Brewing in Small Spaces

I hear all the time, "I want to brew but I live in a tiny apartment." This should not be a deterrent, and I am living proof. At least a year of my brewing life was spent in a 450 square foot studio apartment located on the 3rd floor. I did not have a balcony and I was still able to brew 5 gallon batches.

via Closer to Nature

I am going to assume that most apartments have some sort of stove. The key here is if your stove will give off enough energy to boil 5-6 gallons of liquid. You can test out a sample batch of water, it may take a little longer than an outdoor propane burner but you are doing this in the luxury of your kitchen so it works out. If you have a stove that can muster it (and most can) you should be good to go.

One of the other issues people seem to have is that they do not think they are going to have enough storage. Well come on nancy, you have a closest then you have enough space to store a few cases of beer. Throw away your 1996 K Swiss classics you have been holding onto for all these years and that box of memories from your cheating ex.  


So if you are a beginner then your first step is to read my "How to get into Homebrewing" post and figure out your set up. My point in all of this is that you really can brew anywhere as long as you have a heat source to get that wort boiling. 

There may be some smaller issues like fermentation temperature if you do not have a temp controlled apartment. If your place is too hot in the summer to ferment anything other than Belgians then your answer is simple, brew Belgians in the summer and every thing else in the spring, fall and winter. Or the best move that I made at this time was to by a mini fridge for 30 bucks off craigslist and have my own personal fermentation chamber. 

Get creative with your storage and brewing procedures and the sky is the limit for how much you can brew. I have made award winning beers on a gas burning stove that also sat in my closest with my Michael Jordan #45 Jersery. Don't make excuses and get brewing.

Beer Review: Quarry Brewing Basalt India Black Ale

So one last post to close out my Montana Beercation series. I wanted to do a proper review of my favorite Quarry Brewing beer, so I brought home a growler of it so I could "properly" review it. Basalt India Black Ale is Quarry's interpretation of the new style that is all the craze, the Cascadian Dark Ale.

Basalt IBA

New Beer on tap “BASALT IBA India Black Ale” This black ale has all the hops of an IPA but with the black color of a Stout, with a crisp light flavor and black color, backed up by 80 IBU’s this new style is sure to please. So try one today!!!

Appearance: Pours a deep opaque black. Thick brown head reduces to just over the beer with nice lacing.

Aroma: Roasted malt with hints of coffee and some faint citrus hops. 

Flavor: Strong upfront roasted malt leading into citrus hop flavor and bitterness. The hops balance the roasted quality very nicely. Ends with a slight caramel sweetness and hop astringency. 

Mouthfeel: Low to medium body with low carbonation. A very drinkable india ale.  

Overall: Chuck (head brewer) told me that he had some tasters tell him they liked this better than Widmer Bros W'10 and I agree. This example of the cascadian dark has more roast character which really balances the high IBU level well and differentiates it from the traditional IPA. With the W'10 its like drinking a dark colored IPA whereas this actually seems like a different style. This style is really going to take off, and this new brewery has something going here. 

Brewpub Review: Quarry Brewing - Butte, MT

So again, like Great Divide, this is not really a brewpub but a tap house in the brewery. The lone brewery that I visited on my trip to Montana, but I may have just picked the best one. I say this because of the friendliness of head brewer and owner Chuck Schnabel and his wife Lyza who is the head bartender and co-owner. The atmosphere when walking in was overwhelmingly Butte, Montana. Hardworking people enjoying good company and good beer. 

The brewery is located in the historic district of Butte, an old copper mining town which boasts the richest hill on earth. It's a great little part of the city that used to be Montana's largest. There is ample parking on the side of the building and plenty of room inside.

I am guessing the building was an old warehouse, perfect place to revamp, add some fermenters, and start a brewery. As told by Chuck, Butte is the biggest drinking city in Montana, probably a good idea to start the first brewery there since the 1960s.

