Northland Brewery

A Fresh Start

2010-03-12T10:48:00.002-06:00

Inspired by the work of our friends, the Schulz's, paired with a fresh start in a new zip code, we have decided to re-vamp our brewing operations. In the first year of brewing, we tried to do too much in too short of time. In previous posts, I've talked about our maximizing quantity at the expense of quality. This is something that we feel needs to change.

The work of the Schulz's has been really inspiring. They've been able to make great tasting beer while keeping their fridge stocked and friends satisfied. We can personally confirm that several of their brews are top quality and could rival larger handcraft breweries. Now that we moved closer to them and share the same timezone, we will hopefully join forces on future brews and advance on our techniques.

Speaking of moving, we have moved from our Grand Forks, ND location to a place in Charleston, WV. Because of this move, our inventory has been completely wiped out allowing us to have a clean slate. Now that we do have space in our kegerator, I've had the thought of trying our hand at a lager. An empty kegerator will allow us to ferment a carboy of lager at the temperatures necessary (around 40-50F). Currently, we are looking at brewing a black lager. The only question is: mini-mash, all-grain, or extract? To be continued....

Presents and Porters

2009-12-24T12:18:00.004-06:00

"A pint of plain is your only man"

- Flann O'Brien

Today, Christmas Eve, I decided to go out shopping for last minute Christmas presents and swing past the local beverage purveyor. I thought a festive spin on the time-honored tradition of drinking whilst wrapping presents would be to build a six pack of porters to taste. Somehow I only ended up with four porters and two other seasonal types.

Here is the list (and some thoughts):

Anchor Brewing Co., Anchor Porter:

A very good beer from an excellent brewery. Initiates with a cocoa and malty flavor that quickly gives way to a bitter, spicy finish. Buy it again? Yes, mainly to feel cool and support this San Frannie brewery.

Rogue Ales Brewery, Mocha Porter:

Tasty quencher that looks dark and tastes even darker. Starts smooth but very quickly transitions to a bittersweet taste similar to a 70% cocoa bar. Aftertaste is much the same as the aftertaste of a double shot of espresso. Esspresso and bittersweet chocolate, theres really almost nothing better than those. Buy it again? Even though I enjoyed it, probably not because Rogue makes so many other delicious options I'd choose first (I'm looking at you Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar).

The Boston Beer Co., Holiday Porter:

We all know Samuel Adams and most of us love their brewing prowess. This Holiday Porter is a tasty beast and sweeter than the aforementioned porters. Starts out big and malty, nearly a stout of sorts, but it gives way to a bitter flavor that lingers for several minutes. Tasty? Yes. Buy it again? Yes, I am a Samuel Adams fan.

Bell's Brewery Inc., Porter:

Oddly, I feel this is the least offensive porter I've tried in terms of bitterness. The initial tasting of this porter is smokey and sweet, maybe even a bit smokier than others so far today. The malt flavor is big enough that it never really gives way to the residual hopiness that can bring the hard bitterness of other porters. Ultimately, this porter ends up being a bit too sweet for the porter category and some may say it shares resemblance to a flat cola. I wouldn't go that far. Buy it again? Yeah, but wouldn't seek it out. And much like Rogue, I like other offerings from the company more (ahem, Bell's Two-Hearted).

So there you have it, a new post about Porters and very little about presents. Happy Holidays to everyone who may read this and hopefully the new year will bring many new posts and new brew concoctions.

Slainte,

Taxford

Kegerator/Keezer Project

2009-09-11T18:03:00.004-05:00

The freezer waits in the basement, the kegs and CO2 sit empty, and patience is waning. So whats the hold up on the kegerator construction? This little $80 beast:

Its a digital temperature controller that overrides the internal thermostat of the freezer and keeps the contents (kegs of beer) from reaching below freezing temperatures. Some people may ask why didn't you get a refrigerator instead of the freezer? To that I answer because the freezer offers more room and thus more versatility as to what goes in. With the added space of a chest freezer we can store two 5 gallon kegs, a CO2 tank with dual regulators and possibly another fermentation vessels so that we may venture into the wild world of lagers. I will certainly keep you all posted on the sometimes continual, sometimes stalled progress of this project. We will have a first tap ceremony for our friends.

Slainte,
Taxford

Beer Reviews and Lots of Them

2009-08-20T15:15:00.010-05:00

We will break away from our traditional review style to do a quick and dirty review of 6 beers. Recently, we visited the twin cities and stumbled across a wonderful bottle shop on the way to the dog park. The bottle shop: Blue Max Liquors. The contents: 1,2oo+ varieties of beer and 300+ varieties of whiskey. Two purchases we are particularly proud of were several six packs of Magners/Bulmers Irish Cider that we could previously only find in Ireland, and a 2006 Bigfoot Barleywine from Sierra Nevada to compare to the 2009 variety. We also bought a mix six of several styles and brands which will be reviewed below.

Here are some reviews of what we bought (keep in mind these reviews were compiled in the same day and may come with some grammatical errors):

Lagunitas Imperial Red Ale (7.6% ABV) - California
This beer pours dark red/amber with a light head. The nose is a toffee with light biscuit and a faint citrus. The delicious taste conjures thoughts of an IPA, maybe even a lighter version of an IPA. Because of this distinction, the heavy use of malt on the front end is balanced very well with the abundance of hops on the back end. Citrusy hop taste seems to linger on the back of the tongue for a good while. Higher alcohol content is not apparent in the taste, but is in the feeling after.
Would we buy it again: Hell yeah, great beer! All year beer.

