Post by Kammi on Mar 12, 2014 13:39:17 GMT -5
I have very few hobbies and only two that produce anything that I feel that produce physical objects to show (I mean reading and playing games don't really have any visible results), so I'll share one of them here and possibly make a thread for my other one.
Several years ago, I drank beer. I drank fizzy, light yellow, one note american beer. Several nights were passed with a six pack of Budweiser and then something happened. I found a craft brew that was darker, cloudier, and had way more flavor. I was almost instantly converted. Around this time I also reconnected with my father who I hadn't really spent time with in 10-15 years. Turns out this man also found craft beers delicious and wonderful, and he had brewed a batch of beer at his house before. For the first year or so that I spent reconnecting with him, it was beer and the possibility of making beer with him that kept the conversations flowing and the relationship growing. Eventually the weather turned nice and we planned our first brew together, we spent a relaxing afternoon staring at and stirring a large pot on a gas burner with water, hops and malt syrup just boiling along. Three weeks later we had another opportunity to hang out and spend some time together while we put five gallons of what was now almost drinkable beer into bottles (around 50 of them) and another two weeks later a chance to get together and drink the fruits (or liquid) of our labor. Since that day, we've brewed several gallons of beer, made our own recipes, tested out different styles, and joined a home brewing club. Making beer is one of those things that you can continue to learn new things about every single day, it's something we really enjoy even after our relationship has mended to where we are comfortable with each other again, plus it leaves you with a nice end product.
Besides our normal home batches of beer that we've made a couple of my home brewing career highlights include attending a home brewers only beer festival where beers I had a hand in making were well received among other home brewers, raising over $500 dollars for our local food bank at our home brewer's club Christmas party, and hopefully looking forward to some awards in this spring/summer season of beer competitions.
I don't have many pictures to share at the moment, but this one is from our last batch which we hope to enter into a contest or two and score big points with it. It's an extract Vanilla Pecan Porter, and here it is waiting to cool down a bit more so we can pitch the yeast to make it turn from sugar water into beer.
Several years ago, I drank beer. I drank fizzy, light yellow, one note american beer. Several nights were passed with a six pack of Budweiser and then something happened. I found a craft brew that was darker, cloudier, and had way more flavor. I was almost instantly converted. Around this time I also reconnected with my father who I hadn't really spent time with in 10-15 years. Turns out this man also found craft beers delicious and wonderful, and he had brewed a batch of beer at his house before. For the first year or so that I spent reconnecting with him, it was beer and the possibility of making beer with him that kept the conversations flowing and the relationship growing. Eventually the weather turned nice and we planned our first brew together, we spent a relaxing afternoon staring at and stirring a large pot on a gas burner with water, hops and malt syrup just boiling along. Three weeks later we had another opportunity to hang out and spend some time together while we put five gallons of what was now almost drinkable beer into bottles (around 50 of them) and another two weeks later a chance to get together and drink the fruits (or liquid) of our labor. Since that day, we've brewed several gallons of beer, made our own recipes, tested out different styles, and joined a home brewing club. Making beer is one of those things that you can continue to learn new things about every single day, it's something we really enjoy even after our relationship has mended to where we are comfortable with each other again, plus it leaves you with a nice end product.
Besides our normal home batches of beer that we've made a couple of my home brewing career highlights include attending a home brewers only beer festival where beers I had a hand in making were well received among other home brewers, raising over $500 dollars for our local food bank at our home brewer's club Christmas party, and hopefully looking forward to some awards in this spring/summer season of beer competitions.
I don't have many pictures to share at the moment, but this one is from our last batch which we hope to enter into a contest or two and score big points with it. It's an extract Vanilla Pecan Porter, and here it is waiting to cool down a bit more so we can pitch the yeast to make it turn from sugar water into beer.