Much like the Owner’s Obsession, I’ve been trying to brew an IPA that I like for a long time. Over the last few years of brewing and drinking a wider variety of craft beer, I’ve realized that I like a lot of other styles, but the IPA is still my favorite. In the end, I found that Mitch Steele’s recipe… Read more →
My first English Mild was Nerf Herder from Pizza Port San Clemente. I really enjoyed it even though it was hoppier and bolder than a traditional mild. Without any other point of reference, I was pleasantly surprised when I had Unintelligibility from Noble Ale Works, so I sent an email to the brewer, Evan, and he was gracious enough to… Read more →
A helpful employee at the homebrew shop, Ron, gave me some chocolate rye malt to experiment with. I tossed it into a Loakal Red clone, then aged it on bourbon-soaked oak cubes for 2 weeks. The result is a spicy, hoppy, roasty beer that finished dry. You might even feel some heat from the bourbon if you have enough self-control… Read more →
I love coffee in the morning. The smell gets my senses going, and that bitter, roasty flavor comforts me. It’s such a pleasant experience that I wish I could have it in the evening without it keeping me up all night. So I decided to make an espresso milk stout. There’s no law that says you can only drink coffee… Read more →
Still inspired by Wailua Wheat from Kona Brewing Company, I decided to make another fruit wheat beer for easy summer drinking in the park or at the beach. This time I used watermelon extract to see if I would even like the combo before trying to get all crazy with using the real fruit. Initially I added 1oz of extract… Read more →
Last year I had the best beer I’ve had in a long time. It was Claudie’s India Pale Lager from Pizza Port San Clemente, and it was phenomenal. Really easy drinking, not too bitter, super dank and fruity hop aromas, citrus hop flavors, and the smoothest finish. I was shocked by how great the combo of an IPA with a… Read more →
Prior to my recent trip to Germany, I didn’t care for lagers and pilseners. They seemed to lack flavor and felt really weak on the palate. Since there wasn’t much else to drink while I was in Germany, I ended up trying several different brands, and ended up really enjoying a few, my favorite being Jever. When I got back… Read more →
I’ve had bad luck with all the IPA variations I’ve tried so far, so I wanted to take a shot at building my own recipe. I looked at some pale ale recipes that looked good, and then bumped up the grain and hops to push this into the IPA style. I started peppering in whatever leftover grains I had on… Read more →
A friend of mine named Amelia asked me to brew a beer based on her. I asked her what she would taste like in beer form and she responded with, “Strong, but approachable with an awkward finish.” If you know her, then you know this is dead-on. I happened to be at The Bruery shortly after she told me this,… Read more →
I took another page from EdWort’s recipe book with this one. It’s a pretty standard Rye IPA other than the lack of aroma because it wasn’t dry-hopped at all. There is a solid malt backbone with spicy rye notes and moderate bitterness. The addition of some flaked barley adds a creamy mouthfeel and allows for great head retention. The name… Read more →