Victory's Golden Monkey Trippel Ale (9.6% ABV) - Pennsylvania
This trippel pours honey pale with a light white head. The nose has loads of spices with some banana and bread hints. It actually almost reminds me of the aroma of fresh baked banana bread (weird, I know). The taste is a little more robust than other traditional trippels we've tried. Honey shines through as a dominant flavor with banana and clove taste as well. The alcohol is very well hidden on the back end, but once again felt internally.
Would we buy it again: Ehhh... maybe, but only because trippels are lower on our list. Great Spring beer.

Founders Red's Rye P.A. (6.6% ABV) - Michigan
This rye pale ale pours a deep red and very clear with a heavier head that dies fairly quickly. The nose is of deep rye and some hints of citrus hops. The taste initially was similar to the Laguntas Imperial Red Ale but with the subtlety of rye on the front and almost overwhelming flavor of citrus hops on the back end. The hops play such a large part in this beer that it almost takes away from the rye malty flavor I'd love to delve deeper into. The citrusy hops hide all signs of alcohol and leave a bitterly delicious flavor long after the initial taste.
Would we buy it again: Yes, but we would not seek it out individually. Great for the Summer or dead of Winter.

Lagunitas Censored (The Kronic) Rich Copper Ale (5.9% ABV) - California
This copper ale pours an invitingly clear and reddish copper with a thin head that dies quickly. The nose is rich malt and toffee/caramel with subtle nutty hints. The hops are very very subtle or almost non-existent. The flavor is sweet and malty and nothing short of delicious. Hearty malt flavors do eventually subside and give way to citrusy hop flavors on the back end.
Would we buy it again: Definitely, we loved the heavy malt character. Great for late Summer through Winter.

Brau Brothers Cream Stout (5.0% ABV) - Minnesota
This cream stout pours about as black as any beer can with very little head to speak of. The nose of roasted, almost burned barley with very little chocolate or coffee. The hops are subtle and provide very little support to the body of the beer. The roasted barley creates a great mouthfeel on the front with a nice toasty flavor but soon falls quickly with a semi-watered down finish on the back end. No hint of alcohol present at all.
Would we buy it again: Probably not, partially because we've had so many other better stouts. Good for many occasions, not including special beer tastings (similar to Hamms).

Lake Superior Brewing Company's Sir Duluth Oatmeal Stout (?% ABV) - Minnesota
The oatmeal stout pours black, as far as I can tell, with a very thin head. The nose is of roasted but not burned barley with a slight nuttiness. The hops are subtle here as well but shine through a little on the end. A little coffee flavor comes through with some cola as well. Oat creaminess is kind of lacking considering this is an oatmeal stout. Flavor is a little flat towards the finish but not as much as the previous Brau Cream Stout. No hint of alcohol.
Would we buy it again: Probably, although its no on the top of the list. Good for many cold season days.

That's all we have and we are done... beer is delicious.
Slainte!
Taxford

And we're back...

2009-08-20T15:01:00.002-05:00

Since its been so long since the last post, we won't even try to catch you up on the progress we've made. Here are just a few snippets of things from the past few weeks:
- We've tried several beers from around the globe.
- We recently visited Summit Brewery in St. Paul and Northern Brewer (the homebrew equipment store)
- We have caps with our logos on them! (Pics to be posted soon)
- We've been brewing sporadically and are getting geared up for the fall season with brews like:
- Apfelwein
- Smoked Porter
- Noble Nobody's Amber Ale
- Oktoberfest Ale
- We will also start to replicate some of our past successful brews (Anth na Roigh Irish Red, Muckalee Oatmeal Stout, and Noble Nobody's Amber Ale)
- We expect to be acquiring a chest freezer that we will modify into a two tap kegerator.
- We will be attending the Happy Harry's Beer Fest Saturday, August 29th.

Slainte!
Taxford

Beer Review - Surly Furious

2009-06-09T13:06:00.006-05:00

A friend of ours had been down to the twin cities a few weeks ago and brought back some Surly Furious for us to try. Surly, a brewing company out of Brooklyn Center, MN cans their beer and tries to break down the stereotype that good beer only comes in bottles. Admittedly, we were a little put off by the can at first, but its about the beer inside right?

So here goes...

Style: American I.P.A.

ABV: 6.2%

IBUs: 99

Color: Amber-red

Hops: An American blend

Malts: Scottish Malts

Appearance: Cloudy appearance. Pours with a large thick head the diminishes after a few minutes. Head about a finger thick reducing down to a 1/4 finger that stays on top. Great lacing.

Smell: Nice, big aroma featuring loads of citrusy hop tones. However, the hop aroma does not overshadow the wonderful caramel malts.

Taste: While there are tons of hops that go into this brew, a near-perfect balance is produced with a beautiful caramel malt backbone. This is one beer that tastes just as it smells, a very good thing in this case. The hop tones represented in the Furious are both citrus and pine origin with some piney bitterness that lingers.

The Skinny: Wow. Now, ales are our specialty and even though we appreciate all of the ale varieties, the I.P.A. is not usually our favorite. This beer, however, provides a whole new perspective on the that whole branch of styles. Past I.P.A.s we've tried (ones that we've really liked) have not been able to strike the balance that this 99IBU monster has. Its highly drinkable and refreshing enough to have during the summer.

IN A Word: Encore

Naming the Brews - Noble Nobody's Amber Ale

2009-06-05T11:20:00.009-05:00

For years and years men and women of the brewing world have paid homage to their animal companions through naming beers and even whole brewing operations after them. While we don't necessarily want to follow the brewers before us, we do understand how special naming a beer after something or someone you love is. To us, its not just another name on a bottle or concept to catch the consumer's eye, its a legacy that is enabled to continue every time you pick up one of the bottles and read the story on the back. While not everybody who drinks our beer knows our dog, Nemo, and his jovial nature, but we're hoping this beer and the label (in the creation process) will help share his story.

