Colorado Kitchen Brew

2014 turned into quite the year of transition for me. I went from brewing two times a month to around once every two months. Because of that, my blog has been rather thin since May. That said, I feel I covered some pretty decent ground. The kind folks at Deschutes sent me a bottle opener and a knit cap for my Red Chair clone , which means I must be doing something right. I also had great fun with my Wood Aged Beer adventure. My first Sour emerged too. I realized a while back that the internet is awash in homebrewing websites. With that in mind , much of my effort has gone toward material for my nascent (and not quite ready for prime time)  Buzz Free Brewer  blog. Over there will eventually be a lot of material on non-alcoholic beer that you'll be hard pressed to find on other brewing blogs. This site will live on, however. I have quite the backlog of obscure beer styles to brew and generally off the wall experiments. This site is the perfect space for them. Happy...

It's been a long time (16 months, to be exact) since my first ever Sour hit the brew kettle. After nearly 14 months in the secondary and two more in the bottle, my Flanders Red is ready for the light of day. Was the wait worth it? I'd say yes. I was rather nervous brewing a beer that takes so long to mature. If something went terribly wrong, I wouldn't know about it for quite some time. Then I relaxed, had a homebrew and decided not to worry about it. The result of my efforts netted a very interesting beer that isn't quite what I expected. As with quite a few Sours I've had, there's not much of a head on this one. It takes an aggressive pour to form and quickly dissipates. The beer also has a fair bit of haze. However, what really matters is what happens on the palate, so it's time to move on. Although the guidelines for this style indicate strong fruitiness inspired by dark fruits, my beer leans toward the lighter ones. Cherries, green grapes ...

What I believe to be the first non-alcoholic Saison to find its way to the internet is finally ready. This beer was a total experiment on my part, so I had no idea if it would be any good. You know what? It is good. Let up start from the top. The beer is rather cloudy coming out of the bottle. I was warned that buckwheat makes for a very turbid beer, and that's definitely the case. A dense white cap takes an aggressive pour to form, but sticks around afterward and leaves bits of lace behind. Now it's onto the stuff we really care about. Heating the beer to eliminate the alcohol also killed the yeast. Bottle conditioning the beer with fresh yeast brought the yeast esters right back. There's a definite rustic funk here that Saison yeasts tend to produce. Behind that funk is a nice dose of floral and citrus hop aroma, in addition to some very complex grainy notes. I've eaten plenty of buckwheat over the years, and know its flavor well. It really adds a lot to...

It's November, which means it's time to brew a pumpkin beer! What's that? Pumpkin beers are already off the shelf? Oops. Oh well. I'm brewing one anyway. The pumpkins I bought have been staring at me for too long. I'd hate to see them go bad. This year's beer is a bit of an experiment. The recipe is basically what happens when my Power Outage Pumpkin , Burton Warmer , and Taddy Porter Clone all come together in the same pot. Hopefully the result will be worth the effort. Rather than shoot for a specific weight of pumpkin, I simply baked a couple of Sugar Pie Pumpkins (thank you allrecipes.com ), chopped them up, and tossed them in the Mash. Fresh pumpkins are a pain in the butt to prep, so I figured I might as well use everything. Despite my grumblings, I still think the flavor and aroma of fresh baked pumpkin is worth the additional work. The total weight of the two pumpkins after being cleaned out was roughly five pounds. Last year's beer u...

I think what I'm doing here may be a first, at least according to an admittedly brief Google search. I'm making a non-alcoholic Saison. For those of you who didn't stop reading at "non-alcoholic", I think you'll find what I'm attempting to be pretty novel. Saison is a yeast driven style that I also feel benefits from some hop character. When you boil off alcohol to make a non-alcoholic beer, the live yeast in your beer dies off with it. Any hop aroma and flavor that was present takes a hike too (the bitterness remains, thankfully). That's a definite double whammy of flavor and aroma loss with a beer like this. To bring those losses back, I'm doing some experimentation. Here's the order of business before getting to the actual recipe. First off, the term non-alcoholic is a bit of a misnomer. Commercial N/A beers actually do have around 0.5% of the stuff. That means I can bottle condition my beer and let fresh yeast do a little bit of w...

