Brewing Update

by buttercup Posted on Thu, May 10th, 2012

So, since I last made my post about my homebrews and the tasting notes, I have made 3 batches of beer.

The first batch I made is kind of a dark saison.  It is a bastardization of the homebrew store’s recipe for a dunkelweizen. I added about a pound and a half of Goodflow honey, a half ounce of Willamette hops as aroma hops, and a half ounce of Willamette hops as dry hops.  The beer is a strong, dark, and hoppy interesting beer that is about 8% ABV.  I tasted it 3 weeks after bottling and the hop aroma dominated everything and it wasn’t very good, but after 6 weeks, the hop aroma had subsided quite a bit and became delicious.

The next 2 batches are of something which I am calling the G series.  I am making several different beers using the same recipe and different yeasts, all Belgian golden ales.  I am using 7 pounds of extra pale malt extract, a half pound of clear candi sugar, half ounce of Nelson Sauvin hops for bittering, and another half ounce of Nelson Sauvin for aroma.  A Simple recipe, and makes about 4.5 gallons of beer at 1.060 OG.

The G1 used the Wyeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes yeast. It fermented a little better than I expected to 1.010, putting the final ABV at about 6.5%.  One of the reasons I wanted to try that yeast was because I read it had a high flocculation rate, and it ended up with a very clear beer which I was interested in, because I am brewing without any sort of  filteration system.  The beer turned out very good, it is both very crisp and spicy, with a really great finish to it.  It is definitely something that would be very good on a summers day, it manages to be both crisp and refreshing, and still have a lot of flavor.

For the G2, I used the Wyeast 3724 Belgian Saison yeast. I’m always interested in saisons, so I thought I would give it a shot and try and make one.  I just bottled it the other day, so I haven’t had a chance to try it like that, but I’m not feeling good about it.  I waited an extra week to move it to the secondary fermenter, because it continued to slowly bubble and ferment, and I’m not sure if I should have waited longer.  The gravity when I put it in the secondary was still pretty high at 1.030  much higher than the 1.010 I had from the G1, not a great sign.  I thought about what I know of Saison Dupont, and tried to force the issue.  I put the carboy in hot water trying to get the temperature up to 90 degrees.  I could see that it was working at first, but that the fermentation would stop as the water cooled, and did that several times over a couple of days.  I eventually got the gravity to 1.020, but couldn’t get it to go much lower, and decided to bottle it.  I have tasted it with my forced carbonation method and it is pretty good.  It has a lot of flavor up front, but quickly disappears.  I will try it in a month, but I feel that this is a beer that is going to take a bit more time in the bottles to get a good flavor.  I’m not expecting a lot, but am hoping for the best.

Posted in brewing | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off

tatt tooooooooossssssss

by buttercup Posted on Tue, Apr 17th, 2012

In my current state, I feel like it is important to talk about something which is both meaningless and forever a part of me.

Tattoos.

I got some.  a lot of them are food related, and for me, all of them are very whimsical.

Tattoos, once they happen, become a part of someone. And in my opinion, now represent my view on life.  And in this sense, I want to show off the joy I have in living in my tattoos.

Man, I hope this post comes off and makes sense.

But anyways, I recently got into several tattoos about my permanent scarification. This made me start to think about what all this ink meant to me.  I came to the conclusion that my tattoo express the joy I have in life.

This is weird, and not anything I meant to write about when I changed this blog from design to consumption.  But I also think this is a lifestyle blog, and in a way, this is very important.  I have a tattoo of 3 tator tots doing the 3 monkey see, hear, and speak no evil.  I have a tattoo of a fight where a taco is punching a pizza slice.  I have a tattoo that says bad news, even though that is the last thing I would consider myself to be.

The things is, all of these tattoo express a sense of fun, and life.  Re-Write. Death happens, and if somebody close to me died, I would have no problem getting a tattoo for them, but it would be related to the things they love to do when they lived.

Life is hard, but it is fun if you aren’t afraid of it.  I’m really happy with where I am with my life right now.  I also know that I need to keep growing, learning, and fighting to be in a place where I want to be.  My knowledge will keep growing no matter what, but what is more important to me is to continually learning to give better service.

