Monday, January 31, 2011
Bottling Day
Slight change of plans. Yesterday Sunday January 30th, what my plan was, was to transfer our first batch over to our carboy to secondary fermentation. The only issue was, that we haven't seen any bubbling in our airlock for a couple of days now. So, what I did was take a hydrometer reading. It was exactly at 1.012, which is what we needed our FG reading to be (Final Gravity). So, we dissolved our bottling sugar in a pint of boiling water, added it to our bottling bucket, and slowly syphoned our fermented beer back into the bucket, which we had transferred to the carboy earlier. Once we had all the filtered beer in the bucket, we bottled and capped all of our beer. Now, we let the sugar we put into the mixture do it's thing and carbonate the beer. Now, we wait 10-14 days and we can enjoy!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Playing with Labels
I was playing around with Labels the other day on beerlabelizer.com and came up with this, hopefull you enjoy
Airlock Activity
Checked the airlock this morning after finally putting water into the airlock, and she is a bubblin'. This is the reaction we are looking for to verify that fermentation is taking place. I will try and take pictures tonight and post them, as I didn't have enough time this morning before heading off the work. The bubbling in the airlock is the release of excess CO2 in the fermentation bucket. If you have an airlock that isn't bubbling do not worry, this does not mean that your beer isn't fermenting. If your airlock was bubbling and has stopped, it doesn't mean that fermentation has stopped and likewise if your airlock hasn't started bubbling, it doesn't mean fermentation hasn't started. Don't view your airlock as a gauge as to how your fermentation is going. I read on a forum at Homebrewtalk that your Hydrometer is like your stethoscope for your beer. When in doubt take a hydrometer reading! I included a diagram of how the 3-piece airlock works if anyone is wondering.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Brew Day (Sunday January 23rd, 2011)
The weekend of brew day my girlfriend and I had gone up to her cabin at Alpental to get out of the city for a couple days. Her cabin is situated halfway between Interstate-90 and the Alpental Resort in the Alpental neighborhood. This place is amazing and we love going up whenever we get the chance to.
Erika's Family Cabin
Other than the skiing and hiking 5 minutes away, one of the things we love about the cabin is the tap water up there. The tap water up at the cabin is unbelievably crisp and clean tasting. It is hands down better than any bottled water I have ever tasted. In the past I have brought some back from the cabin because it is so good. So, on our way up to Alpental on Friday night, Erika and I were talking about Brewing Sunday, and she had the brilliant idea of using the cabin's tap water for our brewing water!!! Thank you Erika!!! So on Saturday when we were exploring Cle Elum, Suncadia, and Roslyn, we purchased 5 5-gallon water jugs, which we then filled with the cabin's tap water. (pictured below)
Every person I told, that I was going to start brewing beer, all said the same thing. cleanliness, cleanliness, cleanliness...sanitize, sanitize, sanitize! The key to a good batch of beer, is to keep everything as clean as possible. This advice came from my uncle who used to brew his own beer, to the brewers at Roslyn Brewery. Sidenote: If you live in Western Washington and have never been to the Roslyn Brewery, you need to visit. The 3 beers they make are delicious and the brewery itself is a trip in itself. Roslyn, WA is a place where you feel like you just went back in time to the early 1900's. It is a town with an old western feel, nestled in the corners of the Cascade Mountains, and the brewery is just stashed just at the edge of the main town center. Their Brookside Lager is worth the trip, go visit!
Back to the cleanliness. I used 2 packets of C-Brite with 4 gallons of water to wash out my Bucket Fermentor, as well as 3 gallons of water and another 2 packets of C-Brite to wash out our brew pot as pictured below.
Let's start brewing!!! What we did was took 3 gallons of the fresh cold water we brought down from Alpental and bring it up to 150 degrees in our brew pot. Once we reached a water temperature of 150 degrees we put our
- 10 ounces of crystal 40 ºL &
- crystal 135–165 ºL, and put the grains in a Muslin bag for steeping (as shown below) We then steeped the grain bags in the water for 20 minutes and then discarded the grain bag.