There are a lot of Homebrew sites out there vying for people's attention. This one is relatively young, and hasn't exactly been brewing outside the box of the more established sites. That's about to change. Many of my efforts will focus on a new Buzz Free Brewer blog devoted to non-alcoholic homebrew. How's that for thinking outside the box? For those who didn't stop reading at "non-alcoholic", the new site reaches an audience that no other homebrew blog has ever paid much attention to. So head on over and let me know what you think. This site is now devoted to brewing obscure styles like Sahti and Kentucky Common, in additional to truly experimental creations. The first of these brews will be up soon. Until next time, happy brewing.

I'm off on my Honeymoon, so I put CO Kitchen Brew on auto-pilot to publish itself while I'm away. This is the first non-homebrew beer review on my blog and definitely not the last. I can't think of enough good things to say about Taddy Porter. I feel it's the consummate English Porter. It's also one of my gateway beers from the mid 90s that spurred me onto homebrewing. Because of that, it holds a special place in my beer hierarchy. Taddy pours with a deep chocolate brown hue. Its head is tan, firm and stays with the beer. The only weak point is the lack of lace down the glass. My bottle left only tiny patches. The nose is very complex and slightly sweet. Blackberry, dark cherry, chocolate and black grape aromas are nicely mixed. In the mouth, an initial sweetness gives way to perfect sweet/bitter balance. Tastes of bakers chocolate, cherries and black grapes have great interplay. The finish is dry. Some hop bitterness lingers initially, but gives way to a ...

After a very long wait, the four Quads from my wood aging experiment are ready.  The base beer is quite nice all by itself. Dark cherry, plum and raisin flavors are out front. After that comes a light bitterness that is slightly minty. My beer finishes very dry, with a subtle burnt sugar edge. It also has a light body (perhaps a little too light, given the strength) and a mild alcohol warmth going down. Now it's time for my Bourbon aged variant. First off, it has a little more Bourbon action than I would've liked, but it's not overpowering. On top of the base beer is a slight vanilla and caraway edge. The caraway is most prevalent in the finish. This beer is not quite as dry as the base too. As the beer warms, there's a light roasted almond note that was a pleasant surprise. The first thought that crossed my mind when I tried the Rum beer was "now that's different." The Rum aged beer is extra sweet out front. In addition, the Rum added lots of whi...

It's been 20 (20???) years since my roommate and I brewed Gushing Geyser , but I can still recall a bit of what the original beer was like. So, does this new iteration taste like I remember? Pretty darn close. Out front on the nose, there's a nice light roasted note that's complemented by a caramel sweetness. The Willamette hops bring a nice earthy and floral note. The aroma reminds me of why I liked them so much 20 years ago. Overall bitterness is mild and very clean. If I recall correctly, the original beer had a slightly rustic (I swear that's a flavor) edge. The original beer utilized Bullion hops rather than Newport, which pretty much explains the difference. A medium-light body makes for easy drinking, while the moderate ABV makes it safe to have more than one. The beer does have a bit of what I've heard many homebrewers refer to as the"extract" taste. I can't completely describe the flavor, but I know it when I taste it. The closest I can ...

I finally hit the proverbial Weissbier nail on the head with my Winter Weizenbock . With the warmer months ahead, it's time to brew a less hefty version for both my Wedding and Summer imbibing. The new beer's grain bill is quite literally 75% of its Bock strength sibling's. The time consuming triple-decoction mash lives on, as does the yeast. I switched from Opal to Sybilla hops, simply because I had the later on hand. Here's the recipe for five gallons: Grains: 3.75 lbs Weyermann Light Munich 3 lbs Weyermann Pale Wheat 2.25 lbs Weyermann Dark Wheat 3 oz Weyermann Dehusked Carafa II Hops: 0.5 oz Sybilla (6.4% a.a.): 60 min Total Boil Time: 90 min Yeast: White Labs WLP300 - Hefeweizen Ale Yeast Mash Schedule: Acid Rest: 104F for 20 min Decoction 1:      Heat ~1/2 of mash to 155F and hold for 20 min      Heat Decoction to boiling and boil for 15 min Protein Rest: 125F for 20 min Decoction 2:      Heat ...