I think this post has gotten off track. It’s important things, but not the basis of the post.  My tattoos will be with me for life, and no matter the circumstance, everyone of them can make me smile.

Posted in Drunk Post | Comments Off

Joe Beef

by buttercup Posted on Tue, Apr 10th, 2012

Occasionally, I read books. Let me just say that I read plenty, usually it’s a bunch of random internet articles, blogs, or twitter if I’m feeling really unproductive. But I like books, and sometimes I read them. I just finished reading The Art of Living According to Joe Beef. My thoughts from reading it, is that I want to go to Joe Beef. I want to sit at the bar and talk with whoever is behind the bar while eating 2 dozen oysters and some martinis, and maybe a sandwich.

It is written as a cross between a cookbook, and a “look how badass we are” book. There are plenty of recipes, I’m sure they are good, they sound pretty great, most are very accessible. Some things, such as making your own smoker, are not.  The great thing about this book is how much the personalities of the authors comes through in their words. I cannot think of another cookbook that has done it better. I can feel the love and respect they have for everything they are involved in with their restaurants. It’s inspiring.

Considering that I am trying this as a book review, should you buy this book. YES!!  I figure if you like reading what I write on this here blog thingy, you will like this book.  But don’t buy this book if you are just looking for recipes.  There are plenty of books for that. This book doesn’t even have that many recipes, and one of the chapters is just about booze. To be honest, I think that’s awesome, I totally want to try their version of a Bloody Mary, which comes garnished with a lobster claw. Awesome. I do plan on trying to make the schnitzel recipe in the book, and my friend Andrew recently got all the herbs to make some homemade Absinthe. I might make other things as well, but that isn’t what makes this book great.  You should buy this book for inspiration, because reading about what they have done is exactly that.  Finishing the book gives me the thinking that I can do anything and love what I do, as long as I am willing to work 18 hour days and be incredibly poor for the next 10 years.

I also finished reading a book put out by the Brewers Association called Farmhouse Ales. It’s really technical.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off

Up too…

by buttercup Posted on Thu, Apr 5th, 2012

I haven’t really posted anything on this site since I posted about getting my Cicerone Certification(insert copyright symbol. bleargh).  Well, since then, I’ve been working, and reading, and SXSW has happened, and I’ve managed to get myself drunk a lot.  I was working earlier tonight, and am now on my second beer since getting home, so I am a little drunk right now.  but that is something that should be expected from me, half the things I put up here are written with some booze in me, hooray.

So reading right now.  I’ve recently finished The Art of Living According to Joe Beef, and it is amazing.  I have started working on a review after finishing it the other day, but that is not something I’m in a state to do right now, this is more of a drunk rambling post.  I like to do those more.  I’m also most of the way through Farmhouse Ales which is a fabulous book by the brewers association.  A great book about Biere de Gardes and Saisons.  To be honest, I don’t give a damn about the French farmhouse ales, but I LOVE saisons.  Reading it is making me realize one thing, and that is that none of the Texas brewers which are making a saison give a shit about what a saison historically is.  I feel like that statement is giving them too much credit, and I don’t think they even know what a saison historically is, or what would be considered a proper modern day saison.

Oh shit, I just hit a sloppy and tired state, completly lost my train of thought.  Saisons, delicious. Texas saisons, Lacking.  Am I being a bit harsh, sure.  If one of them would make a good saison that is around 6% and has a good mix or yeasts, malts and hops to make it at least decent, my criticism would stop about all saisons.  But that isn’t the case.  Come on Texas brewers.  give me something that is delicious.  quit making it too strong.  I want an almost session-able saison. bring it.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

Certified

by buttercup Posted on Tue, Mar 6th, 2012

It took exactly 8 weeks for my results, but I got it.  I, Matt Eggers, am now a Certified Cicerone®.  It includes the little registered trademake thingy.  Which is, for me, crazy.  I mean, it’s nice, but I think I would prefer to be called a certified and certifiable beer dork.  Cicerone sounds so, what’s the word, pretentious.

