28 March 2007

Batch #61: Munich Dunkel

Dunkel. Means "dark" in German. Well, not pitch-black can't-see-squat-through-the-glass dark. Not Schwarzbier dark. Just an inviting, mesmerizing, alluring dark brown.

Sunday I brewed 10 gallons of Munich-style Dunkel, making it 61 batches (10 extract, 51 all-grain) to date. Here's the specs:

Altfeuerwache Dunkel

Batch Size (Gal): 10.00 Wort Size (Gal): 10.00
Total Grain (Lbs): 22.00
Anticipated OG: 1.052 Plato: 12.82
Anticipated SRM: 19.1
Anticipated IBU: 20.0
Brewhouse Efficiency: 65 %
Wort Boil Time: 75 Minutes

12.00 lbs. Munich Malt
5.00 lbs. Dark Munich Malt
4.00 lbs. Pilsener
0.50 lbs. Melanoidin Malt
0.50 lbs. Carafa II

2.00 oz. Hallertauer (Whole, 4.50% AA) 60 min.

White Labs WLP833 German Bock Yeast

In about 4 hours I had 10 gallons in the fermenters and a yeast slurry pitched. Popped it in the chest freezer at about 50° and the next day it was a-bubblin'.

Just for shits and giggles I took some video of the brew session:





Next up: Barleywine, just in time for the colder nights.

Cheers!!

18 March 2007

Sly Fox

Well, it's been a couple weeks. Family's been sick and that means time away from keyboard and brewing.

But I did manage to get some free time and head over to hang out with a good friend and hit the taps! A 2-1/2 hour drive east on the turnpike landed me in Royersford, PA, home of Sly Fox Brewing. My friend and I stopped in and sampled some of their offerings.

The Sly Fox Brewpub in Royersford is their second of two and it houses a 20bbl brewhouse, a bottling line and a canning line. The restaurant was pretty big, about 7,000 sqare feet. The food was good, the beer was even better!

We kept the barstools warm for a while, giving us time to knock back a few pints. I opted for the dunkel, the stout, and split a 22oz bomber of their Double IPA with my friend. My friend grabbed some dunkel and their Rt. 113 IPA, a little of which I tried. Nice, hoppy aroma and flavor; only upstaged by their huge Double IPA! He also remarked that he had been there a few days earlier with a friend and that their Saison was very good as well.

All in all, it's a nice place with very good beer! Next time I'm in the area I'll be visiting their Pheonixville establishment.

Cheers!

03 March 2007

Another good year for craft beer











According to the Brewer's Association, craft beer sales were up 11.7% by volume in 2006! Furthermore, craft beer sales have grown 29.5% over the past three years! See the press release at the Brewer's Association website for more info and statistics.

Microbrew fad, my ass! Sounds to me like a lot of people are discovering what beer with flavor is like.