An Open Letter to Miller Lite

Seriously? Now why would you want to go down this road, Mr. Lite? You already changed the spelling of a word to fit a marketing scheme, which may systematically be changing the spelling habits of BMCers across the nation. Why, oh why did you have to jump on the "we have hops in our beer" bandwagon (see also Sam Adams and Budweiser). Not only that, but you make up some more crazy terminology - triple hops brewing. Oh, say it ain't so, SABMiller!

You see, Miller Lite, you had me at hello. Of course, I'd rather drink a nice septuple-hopped Double IPA, but if I were to grab an American Macro Light Lager, I need my "-I-T-E". You have that market cornered! You're the commissioner of the More Taste League. It's true, you do have more taste than all the other BMC Lights, which is why I'm a fan, but I have to say, this "triple hops brewed" BS-erie is causing my inner Beer Geek to react like I just heard the proverbial "Brown Note".

Here's an idea, stick to what you're good at. Show us well-endowed females being all too attentive to overweight, balding men watching whatever sport is in season. It's worked so far. Be what you are - a mass-produced, fizzy, yellow, water-like substance that college-age frat guys and mid 30's execs like one in the same. Don't try to infringe on the Craft Brew movement. That's not what you are. You are my college beer. You are my $1.00 pint beer on game days. You are my substitute for water when I have none. Be all of these things, and do them the best that you can. It's better off that way. Trust me, the universe will thank you.

If you haven't yet see this commercial, you can get the gist of it at their website.

*End Rant*

And in one post, I have officially become a beer snob.

Cheers,

Dave

Pints for Pets this Weekend

Yes, that's right, ladies and germs . . . the return of central PA's best beer fest is THIS WEEKEND, May 30th, 2009 at Blair County Ball Park in Altoona, PA. Pints for Pets, benefitting the Central PA Humane Society, has expanded to two sessions, 12:00 to 3:00 and 4:30 to 7:30 and features 50+ brewers this year. Check out the site, get yourself a $30 ticket, and enjoy some good beer. Designated Driver recommended!

Cheers,

Dave

Back in the Saddle Again . . . sort of

So, for the loyal readers that have occasionally been checking this blog, I guess I owe you an apology. I didn't mean to leave you all so abruptly. Certain situations warranted such actions, strictly personal, of which I will not discuss here. I do, however, have to discuss the results of those actions, which has lead to limited brewing and a self-imposed hiatus on alcohol intake. Although, Dear Reader, don't be alarmed. Muckney Brewing is still around, currently a dormant entity in my basement, but will again see the light of day. In the mean time, stay tuned. There are (hopefully) events on the horizon that will hopefully pique your interest.

Lost and found again,

Dave

Pullin' One Out of the Cellar

A long time ago, in a kitchen not too far from where I'm sitting now. . .

Justin wanted to make an IIPA, and so was born the Show your Hoppeeness Double IPA. Brewed back in September of '07, this hop bomb boasted 13 oz. of hops in the five gallon batch. Well, Justin still had a few bombers of this layin' around, and dropped on off at the ol' homestead. I had a chance to crack it the other night, and wow, this thing's still tasty. It's very similar to an aged Stone Double Bastard Ale. There still tons of bitter, but the hop flavor and nose has diminished to almost nothing, allowing the malt profile to shine through. The alcohol heat has settled down, and there's no extract "twang" present. This guy was tasty, and I'm hoping that Justin comes across a few more of them and is willing to share. Oh, and we need to make it again.

Here are the tasting notes:

Pours a hazy orange with a huge, foamy white head, three fingers thick, dissipating to a finger of lacing foam. Sugary, resiny nose with toffee and caramel. Mild vaporous alcohol and a touch of residual hops, but not much present.
Taste is mouth coating, sugary, resiny caramel with mild floral and citrus notes and a huge bitter. Mild chocolate notes also present.

Cheers,

Dave

Homebrew Review: Ode to the Halper Bitter

So we've had some issues with the Ode to the Halper Bitter (MB0026), but alas it's bottled and carbed up, so now's the time for a review of this Ordinary Bitter. The ABV ended up just under 4%, and it's cleared well after having bulk-aged in secondary for about a month. So let's get down to to it:

Pours a clear orange with honey hues and a foamy, 3/4 finger white head. Nose is sweet caramel with mild floral hop notes, also a touch of apple. Moderate watery mouth feel with good carbonation. Nice lacing. Taste begins with a huge caramel flavor accented with fruity notes of bright apple and mild cherry, which quickly bleeds to a solid hop bitter and mild floral and piny hop flavor.

This thing is too damn drinkable. Now, we've had some issues with Pale Ale's in the past (Leaky Faucet anyone?), but this one's on point. Well, it's at least a jumping off point. There's a bit too much caramel malt causing it to be slightly on the sweet side, but other than that, it's rather well balanced. I've been partaking in a lot of these, and it's slated to be made again soon. Could we be onto a "House Beer" with this one? Potentially, but it still needs a bit of work. I'm thinking a little less caramel malt to start. We'll see how it goes.

Cheers,

Dave

Fermentation Friday: Keeping the Nasties at Bay

It's that time again, dear readers! Fermentation Friday for February 2009 is brought to you in part by the letter C, and A World of Brews.

So why the letter "C" you may ask? Well, until recently, I have exclusively used C-Brite as my sanitizer-of-choice. Why? Well, it's what my local homebrew supply shop had on hand when I bought my first kit, and since then, I've gone with the "ain't broke, don't fix it" attitude. Yes, over the last several batches I've used one-offs of it, but I'd always used a chlorine based sanitizer.

That is, until the last two batches. We were in need of some sanitizer, so Justin Picked up some One Step, which is a no-chlorine sanitizer. While I've seen no difference between the two except for the smell, I may opt for the One Step in the future, and have also thought about venturing into the world of iodophor.

I must add, though, that no matter what is used, cleanliness and sanitation are the two most important things that any homebrewer should master. Learn it. Love it. Live it. Clean it, then clean it again. Read directions, and mix properly. There's nothing worse, than bacteria in your brews. That is, unless you want them there.

Cheers,

Dave

The First Steps Toward All Grain

So over the weekend, Justin, Nate and I scoured every hardware, farm supply, value, and surplus store that was open in Indiana, PA in search of parts to build new Mash/Lauter Tuns. We were specifically searching for 10 gallon cylindrical coolers (to no avail) and the corresponding drainage hardware. The latter was easy to find, the former, not so much. This is why I settled for a 48 qt. square cooler. Nate's holding out hope to find the drink cooler.

Unfortunately, it's not built yet. I've run into some hardware issues and need to pick up some additional materials. This would be the reason for a lack of pictures and directions to what I did, both of which will follow upon completion. Until then, the MLT is just a cooler with a hole in it.

Time for a beer.

Cheers,