Two years ago, we broke our lease in a one bedroom apartment and moved across town in the midst of a blizzard. The reason for breaking the lease was for our lovingly loyally companion, Nemo. Nemo, a sheltie-retriever mix, was a shelter dog that had spent several months in and out of the pen. Born a stray, Nemo was taken in by the dog catcher for his first trip to the animal shelter. A few weeks later, he found himself in a house full of children and people who undoubtedly appreciated him. This all changed when the family had to move and could no longer keep Nemo because they were moving to a location where dogs were not allowed, so back to the shelter he went. In the first 10 months of his life, Nemo had been a stray and dropped off at the kennels twice. When we found him, he was dirty and a little nervous but he had such a big heart and came straight to us. We moved out of that little apartment and into a house picking him up that same day. We vowed that day that he would never see the inside of an animal shelter again and that all of our dogs would be rescued.

Two years later as I write this, Nemo lays close to me on the couch never wanting to be further than 20 feet away. Our companionship with Nemo is one of dependence but not just one sided, we need him as much as he needs us.

Nemo had his name before we adopted him and the reasons for the name are unknown. However, Nemo is the most fitting appellation as it is Latin for Nobody or No-one, what he must've felt like the first 10 months of his life. We hope that every time you pick up a bottle of Noble Nobody's Amber Ale you will share memories of your animal companions and feel part of the joy we receive from our Nemo Nobody.

We haven't started selling our beer yet but when we do we would like to donate 10% of the earnings to our local humane society and rescue networks so that other animals can get the same opportunity Nemo had.

Slainte!

Finally...

2009-05-28T20:17:00.003-05:00

We know its been a long time since our last post and yes we owe some sort of explanation, but the truth is... we've been busy/lazy. Since the trip to Ohio in early May, we've been having a difficult time getting back into the swing of things work related and brewing related. Additionally, the super garden discussed in the previous post has been planted and with the planting and regular maintenance involved, the brewing has sadly been put on the back burner. We are happy to say that this is not the case anymore! On Saturday (or Sunday) a batch of beer will be brewed, although it is still yet to be determined what variety it will be.

In our own news involving beer, we have the following updates. The Ohio trip was a great time with most of the time spent with family. The Great Lakes Brewery tasting and dinner was awesome as we got to try four of GLB's best brews: Eliot Ness Amber Lager, Dortmunder Gold Lager, Grassroots Ale, and Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. The Edmund Fitzgerald Porter is the most decorated porter style in America. Also, while in Ohio, a trip to World Market was taken to try some of the beers from other nations. Because most of them were consumed in the same night and this was almost a month ago, all of them are not remembered.

The trip to the Great Lakes Brewery was a blast but we quickly found out that they had canceled tours for the day. We consoled ourselves over several pints and some delicious locally grown mushroom pizza with gorgonzola. Not only does this company make great beer but their food is ridiculously amazing.

On our own brewing front... we still have the I.P.A to look forward to on the bottling process. We tried to bottle the Choco, Orango, Cayenno Craziness Stout but it died during the bottling process due to technical difficulties. It did taste pretty good, before it found itself on the floor of our kitchen.

We will be back on the brewing bandwagon in the next few weeks and continue to stockpile full bottles instead of the several hundred empties our friends have helped us accumulate.

Here is somewhat of a list of the beer we've tried over the last month or so:

Duvel
Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA
Wexford Irish Cream Ale
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine
Guinness 250 Anniversary Stout
Samuel Adams White Ale
Rogue Cayenne Ale
Rogue Mocha Porter
New Belgium Skinny Dip
New Belgium Mighty Arrow
New Belgium Sunshine Wheat
Oxford Organic Wheat Ale
Buffalo Bill's Blueberry Oatmeal Stout
New Glarus Fat Squirrel
Capital Brewery Island Wheat Ale
Great Lakes Brewery Edmund Fitzgerald Porter
Great Lakes Brewery Eliot Ness Amber Lager
Great Lakes Brewery Dortmunder Gold Lager
Great Lakes Brewery Grassroots Ale
Great Lakes Brewery Burning River Pale Ale
Great Lakes Brewery Commodore Perry I.P.A.

Slainte!

National Homebrew Day!

2009-05-07T07:24:00.003-05:00

Happy National Homebrew Day everybody.

It's kind of sad to say but we did not know this until dinking around on the internet a while and we happened across this interesting fact. Tonight, I will be attending a beer tasting held by the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce in Ohio and will be part of just 50 people who will get to experience this. The event is hosted by the Diso's Bistro and will be put on by the Great Lakes Brewing Company. On Saturday, we will then tour the Great Lakes Brewery and eat at their Brewpub before heading off to catch our beloved Cleveland Indians. On a side note, we will also be going to the Westside Market in Cleveland, one of my favorite places to experience the diversity of the city and to really see Northern Ohioans.

Slainte!

Taxford

Super Garden!

2009-05-04T14:40:00.003-05:00

This coming summer will be quite a change from years in the past as we are no located in Grand Forks, ND instead of Rapid City, SD. They're neighboring states, we know, but the climates, landscape and urbanized surroundings vary greatly. The best part of the relocation process is getting to experience new things and meet new people. Luckily, we've settled in comfortably in the Grand Forks area and have made great friends.

It is with some of these friends that we are both proud and excited to grow a garden with. We have rented a 20' x 40' plot of land from All Seasons Garden Center and will be planting tons of veggies and fruits. We know that this has nothing to do with beer and we wouldn't normally post something like this on the brewing blog, but we (the gardening group) have started up another blog that will be updated somewhat regularly during the grow season as a way for us to keep track of notes and for you to be able to follow our gardening endeavor. The blog, created by Matt Hartman, is located here: http://met-sg.blogspot.com/. We hope you fully enjoy both blogs and let us know if there is anything we can do to keep you interested.