It's been nearly two years since I last wrote an "On the Road" post. However, my new gig has me traveling quite a bit. What better way to take advantage of my downtime than to visit breweries? First up on my travels is Los Gatos Brewing Company in San Jose, CA. To be honest, after a long day of traveling, just about any beer would have tasted good to me. I was in the mood for something light and refreshing, and Log Gatos' Kolsch did the trick. It wasn't the best example of the style I've ever had. It lacked the mild white wine quality you get from a good Kolsch yeast. There was definitely more a of a Blonde Ale vibe to my palate. Nonetheless, it did its job as a refresher. The Cask ESB was more true to style. It was served at a nice cellar temp, and carried light carbonation, plus an earthy black tea bite from the hops. If more radical beer is what you're in the mood for, this isn't the pub for you. Despite just two locations, Los Gatos has a...

In keeping with the theme from the Twitter Bitter I brewed recently, below is a Session beer version of an American Porter. All of the Porter style points are hit, but with an alcohol content of around 4.5%. To make up for the beer's lack of heft, I've thrown in a bit of Dextrin Malt to compensate. This is the second beer for my Wedding in May. Hopefully it will please both my fiance and guests. The full 5-gallon brew is below: Grains: 5 lbs Great Western Premium 2-Row 1 lb Weyermann Light Munich 12 oz Great Western Crystal C60 8 oz Bairds Chocolate Malt 8 oz Briess Carapils 6 oz Bairds Black Malt Hops: 1 oz Glacier (5.6% a.a.): 60 min 1 oz Glacier (5.6% a.a.): 15 min Mash Schedule: Saccharification Rest: 152F for 60 min (No Black or Chocolate Malt) Mashout: 168F for 15 min (All Grains) Total Boil Time: 90 min Yeast: Safale US-05 Original Gravity: 1.047 Estimated Final Gravity: 1.011 IBU: 29 SRM Color: 28 Fermentation Schedule: 2 Weeks ...

Who says you can't have everything? Well, I'm doing just that by creating a beer that combines the best aspects of eight big beer styles: Quadrupel, Imperial Stout, Doppelbock, Barleywine, Weizenbock and Wee Heavy. But wait, there's more! The beer will be aged for year with everyone's favorite bacterias to make a Sour. On top of that, Sherry infused oak cubes will provide that little extra something. A massive grain-bill, plus a healthy dollop of Candi Sugar should push the alcohol content up over 11%. Compensating for the strength is a biting combination of Noble, English and American hops. A Decoction Mash gives the beer an extra bit of German character. Heavily caramelizing the First Runnings provides more depth of flavor than a standard boil. For that extra push over the cliff, 11 malts are working to make the beer one louder. I'm giving this one at least a year of fermentation before I even touch it. Here's the five gallon recipe: Grains: 4 ...

The beer below is inspired by the Kölsch/German Pils hybrid I brewed last Summer. My fiance said the original beer was one of her favorites, so I'm brewing a mild variation on it. This time around, I'm using a local Pils malt in addition to some Kölsch Malt that I had good luck with last year . I've also upped the ante by switching from a single to a double decoction mash. The hops and yeast are the same. The final beer should be perfect for our warm late Spring wedding. Here's the recipe for 5 gallons: Grains: 6.5 lbs Colorado Malting Pilsner 1.5 lbs Global Malt Kölsch Malt Hops: 1 oz Spalt (5.3% a.a.): First Wort Hopping 0.4 oz Magnum (14.7% a.a.): 60 min 1 oz Spalt (5.3% a.a.): 7 min Total Boil Time: 90 min Yeast: Wyeast 1007 - German Ale Mash Schedule: Protein Rest: 125F for 20 min Decoction 1:      Heat ~1/2 of mash to 155F and hold for 20 min      Heat Decoction again to boiling and boil for 15 min Saccharificati...