After steeping the grains for 20 minutes and removing, I took a spoon and stirred the water to create a whirpool in the pot. Salim then took our Cooper's Light Malt Liquid Extract (pictured below) and slowly poured the entire can into the pot, all the while I continually stirred the Wort. Once, the liquid extract had dissolved into the Wort, Salim began slowly pouring in the dry malt extract (pictured below) into the Wort, still stirring consistently. A word to the wise, do not take whole bag of dry malt extract and hold it over the pot to pour in consistently. Salim and I did that and the steam rising from the Wort made the dry extract melt and clump together and only made us stir more to get rid of the clumps. Instead, I would suggest putting medium sized amounts in at a time, and individually stirring them in separately. Would most likely save a lot of arm strength haha. Stir the wort continuously until all extract is dissolved.
HINT: What is WORT? If this is the first time you are hearing the word, get to know it well. Essentially what Wort is, is the beer itself prior to fermentation. What John J. Palmer defines Wort as, is "The malt-sugar solution that is boiled prior to fermentation." Also another little tidbit from Mr. Palmer is that prior to boiling the mixture is called the "sweet-wort" and the mixture after boiling (with added hops) is known as the "bitter wort."
Once the dry extract has been completely dissolved we brought the Wort up to a slow rolling boil and added .5 ounces of Chinook Hops Pellets to the wort and continue to boil. The total boiling time for the wort should be just around 60 minutes.
HINT: WATCH FOR BOILOVERS!!! Salim and I put the lid on the brew pot and about 5 minutes later we had a boil over. Horrible to try and clean up! Instead what we did for the rest of the boil was place the lid on top and left about an inch of open space for air to escape. We had no more boil overs for the rest of the boiling process.
After 30 minutes from the beginning of the boil, we added the first ounce of Willamette hops Pellets into the Wort. We continued boiling and after 45 minutes into the boil we added the 1 tsp of Irish Moss and Gypsum into the Wort. And then again, after 55 minutes into the boil, we added the second ounce of Willamette hops. We continued boiling the Wort for another 5 minutes to finish out the total boil of 60 minutes. The next step is crucial, once the boil is done we put the boil pot directly into an ice bath to cool the temperature of the Wort immediately (as shown below). The reason this is crucial is because the Wort must come down to a temperature between 65 and 77 degrees so that we can pitch the Yeast into the Wort to start fermenting. It would be wise to keep the lid on the brew pot to keep any cooling water or contaminants from entering the Wort. Salim and I only left the top on the Pot half of the time to try and cool it quicker. We will see what effect not having the lid on the top will do to the taste of the beer.
Once the beer had cooled to 75 degrees Salim and I poured the Wort into our Primary fermenting bucket. We poured the Wort aggressively into the bucket as to cause the Wort to splash. This is the only time in the brewing process you want to oxygenate the beer, as it provide the required oxygen necessary for the yeast to grow. (as shown below) After pitching the yeast we added the remaining two gallons of Alpental water to the wort to prepare the batch for fermentation.
Once in the fermenting bucket, we sealed the air tight lid shut and set aside in our house to let the Wort ferment for 7 days in the primary bucket. We placed the fermenting bucket inside our tub, in case there was some leakage. (as shown below) Once we put the fermentor aside, we left it. Unfortunately I forgot to fill the airlock with water, and ended up doing it 24 hours after the initial capping. Hopefully, this doesn't effect the flavor of the beer too much. What you want to do, is fill the airlock with water or sanitizer solution right away.
As you can tell there are definitely some kinks that need to be worked out in our brewing process, but hey, it is our first batch and we expected to make a few small mistakes. The one thing we are hoping is that the small mistakes don't make huge effects on the beer. What we will do, is learn from them and make sure it doesn't happen the next time around.
Just a view of where we are fermenting the beer in our house. Make sure that you can keep the temperature of your fermenting beer around 65 to 70 degrees.
The Ultimate Question....Aluminum or Stainless Steel?
