Der Bierbreuwer

"From barley I boil good beer,
rich and sweet and bitter fashion.
In a wide and big copper I then cast the hops.
Then [after boiling the wort] I leave it to cool,
and therewith I straightway fill the well-hooped and well-pitched vat;
then it ferments, and the beer is ready."

It's really that simple and it's easy to get caught up in equipment and forums and the like.  I'll be hanging this on my wall soon.  As Papazian says, "Relax, have a homebrew."

Gudger's Top 3 Cigars

These are three of my favorite cigars which I would recommend to anyone.  They are all relatively consistent and can be found at most tobacconists' shops.

Oliva V Belicoso

This is my all-time reliable, flavorful cigar which doesn't break the bank.  I'm not going to do a flavor review, but I like smooth, dark, earthy flavors in a cigar and this covers all of them.  It's well constructed and burns all the way to a nub with consistent flavor and enjoyment.  All of the Oliva V series are great, but the particular shape of the Belicoso has struck a chord with my particular preference of drawing.  As it costs less than ten dollars it is a phenomenal value.

Padron Serie 1926
 

 

This is one of the best constructed, solid cigars on the market.  It puts out a lot of pleasant, cool-burning smoke.  It can take a hobo and make him look like an aficionado because of the ease with which is summons forth great flavor and full, wispy smoke.  Of course it has the refined character of a complex strong ale which has been allowed to mature and its flavors to mingle into one great experience.  I highly recommend it for special occasions as it is in the ballpark of $20.   



Fuente Fuente Opus X
 

One of my friends (the ampersand of G&F, in fact) introduced me to this cigar on a special occasion when I was new to cigars.  I didn't fully appreciate it at the time, because, I suspect, it was spicy and my untrained palate believed that to be hot smoke and not flavor.  Now, however, it's one of my favorites, because of its superior construction, consistent draw, and well balanced spicy overtones.  A couple of years ago it was difficult to find these as they were rationed out to certain cigar stores, but as of this last six months or so, in particular, they've been more attainable.  The various sizes range from the mid-teens in price on up toward twenty dollars.

 

 

In summation, the Fuente Fuente Opus X is particularly characteristic to me with its spicy overtones, the Padron Serie 1926 is smooth, complex, and well statured, and the Oliva V Belicoso is the best priced aficionado's cigar.  After trying them all you'll discover that your palate has already relocated itself to a better vantage point.



Blending Yeasts -- A new depth of flavor

I can't recall finding a recipe which includes more than one yeast.  I'm sure they're out there and you've seen one, but it's uncommon nonetheless.  I recently created my finest brew to date and it used a blend of two very different, yet complementary yeast strains.  This occurred when I was assembling the ingredients for a 9% Belgian Ale and was about to pick up that second Wyeast "Belgian Yeast" package to provide a reasonable cell count for the nine points of alcohol.  As exemplerary Belgian beers are known for their depth, why not include a different strain and add some undertones to the finished product.  The "Belgian Yeast's" partner was a German strain of "Hefeweizen Yeast." 

After fermenting and carbonating the Belgian ale we were coming up on hosting an engagement party and, after only three weeks from the brew date, liked the immature flavor of the Belgian ale more than the kolsch which was intended for the party.  It was fully attenuated and should have sat for months, but it was a phenomenal beer reminescent of St. Bernardus.  I'm conservative in the promotion of the quality of my brews, but this was the best American made Belgian I'd ever had.  At the end of the party a gallon of this brew remained, mainly though, because of its strength and the availability of an easy drinking spiced pumpkin ale also at the party.  I put it back in the storage fridge so I could wow people in the future.

Two weeks later I bottled it to use the keg for other purposes.  The Hefeweizen yeast had strongly entered the arena and presented beautiful banana and clove flavors!  This was the deceptively strong offspring of St. Bernardus and Schneider Aventinus!  The chemistry and biology surrounding the blending of yeast strains are deep waters, but "Truth in Taste" will always be the litmus test for any brew. 

I intend to repitch this combination several times with an eager anticipation of unexpected delicious outcomes and have already begun fantisizing about other potentially optimal pairings.  If you have done this, tell us what you've experienced.



PS- My computer has not been working with the picture uploader recently.  I'm working on it and hope to have pictures for the last several posts soon.