There are STILL Decent Companies in America

Just when I'm convinced that we've become a truly disposable society, a company proves me wrong.

Backing up....

Several years ago I was planning my homebrew setup.  I received a gift certificate to Northern Brewer, and decided to use it to buy the Cadillac of homebrew pumps--a magnetic pump from the March Pump company out of Illinois.

The pump sat in my basement for over a year.  Finally, I started putting my system together and put the pump into use.  After about four uses, the pump died.

I emailed March Pump with my model and serial number and explained that the unit is probably out of warranty, but I was very disappointed because I barely used the thing and it no longer worked.  I received a response within hours by a gentleman named Doug Street.  He told me that it was out of warranty, but if I sent it to them, they'd take a look at it.  He said, sometimes they can get them working again, but there would be no guarantees. 

The only thing I had to lose (other than the value of the pump) was shipping.  I sent it off.

I followed up a couple of weeks later to get the status, and was told that they got it running, but it was pretty "fubar-ed" up and was rubbing a lot.  Oh well....

So I come home today to a very pump-sized box on my front porch.  I figured I got my very defective pump back. 

No!

A shiny new pump motor was staring back at me!

This company was up-front, responsive, and successful in removing some of the cynacism I've cultured over the years.  They went above and beyond anything they had to do, and they not only left me 100% satisfied, they also made me want to tell everyone my pleasant experience.

I think I'll start with this blog......

So What Else Is New??

So kind of you to ask.

It is with great excitement, a touch of apprehension, and a tinge of sadness that I am reporting that I am leaving you.

Temporarily.

Let's back up a little.

A few months ago, my lovely wife was offered a pretty cool opportunity.  She is a medical coding auditor and she's darn good at what she does.  Now, normally I find this occupation as interesting as, say, a sequel to "Eat, Pray, Love" but once in a while, life throws you a curve.  Well, it did.  My wife swung and hit it out of the park.  She was offered a supervisory position overseeing all of the Air Force bases in Europe, with Germany being the home base (Ramstein AFB).  Last month, she moved there, and rented a great house in the little village of Oberstaufenbach.  On December 8th, the day after the December tapping, I will be moving there to join her.

While living with the woman I love is a no-brainer, this decision had a fair amount of trepidation.  I have worked very hard and sacrificed much to get to where I am today.  I love working for St. Francis Brewery.  I love making good beer.  I love the freedom, automony and trust that the ownership has offered me.  I also continually strive to become a better brewer.  Both I and my bosses see this new venture as an opportunity to learn and grow as a brewer.

With this in mind, in a wonderful display of generosity, the ownership of SFB is considering this a Sabbatical of sorts.  They are keeping me on staff, and I will be returning one week a month to get a whole lot of brewing done.  I have hired an Assistant who will handle the day-to-day minutiae.  You will meet her in an upcoming post.

Stay tuned to this blog, as I keep you abreast of my new adventures.

In all sincerity, it has been a pleasure serving all of you.  I look forward to raising a mug of St. Francis' finest with all of you in the future.

Auf Wiedersehen!
Scott

El Doble Rojo

Thought it would be fun to crack out the Spanish lingo.

I brewed up a short batch of Double Red.  It's not just for Valentine's Day!

This is a malty, higher strength version of an Irish Red.  Low bitterness.  Caramel and toffee flavors.

Surprise the wife with a growler, and let the chips fall where they may......

So, What's New?

Been a little lax in my updates lately. 

However, things have been a little crazy around here.

For starters, we are currently featuring three special beers in addition to our house lineup:

The first is our Black Sheep Weizenbock.  Coming in at 8.1% ABV, this German Ale has been very popular since its debut on 10/9.  The description can be found here.

Next up is our Rye Oh Rye Roggenbier.  This German Ale features rye, a cereal grain that isn't often used in brewing as it tends to be a little difficult to work with.  However, rye imparts an interesting flavor giving this beer slight whiskey and spicy notes.  This is a full-bodied beer with a slightly bitter tang from the rye.  The taste starts sweet and then the rye and hefeweizen yeast take over with a hint of banana/clove.  ABV: 5.8%

Finally, we just tapped our Tripel Trouble Belgian tripel.  This one got away from me a little bit, as the ABV came in at 10.4%!  Using a suggestion from our yeast lab, I fermented this one a little different than when I made it in the winter of 2009.  As a result, the fermentation was almost too complete, if there is such a thing.  However, don't let that stop you.  The flavor is fantastic!  This golden ale features imported Belgian pilsener malt, and a special Belgian yeast strain gives it a spicy sweet flavor.  There's very low bitterness in this one.

On deck, we have the Cowtipper Stout coming back.  Plus, I pulled a firkin of Cowtipper today and added toasted coconut.  (Our coconut casks are very popular!)  This should be ready in about 10 days.

I also filled a firkin of Double Red, another popular beer that can't wait until February. 

Last, but not least, this can only mean one thing:

Yes, the Chocolate Hazelnut Porter is coming back.  I'll be brewing up a bigger batch of this for our December seasonal.  It will tap on December 7th.

More big news to follow......

An Old Friend Is Coming Back

I'll spare no expense for you:

Mmmmm.  Look at all that imported Belgian Pilsner malt.

That could only mean one of two things:  Saison?  Nope, I did that one already this year.

It's Tripel time!!!!!

I made this one almost two years ago to raves.  In fact, it was one of the more "jubilant" tappings in SFBs history.

Anyway, this Belgian beauty should be ready to roll in about three weeks.  This will be our November seasonal.

Everything Always Turns Out Okay In The End.

That's kind of been my life motto.

The Weizenbock ended up just fine.  Yes, the sparge did take forever, and yes, I was about 3/4 of a point shy of my original gravity (more brewer talk), but with a high gravity beer, I'm not concerned.

Now it's in the yeast's hands--or buds.

I'll pop in tomorrow to see if it's rolling along as it should.

On another note, I sampled the Oktoberfest today and I'm very happy with it.  It's amazing what 30+ days of lagering will do.  I hope to see you all out at St. Francis Brewery next weekend for our Oktoberfest celebration.  The event kicks off at noon on Saturday the 24th.  Free beer!

Weizen#$*@!

It sounds a little like weizenbock.

Brewing it today.  It's about 48% wheat.

A little lesson to folks new to brewing:  The rest of you may talk amongst yourselves.

Malted wheat has no husk, as opposed to barley which keeps its husk during the malting process.  The husk is great because it acts as a natural filter in the mash tun and helps keep the wort free-flowing and clear.  When you use a large percentage of wheat, you do not get the benefits of the husk.  Also, wheat contains gelatinous proteins which make the mash stiff and gummy.  To counter this, many brewers (myself included) will add rice hulls to the mash as a "substitute husk".  If you don't do this, you can experience a slow or "stuck" mash.  Basically, it becomes so thick, that the wort cannot flow through it very well, if at all.

Lesson over.  Sure, I added rice hulls, but apparently not enough!  This is one of the slowest sparges ever.

Plus, based on the size of this batch, and the weight of the grain, I think my conversion was down significantly.  This means, I'm not sure I got the most of the "good stuff" that I want out of the grain.

I seldom get mad at work.  A bad day brewing is always better than a good day at work.  However, my patience may be tested today.....

More to follow.