Slainte,

Taxford

Label: Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Ale

2009-04-29T14:41:00.003-05:00

Finally! After toiling through several ideas over the better part of a month a solid thought came in and stuck. Here is the unveiling of the new label for the Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Ale. Again, we had several ideas and many of the pieces were there, we just couldn't put the puzzle together. Constructed with the aid of GIMP and Inkscape the label features washed out lyrics behind the name of the beer and a description of the beer to the left. Let us know what you think. If we're lucky we'll be putting this on bottles very soon!

Mustard

2009-04-27T23:10:00.004-05:00

Quite an odd title for a beer blog, right? Well, we were shopping at Amazing Grains food co-op that we belong to the other day and found this awesome product from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Stoneground & Stout is a delicious mustard made from stoneground mustard seeds, and Sierra Nevada's Stout (among other ingredients). To be quite honest, the mustard tastes like mustard and nothing like stout, but I believe the stout does mellow some of the more harsh tones produced by the mustard seeds. I'd have to say that this has quickly become on of our favorite mustard products on the market. Along with the Stoneground & Stout, Sierra Nevada also produces a Porter & Spicy Brown, and Pale Ale & Honey.

This isn't an unofficial ad to promote the mustard making ability of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. This has given us an idea to possibly start producing our own beer infused concoctions. We've always been interested in developing our own mustard and with shopping at the aforementioned co-op, we could buy mustard making products in bulk. A reason for wanting to produce mustard on the side is to be able to have a product that we could legally sell with our label on it to spread the Northland Brewery name.

Slainte

Beer Reviews - Pere Jacques, Big Sky IPA

2009-04-24T11:47:00.018-05:00

While shopping at Happy Harry's (one of the best bottle shops we've ever seen), we came across two brews that we hadn't previously tried, one of which we didn't know existed. The first is Goose Island's Pere Jacques. Named after the Abbot of a Belgium Trappist brewery toured by Goose Island brewmaster, Greg Hall, Pere Jacques is a big, malty, Belgian Strong Ale. The second is Big Sky Brewing Company's Big Sky I.P.A.. Big Sky Brewing Company is based out of Missoula, MT and produces Moose Drool, the best selling craft beer in Montana. Full review notes below.

The following review notes were compiled with the aid of the beer tasting guide outlined in Beach Brewings Tasting Brews blog post.

Pere Jacques - Goose Island Brewing Co.

Style: Belgian Style Abbey Ale

ABV: 8-9%

IBU: 26

Color: Amber and Caramel

Hops: Saaz

Malts: 2-Row, Wheat, Caramel, Rye Flakes, and Special B

Appearance:

Slightly cloudy while maintaining a good level of clarity. Pours with a thin creamy head about half a finger thick. Fairly poor lacing.

Smell:

Slightly fruity with heavy malt tones. Low levels of hop bouquet.

Taste:

Initially a medium thickness with the sense of becoming more full over time. The flavor is reminiscent of fig and dried apricot with very subtle anise tones. Yeast flavors come through initially and then fade quickly. A fairly high alcohol burn on the back end, although it is covered up by lingering maltiness. Warming sensation (9% ABV) as it goes down.

The Skinny:

All in all this is a very Delicious beer with big, robust maltiness. While Belgian Strong Ales are not our specialty, I would rank this up there with some of the better Belgian Ales we've tried including Tripels and Dubbels. While fairly heavy and full of flavor, Pere Jacques is very drinkable. Even though it is highly drinkable, at roughly 9% ABV, Pere Jacques does eventually lead to misspelled words and shortness of attention span.

IN A WORD: FIGGY

Big Sky I.P.A. - Big Sky Brewing Co.

Style: India Pale Ale

ABV: 6.2%

IBU: 65

Color: Light Amber

Hops: Simcoe

Malts: unknown

Appearance:

Pours very clear. Thin creamy head less than half a finger width thick. Poor lacing.

Smell:

Light malt aroma. Citrus and pine are prevalent while remaining separate from the malt tones.

Taste:

Wow. This I.P.A. has a complex flavor with medium body. Big Sky I.P.A, while very hoppy, does have a light maltiness that shines through to balance out the bitterness of Simcoe. Initially the flavor is very slightly reminiscent of the smell of a sea breeze with a hint of saltiness (in a good way). Sounds odd but that is the only thing that comes to mind right away. A more traditional grapefruit juice flavor comes next with a bitter rind flavor following that. Finally, a subtle juniper, piney flavor lingers on the tongue long after swallowing. Little to no alcohol burn is present.

The Skinny:

Being a hops powerhouse, Big Sky I.P.A., still has an accessible flavor that is refreshing and crisp. This medium bodied I.P.A. is moderately high in ABV but is very drinkable and ranks up there with some of the higher rated names on the market. Although very delicious, this complex beer should be consumed moderately as the hops start to overwhelm your taste buds (in the most flavorful way possible).

IN A WORD: GRAPEFRUIT

Muckalee Oatmeal Stout Label

2009-04-21T20:48:00.006-05:00

Well... it's finally finished, kind of. I'm sure no label we design will ever be fully done but this is as close to bottle worthy as we've come. We developed this label with the aid of GIMP and Inkscape which are two very fine and, at times, very challenging programs. We think the label does an adequate job of telling the inspiration behind the beer while maintaining a somewhat simplistic look. In honor of Earth Day, we are also announcing our Drink, Recycle, Repeat campaign that will emphasize the return of the glass bottles either to a recycling facility or to the the bottler to be utilized again. As part of this mini project, we have marked one of our bottles from our original batches and will maintain a count on how many times this bottle is reused. This bottle will represent how many times we are able to reuse all of our glass bottles that are returned to be used again. So far the "little bottle that could" has been used a total of three times. We will keep the count on the sidebar of the blog so everybody can track the bottle usage. We understand that this isn't exactly an earth-shattering experiment, but hopefully it will raise some awareness as to what we can do on the individual level to reduce the waste around us. If anyone is concerned, yes the bottles are fully cleaned and sanitized before each use.

