Sunday, July 13, 2008

Kolsch update

In a turn of events, instead of going to church this morning (we went last night), we started out the morning with some breakfast, a dog walk, and then to the basement to bottle our Kolsch that we brewed last weekend. Our initial gravity started out at 1.055, and this morning we were a little high for finishing coming in at 1.019. The range given with the kit should have been 1.007-1.009. All in all, it comes out to about 3.9-4.0 ABV. The hops came through really strong, so it will more than likely be 3-4 weeks before we can drink it.

I'm sitting here with my Cubs on TV, with a smoked porter in a glass beside me. It was brewed by my friends Brett and Gary, and I would have to say that it mellowed out quite a bit since they bottled it. I had the opportunity to taste it at bottling time, and it was s dry that that it left a layer of dust in the glass. It has since become palateable, but it does have the color of a black hole. No light passes through this stuff. Instead of using liquid smoke, they do actually smoke the grains for this brew. Gary has made comments that in a very short time that I will be brewing more than they do, but I have to give credit that they had a big part in getting me involved in this.

We used the bottling tree for the first time today, and it is one of those things that just makes things a lot easier to do. No more carrying wet cases back to the shelves hoping that your precious brew doesn't find the cruel end of a cement floor. Cubs half of the 6th inning, down 3-1 to the Giants. They are going for a sweep of the final homestand before the All-Star break. The good guys are represented well on the NL squad, but also some key guys are getting some needed rest. Ryan Dempster got the start for the Cubs this afternoon, and is in line for his first loss at Wrigley Field this year. Hopefully they can turn it around and fly the "W" flag.

About time to wrap this up, will continue posting on upcoming breing events.

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