I'm happy to report that I finally found a local homebrew shop that sells the full line of malts from Colorado Malting Company . Boulder Fermentation Supply is my new home for these great local grains. Since they only recently opened up, this is my way of giving them a quick shout-out. I love supporting local businesses, and now I can support two of them at once (three, if you count the fact that BFS shares its space with a bike repair shop). From here on out, you'll see a lot of Colorado grains showing up in my brews. Several of the CMC grains are quite unique. So much so, that their catalog has thrown my 2014 brewing plans a curve. It's led me to amend a 2014 brewing calendar that was drawn up months in advance (I'm a little OCD. Just ask my fiance.). With malted Amaranth, Red Proso Millet (in base, crystal and chocolate, no less), Teff, Sunflower and Buckwheat on the menu, in addition to Cottonwood Smoked Malt, I'm officially open to recipe suggestions...

Well, that was easy. After only five short weeks, the Bitter I brewed based on suggestions from Twitter was done. Having consumed quite a few bottles while doing research for Grad School, I figure it's high time I finally write about how my beer turned out. My goal was for a Session Beer and that's what I got. With an ABV of around 3.5%, this is a beer you can drink several of (a Session's worth?) without fear of getting loopy. The body is light and refreshing, although a bit too tingly for a proper Bitter. But how does it taste? Not earth shattering, but pretty decent. The nose is primarily earthy hop, plus a bit of a toasty aroma. I was expecting some fruitiness from the yeast, but there isn't much there. The flavor is light, but interesting. Next time, I'll dial back the Amber Malt. It's a little too prevalent and doesn't quite balance the toffee undertones at work. Bitterness is just right and brings a black tea bite to the beer. It lingers thro...

What do you do when it's your first chance to brew in over a month, but the local homebrew store is closed? My initial reaction was to panic. Of course my homebrew store had to be closed on the one day I had time to shop! How typical! Then, I started to go through what brewing supplies I already had at home. Leftover Malt Extract from a beer kit ? Check. Some random specialty malts? Check. Hops? Check. Yeast? A spare packet of dry that I'd forgotten I even had. The beer I decided upon is an American Brown Ale . For grains, I used all of the liquid extract I had. The Caramel 60L was leftover from my Power-Outage Pumpkin brew day. My Chocolate Malt was leftover from an Oatmeal Stout . The Hops were around from my last online shopping spree. It's brewing time! Oddly enough, the ingredients I had on hand let me put together a beer eerily close to one of the first beers I ever brewed back in the mid 90's: Gushing Geyser Brown Ale. That beer netted me my first e...

At long last, I have time to actually write about beer again!  Life has been crazy busy (there are things that take precedence over beer, believe it or not), so I've been kept away from my passion for a few weeks. It's time for to that to finally change! Without further ado, it's time to talk about how my second Weizenbock turned out. First off, the picture doesn't do the beer justice. I haven't had time to take the usual daytime shot, so this one was taken in my not so scenic kitchen. But hey, you've got to do what you've got to do. This beer is the result of my longest brewing day ever. As I found out, a triple-decoction mash takes forever and ever and ever. I try not to think about how many hours I spent brewing this beer. Thankfully, the results were totally worth the effort. Let's start with the pour. My Weizenbock has the proper hazy chocolate hue and a rocky cap that stays and stays. Head retention is exemplary and a nice bit of lace i...