Prior to actually starting the process of getting all the equipment needed to start brewing, I spent countless hours researching what kind of boiling pot to get. I really didn't think there were so many factors in picking the right boiling pot; 3 gallon, 5 gallon, or 7 gallon? Stainless or Aluminum? Sealable or Non-sealable? Riveted or nonriveted? So many factors to consider!!! That was until I went on homebrewtalk.com and found a thread on one debate, Aluminum vs. Stainless. That is the main argument here, and what I came up with, It doesn't matter at all. Seriously? Hours and hours of research to find out that it really doesn't matter? Pretty much what it comes down to is preference of the brewer. Here are the pros and cons of each kind of pot, that I got off the homebrewtalk.com thread. (Thank you FlyGuy)
Aluminum Pots:
Pros:
- considerably less expensive than SS
- much better at conducting heat than SS, which means faster boils, faster cooling, and less chance of scorching
- not as heavy to lift as SS
Cons:
- oxidizes easily, meaning that oxygen-based cleaners (e.g., Oxyclean, One-step) cannot be used (Note: caustic or other similar clean-in-place solutions can definitely not be used, which is why the brewing industry generally does not use aluminum.)
- passive oxide layer must be built up before brewing (**see note below) with a new aluminum kettle, although it is very easy to maintain
Stainless Steel Pots:
Pros:
- can be cleaned by oxygenated/CIP cleaners without damaging the pot
- passive oxide layer that protects the pot is not as easy to remove as aluminum
- they are really shiny and look cool!
Cons:
- expensive
- not nearly as good at conducting heat as aluminum
Myths About Aluminum Pots:
- Aluminum pots will cause Alzheimer's disease.
FALSE. This myth was debunked years ago by the medical research community, and the US National Institutes of Health and Health Canada have long since ruled out a connection between Alzheimer’s disease and aluminum cookware. If you don’t believe me, see the following:http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?documentID=99http://alz.org/alzheimers_disease_myths_about_alzheimers.asphttp://www.ehso.com/ehshome/alzheimers.htm
- Boiling your wort in an aluminum pot will cause off-flavours in your beer.
FALSE. Simply boiling a batch of wort will not remove enough metal from your aluminum pot to get into your beer and cause metallic off flavours, particularly if you build up a passive oxide layer inside the pot first. For new pots, this is easily achieved by either boiling the pot full of water for 30 mins to one hour, or by putting it in your oven for 10 mins at 350 F.
- Aluminum pots have very thin walls, and are not suitable for a boil kettle, particularly if you want to install a ball valve.
FALSE. Thin- and thick-walled pots are made from both aluminum and stainless steel. The material they are made from is much less relevant that the thickness of the pot.
- Aluminum pots will react with very acidic materials, and wort is acidic.
NOT REALLY. Wort isn’t acidic enough to cause a problem with an aluminum pot. In fact, both SS and aluminum are quite resistant to acidic materials, and you need to be concerned more about highly alkaline (i.e. basic or high pH) materials with your pots.
- Aluminum pots are simply not as durable as SS pots, so why bother, plus they will scratch easily and harbor bacteria.
PERHAPS, BUT... Both aluminum and SS are durable enough for homebrewing if you are willing to invest just a small amount of care for your equipment. You simply aren’t going to wear out an aluminum pot in your brewing lifetime, so this is a moot argument. Furthermore, scratches aren’t really a concern with a kettle since the heat of the boil is going to sanitize it anyways.
So what did I chose after all this? I chose Aluminum. The main reason I chose Aluminum is that is conducts heat much easier than Stainless. As a beginning brewer I was told that it is crucial to cool down the boiled Wort ASAP, so I thought having aluminum and thinner walls, would allow me to cool down my Wort and cut down on boiling times, which I was correct. I got my 3 gallon pot of water to boil in 15 minutes on my stove at home in my kitchen. It normally takes my 15 minutes to get a gallon of water to boil in my Stainless kitchen pot to boil Pasta. Also, I was able to cool my Wort down from Boiling Temperature to the necessary 70-75 degrees in under 10 minutes, when I put it in the ice bath. The liquid was still warm but the sides of the pot were freezing! That was my choice, but as FlyGuy put it, its all the preference of the brewer.
