Smoke Your Beer, Not Your Butt!

In my efforts to keep up with the amount of beer I produce in comparison to the amount of beer I actually drink, often times a good amount of my home brew ends up in the food I cook. Some of my favorite food in the whole world is smoked pork and BBQ. Since my charcoal fired outdoor smoker has taken up residence in my parents garage, I decided to try and take a shortcut or two to produce some pulled pork sandwiches.

Panadería Norteña

When life gives you lemons... make a shandy! When life gives you undercarbonated beer? Bake with it!

Brewer's Log: Kansas City Lager

Occasionally, I find myself & the wife in a type of restaurant that repeats itself across the country. These aren't the eateries that entirely play off some combination of fries and fried-meat-patty-on-bun as an excuse for wining & dining; rather, these are the places that have a signature appetizer, followed up by gastric proportions of steak, salad with shrimp, & the like. And it's often the case that the best pour these same chains offer is Sam Adams' Boston Lager.

Beware the Ides of Märzen

Or don't beware, that's cool too. Amber lager is delicious, whether you call it Oktoberfest or Märzen .

Notes on a Brew Day: Helles VII

House beer: do you have one? A brew that you always keep on hand, or at least return to frequently? Perhaps it's a seasonal feature in your homebrewery's lineup? And, in a world where change is the only constant, is the recipe static? Or do you, like me, succumb to the urge to fiddle?

It's Winter, So Eis-Something

So, I feel somewhat limited because I can't make certain beverages at home (home distillation is illegal here in the US). I don't worry too much about this, though; I can easily rely on Milwaukee's own Great Lakes Distillery to do all that artisan distilling for me. Their products are beyond outstanding:

Lawnmowers and Weddings.

Summer is just around the corner, which means that the season for weddings and lawnmower beers is also around the corner.

Today's Reading

All rise. Today's reading will be from Brewing, 12.4.1 ... Decoction mashing.

Brewer's log: Mardi Gras Bock Clone

What is a party beer? I'd say it depends on the party.

Mai Other Bock

If you haven't started planning to plan for this spring's Maibock, you best get started!

Kellerbier time

One beautiful afternoon a while ago now I had several beers in the Biergarten across the road from the brewery in Aying. Sitting under a chestnut tree in a quiet Bavarian village and watching the sun set in the Alps over half-liter mugs of cloudy, incredibly fresh lagers pretty much ruined me forever.

Beer Planet Travelog: Bamberg

Bamberg, Germany is a UNESCO World Heritage site, full of medieval buildings that survived WWII. Walking its streets and squares makes you feel like you've stepped back in time. History is great and all, but on my trans-Bavarian beer trek I was more interested in its nine breweries, all within walking distance (or stumbling distance).