2014 I can't believe it's been a year since I bottled my last Old Ale . I suppose time flies while you're having fun. Anyway, it's time to see what's taken place in the last 12 months. Things have changed quite a bit the last 12 months. First off, the flavors meld better than they did before. This is still a complex flavored beer, but the balance of the different pieces is more cohesive. Bitterness has faded just a bit, but still carries the black tea bite that was there before. 2013 The rum-like qualities have really cut through with time. There's an almost vinous quality to the beer that wasn't around before. This is especially true in the nose. A slightly heavy body persists that is drier than before. The beer finishes with lingering toffee and rum flavors. Overall, I'm quite happy with how this beer aged. I'd still tweak the recipe if I brewed it again, but time has made for a much more cohesive brew.

My Sweet/Oatmeal Stout hybrid is ready to go. This beer gets a bonus round, because I bottled both a regular and N/A version of it. This is a nice chance to see what kind of a difference removing the alcohol makes. The beer itself is intentionally light, but not insubstantial in body. The regular beer's ABV barely cracks the 5.0% barrier. I'm not super happy with how the flavors blended to together. You can sense some sweetness from the milk sugar. It sits across the room from the roasted grains as an odd counterpoint. I definitely need to play with balance next time around. Bitterness is light and bolstered by the roasted grains. The nose has a touch of fruitiness to it. The N/A version is very close. The roasted flavors are slightly more pronounced. There's less fruitiness in nose too. The rest is pretty much the same. This includes my questionable balance of lactose and roasted grains. So, this definitely isn't the best beer I've ever brewed. The flavor...

Mine My Red Chair clone attempt is ready to go. It's time to see just how close I got. A report on the outcome of a clone-brew wouldn't be complete without popping open a bottle of the real deal. With that in mind, I grabbed some Red Chair from the store to drink side-by-side with my beer. Let's start with appearances. My beer is a bit lighter than the Deschutes brew. Both have dense caps that stick around nicely and leave good bits of lace behind. Moving onto what really matters, there are a surprising number of similarities between the two brews. Most noticeable is the bitterness profile. Although the Deschutes brew has a touch more grapefruit to it, the level of bitterness between the two beers is almost identical. Citrus is the overarching theme, with a touch of pine in the background. The bitterness of both beers lingers through the finish, where they get a little peppery. Their's In other areas, things veer off course. My beer is more malty and c...

It's high time a wrote some more brewing advice, so here's the start of a new series of blogs. This series is inspired by Brad Smith's "Multiplying Your Beer" blog on BeerSmith . In his blog, Brad talks about various ways to get multiple beers out of one brewing session. His work is long on details, but short on examples, so it seems fitting that I try his ideas out and see what happens. These articles are also an extension of a couple of previous experiments. One base beer resulted in three Abbey Beers back in the Spring. My Session Saison and Dark Saison sprang from the same base as well. The difference here, is that with Split-Batch brewing, you get different beers from a single brew day. The simplest form of batch splitting is to take finished wort, put it into multiple fermentors and then pitch different yeasts, or perhaps add differing additional ingredients into the fermentor of each beer. In this instance, I'm working with oak ag...

I was asking around on Twitter about what beer style I should brew with some of my lingering grains, hops and yeast from 2013. The finalists came down to a Mild or an Ordinary Bitter . I've decided to combine both into a brew with the flavor of a Bitter, but the low ABV session beer goodness of a Mild. Since my goal was to brew without taking a trip to a Homebrew store, everything in the beer below was already on hand at home. My hop quantities are a little odd, because I was trying to use up open Challenger and EKG packages. The finished beer should have a nice sweet/bitter balance and an alcohol content of around 3.5%. Here's the 5-gallon recipe: Grains: 5 lbs Fawcett Optic Malt 8 oz Briess Caramel 80L 8 oz Fawcett Amber Malt Hops: 1 oz Challenger (6.9% a.a.): 60 min 0.5 oz Challenger (6.9% a.a.): 20 min 0.75 oz East Kent Goldings (4.5% a.a.): 0 min Total Boil Time: 90 min Yeast: White Labs WLP002 - English Ale Mash Schedule: Saccharification Rest: 1...