Here is the link to the thread I got this off of.
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/faq-aluminum-pots-boil-kettles-49449/
Also, a fellow member made a Wikipedia Page on this matter. Check it out at:
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Is_aluminum_safe_for_brewing%3F
Up Next, recapping Brew Day!
Aluminum Pots:
Pros:
- considerably less expensive than SS
- much better at conducting heat than SS, which means faster boils, faster cooling, and less chance of scorching
- not as heavy to lift as SS
Cons:
- oxidizes easily, meaning that oxygen-based cleaners (e.g., Oxyclean, One-step) cannot be used (Note: caustic or other similar clean-in-place solutions can definitely not be used, which is why the brewing industry generally does not use aluminum.)
- passive oxide layer must be built up before brewing (**see note below) with a new aluminum kettle, although it is very easy to maintain
Stainless Steel Pots:
Pros:
- can be cleaned by oxygenated/CIP cleaners without damaging the pot
- passive oxide layer that protects the pot is not as easy to remove as aluminum
- they are really shiny and look cool!
Cons:
- expensive
- not nearly as good at conducting heat as aluminum
Myths About Aluminum Pots:
- Aluminum pots will cause Alzheimer's disease.
FALSE. This myth was debunked years ago by the medical research community, and the US National Institutes of Health and Health Canada have long since ruled out a connection between Alzheimer’s disease and aluminum cookware. If you don’t believe me, see the following:http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?documentID=99http://alz.org/alzheimers_disease_myths_about_alzheimers.asphttp://www.ehso.com/ehshome/alzheimers.htm
- Boiling your wort in an aluminum pot will cause off-flavours in your beer.
FALSE. Simply boiling a batch of wort will not remove enough metal from your aluminum pot to get into your beer and cause metallic off flavours, particularly if you build up a passive oxide layer inside the pot first. For new pots, this is easily achieved by either boiling the pot full of water for 30 mins to one hour, or by putting it in your oven for 10 mins at 350 F.
- Aluminum pots have very thin walls, and are not suitable for a boil kettle, particularly if you want to install a ball valve.
FALSE. Thin- and thick-walled pots are made from both aluminum and stainless steel. The material they are made from is much less relevant that the thickness of the pot.
- Aluminum pots will react with very acidic materials, and wort is acidic.
NOT REALLY. Wort isn’t acidic enough to cause a problem with an aluminum pot. In fact, both SS and aluminum are quite resistant to acidic materials, and you need to be concerned more about highly alkaline (i.e. basic or high pH) materials with your pots.
- Aluminum pots are simply not as durable as SS pots, so why bother, plus they will scratch easily and harbor bacteria.
PERHAPS, BUT... Both aluminum and SS are durable enough for homebrewing if you are willing to invest just a small amount of care for your equipment. You simply aren’t going to wear out an aluminum pot in your brewing lifetime, so this is a moot argument. Furthermore, scratches aren’t really a concern with a kettle since the heat of the boil is going to sanitize it anyways.
So what did I chose after all this? I chose Aluminum. The main reason I chose Aluminum is that is conducts heat much easier than Stainless. As a beginning brewer I was told that it is crucial to cool down the boiled Wort ASAP, so I thought having aluminum and thinner walls, would allow me to cool down my Wort and cut down on boiling times, which I was correct. I got my 3 gallon pot of water to boil in 15 minutes on my stove at home in my kitchen. It normally takes my 15 minutes to get a gallon of water to boil in my Stainless kitchen pot to boil Pasta. Also, I was able to cool my Wort down from Boiling Temperature to the necessary 70-75 degrees in under 10 minutes, when I put it in the ice bath. The liquid was still warm but the sides of the pot were freezing! That was my choice, but as FlyGuy put it, its all the preference of the brewer.
Here is the link to the thread I got this off of.