I also gave my first beer recommendation to somebody after becoming certified.  PBR. and I didn’t mean that ironically either.  I love PBR, and always enjoy it.  Tonight I plan to celebrate by drinking some wine at a fancy restaurant tonight.  I don’t know if I want to increase or cease my beer consumption from the results, so I think I’ll just increase my consumption of other liquids.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

Sober Conclusion

by buttercup Posted on Thu, Mar 1st, 2012

I did it. I went February without having a drink.  Was it hard? Not really.  Was it boring? Yeah, a little bit. Was it worth is?  Totally.  Will I do it again?  Probably next year.

I think the biggest surprise was that my sense of smell got better towards the end of the month, and I don’t think it has anything to do with allergies.  A little after midnight I drank some half pints of some different beers as I was closing the bar, and noticing that the beers didn’t taste quite the same as I remember.  It is awesome, and also different.  I don’t know if it has anything to do with the sobriety or just my body changing as I grow, but I’m happy about it.

I also have a much better understanding how alcohol is a drug.  I did the same activities that I would normally do with a drink in my hand.  I didn’t change my life, I didn’t seek out other activities quite like I thought I might.  I did stay home a little more than usual, and I went home earlier than I used to.  That change is good to see.  As much as I like to think about the flavors and history of my drink, or the way that it pairs with whatever food I am eating,  It is good to stop and realize that it is a drug, and does affect my mind and body.  An effect that is very rarely talked about by people examining the culinary aspect of booze.  I also like knowing that I much prefer having a beer instead of an Ibuprofen when I have a headache.

My Belly doesn’t look any smaller, but the scale says I have lost about 5 pounds in the past month.  Sweet. I’ll take it, and be quite happy about it.  Any money I might have saved by not drinking was instead spent on the carbonation system, a new TV, and some other random stuff.  The weight loss and possible money saved are good side effects of not drinking, but have nothing to do with why I did it.

And what now…  Well, the boozing has already started back up, February ended at midnight, and soon after that I had a drink in my hand.  My body has recovered to a pretty normal, healthy level, and it’s time to beat it back to the drunk that it normally is.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Fuck the IPA

by buttercup Posted on Wed, Feb 29th, 2012

The time has come, and I’m gonna be a crotchety old man, but I have seen a beer today that has made the term IPA just the shark for having any meaning.  Samuel Adam’s Dark Depths should be considered the beer label that destroyed IPA.

I already hate the term Black IPA.  I think it’s something marketers came up with to be lazy instead of actually trying to worry about any education or anything like that.  As for what to call it, I like either American-style Dark Ale, or India Black Ale, either one make a lot of sense to me.  A very thorough explanation was written recently by The Beer Wench, and whose conclusion I fully agree with.

Then this, an “IPA” that is a lager.  Seriously.  Baltic IPA.  Wait, I think I got it.  IT’S SO COOL!!!  How many things can be put on the label to appeal to all the beer fanboys out there.  With this beer, Sam Adams is like the high school nerd whose dad is rich and just wants to be cool.  Sure, everybody is hanging out with you, but at the end of the night, you’re the only person who isn’t making out.

I really don’t know why I am so bothered by this naming stuff, but I seriously don’t get it. Every time I hear the phrase Black IPA, I cringe like somebody has just put nails on a chalkboard.  I want to keep beers away from the bar if they are called a Black IPA.  My love of things being right makes me avoid something which I consider so blatantly wrong.

So…   I didn’t buy the beer.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

Sober Update

by buttercup Posted on Wed, Feb 22nd, 2012

I would think that giving up on booze for several weeks would make me more likely to post, but instead it seems to have done just the opposite.  While not drinking, I have been busy.  I brewed my first batch of beer for the year, which is going to be a dark Saison, and I am very excited about.  I now have a carbonation set-up, which I am experimenting with.  So far it is mainly just water, but more things are coming soon, I will try it with my beer when it is done, and sodas as well.