So tell us what you think about the label, your likes, your dislikes and if you would in fact like to see it on a bottle of delicious beer in the future.

Slainte!

Brew Days - Peach Blonde Ale, Choco-Orango Stout

2009-04-10T20:17:00.004-05:00

With two days off and a few empty fermentation vessels, we decided to go back-to-back on the brew days with two very different versions. On Monday, April 6th we brewed what will become a (still unamed) peach blonde ale. It will become peach flavored just after fermentation as the peach extract flavoring will be added to fermented brew before racking into bottles. Everything on this brew day went just swimingly with no issues that would be expected to cause contamination. The only possible issue was with a discrepency involving less dry malt extract being inserted into this batch. The kit that we ordered from MoreBeer.com said that it included 7 lbs. of extra light DME along with the other necessary ingredients. The contents of the package, however, were mostly included except for 1.5 lbs. of DME. We called the company and asked if there was a mistake or typo of some sort, but they assured me that they replaced the 7 lbs. of liquid extract with 5.5 lbs. of dry which imparts a higher gravity pound for pound than liquid. We went along with the recipe as planned and the batch came in about 0.010 under the recommended O.G. Oh well, this will just have to be a weak version, as long as the taste is there. After contamination issues, it would be good to have at least one batch turn out.

Speaking of contamination issues.

So we brewed the unamed choco-orango-cayenne stout using an offshoot of the Muckalee Irish Stout recipe. As planned we brewed 3 gallons of the chocolate stout with 1 gallon containing orange peel, and another gallon containing orange peel and cayenne pepper. After brewing and pitching, we set the airlocks up and let the yeasties do their thing. Well, the yeasties did their thing a little too well with some krausen creeping up into the airlocks. We scrambled to set up three blow off tubes with relative success. Later in the day, the CO2 release was slowing enought to allow the airlocks to be reinserted. During the re-airlocking, we pushed a little to hard which pushed one of the rubber stoppers completely into the version that contained the orange and cayenne adjuncts. We remained calm and just taped a different airlock over top of the vessel... hopefully this works. If not, we will be dealing with more contamination but only with a one gallon batch.

Maybe we are just a little unlucky, maybe we need to be more careful, or maybe we are getting to learn all of these lessons early in the process. Only time will tell.

Slainte,
Taxford

Experiment - Chocolate Stout variations

2009-04-05T01:43:00.006-05:00

Over the past couple of weeks we had forgotten about our three 1 gallon fermentation vessels that we bought to use for experimental brews. Well, the time has come to try some funky, fresh brews that may either turn out wonderful or disastrous. Here is the game plan:

1) Make 3 gallons of chocolate stout similar to the Muckalee Oatmeal Stout.

2) Use 1 of these gallons as a control formula because every good experiment has a control (thanks elementary school science).

3) Add 2 tbs. fresh organic navel orange zest to one of the variable gallons during primary fermentation.

4) Add 2 tbs. fresh organic navel orange zest and 1/8-1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (or chipolte pepper) to the last of the variable gallons during primary fermentation.

5) Drink, compare, take notes.

6) Destroy and completely forget any bad combination. Replicate if tasty.

If anyone is curious as to the inspiration behind these somewhat wild flavor combinations, we offer the following examples:

- Green & Black's Organic Maya Gold Chocolate - Amazing flavor combination of chocolate, spices, and orange.
- Chocolove xoxox Chilies & Cherries in Dark Chocolate - Great combination of fruit and chocolate with just enough chili presence to round out this complex flavor without being overbearing.
- Chocolate covered jalepenos - intriuging, excellent treats from Carol Widman's Candy Company (home of the famous chocolate covered potato chip, and the less famous chocolate covered olives and pickles, seriously).

Understanding many beer drinkers enjoy their fruit, spices and beer separately, we realize this flavor combination would be something of a specialty brew. That is if any of these combinations make it out of the test kitchen without being disposed due to unpalatable flavor. We'd like to say we're optimistic about the outcome, but, honestly, this idea has the potential to die a fiery death. Why not try it, this could be the start of something beautiful.

If anyone has any other crazy ideas that could be materialized into a fermented liquid, let us know, we can try to make it happen.

Slainte,

Taxford

Logo

2009-04-03T01:57:00.004-05:00

The logo is complete... at least until we decide to tweak it somehow. So, while tinkering around on the internet and fighting through the hoards of "free" images that would've ended up costing us upwards of $200, we found the images we wanted and threw them together. We've been waiting on the development of a brewery logo to finally round out the Muckalee Oatmeal Stout label. If you're reading this then you probably have already seen the logo as the new banner across the top. Feedback is welcomed and blatantly encouraged. We spent a lot of time deciding what design we wanted as a final piece and today we finally got some real results. We really like the simplistic look we've created while touching on the theme of the natural world.

Also, while mucking about in inkscape and gimp, we found very fun and interesting ways to manipulate pictures for our own personal use. There are a bunch of great tutorials on youtube that explain step-by-step how to create pop art and other intriguing effects. I watched the Che yourself tutorial that involves taking a normal portrait and manipulating it into the iconic style of the famous portrait of Che Guevara. See below for the Guevara version versus the Nemo Revolution version that may someday grace the label of one of our bottles.

Whether this tutorial was intended to mock the image of a rebel leader or not, we really like what this image manipulation has done to the portrait of our faithful companion.

