Let There Be Beer

And hopefully, it is good.

So, aside from sugar, dairy products, coffee and grains, the only thing I don't produce for my own consumption is alcohol.  Well, that's not entirely true.  I have made Cherry Bounce, and Limoncello, and there was once a happy accident that resulted in Alcoholic Rootbeer once...but those are more in the family of "infused" alcoholic beverages.  I haven't actually made the base vodka myself.  Perhaps one day, but for now, I prefer my potatoes mashed with butter, salt and a healthy dose of pepper.

There is a serious lack of brewing going on around here.  To rectify the situation (what a nice phrase, don't you think?), I recently spent a day with my friends Khaiti and Andrew (www.ltdfarm.com) learning the fine art of beer brewery.  Oh, it was fun!  The best part was playing around with the malt extracts.  They come in a bag, and look like huge, dark-goo-filled breast implants.  Love. It.  Anyway, I had been thinking about getting into home brew for a while, but it just seemed so intimidating.

Turns out, it isn't.  If you can read a recipe, you can brew beer.  Well, at least with the kits sold by Scott of www.windriverbrew.com who has taken all the hard bits, written explicit directions, AND packaged everything in a lovely kit.  Oh, how I love a good kit!  (See my previous post about the hoop house kit that is winging its way to me as I type.)  Great deals, too, to buy everything together--and lots of varieties of beers to try.  I am smitten with a good brown ale, so I am trying my hand at making a batch of Black Bear Brown Ale as my first tour as In-House BrewMistress.

 I'll let you know how it turns out...but I don't promise to share samples.