Not drinking is a lot easier than I expected it would be, but it is a lot more boring than I want.  The hardest part about it is that I want to try new things.  If I only drank Lone Star, or Miller Lite, or something like that, I might never drink again, but I don’t drink like that.  I mean, I do sometimes, usually with an IPA or an ESB, but I also drink many times to taste the flavor of the beer, and enjoy how it feels.

I am also checking my e-mail now several times a day with the hope of finding out the results of the Cicerone Exam I took 6 weeks ago.  I was told it would probably be between 4 and 8 weeks until I knew the results, but I am nervous and ready.  And whatever the result may be, I am going to break my booze-fast if I find out within the next week.  I will either celebrate or commiserate, but I will do it with a drink in my hand.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

Sober February

by buttercup Posted on Fri, Feb 3rd, 2012

It was 2 years ago that I first decided to quit drinking for February.  It’s the shortest month, there’s not much going on, I don’t want to drink on Valentine’s Day, and other thoughts contributed to my decision.  And for me, it’s a good one.

When I first did it 2 years ago, I did great.  I quickly became much better friends with Topo Chico, or as somebody called it as they saw me drink it, the Lone Star of water.  Being at work, the tiredness as I got done with work, Superbowl, Valentine’s Day, or just going out; nothing broke me.

I think day after St. Valentine’s was the first day of the Olympics.  I got off work to see some figure skating.  Everybody fell.  I think 5 girls fell in a row, it was ridiculous.  I went home, grabbed a coat, and returned and got a beer.

Last year, I had a first date on the first of the month.  Friends said I couldn’t start then, it would be weird, and I didn’t.  I only had the one date, and I didn’t have a sober February.

I’ve gone 2 days so far this year, and so far so good, but I’ll see how I do.  Alcohol is such a big part of my life, and cutting it out is a big change, and strange.  It isn’t the alcohol that I miss, as much as the activities that happen while drinking alcohol.  In the evening I’m going to read or watch TV instead of walking to the pub to have some beers and talk with whoever is around.  I’ll still go, just not as aimlessly out of boredom like I often do.

Posted in general | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off

Homebrew Review: Spiced Dubbel

by buttercup Posted on Thu, Jan 26th, 2012

The second batch of beer I’ve made is complete, it’s done fermenting, and has finished it’s conditioning in the bottle.  So in the spirit of beer advocate, and reading through their mostly crappy and sometimes good reviews about particular beers, I’ve decided to review my own concoction.

The beer is a recipe for Belgian Dubble from the homebrew store, but I’m never one to stick to the script and decided to add my own twist to it, and spiced it up a little bit.  I added juniper, coriander, orange zest, clove, and anise spice to it.  I must say, it’s turned out to be some decent beer.

It pours out a good amber color and quickly gives rise to a strong head. The initial aroma is strong, the spices are noticeable from the beer, but unable to identify the individual spices used.   The head quickly disappears, and does not leave any lacing on the glass.

The taste is pretty mild for a dubble, because this beer comes in at just slightly more than 6%, it doesn’t have the full flavor usually found in a dubble.  It has a complex flavor. I am unable to identify the specific spices, but I do notice a complex caramel flavor and slight apple flavor in the beer.

The feel of this beer is what is off about it and what bugs be.  The first sip is definitely the best.  When the head is there and the carbonation is strong, it gives a very complex and full flavor that fills the mouth and doesn’t linger too long.  The beer changes a lot after it has been open for a few minutes.  The carbonation quickly dissipates leaving the beer feeling flat, and the finish leaves something to be desired.

Overall, I’m pretty happy with the beer, but feel that some changes I would make if I made it again.  I would changes the spices, getting rid of the coriander, orange zest, and cloves.  I would look into adding some spruce tips or rose hips as well. I want the spice mixture to be more straightforward and identifiable, it all got cluttered.  I would also look into learning what to do to increase the head retention.  It just didn’t last at all.  I also would like it to be slightly stronger and hoppier  The beer came across as almost a sessionable dubble.  Just a little light for my tastes.

As long as I keep doing it and learning, I can only get better.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off