Viva la Nemo Revolución!

ihomebrewbeer social network and label update

2009-04-01T02:20:00.005-05:00

Since the last post we've been working feverishly (in our free time) on labels for the two named beers and will soon present the Muckalee Oatmeal Stout label. We're pretty excited about it as it is probably one of the more creative things I've done with a computer (which doesn't really say much). I've been using inkscape and gimp, if you're interested. They're much more difficult than powerpoint or paint.

In other news, I've created an account on the ihomebrewbeer social network. This is a pretty resourceful network set up specifically for homebrewers and zymurgists alike to come together and discuss brewing topics, showcase their latest brews and advertise regional beer and brewing events. We originally heard of this through a post by ihomebrewbeer on twitter (another social networking site). While the site still appears to be in its infancy, I believe it won't be long until the site will be the next big thing among brewers looking for another outlet for ideas and to bounce new ideas off of fellow brewers. Check it out if you have a chance, even if you're not a brewer you may find some interesting information on beer in general. Oh, and I have set up a page on the network as taxford, if you join be sure to friend me.

Slainte,
Taxford

Update - brew days, new equipment, and contamination

2009-03-23T14:54:00.007-05:00

The last few weeks have brought many great advances in our brewing as well as a fairly major set back. First, the bad news. On February 22nd we brewed our Muckalee Oatmeal Stout and were very excited about the progress of this beer was making in fermentation. While bottling our Scotch Ale on March 9th I checked in on the gravity of the M.O.S. ultimately deciding it needed more time to sit on the yeast. The theif I used to take the sample must not have been sanitized properly, or a rogue hair or dust mite fell into the brew because when I went to check on it again on March 18th the beer had a white mold layer on the top and gave off a sour smell and flavor (yeah, I tried it). Here is what Lactobaccilus looks like:

Lactobacillus Monster

I've noticed earlier brews were taking on similar properties but to a lesser extent. Well, I have learned my lesson and have had to dump all 5 gallons of the Muckalee Oatmeal Stout. The Homebrewtalk forums claim that the beer is salvagable if aged for several months but this beer was so contaminated that I think the only remedy was to count the losses and move on. With previous batches having similar effects (sour flavor and thin white film during fermentation), we realize we need to completely overhaul our sanitation process and bleach bomb everything we use to brew. We will try to age our bottled scotch ale (also effected by contamination) for a few months to see if the problem is remedied.

Now for the good news! We received another shipment of brewing toys from MoreBeer! last week including a new 5 gallon fermentation vessle. We also thouroghly sanitized our 5 gallon carboy giving us two open vessels to fill with beer. The day after St. Patrick's day, filled up on soda bread and guinness from the day before, I brewed our Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Ale. The brew day went well with the airlock bubbling less than 12 hours after boil. Fermentation was so vigorous that we had to hook up a blow off tube after an old faithful type moment. This venture was followed up by yet another brew day yesterday. We brewed the Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Ale again but with a varied grain bill. With the local home brewing store out of roasted barley we moved along with just the crystal malts. So hopefully after the contamination setback that has plagued our brews in early march, we can move on to perfecting the product.

Some pictures from the brew days:

Bringin' the heat!

Steeping the grains

Full boil

Northland Brewery Equipment

A couple of great freinds and our personal "brew couple" at Beach Brewings brought up a great point in a recent post on their blog. Jeremy writes "The trick is to find a good balance on overall knowledge while at the same time perfecting your craft in a specialized area." We totally agree with this point and believe that our main focus has become European style ales (including browns, stouts, scotches and reds). While we will not be limited to just these styles, we will try to keep this an area of greater focus while mixing in some of the other great beer styles sporadically.

Another side project being worked on here at NB is label production. Labels are the first things that people see when shopping for new beer to try and often times the most visually creative are the first brews to be bought up. While we have no previous experience or natural artistic creativity in realm of label making, we will be doing our best to provide the greatest visual appeal as we can. Something to look forward to!

Slainte,

Taxford

Naming the Brews - Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Ale

2009-03-23T13:30:00.013-05:00

Although a work in progress, our Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Ale is a medium bodied brew with a deep red/amber color. Crystal malts with a touch of roasted barley round out this ale that is inspired by the famous Irish folk song "The fields of Athenry".

Written originally by Pete St. John in the 1970's, "The fields of Athenry" has been made famous by artists like The Dubliners, James Galway, and Dropkick Murphys. The song tells the story of two lovers being separated during the Irish potato famine that claimed nearly one million lives. The young man is caught stealing grain from his neighbors stockpile and is sentenced to a prison colony across the ocean. The song, although very sad and haunting, serves as a unifying chorus to many Irish descendants and is used as a sporting anthem for both the Republic of Ireland national football club and my beloved Celtic FC.

Whether you're Irish or not, we feel that this is a brew is great for any occasion and will help you celebrate you're family's past generations. In the words of Papa Axford "Don't ever forget where you came from!"

Slainte,

Taxford

Irish Potato Famine Tribute - Dublin, Ireland

Family heading towards the harbor to emmigrate.

Naming the Brews - Muckalee Oatmeal Stout

2009-03-23T11:54:00.010-05:00

Our honeymoon to Ireland was a scheduled trip around the southeastern portion of the country relying only on public transportation. This led to many humorous and sometimes awkward situations including the following.

Paraphrased from our travel journal:

On the way towards Kilkenny from Dublin on the 007 bus we made our normal stops that were to be expected. It was around about Castlecomer that things started to get interesting. Less than one kilometer outside of Castlecomer a Garda (police) stopped the bus to say that the town was closed off due to the New Year's Day wellie races (later found that it was a 5k run through the streets in Wellington shoes, no running shoes were allowed). The race was to raise money for local charities while participants could run off their Christmas excesses. Simple enough, its a detour with a well seasoned bus driver. What could go wrong?

