chapter 371

1/11/2014

Beer

hops, grain, water, & yeast

My Son is a part time master brewer here boiling up a batch of wort on our family Christmas day get together. This stage is converting the grain malt barley from starch into a sugar compound. Afterwards a fermentation process will yield the beer. Several more complicated touches along the way. Micro brewing is great. The creative Tony Magee of Lagunitas explains the interesting story of how he went from his home brew to a multi million dollar enterprise here. Christie brought and let me sample the very tasty and recommended Laguintas Little Sumpin Sumpin Ale (not for the feint of heart). This is the best time ever in the world history of beer making to taste a variety of beers.

At DEC I reviewed the proposal to allow beer byproducts to be mixed with rock salt applications onto highways so the salt would be more sticky. Seemed to be acceptable in terms of the runoff not excessively fertilizing receiving streams. But of course it will stick to your car and rot it out more ... At the local Olmsted Sheppards Sheep farm they buy malt leftovers for feed from the Evans Brewery.

Once while on route from Frankfurt to Munich I had to stop to inspect the hops (back in the bell bottom days). Loved sampling the local brews and asked Chris for any German beers for Christmas. She surprised me with the oldest brewery in the world the Weihenstepaner Monastery Brewery pretty continuous since the year 1020. It was an excellent light and citrus Heffe Weissbier. This is in Bavaria where we did visit. Another of her gifts was the very nice Pils from the Monestery Brewery at Weltenburger established 1050 near Regensburg. Another spot we visited and sampled many Pils there.

Toured our local Clifton Park Schmaltz Brewery to compare their stainless steel 50 barrel Brewing Center with Shawn's. It's an impressive operation. 

We boil ze barley and hops here, blah blah blah. It's a growing business north of 25,000 barrels a year and doubling in the near future.

A month or so through these fermentation tanks giving off CO2 through the white hoses via water bucket.

Monitoring the fermentation process with the Allen Bradley ,  Anderson and other monitoring equipment.

Then sophisticated machine for bottling from cft.

Bunches of their Coney Island brand (bought out by Boston Beer Co) and many varieties ready to ship. Wanna try a free taste of their End of Contract Black IPA, sure. Try their flavorful Hebrew'ed Jewbelation and many other varieties.

A subsequent Easter tour with fam. Sis noticed missing calibration certification stickers?

She did approve of the Pall beer filters in use which she manufactures in Cortland.

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