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/faq-aluminum-pots-boil-kettles-49449/
Also, a fellow member made a Wikipedia Page on this matter. Check it out at:
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Is_aluminum_safe_for_brewing%3F
Up Next, recapping Brew Day!
Extra Purchased Materials
I went a little crazy on Tuesday of last week at a trip to Mountain Homebrew and Supply in Kirkland, WA. On my lunch break I was able to make it down to Kirkland in back without taking extra time. There is got a recipe kit, 48 12-oz bottles and a bag of 100 bottle caps. The beer I decided on, much resembles the all-time Seattle are classic, Mac & Jack's African Amber. Most everyone from Seattle has either tried or heard of Mac & Jack's African Amber, and is personally one of my favorite beers. Amber Ales are a part of the Pale Ale arena of beers. They are known for their malty caramel profiles, but have a lower hop level than most traditional Pale Ales. It was not surprising to here that the Outback Amber from Mountain Homebrew was their most popular beer kit. I actually had already found the recipe for this beer online, so when I went into Mountain Homebrew I had my mind set on it, so when I heard it was their best seller, the decision was easy. So i purchased the kit for $42.99. That's right the kit was only $42.99 for ingredients to make around 48 beers! Sounds pretty good to me. Here is what is included in the kit.
Outback Amber Recipe Kit
- 3.3 lb (1.5kg) Jar of Cooper's Light Malt Extract
- 3 lbs. (1.4 kgs) Amber Dry Malt
- 8oz. (224 grams) Crystal 40L & 2oz (56grams) crystal 135-165L
- 1/2 oz (14 grams) Chinook Hops
- 2oz (56grams) Willamette Hops (in 2 28oz bags)
What was not included
- Vile of White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) Yeast
- 1 Package of Irish Moss
- 1 Package of Gypsum
- Priming Sugar (Corn Sugar)
The ingredients that were not included, are not included because the wet yeast (recommended) needs to be refrigerated separately, and the gypsum, Irish Moss, and Priming Sugar you will use more than for just this batch. So, after all the shopping at Mountain Homebrew my total cost for the Recipe Package, extra ingredients, 100 bottle caps, and 48 12-oz bottles, was $102.58. I know that sounds like a lot of money for 1 batch of beer, but look at it this way. You will reuse the bottles for every batch, granted you don't break any, I have extra Irish Moss, Gypsum, and priming sugar for my next batches. The bottle caps were only $4, so that wasnt a huge expense. So, essentially what we were looking at is around $50 for 48 12-oz beers. As far as micro brews go, I like the sound of that price. As far as if the taste will be worth that, it all depends on Salim and I's abilities. We will find out in a couple weeks. The next step, finding the right pot.....on to Outdoor Emporium!
Check out Mountain Homebrew and Supply at:
http://mountainhomebrew.com/
Outback Amber Recipe Kit
- 3.3 lb (1.5kg) Jar of Cooper's Light Malt Extract
- 3 lbs. (1.4 kgs) Amber Dry Malt
- 8oz. (224 grams) Crystal 40L & 2oz (56grams) crystal 135-165L
- 1/2 oz (14 grams) Chinook Hops
- 2oz (56grams) Willamette Hops (in 2 28oz bags)
What was not included
- Vile of White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) Yeast
- 1 Package of Irish Moss
- 1 Package of Gypsum
- Priming Sugar (Corn Sugar)
The ingredients that were not included, are not included because the wet yeast (recommended) needs to be refrigerated separately, and the gypsum, Irish Moss, and Priming Sugar you will use more than for just this batch. So, after all the shopping at Mountain Homebrew my total cost for the Recipe Package, extra ingredients, 100 bottle caps, and 48 12-oz bottles, was $102.58. I know that sounds like a lot of money for 1 batch of beer, but look at it this way. You will reuse the bottles for every batch, granted you don't break any, I have extra Irish Moss, Gypsum, and priming sugar for my next batches. The bottle caps were only $4, so that wasnt a huge expense. So, essentially what we were looking at is around $50 for 48 12-oz beers. As far as micro brews go, I like the sound of that price. As far as if the taste will be worth that, it all depends on Salim and I's abilities. We will find out in a couple weeks. The next step, finding the right pot.....on to Outdoor Emporium!
