AndyBWood
Regular.
Hi All,
I remember the chipped blue enamel bowl filled to overflowing, the dampened and loosely draped cloth, the heady aroma wafting from the emersion heater cupboardâ¦... Even with a decent pinch of nostalgia I donât recall any of those family brew experiments being anywhere close to successful; not surprising really. Iâve always thought; âI must give that a go one dayâ¦.. Surely it must be possible to make a decent pint ?â
For some unknown and inexplicable reason, 35+ years later I find myself walking out of a Home Brew shop with a bucket, spoon, hydrometer, beer kit and a couple of yards of plastic pipe round my neck. Within hours my first brew is assembled and I pitch my first ever yeast. Peering into the murky depths I have high hopes tinged with lingering doubtsâ¦..
Witches and demons descend on my household and work their overnight alchemy; I awake to find a madman in my kitchen. Three inches of fluffy, yeasty foam cover my brew. Like opening a pouch of powerful pipe tobacco, this has been worth it just for the smell !
6 days later the storm has passed, calm is restored and my brew is lovingly transferred into itâs new clean and sparkling pressure barrel home. All we can do now is wait, and hope. I donât honestly believe that gazing longingly at the semi translucent image of my brew through the side of the keg makes any difference at all but I do it anyway. Does it know Iâm here ? Should I leave the radio on when I go out ? TV maybe ?
Whether I continue on this journey will largely depend upon the next few weeks; words such as tun, sparge, boil and hop seem tantalizingly exotic but⦠if this works⦠who knows ?
Iâll let you knowâ¦..
I remember the chipped blue enamel bowl filled to overflowing, the dampened and loosely draped cloth, the heady aroma wafting from the emersion heater cupboardâ¦... Even with a decent pinch of nostalgia I donât recall any of those family brew experiments being anywhere close to successful; not surprising really. Iâve always thought; âI must give that a go one dayâ¦.. Surely it must be possible to make a decent pint ?â
For some unknown and inexplicable reason, 35+ years later I find myself walking out of a Home Brew shop with a bucket, spoon, hydrometer, beer kit and a couple of yards of plastic pipe round my neck. Within hours my first brew is assembled and I pitch my first ever yeast. Peering into the murky depths I have high hopes tinged with lingering doubtsâ¦..
Witches and demons descend on my household and work their overnight alchemy; I awake to find a madman in my kitchen. Three inches of fluffy, yeasty foam cover my brew. Like opening a pouch of powerful pipe tobacco, this has been worth it just for the smell !
6 days later the storm has passed, calm is restored and my brew is lovingly transferred into itâs new clean and sparkling pressure barrel home. All we can do now is wait, and hope. I donât honestly believe that gazing longingly at the semi translucent image of my brew through the side of the keg makes any difference at all but I do it anyway. Does it know Iâm here ? Should I leave the radio on when I go out ? TV maybe ?
Whether I continue on this journey will largely depend upon the next few weeks; words such as tun, sparge, boil and hop seem tantalizingly exotic but⦠if this works⦠who knows ?
Iâll let you knowâ¦..
