Sunday, March 22, 2009

Me And The Homebrews: Part 1

What better time could there be than Lent to begin your own homebrew project? Like good little monks we leaven our prayer and fasting with some practical work.
Monks had an additional reason to prefer beer in that it provided a degree of nutrition during the Lenten (and other) fasts. Because the Trappist order had abjured meat, they had perhaps a yet more pressing reason to find beer attractive, and the brewing of beer was carried on at abbeys, along with baking, cheese-making, and the growing of vegetables.
The first step in our homebrew project (after a little research) was acquiring the proper materials.
The good folks at Northern Brewer have starter kits for all budgets. Our includes:
  • (1) Five gallon carboy, (1) Six gallon carboy (glass)
  • 2 x Fermometer
  • Carboy dryer
  • Test jar
  • Five gallon keg system
  • Five pound CO2 cylinder
  • Funnel
  • Blowoff hose
  • (2) Fermentation lock and bung
  • Siphon tubing
  • AutoSiphon
  • Bottle filler
  • Bottle brush
  • Carboy brush
  • Beer thief
  • Thermometer
  • Hydrometer
  • 8 oz One-Step Sanitizer
  • Complete instructions
We also purchased an 8 gallon brew kettle and wort chiller:
Our tastes tend toward the rarefied, so we immediately chose the Belgian Dubbel (also from Northern Brewer) as our first foray into home beer brewing. Ambitious, yes; it remains to be seen if our efforts will pay off.

Belgian Dubbel Extract Kit

O.G: 1065 / Ready: 2 months

This is an authentic Abbey style ale like those that arose long ago in Trappist monasteries throughout Belgium. Dark brown in color, high in gravity and alcohol, this kit exhibits medicinal, plum, and raisin flavors when fermented at warm temperatures.

Kit Inventory

Specialty Grains

  • 0.25 lbs. Dingemans Caramunich
  • 0.25 lbs. Dingemans Special B

Fermentables

  • 6.3 lbs. Gold Malt Syrup
  • 1 lbs. Golden Light Dry Malt Extract
  • 1 lbs. Dark Belgian Candi Sugar

Boil Additions

  • 1 oz. Spalt (60 min)
  • 1 oz. Saaz (1 min)

If you choose dry yeast

  • Not recommended.

If you choose liquid yeast

  • Wyeast #1214 Belgian Ale Yeast. Optimum temperature: 68-78° F.

All kits also contain a muslin mesh bag for steeping the grains (if required).

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