New Hobby in the Works…
Ray and I have been kicking around the idea of brewing our own beer for quite some time now. I’m sure every beer drinker does at some point, but few are dumb enough to actually try. That’s what separates Ray and I from your average beer drinker.
Until yesterday, it was just that: an idea, but we decided maybe we should actually try and follow through on one of our dumb ideas, in the unlikely event that it turns out productive, educational, or fun. I guess the desire to get started homebrewing bit Ray hard yesterday, and he called up and basically told me that we were going to get the ball rolling RIGHT NOW. So, over a couple six packs of tasty microbrews (you know, inspiration), we browsed online to figure out exactly what we needed and what we needed to do.
24 hours later, the purchase has been made. With a mere investment (read: loss) of $100 (each), we picked up a deluxe two-stage fermentation starter kit from Northern Brewer, and the ingredients to brew a simple pale ale. We plan on documenting the entire process, so I will be updating on the process as we go. So anyway, in about 6-7 weeks, we should be bottling 5 gallons of our own pale ale. That’s right, the kit comes with a bottle cap press. How cool is that?
September 15th, 2006 at 5:46 pm
I’m sure you’ll be able to make a better quality work environment than the places I saw in Africa, Haiti, and Hawaii, but the stench of those places was god-awful. Really. It’s just not a happy smell.
September 15th, 2006 at 9:45 pm
My dad makes his own beer. “Beginner’s tip #342, a little bit of hops goes a long way.” Oh, and “Chris’ tip #1, saying ‘microbrews’ all the time instead of ‘beer’ can make you sound like a pretentious cocksucker.”
September 16th, 2006 at 12:05 am
Considering that the top five beers in America, in order, are:
Bud Light
Budweiser
Coors Light
Miller Light
Natural Light,
saying “beer” instead of “microbrew” can make you sound like a tasteless dumbass.
September 16th, 2006 at 12:35 am
Or make you both sound like elitist pricks, but that comes from the guy that drinks cheap beer. So I have no taste. Good luck with this Bill. Maybe whenever we see you again you will bring with you microbrewbeerpia.
September 16th, 2006 at 1:00 am
No one with any self-respect or taste drinks any of those five without:
a.) being desperate or
b.) losing a bet
especially not among the “uber-beerists” that troll around this site. I just thought I would help you out before you ended up in a rap video extolling the virtues of ‘palate enhancement achieved through a nice porter over the corvossiere’ while eating a delectable cow ass medium rare.
September 16th, 2006 at 1:02 am
Oh, and Olympia is Budweiser filtered through dog innards and extracted from their urine Shawn.
September 16th, 2006 at 5:13 pm
You think he’s joking, but we visited the brewery. That’s the exact process they use.
September 16th, 2006 at 11:05 pm
You guys are seriously stupid fucking assholes. The day I start spending 8 dollars on a 6 pack of beer to get drunk is the day I realize I’m not an alcoholic or a stupid fucking asshole. You like fucking expensive beer that tastes like “microbrew”, I like beer that tastes like beer that is half the price. If it knocks me down on your beer ladder, so be it. Should I get a job at a liquor store, or should I just “refine” my taste. Eat shit. No matter what. Eat Shit. Maybe whenever it comes back around to fucking drinking shitty beer and passing out in my living room doing stupid shit, I’ll fucking come around too.
September 16th, 2006 at 11:34 pm
That’s the Olympia talking.
September 17th, 2006 at 1:29 am
If it makes you feel any better, Shawn. Your taste in beer would probably be considered better than mine. Then again, asking me my opinion on different beer is kind of like asking Helen Keller what her favorite book was.
September 17th, 2006 at 1:34 am
Dude any way you look at it your going to get drunk on shitty tasting yeast waste so what does it matter what it’s called. Drink the manly man’s drink SoCo and Pepsi. That be’s the shit man.
September 17th, 2006 at 1:58 am
My old man tried to brew his own beer, his first batch tasted like vinegar, so he gave up. “Beginner’s tip #45, if your beer tastes like vinegar you will lose the respect of family and peers.” “Beginner’s tip #46, don’t let family and peers sample your vinegar beer.”
September 17th, 2006 at 2:27 pm
“Beginner’s tip # 6, if the majority of flavor in your beer is provided by the can, you are drinking Olympia, which is french for ‘manure fertilizer’ cease consumption and seek psychological/psychiatric/medical attention immediately.”
September 17th, 2006 at 2:29 pm
Ron, if your favorite drink is SoCo and pepsi, well, that explains why you’ve gone through life stone sober.
September 17th, 2006 at 9:04 pm
I don’t know if “5 gallons” is a lot of beer, but that does sound like a lot. that’s neat! if you want help making a logo for your beer, tell me, it would be fun desining soemthing that requires you don’t think about your logo.
A fish with a mohawk holding a beer!
an angel drinking a beer floating over a mountain!
a beer with a mouth drinking another beer.
just ideas that required no thought at all, but…you get the idea. i guess what i’m trying to say is…i want in!
September 25th, 2006 at 6:43 pm
God damn this hobby must be time consuming. No update for 10 days? What am I supposed to do on the internet now?
September 26th, 2006 at 1:41 am
Get A New Hobby…
September 26th, 2006 at 1:42 am
..duh.
September 28th, 2006 at 11:29 pm
Look, Bill. There’s no easy way to say this, but your girlfriend is destroying my life.
September 29th, 2006 at 12:33 am
I agree with the Caleb. After coming home from working with the trolls all day, I thought, “Today must be the day! Bill updated and saved my afternoon!” Eagerly anticipating a fresh new cleverly worded vicarious experience to relish, I sprinted to my computer with hope in my heart and the wind at my back. Bitter tears were all that awaited me, and the burning hatred that coursed through my veins subsequent to the disappointment left me shaking and bereft. Like seriously, if this keeps up, I’m going to have to like get a life or go outside… I’m terrified.
September 29th, 2006 at 3:22 pm
Yeah this beer thing is taking forever, maybe you should have just bought the microwavable kind.
September 29th, 2006 at 8:02 pm
We haven’t been able to start brewing yet because of conflicting schedules.
And as for how much time I spend with Amanda, well…yeah.
September 29th, 2006 at 10:13 pm
Big deal about brewing some no doubt shitty house brew, how about your friends, we’re still here…what the fuck happened. We have girlfriends, yet see each other on a regular basis. We even do this nutty thing kids do now called “hang out.” It’s crazy how easy it is. Does Amanda hate hanging out with us? Do we not fit her idea of fun? Are you ashamed of us? What the hell man? Enough questions?
(and before you go assuming, it’s the not the Olympia talking. It’s just a friend wondering what the fuck happened to a guy I only see on Monday night when I go to the bar and he happens to be working, as opposed to the guy that used to rub me up on my bed and pass out in my bathroom.)
September 29th, 2006 at 10:15 pm
…and no doubt I’m throwing down a harsh gig…deal with it, and my ellipses. I think it’s weak sauce.
September 30th, 2006 at 2:43 pm
Moody…
September 30th, 2006 at 3:07 pm
Nice comeback, say it to my face.
September 30th, 2006 at 3:07 pm
I’m willing to throw down fisticuffs here Bill, realize this.
September 30th, 2006 at 3:56 pm
He really is… I saw him punching his life size poster of rambo with a picture of Bill taped over the face.
September 30th, 2006 at 4:00 pm
and I was also punching my life size ass with a picture of Bill taped over it’s face. OOOOOOOOOOO, FEEL THE BURN!!!!11!!!!2!@!!