Check out Mountain Homebrew and Supply at:
http://mountainhomebrew.com/
Material and preparation...(Brew Kit)
Since we didn't start this blog prior to brewing our first batch I will start over from when this all started. My wonderful girlfriend Erika, bought me a homebrew kit for christmas this last year (2010). She bought me the True Brew Gold Homebrewing Kit. The following is a picture of the kit with a description of everything included;
Kit Includes:
- True Brew Handbook and Kit Instructions
- 7.8 Gallon Fermenting Bucket (for primary fermenting)
- 1 Lid Drilled & Grommet
- True Brew Rack and Fill Kit
- 6 Gallon Glass Carboy (for secondary fermenting)
- Fermometer Fermentation Thermometer
- Small Buon Vino Drilled Stopper
- Hydrometer
- Bottling Spigot
- Emily Double Lever Capper
- 3-piece Airlock
- Bottle Brush
- C-Brite Sanitizer 8-Pack
- C-Brite Sanitizer 8-Pack
This kit is great for beginning brewers. It has literally everything you need other than a large boiling pot, sanitizing bucket, stirring tools, bottles, and caps. As for the research prior to brewing, the True Brew Brewer's handbook was alright, but the the key to my knowledge was reading John J. Palmer's Book "How to Brew". This book was a huge resource for me in not just telling me what to do in the brewing process, but why it was suppose to be done and the different ways each step can be done. I would suggest each person who is thinking about starting to home brew go out and purchase this book prior to even buying the kit or materials needed to brew. The cover of the book is shown below.
Start of the blog, an afterthought...
The first post (Please mind the immaturity of the writing, I’m not a writer and definitely new to the whole blogging thing). I will have to say we are definitely not starting out on the right track. Salim and I already have our first batch of extract specific beer in the fermentor (which we will document in a later post). The whole blog idea didn't really come into play until about 30 minutes after we finished brewing. It kinda hit me after I was going back through all the pictures my girlfriend and I took during the whole brewing process this last Sunday. Another inspiration for our blog were all the other blogs written by more experienced home brewers. As I looked at all these blogs, I will admit that I was nervous about stating the brewing process. Multiple concerns came into play, what if I screw the first batch up? Will I have enough money to be able to buy a replacement batch if I screw it up? Would I look immature on the home brewing forums if I posted really simple questions? Etc. What I came up with after all the concerns, I AM AN AMATEUR!! I got over the whole looking stupid thing on forums, because there were plenty of people out there who knew just as little as me and were starting their homebrew careers as well. Every home brewer was a novice at one point and you'll never master the process without asking questions and getting support from the veterans. So, I came up with the idea of this blog for 2 main purposes. 1) So that we could document or experiences and our thoughts about home brewing, and 2) So that anyone who is starting to homebrew can hopefully gain some confidence and learn from two guys who have never brewed before and are in the infant stages of their home brewing careers.
