Notes from the brewmaster - Re: Last call..

Sean,
No problem. I will complete the circle by posting this thread to the blog.

A 22 qt. brew kettle has been procured.

As to the rest, I will defer to the judgement of the brewmaster.

See you on the morrow.

-- Sent from my Palm Prē

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From: Sean
To: MW
CC: Harlan; Katie
Subject: Re: Last call..

Mike:

Noted. In the future I will refrain from replying via email to blog posts.

Regarding the brewing, a reminder that we need a brew kettle in the neighborhood of 5 gallons (with lid, if possible). I am trusting that you have already made this acquisition or have plans to do so soon. The general process will be as follows:

1) Bring 3 gallons of water to a steam.
2) Move kettle off of direct heat and steep grains for 35 minutes.
3) Discard grains and add malt to kettle. Bring back to a boil.
4) Once rolling boil has been achieved continue boil for an hour, adding hops at desired intervals.

Normally I would now place the kettle in an ice bath in my kitchen sink This is because we are going to add 2.5 gallons of water and the goal is to reach a final temperature of about 75F. This is probably an impossibility. I think we have two options here.

1) Wait for the wort (this is what we refer to the liquid as) to cool down on its own. and add to the fermenter at little shag.
2) Transfer the wort back to the cabin in the kettle, and add to the fermenter there.

We can't leave the fermenter at little shag, so given the drive involved it may be easier to transport the kettle, with only 2.5 gallons, rather than a fermenter with 5 gallons. I will also need to sterilize the 2.5 gallons of river water via boiling it prior to adding it to the cooled wort.

Please advise on the method that you think will best safeguard the brew

Sean

On Mon, Sep 28, 2009 at 6:37 AM, MW wrote:

Hey Sean,
I generally do not respond to blog related comments unless they are properly left as comments on the blog itself. As such, since this request is not on the blog, it is exactly as if your request does not actually exist. You are taking your chances. One can of Gordon has already been consumed. Fortunately for you, I am fasting today for Yom Kippur, so I need only protect the calibration set from nephew Brian and friend, who arrived late last night. The best way to do that is get out and procure some local swill, as they will not be able to tell the difference. We will be heading into town this morning to get some decoy beers before they wake up.

I think the weather will break just in time for your arrival. Looks like you'll get some dry cool weather, and peaking color over the next week.

Finally, you may recall that you remain an author on this blog. Feel free to document your journey east, if you feel so inclined. - mw

Sean wrote:

MW,

Glad to see you made it to camp (with the supplies no less!) I expect that Joel's calibration set will remain unopened for the next couple of days....

Should we bring anything such as towels? Hope the weather clears up a bit (although I wouldn't mind a bit of rain.) See you Wednesday morning!

Sean