 Everyone seems to want to crowd around the bar but there is also ample table room as you walk in and the building expands to a lot more room in the back, as long as you don't mind sharing the room with some grain sacks.


Along the walls hang cases from other craft breweries as well as historic photographs and old mining antiques. The place really gives you a sense of the historic town you are drinking in. 

The brewery lies on the other side of the bar in it's own separate room. Large windows allow patrons to view the large vats that are making the delicious beer that they are consuming.




I believe it is Chuck and Lyza's plan to stay very local. They currently distribute to local bars and restaurants and serve at their tap room. Chuck explained very straight forward that he has no plan to bottle/can and likes it the way it is. I really can't blame him for that, sometimes in a capitalistic world you forgot your roots, and the Schnabels' seem dug deep into Butte.

My favorite part about the establishment (besides the beer) is their mug club. There hangs around 150 mugs on the wall each with an individual owner who have perks for being in the club. I was told that there is about 275 people on the waiting list, and if you're on the list and don't come in for awhile you are probably going to get bumped down. I have only seen one other place that has something like this, and the most amazing part is Chuck and Lyza know every single mug owner who is on that wall. Someone would come in, they would give them a huge hello, grab the mug right off the wall, and make sure they were getting their usual.

So on to the best part, the beer. Quarry has a pretty standard year round lineup with English roots. Chuck said the water profile of Butte is very very close to Burton on Trent which is famous for their outstanding English ales. The Shale Pale Ale, Open Cab Copper, and Open Pit porter all live up to their British beginnings. My only issue is I thought they were a little light handed on the carbonation, which is probably just the American in me.  

The Headframe Hefe is light and refreshing and the German yeast gives it the perfect profile. I felt there should have been a little more body and maybe a little more malt presence however. The Galena Gold was an absolute perfect blonde ale, full of flavor but easy drinking that you can survive a few of them after a day of working the mines. 

My favorite of the selection was Quarry's seasonal Basalt IBA. This is a new emerging style called a Cascadian Dark which is basically and dark india pale Ale or rather an india black ale. Perfect blend of hops and roastiness that left me wanting more.  

Like I explained before, Chuck and Lyza were extremely friendly and passionate about their business. He seemed almost gitty to explain all of his creations to me and I happily lapped them all up. Luckily I had a designated driver, it's just not possible to go to a place like this and not want to try everything they have to offer.

 

If ever again I find myself in Butte, MT I will be stopping by Quarry for another pint. I recommend that anyone who loves beer and is anywhere near the area should stop and and have a look for yourself, you will not find one disappointing aspect of this new brewery.  

Hop of the Week: Magnum

So alas, back to reviewing hops. Today's hop is one that runs in an American and German variety but are pretty much identically the same. I am sure there are slight differences because of climate, soil, and what have you but for all intensive purposes you can use them both for the same things. 

*via growing hops yourself

Yakima Chief Hop Varieties Data

MAGNUM

Origin/History
Magnum is a bittering/aroma type cultivar, bred in 1980 at Huell, the German Hop Research Instititute, from the American variety Galena and the German male 75/5/3.


Agronomics
Tolerant to downy mildew, Peronospera, susceptible to powdery mildew, Sphaerotheca, with poor pickability of a large,
compact cone.

Maturity:	Medium-late
Yield:	2000 - 2200 kgs. per ha.
	1800 - 2000 lbs. per acre

Brewing Quality
Used for its bittering value and quality.

Alpha acids:	10-12.6%
Beta acids:	5.0-7.0%
Alpha:Beta Ratio:	2.0
Cohumulone (% of alpha acids):	25 - 30%
Total Oil (Mls. per 100 grams):	2.0-3.0
Caryophyllene (as % of total oils):	8-12%
Farnesene (as % of total oils):	0%
Humulene (as % of total oils):	25-30%
Myrcene (as % of total oils):	35-45%

Storability is good.

So for commercial examples it is a bit tough...Magnum is pretty much a bittering hop, I will include one beer that does use it as flavor/aroma and one that uses it exclusively as a bittering hop so you can get a sense of the clean bitterness. 