Next thing we know, we are marching a 15ft. wide bus down a 14ft. wide detour while attempting to pass oncoming traffic. One of the cars flagged us down to tell the bus driver that a very narrow bridge was up ahead that would not fit a bus of our stature. The car driver offered us another alternate route for the trip. A detour on a detour, on very small, muddy roads in a very large bus. Everything was grand.

There were about 15 passengers on the bus with a majority being Irish and from around the area. With this in mind, we found it quite hilarious that at a fork in the road, the driver turned back to us and asks "Well, any ideas?". Uh.. no is what we wanted to say but all we could muster up was an awkward American facial expression. Luckily, sitting next to us was an Irishman who had grown up in the area and knew some of the roads as best as one could.

It was upon entering the township, or hamlet, or whatever word qualifies a location with one house, a pub, and a church very appropriately named Muckalee that the bus driver found humor in the situation. "Anyone for Muckalee?" the bus driver jokingly shouted back, which produced laughter from every passenger. While this simple joke may not qualify as a great closer in a stand up comic routine, it did show that even in a sticky situation, anyone can laugh at themselves and the matter at hand, especially the very friendly Irish.

We did finally make it back to the major roads towards Kilkenny which brought on a round of applause from all the passenger that almost broke into a standing ovation for the courageous bus driver. Upon hearing the cheers, the bus driver said "Thank you very much. Now I could use a spot of the black stuff... coffee of course."

Our Muckalee Oatmeal Stout is inspired by a journey to this small town in the middle of rural Ireland that symbolizes everything we travel for. Muckalee Oatmeal Stout is a deep, rich brew as dark as the country roads surrounding the little town. We feel that the full body of roasted and chocolate malts paired with the smooth finish of oatmeal is the perfect combination to enjoy on a cold, rainy day while retelling stories of yesterday.

Graffiti art in Dublin

Áth na Ríogh Irish Red Recipe

2009-03-16T22:28:00.004-05:00

1/2# crystal malt 60L
1/4# roasted barley
3# Muntons light DME
2# Muntons amber DME
2 oz. Willamette hops
1 Smack pack WYeast Irish Ale Yeast

- Crush grains and steep at 155 degrees F for 30 min.
- Bring to boil, add all DME
- Add 1 oz. Willamette hops at 60 min.
- Add 1/2 oz. Willamette hops at 30 min.
- Add 1 tsp. Irish Moss @ 15 min.
- Add 1/2 oz. Willamette hops at 10 min.
- Chill wort to 70 degrees F
- Pitch yeast
- Primary for minimum 2 weeks
- Secondary optional

Scotch Ale Bottled

2009-03-09T14:28:00.005-05:00

The scotch ale that was brewed on February 11th was officially ready to bottle today. I took a sample with my recently bought sampling thief (an awesome tool to have) and took the final gravity measurement. Our scotch ale had an original gravity of 1.048 and a final gravity of 1.010 leaving the alcohol by volume at a moderate 4.99%. This is exciting to see as the vanilla cream ale I brewed earlier in the month only came out to roughly 2.5% - 3.0% abv using the same strain of yeast. Altogether, the brew finished just under 5 gallons which equates to 45 twelve ounce bottles. Half of a bottle was leftover so I decided to chill it and have a nice, flat scotch ale for tasting. While I'm not ready to offer my full opinion on the brew, at least until the rest have carbonated, I feel it is going to be one of the better brews to date and could become one in the regular rotation. We've included an image of the 5 gallon batch in the carboy pre-bottling.

Also while bottling, I tested a sample of the Muckalee Oatmeal Stout brewed on February 22nd. While the stout was still underfermented by at least a week, the abv is about 5.0% and tasted great. The chocolate and roasted malts were very apparent with the nice mellowing taste of oats on the back end. I'm really excited about this brew and can't wait to bottle this batch.

I'm also including an image of the Apfelwein that we brewed in the middle of January. The batch turned out okay and we would certainly try this again with slightly different techniques. We would certainly use a different strain of yeast like a cider or champagne yeast rather than the lager yeast we did try. Aging seems to help this batch as the month and a half old bottles taste much better and more mellow than the two week old bottles. Enjoy the images and Sláinte!

New Brewing Equipment

2009-03-07T21:50:00.002-06:00

I just put in an order in at www.morebeer.com for an additional 6 gallon fermentation unit as well as 3 one gallon glass units that will serve as experimentation vessels. We have already been tossing around ideas for new brews and some that may be a little off the wall. A nice dark chocolate stout with a hint of orange peel or cayenne (or both) sounds pretty intriguing. We will now be able to produce small batches of brew with very experimental components without putting 5 gallons (50 beers or so) in jeopardy. I've made that mistake once... never again.

Let us know what kind of flavors intrigue you and maybe we can work on a brew that suits your taste buds.

Sláinte
Taxford

First Stout Recipe! and updates.

2009-03-05T20:08:00.001-06:00

So I brewed my first oatmeal stout from a recipe that I came up with all on my own. Wow... my family would sure be proud. Anyway, I decided that the first basic stout I brewed was not sufficient, although it was tasty. So I made my way down to the local Co-op to buy ingredients for an oatmeal stout that I could make changes to in the future. I am still striving to nail down one recipe that I can replicate at will before going wild with the experimentations.

