COMPLETION: Sarcastic... Something Red?

Well, I checked a bottle today, and despite being in a rather cool corner for two weeks it's all carbed up and ready to move into the fridge.  It's a pretty pleasant drink, as well.  What it is not, in any respect, is a porter.

Even when I was bottling it, it was pretty red/brown, but it really seems to have lightened even further in the bottle somehow (though it hasn't cleared at all) - it's a cloudy amber, now.




It's not a beer I'd be embarrassed to have produced intentionally, but it's a pretty big defect in what was supposed to be a porter.  I'll have to get another batch on the go quite soon, and fix the grain bill - more chocolate ought to do the trick just fine, maybe a longer boil...  I've promised these to a number of people, so hopefully they can all be patient for another month.

Meanwhile, though, I have to figure out what I'm going to do about labeling these...

BOTTLING: Sarcastic Doorman

Whew...  I cleaned a LOT of bottles today for this.  In the end I only actually got 24 330mls and a couple of bombers, a little less than I expected out of the batch, and I'm not sure I have enough bottles left for the other batch I was thinking of packing up this weekend.  Still, it was overall pretty successful.

This batch came out differently than I was expecting.  The rye seems more prominent, though still pretty subtle, which is good, but the Cascade hops do not do the same job as the Amarillo did in terms of giving that little hint of citrus in the finish that balances it, so I'm worried people will find it more off-putting now.  Next time I can't get Amarillo, I'm going to have to really jack up my late hop additions during the boil, maybe double?

It's a little lighter in the alcohol and the body, which was intentional, but it's also a good deal less chocolatey.  That's definitely an overreaction on my part to the somewhat acrid results of my last attempt.  The Caramunich malt is working really nicely, though, adding a little toasty-ness.  I feel like I can't really judge it until it's carbonated, which will change the mouthfeel and give it a little bite from the carbonic acid...  I decided to shoot for 2.2 volumes of CO2, which I understand is pretty typical of an oatmeal stout and should work nicely here as well.  The colour's a bit lighter than I might have hoped, but again, that's probably the cut-back chocolate.

I think next time, some actual rye ale malt to supplement the pumpernickel, a little more chocolate, and a good deal more late hops (if it's Cascade at least), and I'm within a hair's breadth of absolutely nailing this thing.

And then I have to work on the juniper version.

Tomorrow, if all goes as planned, I brew something a bit different!  What I'm going to bottle it in I have no idea...

Conspiracy Theories & Beer Design

The ninth episode of Community's second season is possibly one of the best written things, of any kind, ever.  It's like a little master class on showing rather than telling, a concept lots of people will parrot at you but very few really understand, to say nothing of how elegant the script is, no wasted motion.  And of course the direction, acting, and score are beautiful as well - I get caught up in it every time, which is impressive considering it's basically a big goof.

Also, la Corriveau Oat Stout is way better than I remembered.  I think we can actually get more different kinds of beer here in Alberta, and I'm pretty hooked into the community where you can get GOOD beer in Edmonton, but still, sometimes, I really miss drinking in Quebec.  Still, I probably wouldn't have started homebrewing if I hadn't moved here, and that's been pretty good for me in some ways.  Not physically so much, maybe, but you know, liver function isn't everything.

Delirium Nocturnum

It's really, really nice, but man does it take a long time to drink...