I've swapped beer with a few HBT members in the last few months, and I can't figure that I want to start a thread for each of them.....But I do want to recognize greatness when I see it. I guess I will just update here in the blog as a thanks to these people. JDS had some damn fine sour mashed stout that I was quite impressed with...I started a thread on that one...and Summersolstice was quite generous and not only bought NACHO's @ Breckenridge Brewery, but he also gave me some pretty great brew to try. He started by shipping me a bottle of fruit wine, and at the GABF in Denver, he gave me some more.
The Red Headed Stepchild Ginger Braggot is like a Big Boys Ginger ale. It's got a bit of grain flavor in the background, but it's got an extreme ginger and honey profile that even SWMBO had a few gulps of. I also have a cider, and 2 meads that he sent for me to try out...So I guess I'll be blogging that too.

Counting down to the noon opening of the GABF!

It's been a long time since I've been this excited about going to an event like this. I hope to meet up with many HBT members, and ollllo has done such a great job of getting everything together for member updates!
The only thing I'm not sure of...is how fit we are going to be to go out after 4 hours of drinking.

Oh Well.

SWMBO was gone to visit family this weekend, so I decided to get some brew chores caught up. Wednesday while I was in the city, I picked up 5 more cornies from JDS on our group buy, and stopped by the Brew Hut for some bottles and misc other stuff. Thursday, I bottled my Sour Peach ale, and kegged my Irish Stout (Washed the WLP004 yeast too. Friday, I screwed up my Keggle by drilling the wrong size hole in it, so to feel better I bottled my Christmas Coffee Stout, and brewed the first of 2 ESB experiments. I got to use my new Counter Flow Chiller for the first time, but due to my late start...I didn't hit the hay till after 1a.m.
Saturday I brewed the second of the ESB experiments, and ripped a finger nail off while starting the 4wheeler. After bandaging up the finger, I decided to go ahead and do the Lager I've been planning for several months. Off to heat the sparge water. I had my first real stuck sparge with this batch, I think the 14 oz of minute Rice may have had something to do with it. A little fiddling, some extra water, and a few quick puffs on the out spout, and we were good to go again with a full 74.5% efficiency. (MUCH BETTER than the 55 and the 70 on the first two batches of the day.) While boiling I'm looking at the wort, and it's WAY too dark for what I was planning, and not nearly the correct hops to call it a Bock, so I pitched a packet of Nottingham instead of the lager yeast...just for fun. I guess I'll call it an Amber Cream or some such nonsense. At some point, I kegged a batch of Apfelwein that was started on July 27th, and started another on that yeast cake (Not Sure if it's a great idea or not...but heck! Gotta Try Right?)

Later today I'm going back to Denver to get SWMBO from the airport and will catch up with jds for a sour beer swap! I'll be looking forward to trying some other home brew. Most of what I've had (other than mine) has come from single can kits or Mr. Beer. I'll be excited to try something from another all grain brewer.

So anyway, ya take the good with the bad and go like hell. Nobody ever got glory by sitting on their ass saving money!
Damn The Cost Full Speed Ahead!

Check it out. So Summer has pretty well Sucked for us. We haven't done crap that we had planned to do.
Here is the high spot. We took some cows to LaJunta today to the sale. We stopped at all the farmers markets along the way...picking up plenty of the bounty from the summer growing season. We picked up some pears for a pear wine. We picked up some local honey for some mead, we got a gallon of Blackberry cider. This is going to be the most basic brew I'll ever make. Perhaps going back to some of the very basic roots of not brewing history...but maybe farm wine history? I took a gravity sample, 1.050 right out of the jug....can't ask for better than that. I had a packet of Muntons Ale Yeast in the fridge, so I dumped it in and let it go. We'll see what happens. One way or the other....we're going to have some good warming beverages during the cold winter months...maybe.

When the Planes hit the twin towers, I was a C-Store Manager at the local Truck Stop. My GF...Now Wife...Was a bookkeeper there. I heard the news on the radio, and immediately went and got her out of her office and took her to the drivers lounge where there was a tv. We watched the news coverage from there for a few hours....when we finally turned around to go back to work, there was probably 300 people that had crowded in behind us...not even making a sound, I had no idea they had come in.

Today, My wife and I give thanks to the Men and Women that have given their lives to protect this great Country! We have been able to continue to live our lives with very minimal changes due to that horrendous Tragedy, because of the work that you do. Our children play without fear of insurgents. Our children have never seen "Army Guys" in tanks roll down our streets except for the occasional parade. Thanks for that. It's only possible because our Military has taken the fight to the countries of terror, and kept our virgin shores pure and safe.

We may have a whole basket full of problems to work on here in the United States Of America, but we do not have to worry about a******like Saddam Husein rounding up groups of American Citizens and putting them in concentration camps and eventually killing them. We do not need to worry about our Government deciding not to send out food so that we may eat. We have fluctuations in our economy, but we are not a country of starving homeless people.

We have so much to be thankful for! Let us not forget that!

Thanks again to all of the service Men and Women!

Well, I was thinking that I've been slacking. The last brew opportunity I had, I put off because I was Chatting with Soperbrew and Cheeto1977 over in the IRC.
Now I have a Keezer to finish, 2 beers to brew this weekend, We need to re-roof the house, re-do the siding on 2 sides, and remodel the kitchen....all before the end of the summer. And what am I doing? Sitting here sharing with my friends here at HBT.com.

So I'm checking out the new profile pages and thinking how cool this is. It's like the MySpace for Brewers. That is pretty cool. I am not sure that I am completely understanding why I post blogs. I don't know what Kind of Ego Trip it gives me to think that anyone else in the whole world would give a crap what I have to say about anything. It is also very difficult for me to keep from blogging politically. After all...Rush Limbaugh just got $500 Million for sharing his political views with the world. This is all just too much, but I sure want to say thanks to anyone that happens to be listening.

I am not really that Pissed about the pasture grass that we lost, or the thousands of acres of wheat that were hammered into the ground, or the fact that we spend an hour in the basement waiting for the storm to pass, or the windows or the roof that will need replaced.

So What Pisses me off?

My Internet is via satellite, and I could not get onto the HomebrewTalk.com chat last night!

Whew!
Usually Friday is your celebration of having "Made It" Through the week. This week, I'm just damn glad to have made it to Wednesday! 3 days in, 50 hours. My server has been like a little HP Bruce Lee....It's been kicking my ass!
I propose a Hump-Dee-Drunk.
I'm off to grab an Apfelwein and a few beers, may have some Cherry mead later. Anyway, Fridays ain't got **** on Wednesdays....Cheers.

Actually, This is a great weekend to take the opportunity to blog a bit about beer and such. SWMBO and I spent the evening in Denver to celebrate our anniversary.
We started at the Texas De Brazil. If you've never been to one...Go.
Then we ended up at the Dry Dock Brew pub which just happens to be in the back room of the Brew Hut LHBS. SWMBO Tried the Apricot Blond, and I did the Vanilla Porter. Both were a perfect fit.
The best part, is this morning when we got back to the Brew Hut...That Apricot Blond is the Recipe of the month, and ingredients are 10% off. SWEET!
Picked up grain for BM Cream of the crops....did some shopping, Found anchor Steam Ale, and 7 oz Budweizer,,,,for the bottles...not the beer.
Then SWMBO Got a new car....What a day.