Here is the recipe:

1/2# roasted barley
1/2# black patent malt
1/2# crystal malt (60L)
1/2# chocolate malt
1/2# rolled oats
4# Munton's dark DME
2# Munton's light DME
1 oz. East Kent Golding hops
1 oz. Willamette hops

**I'll post the specifications on the boil times and gravities when I have the notes handy**

I put this batch together on Feb. 22nd and am looking to let it primary for at least another week. Right now my pipeline of brewing is being held in check by a lack of bottles. I've commissioned some friends to help me out with the acquiring of empties. Right now we have between 100 and 150 12 oz. bottles in our possession and are in need of more. Most of the bottles we do have are filled with a fermented liquid of some kind and are in different stages of aging. This leads me to a whole new topic... my equipment wishlist.

A couple of weeks ago I received a brochure from www.homebrewery.com. Inside I found a plethora of things that I need/want to get the ball rolling even faster. First thing on my list was a wort chiller. Up to this point, my wort chiller has been a cold North Dakotan snow bank. Although effective, this is an excruciatingly long process and not the most effective. So I broke down and spent $55 bucks on a copper wort chiller that will cool down the sweet wort to yeast pitchable temperatures in around 12-15 mins rather than 30-40 mins.

Other items I am in desperate need of are: some sort of temperature control chamber (old mini fridge) so that I may keep lagers cold fermenting and ales fermenting at a more constant temperature. I also need another 5 or 6 gallon carboy to add to the brewing pipeline so I may have more than two batches fermenting at any one time. Individual 1 or 2 gallon fermentation units would also be a great addition so that I brew small experimental batches.

Well that's all I have to update on for now.

Hopefully I can post something more rapidly than what I have been doing.

3 Gallon Cider Experiment

2009-02-16T07:07:00.000-06:00

My wife and I traveled to Ireland about a year ago where we found a delicious treat that is not duplicated in the United States. Bulmers (sold in U.S. as Magners), and Cashel were two varieties of hard ciders that are not like their American cousins Hornsby's, and Woodchuck. We found these hard ciders to be crisp, clean and refreshing without excessive use of sweeteners. Since I have not been able to find Magners in our local retailers, I had the idea of making our own version. Sometime in January, our local grocery store was trying to get rid of their final couple of gallons of apple cider for cheap. I grabbed three of them as well as some lager yeast and brown sugar.

Brewing the concoction was easy. I combined 1 gallon of the cider, 2# honey, 1/2# brown sugar, and 8oz molasses into a large pot and heated until the ingredients were mixed well. I poured the "wort" into the carboy and topped off with the remaining two gallons. After 3 weeks in the primary fermenter, we bottled the cider with some priming sugar to give it some carbonation. I did sample some of the still product before bottling and I had mixed feelings. It had certainly made great progress in fermentation as there was a considerable warm mouth feel associated with higher alcohol percentage. In hindsight, I should have taken gravity measurements to determine the final alcohol content, but forgot to while going through the initial processes. Other flavors were present including the sweetness from the honey.

The honey that we like to use around our house and for brewing has a great flavor and, best of all, is harvested in small batches from a family-owned business down the road from my parents in Ohio. It's always great to understand where the product is coming from, especially with ingredients such as honey where the product takes on the flavor of the surrounding environment. It's also exciting to support a small family-owned business that has similar practices.

Back to the cider. There was a smell and flavor that seemed to be that of the yeast that was not that dissimilar to the aromatics of baking yeast. I'm hoping this flavor blends away during the bottle conditioning process. I know that the final product will not be what we experienced in Ireland, but something close is what I'm aiming for. I'll provide an update (with pics) when we crack one of the bottles open. Hopefully, very soon.

Irish Stout (First Brew)

2009-02-16T06:14:00.000-06:00

My first brew day occurred in late December 08' when I brewed a 5 gallon batch of Irish stout. This was not the easiest beer to start off on, but it was great for learning from mistakes. Everything went very well in the sanitation, grain steep, boil, chilling. One lesson came from the pitching of the yeast. I should have created a starter which would've re-hydrated the dry yeast with warm water before pitching. Because of this, the fermentation process was slow to start and probably caused some ill effects on the little yeasties. The bigger lesson came when my patience clashed directly with the fermentation process. I pitched the yeast on a Monday and was excited to see the airlock start bubbling within 24 hrs (a sure sign of active fermentation). After two days passed, the airlock activity had completely ceased which I naively took as a sign that fermentation was complete. I decided (with some guidance with the provided instructions) that bottling later that week on Friday would've given the beer plenty of time to ferment and get nice and tasty.

Bottling went very well (with some minor struggles with siphoning equipment). The 5 gallon batch produced about 45 twelve ounce bottles. We stored the beer away from the light, in the basement for about 2 weeks before trying one. The first one was great, and so were the others for that matter. The problem was that the warm, roasted flavors were overshadowed by a bitterness that came through at the back end. In doing some research in some online forums, I found that the bitterness was probably from my beer being green (incomplete fermentation) and probably due to suspended yeast. Friends and family seemed to like the beer, which is really all that matters and was really exciting to hear. But now it is my mission to brew beer that can hold up to anything that people buy commercially and to be able to replicate it at will.

As for that Irish stout, I've got a 12 pack sitting in the basement waiting to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with me and the wife.

2009-02-14T07:08:00.000-06:00

Welcome.
This site is dedicated to the brewing of beer and the many topics of interest associated with beer in general. I am working to provide valuable information on the practices I use when brewing beer, reviews of other commercially available beer, and information about many other breweries both large and small. I strive to brew in a way that provides excellent beer to family and friends, while being socially and environmentally responsible. I am relatively new to brewing but already I am finding ways to cut water and energy use. I also am trying to learn about ingredient distributors and their business and/or agricultural practices. I hope to eventually make the switch to primarily all organic ingredients but realize the startup costs are fairly robust. I am excited to begin this new adventure and am even more excited to have the support of family and friends in this endeavor. I hope this site makes you think, laugh, thirsty, or anything other than bored.

Respectfully,
Taxford