Bottling the Red Lager and Cream Ale

It was time to bottle both beers that were in the secondary conditioning stage. The Red Squirrel Lager had been lagering (sort of - I could only keep the temperature at around 50 - 60 degrees) for four months. It should be nice, smooth, and ideal for session drinking at this point. The Canada Goose Cream Ale conditioned for about a month. It also turned out good and clean. After the bottles carbonate, a batch will be traveling to Sweden to share with the fellow brewmasters who participated in the all-grain brew day for this ale. Final results: Red Squirrel Lager - one mini keg, thirty-seven 12oz. bottles Canada Goose Cream Ale - one mini keg, thirty-nine 12oz. bottles

Moving the Cream Ale

Today we moved the cream ale. Final gravity was 1.002 so it should be a good drinking beer at 5%. Also, it turned out pretty clear so positive results all around. Now for a nice conditioning period before bottling.

Sad News

A little over a year ago we moved up to central Pennsylvania.  I sent an email out to friends and family telling them about the move.  One friend, Larry, did not respond.  I didn't think much of it at the time, as he was a very busy writer and occasionally was (perhaps ironically) not available for written communication.

The other day I realized it that it had been a year since that last email.  I reached out to see how he was doing and found out that he had died a couple weeks prior to the email I sent before the move.

You may be asking 'why is this on your brog?'  Larry is directly responsible for my homebrewing efforts.  As a wedding gift (that's a story for a different day), he sent me my first homebrewing setup.  I remember his positive (and possibly overly kind) words about my first brew, Perkele Pilsener.  Over the past six and a half years, a lot of that initial equipment is gone (read: I broke most of the glass pieces).  But the brewing spirit he awoke in me remains.  So, here's me raising a glass to the man truly responsible for Snyderson Brewhus:  Larry Offner Jr., a great man who went on to his final reward sooner than expected.

Brew Day - Canada Goose Cream Ale (AG)

Another brew day was upon us on Saturday.  A group of family and friends was on site to brew an all-grain version of a fan favorite, the Canada Goose Cream Ale.  Good times were had by all and we hopefully will have a solid beer as a final reward.
O.G.: 1.040
Ingredients:
7 lbs. Domestic 2-Row Barley
2 lbs. Flaked Corn
8 oz. Carapils speciality grains
2 oz. Cascade hops (bittering and aroma)

Bottling the Honey Nut Brown

After a little over a month of secondary time, I bottled the Crazy Bear Honey Nut Brown.  It smelled fantastic so I feel good about the end product.  My intention is to have a big BBQ in early April so I went ahead and filled a mini-keg along with thirty-eight 12oz. bottles.  Nothing like good beer straight from the tap into a big glass!

Moving the Red Lager

I just moved the red lager into the aging vessel to let it clear up a bit more.  Fermentation was strong, ending at 1.002.  As such, we have a solid 4% lager for drinking on the deck this summer.  I plan to bottle the beer in late April so it has a good eight to ten weeks of secondary time.  A few weeks of carbonation and its Red Squirrel Lager time!

Brew Day - Red Lager

After such a successful all-grain pale ale product (Furious Cat), I decided on a lark to brew this weekend.  Basically, the last extract brew left me thirsty for another all-grain beer.  So we ran to the local home brew store (LHBS), bought some ingredients, and lit the burner.
The brew went pretty well.  I got a bit impatient during the sparge but it still turned out fine.  The starting gravity is a bit low but as long as we achieve at least 75% attenuation, this should turn out to be a good session beer.
O.G. - 1.032
Ingredients:
9 lbs. Domestic Pilsner
8 oz. Carapils, 12 oz. Caramel 40L, and 2 oz. Debittered Black speciality grains
2 oz. Hallertau hops (bittering and aroma)
Also, I used White Labs yeast this time (the LHBS doesn't carry Wyeast). 

Moving the Honey Nut Brown

While managing an inquisitive dog, I moved the honey nut brown ale into the secondary vessel today.  A very solid primary fermentation cycle led to a finishing gravity of 1.010 (or just under 6% ABV - last time it was around 5.6%).  I had to bring the primary fermenter upstairs because the basement was a little too cold for ale brewing at this time of the year.  But it should be perfect for cool aging over the next month.  During the transfer I noticed the pleasant aroma of a sweet scotch whiskey.  I have to say I am even more excited about this beer now that I have smelled it since I don't remember that aroma last time.  Cross your fingers!

Brew Day - Honey Nut Brown

This weekend a few of the guys got together for a brew lesson.  The subject: brewing the award-winning Crazy Bear Honey Nut Brown.  Award-winning you say with questioning raised eyebrows?  Yes, this recipe took 1st place in the English Brown Ales category at the Montgomery County (MD) Fair a few years back.  Hopefully we nailed it again, not just for its prize value, but because this happens to be one of my top favorite beers of all time.

O.G. - 1.055

Ingredients:

6 lbs. Amber LME
2 lbs. Minnesota Clover Honey
8 oz. Crystal 10L Malt and 4 oz. Chocolate Malt speciality grains
1.5 oz. German Northern Brewer hops (bittering)
1 oz. Williamette hops (aroma)