(2004)
It started one day in the early 70s while reading some book or another about chivalry and the White Knights. Seems like every other chapter ended in a dark mead hall with sultry wenches serving pints and pints of English brew. One thing led to another and soon thereafter I was brewing my first batch of honey-gold mead. Turns out I didn’t like mead at all, but fell in love with brewing beer, and have been doing so ever since.
Sometimes my four, 5-gallon glass carboys sit empty and unused for years at a time. But sooner or later they’re always hauled out, cleaned, sterilized and filled with rich, fermenting brews of every description. Making great beer at home is not difficult at all. Less restrictive and far more forgiving than wine-making, beer brewing is a lot of fun and quite economical after the initial purchase of a few necessary items. Premium imported brews that cost $7 a six-pack in a grocery store can be made at home for $2.
A couple weeks ago the urge struck late at night while reading Mickey Spillane’s first Mike Hammer mystery novel, “I, THE JURY”. Maybe it was the sultry wenches serving Mike all those tasty brews. I don’t know. But at about 3 AM I ordered a slew of malt extracts and brewing yeasts from an Internet home brew company. This past weekend aromatic boiling malt (called “wort”) melded with corn sugar and rich hop bitters, spilling out onto my deck where I sprawled in a lawn chair sipping a Bass Ale or two. A day later four different batches of home-brew (from a heavy red ale to an extremely light, golden Pilsner) were bubbling away in the basement.
All I need now are the sultry wenches.
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Tim says: for more information about how to make beer, search “how to make beer“.
I don’t know why but I am finding Mexican beers to hit the spot right now (Jan 2011).
Also, there was some left-over Christmas chocolate lurking about and it melded quite well with the beverage. I was surprised.
This Tecate brand is 4.5% and in Canada that is considered VERY low-octane.
“One” tried mead and found it to be a very acquired taste. (I have been on another of your threads).
Timothy from Canada
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Hi Tim. Husband Les used to do home brew. How about the recipes for your varaieties. Then I could keep him out of trouble and save money to boot. He generally buys ice Beer. Sounds like fun for him he will be 82 i A[ril. Then I can put his chair in garag as he watches the progress. . I enjoy all your blogs. GEt a laugh every time.We live along way from you. Hoodsport Wa Off hooods Canal. Have fun..Looking forward to more of your fun chats. You write like a person is right there with you. Marlene
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Thank you, Marlene. Sometimes I feel like I’m right there with you. I’ll dig around for some beer recipes, which I’ve filed somewhere in the basement. Since I am currently rearranging the basement in a major way, that might take a while or not. To get started brewing again, I suggest you get Les a standard beginner’s brew-starting kit from a site similar to this one. He’ll know what to do with it. I also suggest he starts with something of a light nature, as opposed to something dark.
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I’m not a sultry wench by anyone’s definition, but I could play one on the internet . . .
🙂
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Tim says: I’ve known Ken for a while. He included a cartoon wherein two dogs are sitting around a computer surfing the Internet. One of them is saying, “When you’re on the Internet, no one knows you’re a dog.” Ken is a freelance computer programmer who loves puzzles of all kinds. Here is one of his sites.
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