Just to tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Alex Haskell and I am from Mill Creek, Washington. Mill Creek is a suburb in Western Washington about 20 miles north of Seattle. I currently live in Seattle in the Ballard Neighborhood. I wouldn't say that I didn't grow up not appreciating beer, but I just never had the wide knowledge of beer that I do now. I thought Pyramid and Red Hook were the only microbrews in Seattle, and then find out later, Red Hook isn't even in Seattle. I went to the University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ. There I joined the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and was introduced to Keystone Light. At the time I thought it was amazing, and still drink it on occasion when I'm not the one buying it. Then, eventually went from there to Coors, to Budweiser, and the occasional random microbrew or import at the bars. It wasn't until I was hired at The Shanty Cafe on 4th Ave in Tucson, where I truly learned about beer. Side note; If you are ever in Tucson, the only bar you need to go to is The Shanty Cafe. It is the oldest continually licensed bar in the State of Arizona. It may not be a huge party bar, but it has 250 different kinds of bottled beer, every type of liquor you could imagine, pool tables, etc. It's a quieter place, and the atmosphere from the clientele is amazing. Just be wary, they don’t serve food. Problem solved, you can order food or bring food into the bar. Not to mention, the bar has been run by 1 family for the entirety of its existence, and my old Boss, definitely knows his stuff. Needless to say, with 250 types of beer and the entire concept of the bar being beer focused, a person is bound to form a respect for beer. I tried every beer we offered at the bar, and from there took my interests to specialty beer markets. When most people went to parties with a thirty bomb of Key Light, I was bringing six packs of craft beers that would cost twice what the thirty racks would cost. I was spending most everything I made at the bar on beer. I WAS HOOKED. The conclusion I have come to is that the lower my ability to see through the beer, the better it is. However, I respect and enjoy all kinds of beer.
The past year or so, I have strayed from my search for craft beers, and had entered the world of wine. Coming back to Washington, I have thoroughly enjoyed exploring the emerging Washington Wine industry and what it has to offer. However, I have made a conscious decision to GET BACK TO BEER!! Thus, the idea of brewing it myself. As luck would have it, I have a room mate who enjoys beer as much as I do, and had a desire brew it too. Worked out perfectly! I will have Salim get on here and write a little something about himself later, as I am the only one who knows that I have started this blog hahaha. If anyone finds this blog and wants to ask questions to gain knowledge, or comment to provide knowledge, please do so. Hope you all enjoy, if you're out there.....
Just to tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Alex Haskell and I am from Mill Creek, Washington. Mill Creek is a suburb in Western Washington about 20 miles north of Seattle. I currently live in Seattle in the Ballard Neighborhood. I wouldn't say that I didn't grow up not appreciating beer, but I just never had the wide knowledge of beer that I do now. I thought Pyramid and Red Hook were the only microbrews in Seattle, and then find out later, Red Hook isn't even in Seattle. I went to the University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ. There I joined the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and was introduced to Keystone Light. At the time I thought it was amazing, and still drink it on occasion when I'm not the one buying it. Then, eventually went from there to Coors, to Budweiser, and the occasional random microbrew or import at the bars. It wasn't until I was hired at The Shanty Cafe on 4th Ave in Tucson, where I truly learned about beer. Side note; If you are ever in Tucson, the only bar you need to go to is The Shanty Cafe. It is the oldest continually licensed bar in the State of Arizona. It may not be a huge party bar, but it has 250 different kinds of bottled beer, every type of liquor you could imagine, pool tables, etc. It's a quieter place, and the atmosphere from the clientele is amazing. Just be wary, they don’t serve food. Problem solved, you can order food or bring food into the bar. Not to mention, the bar has been run by 1 family for the entirety of its existence, and my old Boss, definitely knows his stuff. Needless to say, with 250 types of beer and the entire concept of the bar being beer focused, a person is bound to form a respect for beer. I tried every beer we offered at the bar, and from there took my interests to specialty beer markets. When most people went to parties with a thirty bomb of Key Light, I was bringing six packs of craft beers that would cost twice what the thirty racks would cost. I was spending most everything I made at the bar on beer. I WAS HOOKED. The conclusion I have come to is that the lower my ability to see through the beer, the better it is. However, I respect and enjoy all kinds of beer.
The past year or so, I have strayed from my search for craft beers, and had entered the world of wine. Coming back to Washington, I have thoroughly enjoyed exploring the emerging Washington Wine industry and what it has to offer. However, I have made a conscious decision to GET BACK TO BEER!! Thus, the idea of brewing it myself. As luck would have it, I have a room mate who enjoys beer as much as I do, and had a desire brew it too. Worked out perfectly! I will have Salim get on here and write a little something about himself later, as I am the only one who knows that I have started this blog hahaha. If anyone finds this blog and wants to ask questions to gain knowledge, or comment to provide knowledge, please do so. Hope you all enjoy, if you're out there.....
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