Betrayal by Auto-Siphon

The Auto-Siphon. A $15 contraption built by Fermtech Ltd., probably one of the most valuable tools in any well-equipped homebrew's brewing toolbox. It comes in two sizes, 3/8" and 1/2" diameter. Originally I opted for the 3/8" and later moved up to the 1/2" diameter one, naturally because larger diameter equals higher volume flow. I sang its praises at every siphon-discussion turn until...until it betrayed me.

The Achilles' Heel of the Auto-Siphon is the seal at the bottom of the inner tube that contacts the outer tube. When this seal wears or is otherwise defective, it will let air into the siphon. Perhaps not enough air to completely break the suction seal, but enough to create a long, steady line of very large bubbles that'll give you nightmares of your frail and delicate Bohemian Pils tasting like a mouthfull of wet cardboard.

(In case you're confused on that last line, do some reading up on oxidation.)

My second Auto-Siphon died an early death at the hands of a defective seal, summarily and unceremoniously tossed into the trash can. Order up #3, drop another $15.

Straight from the package and into the sanitizer it goes, dunked into the beer, start the siphon and what appears before my disheartened eyes but a long, steady stream of bubbles coming from down at the seal. Another $15 down the drain.

I'm not the kind to let the same dog bite me 3 times (who would've expected twice?!?!) so I'm done with the Auto-Siphon, despite claims on the Fermtech website of a new and improved seal that "prevents introduction of air at the seal." Luckily, I can still use the inner racking cane and tubing to siphon. Just need to come up with a Plan B to get beer into the keg without oxidizing the bejesus out of it along the way.

It's that time again!

Dropped off my entries Saturday for the 12th annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair. Included is a homebrew competition, held by the Gaithersburg Area Brewers Society (GABS) and other local clubs who also supply the BJCP judges. I have a title to protect as I did pretty well last year:

• 2nd Best-of-Show (Robust Porter)
• 1st Place, Bock (default)
• 1st Place, Light Hybrid Beer - Kölsch-style ale
• 1st Place, Porter
• 2nd Place, Strong Ale - English Barleywine

Cheers!

The Harpoon Championship of New England Barbecue

The only thing I love more than beer is beer and good barbecue. Real barbecue, cooked slow-and-low at 225° for the better part of a day, not grilled spare ribs with bottled sauce slathered on just before it hits your plate.

The Harpoon Brewery in Windsor, Vermont is holding it's annual competition this weekend. Unfortunately for me, it's 450 miles away and has a time conflict with that pesky...uh, "occupation" or whatever you call it; quite fortunate, however, for New Englanders or anyone up for a worthy roadtrip.

Here's the info:

What is Harpoon Championships of New England Barbecue all about?

• A celebration of the best of Summer—Fresh beer, great BBQ, & live music
• The Harpoon Brewery in Windsor, Vermont offers an ideal setting for the event
• 40 BBQ Teams from all over will be competing for prize money & trophies
• A select few teams will be selling their award winning BBQ to the public
• Great live music provided by the hottest local bands from Vermont
• Come sit back, relax and enjoy the summer with friends at Harpoon Brewery
• Brewery tours offered through out the weekend

Event Date:

• Saturday, July 28th, 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM (Entrance closes at 6:30 pm)
• Sunday, July 29th, 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM (Entrance closes at 3:30 pm)
• Schedule of Events
  

Where to Come:

• At the Harpoon Brewery, 336 Ruth Carney Drive, Windsor, VT. Map/Directions
• Off Route 5, next door to Simon Pearce, exit 9 off Interstate 91
• Free parking available in the fields surrounding the event site
• Camping at the event is for competing teams only. See attached list of local campgrounds and accommodations

More Details (subject to change):

• Schedule of Events

• Door charge is $6.00 per person and does not include beer or food Children under 12 are admitted free, but must be accompanied by a parent

• Cash bars serving a selection of Vermont-brewed fresh Harpoon and UFO beer for $4.25 a pint

• Various BBQ teams will be selling a wide variety of hot delicious BBQ

• The event will be held rain or shine. Tickets not sold in advance

Stop...hefe time!

I came up with this recipe on my own 4 years ago as my second all-grain batch. It won 1st place in wheat beers at the 2003 Great Frederick Fair. It's simple and is just what the doctor ordered:

Hot Summer Hefeweizen

Batch Size (Gal): 5.00
Total Grain (Lbs): 10.00
Anticipated OG: 1.053
Anticipated SRM: 4.3
Anticipated IBU: 15.0
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70 %
Wort Boil Time: 65 Minutes

4.50 lbs. Pale Malt
5.50 lbs. Wheat Malt

0.80 oz. Hallertauer (Whole, 4.25% AA) 60 min

White Labs WLP300 Hefeweizen Ale

Single infusion mash at 152°F. If you want to get fancy you can do a rest at 111° to optimize ferulic acid production and/or a beta-glucanase rest at 122° to make lautering easier. If you really want to go crazy, do a decoction mash. Otherwise, a single infusion works fine.

Ferment in the low-mid '60s...higher will give you more banana esters. And use a blow-off tube, WLP300 is notorious for blowing the lids off fermenters! Unless you like mopping the floor and ceiling.

Cheers!

Another trip to Michigan

...means another trip to Arbor Brewing and a stop at my favorite beer store!

Arbor Brewing had a great lineup as usual and some nice beers on the hand pump: their Sacred Cow IPA and their Milestone Cask Porter. Both delicious. We went there with some friends so we ordered their sampler, which was 13 3-ounce glasses of all their brews. Nicely done, all very good. They had a Rauchbier that tasted like liquid bacon (admittedly by their own description), which isn't really my thing but it was good for what it was. I just haven't acquired the smoked beer taste yet. Unfortunately their Terminator Dopplebock wasn't on tap but hopefully next time I'm in town, maybe it's a seasonal thing for them.

And without fail, I stoped by Anderson's in Toledo to grab some beers and some other items before heading home. They have a great selection and you can buy SINGLES, something you're not going to do here in Pretzelvania without paying out the wazoo. Didn't go hog wild this time, grabbed some Bell's Porter, Three Floyds Alpha King, Stone Pale Ale, Southern Tier Porter, Southern Tier IPA, Southern Tier UnEarthy IIPA, Salvator Dopplebock (the original, scheduled to die tonight), New Holland Blue Goat Dopplebock and Great Lakes Blackout Imperial Stout.

I'm especially looking forward to the bomber of Blue Goat Dopplebock! Gonna have to be a slow night for that one though.

And what better way to come home than for my dry stout to be carbonated, ready to drink and my Kölsch done fermenting?! A pint of stout was the perfect thing after a long day of driving 500 miles of turnpike.

Up next: brewing a hefeweizen for a club competition and a Three Floyds Alpha King clone!

Another brew

Today was an absolutely beautiful day to brew---74°F, a few clouds in the sky but otherwise great. Brewed 10 gallons of Kölsch with a local fellow brewer. Always good to have good people around who like to make good beer. Things went well, was a little low on the temps when going from the beta-glucan rest to the sacc. rest but we resolved that. Mash-out temp hit dead on at 168°.

This same recipe has won 3 first-place ribbons in competitions over the past few years and usually comes up with 40-42 points. Plus there's a few more comps left this year so it's time to send in the big ones! Not to mention there's a growing demand for my Kölsch among family and friends so I had to get the supply back up!!

Cheers!