Torpedo Extra IPA

Sierra Nevada Torpedo Ale is a big American IPA; bold, assertive and full of flavor and aromas highlighting the complex citrus, pine and herbal character of whole-cone American hops.

alcohol content 7.2% by volume	yeast Ale Yeast
beginning gravity 17.3 Plato	bittering hops Magnum
ending gravity 4.2 Plato	finishing hops Magnum & Crystal
bitterness units 65	dry hopping Magnum, Crystal & Citra
malts Two-row Pale, & Crystal

Torpedo is the first commercial beer that I know of that imploys magnum hops for finishing and dry hopping. 

Boulevard Brewing Irish Ale 

AVAILABILITY: January through March; bottles and draught
INGREDIENTS: Pale, Carapils, Caramunich, Caravienne Aromatic & Chocolate malts. Magnum & Saaz hop
STARTING GRAVITY: 13.5 degrees Plato
ALCOHOL: 4.5% by weight, 5.8% by volume
BITTERNESS UNITS: 28 IBUs
AVERAGE EBC COLOR: 54
Irish Ale, Boulevard’s spring seasonal beer, is our Midwestern tribute to the legendary red ales of old Ireland. Our recipe combines six kinds of pale and roasted barley malts to provide a rich, toasty flavor and tawny reddish hue. SENSORY DESCRIPTION: Better paired with foods that aren't too sweet; medium body goes well with wide range of foods, not overpowering and not easily overpowered. Flavor hooks: toasted or baked flavors
PAIRINGS: Corned beef sandwiches (of course!), hearty soups and stews, pizza, pasta grilled portabella mushrooms, barbeque


Blvd's Irish Red is great beer, it is up almost at 30 IBUs but does not seem that way and goes down really smooth. The magnums are great and that and is probably why they use them in a lot of their beer offerings. 

Typical use: The typical use for magnums is pretty much a bittering hop. Because of the low cohumulone this is a very clean and non-harsh bittering hop. Basically meaning that the bitterness isn't going to bite you back and may actually seem less bitter than what your IBU calculations tell you. 

Style use: Great for Pale Ales, German ales, or any style where you want a clean bitterness that is not too harsh. So in reality pretty much any style you can brew you can use magnum in. If using for flavor and aroma I would say a light German beer as they have slight noble characteristics. 

Flavor/aroma: Very faint, but noble. Think a super light hallertauer breed. Use as a stand alone hop for something light and refreshing or mix with other varieties for interesting profiles.

Substitutions: Horizon or newport for the bittering aspect. You are looking for a nice neutral clean bittering hop with low cohumulone. If you happen to have a recipe where you need a substitute for flavor, I would say any of the noble hops and use with a lighter hand.

Recipe of the Week: Liquid Stupid Belgian Strong Ale

The next addition of the ROTW is another tried a true internet recipe. This one comes from Jeff aka "Alpha Male" over at the brews-bros.com forum. You can check out the praise of this recipe here. The key to this recipe as with a lot of strong ales is to let it age a good while. At least four or five months, it will mellow somewhat and be really drinkable, just watch out, you'll be on your ass before you know it.

Grain Bill:
13 lbs Belgian or German Pils malt
1 lb Honey Malt
.5 lb Carapils

Use a single infusion mash at 150 degrees for one hour

Boil:
(hops)
2 oz Hallertauer 4AA at the 60 minute mark
(spices)
1.5 oz orange peel at the 15 minute mark
1.25 oz coriander (crush) at the 15 minute mark
.5 oz candied ginger (sliced for more surface area) at the 15 minute mark

**while cooling**
When you reach 180 degrees add 3 lbs of orange blossom honey

Gravity will be around 1.090

Ferment:
Use Wyeast 3787 Trappist High Gravity Ale yeast at 65 degrees

After yeast has brought the gravity down quite a bit boil 1 lb of clear Belgian candi sugar in a small amount of water. Add to the fermenter. This is so that the yeast will not become totally stressed out in the initial fermentation with all the sugars in there.

