also, how's the level of the barrel? Has much evaporated? Are you going to need reinforcements to keep it topped off?

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Don't know how I missed your reply till now. Haven't tasted yet (just haven't had the time) but we could use a top off at some point. I've already put in 2 10 gallon batches so if anyone else is interested in doing up another batch go for it! Just let us know. I can't see it taking anymore than one more 5 - 6 gallon batch.

 

[explosivebeer]

Don't know how I missed your reply till now. Haven't tasted yet (just haven't had the time) but we could use a top off at some point. I've already put in 2 10 gallon batches so if anyone else is interested in doing up another batch go for it! Just let us know. I can't see it taking anymore than one more 5 - 6 gallon batch.

I can probably get around to it sometime in March. If anyone gets to it before then, let me know and I'll hold off.

 

[AgoristBrewer]

Y'all pitched more yeast in there when you put it in the barrel, right? If it's going to sit there for a year, won't the yeast decompose and make it taste terrible? (I know you have it figured out so that you won't have that problem, but I can't figure out *how*). Why isn't it going to taste like decomposed yeast?

 

[explosivebeer]

Y'all pitched more yeast in there when you put it in the barrel, right? If it's going to sit there for a year, won't the yeast decompose and make it taste terrible? (I know you have it figured out so that you won't have that problem, but I can't figure out *how*). Why isn't it going to taste like decomposed yeast?

Yeah you're kind of right in your thinking. We all made our base beer, fermented it through primary, then racked it off the yeast and put the clean beer in the barrel. If we'd left the normal ale yeast in the beer, or added new ale yeast to the barrel, that would have caused major issues like you would expect.

Instead, we added several liters of a bacterial culture that has a blend of several kinds of souring bacteria. They ferment very slowly and aren't prone to dying off and decomposing in the same way that normal yeast does. Also, they are able to process more complex sugar chains than normal beer yeast so they should be healthy and happy for the year that they're in the barrel.

And even when we finally pull the beer out, they'll hang out in the nooks and crannies of the wood and wait for more food to consume. They're much more resilient than standard yeast.

 

[explosivebeer]

Hey KB how are things going? Have you had a chance to pull a sample off the barrel yet? I haven't managed to brew much recently since I'm in the middle of rebuilding my system. I should be back up and running in a week or two so if you still need some more beer to top the barrel off, let me know and I'll get it brewed so I can drop it off when I'm in town the weekend of the 24th.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Man, you guys are pushy...I took a little pull off this afternoon. From what I can see in the barrel there is a nice pellicule going. Color is coming off more as an amber than a brown, and is quite clear at this point. Aroma is overpowered by the sourness right now with a little oak mixed in. Flavor...let's just say this bad boy is going to need to sit a little longer. Everything is battling it out (oak, pinot, sour) and it needs to mellow. But I'm quite impressed. Another 7 months and this will be quite good.

Explosive, we can use some more base brew so brew away. As far as I know I'm around that weekend.

 

[McKBrew]

Looking forward to it. Even though I don't care much for sours, I think I'll appreciate this more as I had a hand in making it.

 

[blacklab]

I'll see if I can get another 5 gallon batch going. it's going to be late May though.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Here's an iPhone shot of the sample I pulled off...

 

[explosivebeer]

Nice! That's looking good. I'm guessing you probably didn't venture a taste.

Here's an iPhone shot of the sample I pulled off...]