So in the two weeks since Ive last posted, my mom bought me a keg rig with 3 5 gallon corny kegs. My mom rules and I have been busy fine tuning and researching on how best to optimize my system (AKA not get beer all over the place and still have cold, carbonated beerz).

First, some pictures! This first one is the new rig.

Over the past couple weeks I have been doing MAJOR research into starting a brewpub. I have learned so much more about the brewing process, and taking a hard look at what I would really need to get started is actually proving that this is more feasible than I previously imagined. My friend and possible partner in crime Andrew showed me the website for Revolution Brewing in Paonia, CO and that in itself gave me a huge boost of confidence that this is something we could pull off.

I'm thinking that the key is keeping the overhead extremely low... which would include malting and roasting our own grains and coffee beans, having a SUPER ghetto (in looks, not in function) 1 BBL brewing rig, and finding a cheap place to start. This would mean a ton of extra work on our part, but I believe that keeping costs down will make startup much smoother and will give us the advantage of seeing what we can actually afford when it comes to upgrading.

Its also looking like my friend Will from Nashville is willing to join forces and handle the restaurant aspect! Love that man, great vegan cook.

This is shaping up to be great. Baby planning phase is fun, I can't wait to start building.

Yo. Its been a while since I last posted (OMG DA HOLIDAYS), so I thought I would log on here for a while and share what Ive been up to lately.

For Christmas, my ridiculously awesome wife bought me a 3 gallon Better Bottle so I can make bigger batches of beer! Also, the way it is shaped, it takes up no more room in the closet then my little one gallon dudes that have been so faithful to me in the past. I have done 2 3 gallon batches so far; a dark strong Belgian style ale, and an American style wheat beer that will have a little more of a hop kick than most wheats. The 2nd 3 gallon batch I had to split between 3 bottles, and I have officially run out of fermenters. Thats always sad... but I think I will always do 3 gallon batches from now on. I'm growing a little tired of making awesome batches that run out in just a few short days.

Last night I helped my buddy Andrew bottle his first batch of beer. Its a holiday ale I designed especially for him, and we brewed it exactly two weeks ago. I have to say, it tastes... interesting. It reminded me of Christmas ham, but not in a bad way. Kind of like how Guinness reminds me of bacon. I'm really pumped about the malty finish, and the fact that this definitely does not taste like someones (like mine) first batch of brew.

Which brings me to the point of this post, really. I love helping people brew beer! I have helped three of my homies put together their systems and get their first batch rollin'. I wish I had had someone around to walk me through the process that first day. I had no idea what I was doing, or why I was doing certain things. I love being able to not only help people learn HOW to brew, but WHY it works and the importance of each step. Also, it would have been great to have someone tell me those famous words...

RELAX, DONT WORRY, HAVE A HOMEBREW!

Back then I would lose sleep wondering about how this beer would turn out, running the night over and over in my mind, finding little things to beat myself up over! Ridiculous. But maybe it was a good thing in the end... it lead me to a good 2 month long obsession with learning as much as I possibly could about making beer. If I hadn't worried so much, maybe I wouldn't have fallen in love with the process at all.

I might put a post on Craigslist offering to come and help people brew their first batch. Or maybe not... theres creepy people on Craigslist. Either way, I hope that I can continue to help people along in their quest for awesome homebrew, and that these INGRATES SEND ME A PINT OF THEIR BEER ALREADY!!!

YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, EVEN IF YOU DON'T READ THIS BLAWG

RAWR