Beer!

[thoer]

It's been a while since we have had any discussion of that serious topic, dear to the heart of at least several Escapees - beer. I am wondering if any other Escapees homebrew? Right now I have a clone of Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter in the secondary and a clone of Anchor Steam in the primary. Sometime in the next couple of weeks I am going to try a recipe from Brew Your Own magazine for a clone of New Belgian's delicious Abby. (After seeing beer prices on my visits north of the border, I would think lots of Canadian Escapees would homebrew?)

Eric

 

[gbaglo]

The industrial beer is cheaper south of the border, but I've found the craft brews are the same price north or south.

I used to homebrew, but it was Cooper's Ale out of malt can with a packet of yeast. Good stuff, but the brewing wasn't appreciated when it took over three rooms in this 800 sq. ft. house.

I do intend to start up again, especially nearing retirement and a pension.

baglo

 

[Cathy Midwest U.S.]

I have wondered if making root beer is similar to making beer. There was a man making root beer at home and bottling in large bottles, selling at the farmers' markets. He left the region. Since then I have always looked at the ingredients in root beers all over. The best I found was Doc's in Independence, Missouri and maybe the historic Potosi Brewery's in Wisconsin --- a place I am sure you know, Eric, as they especially have lots of beer. There is a large parking lot. Don't know if people might pull trailers into there but it seems there is a park just down the way. It's a good place to visit.

 

[vermilye]

The closest I have ever come to "homebrew" is when my father decided to save $ and brew his own root beer. We ended up with a basement filled with 5-6 cases of exploding bottles. That was in the days when we had a hand fed coal furnace - had to walk past the boxes of root beer with a plywood shield to guard against flying glass when ever it was time to feed the furnace!

 

[Cathy Midwest U.S.]

Too funny!! I knew it was dangerous to make root beer. Hand fed coal furnace --- that must be a photo of you in your younger days!

 

[thoer]

Potosi Brewery is on my list for a visit. I have been through the town many times, but that was before they reopened the brewery. My understanding it that the city owns the brewery and contracts out to have the beer made? http://www.potosibrewery.com/index.cfm It is part museum and supposedly a great place to visit. I have only tried a couple of their brews, but the Gandy Dancer Porter is excellent.

Funny about the exploding bottles. That happened to me once when I got a bacterial infection in a few bottles that didn't get cleaned properly. The bacteria could keep eating the nutrients that the yeast didn't digest already. Too much pressure builds up in the bottle and poof ... not fun to clean up! It can sometimes happen to if someone bottles their brew before the yeast has completed its job of converting the sugars to alcohol.

I have never made any, but I read the home made root beer uses just enough yeast in the bottle to carbonate it. Sounds like you need to refrigerate it as soon as it is carbonated enough or the fermentation keeps going and poof!

Eric

 

[Yukon Escape]

Come to the Yukon, and try
Yukon Gold
worth freezing your ass for.

Doug

 

[Devil Dog-ESC]

As Ben Franklin said:
In wine there is wisdom,
In beer there is freedom,
In water there is bacteria.

In a number of carefully controlled trials,
Scientists have demonstrated that if we drink
1 litre of water each day,
At the end of the year we would have absorbed
More than 1 kilo of Escherichia coli, (E. Coli) - bacteria
Found in feces.
In other words, we are consuming 1 kilo of poop.

However,
We do NOT run that risk when drinking wine & beer
(or tequila, rum, whiskey or other liquor)
Because alcohol has to go through a purification process
Of boiling, filtering and/or fermenting.

Remember:
Water = Poop,
Wine/beer = Health.
Therefore, it's better to drink wine or beer and talk stupid,
Than to drink water and be full of sh**.

There is no need to thank me for this valuable information:
I'm doing it as a public service!