Let this ferment again til you get down to around 1.014 - 1.018, if you are having trouble getting your yeast to get you to that point let the fermenter warm a little and if you are still having issues use some champagne yeast and watch closely.

After you get to your final gravity range transfer into a secondary and let sit for at least 4 or 5 months...like I said before this is a key step, the longer you let it age the better it will turn out. Just make sure you have plenty of other stuff in your stash to hold you over. When you taste at transferring times you may sense a good presence of alcohol hotness, this is normal and what the aging mellows out.

You will not be disappointed with this recipe...

Beercation: Montana

So I was told that Montana has the highest per capita beer drinking rate in the United States, I have no idea if this is true or not, but what I do know is that Montana seems to be one of the best kept secrets in the craft beer world. Out of state, the only nationally recognized (well at least in my eyes) is Big Sky Brewing makers of Moose Drool.  When you take a first look at the beer aisles in Montana they are stocked with craft brews from all over the state and most of the places I looked they even have the shelf positioned to benefit their in-state breweries.

*via the Montana Brewers Association 

So what to do when you only have a few days in this massive state? Well, my first order of business was to relax, and what's a better way to relax then to have a few craft beers and go fishing. I accomplished this, but had an extra day or so to let my beer geekness come out. We were staying close to Butte and I found a nice little brewery there. Quarry Brewing was a great little day trip that you will hear more about when I review their tap room. On top of that I made my rounds at the grocery and drug stores to find my loot to bring home. I brought back 14 different beers, all but one from Montana Breweries. I picked up a 6er that I thought was a Montana brewery because I had never herd of them before only to find out later that it was a New York brewery. Oh well, score, beer I have never seen before landed in my possession.  

Most of the below are great little gems people who do not live in Montana will never be lucky enough to try. Hopefully someday this will change, when we live in a world of peace and endless amounts of domestic/international beer options on our shelves.

Bayern Brewing:

- Dragons Breath Dark Hefeweizen

- Maibock Lager 

Great Northern Brewing Co:

- Wheatfish Wheat Lager  

Madison River Brewing: 

- Salmon Fly Honey Rye

- Irresistible Amber Ale  

Harvest Moon Brewing:

- Pigs Ass Porter  

Big Hole Brewery (no website): 

- Wisdom Belgian Amber Ale

- Headstrong Pale Ale 

Bitter Root Brewing: 

- Nut Brown Ale   

- IPA

Kettlehouse Brewing:

- Eddy Out Pale Ale 

 

Lewis and Clark Brewing (website down?):

- Amber Ale   

Quarry Brewing:

- Basalt India Black Ale 

R.J. King Wingwalker Brewing:

- Amber Ale 

 My trunk before leaving, fly fishing gear and beer, the way it should always be.

Kettlehouse only in cans, and Lewis and Clark's unique bottle packaging.

How could I not buy a beer named Pigs Ass Porter?

That dragon looks ferocious...I have to say it seems more like an IPA name but who cares I bet it will be delicious.

If I ever have the opportunity, you know like if I win the lottery or if you people start clicking on ads so I can support myself, I am going to follow that Montana beer trail map, and enjoy every last minute of it. If you have the chance I highly recommend getting up there, not only is the whole state beautiful, it makes some pretty damn good beers too. I'll try to get some reviews of the above mentioned, that is if I don't drink them too fast.

Amber Week Review Results

Back to the grind after a great vacation and holiday weekend. To follow up after the amber reviews last week I said I would post my list:

1. Boont Amber Ale - Anderson Valley Brewing
2. Bell's Brewing - Amber Ale
3. Crown Valley Brewing - Antique Amber Lager
4. Tyranena Brewing Co - Headless Man Amber Alt
5. Arbor Brewing Co - Red Snapper Amber Ale

Stay tuned for my Beercation Montana post today or tomorrow.