Cold Steeping Dark Grains

Last weekend brewing the Otter Days Robust Porter I decided to cold steep the dark grains (Black Patten & Chocolate Malt) as described in Gordon Strong's book Brewing Better Beer. Unfortunately I didn't re-read that section of the book before doing so. I only steeped the grains over night instead of the 48 hours I did last time. Additionally I didn't pay enough attention to the water/grist ratio when steeping. These failures resulted in poor color in the finished beer and leaves me wondering if the flavor will be off as well. Live and learn I guess. All that being said, in nearly 4 years of brewing I have only made 1 beer thus far that really wasn't right and even that was drinkable. I am considering, as Gordon writes, conducting another cold steep but with a short boil at the end (for sanitization) and then mixing the extract in to taste and color as a means of getting the end result I originally wanted. We shall see how it plays out.

All in all I feel like I am getting very comfortable with the brewing processes. I try new ways of doing things from time to time to see if it makes a differnce either in quality or ease of production. With each new brew I pay closer and closer attention to my processes and volumes, getting quality control tighter and tighter. My beers have become more consistent batch to batch. Now when I modify the recipe with a new batch I can more clearly see what the difference is. Growth is a wonderful thing!

I wish you all a wonderful holiday season full of great friends and family! Be well all.

Wow 2 Years since last post, here is a thought

Most of the of the medical problems and syndromes of animals in captivity are a result of improper husbandry. Most of the diseases and syndromes of humans in the modern world are as well. We need to view ourselves as "in captivity" because we are in captivity. This is as unnatural an environment for us as when we put a bird in a cage or a fish in an aquarium. Changes in husbandry (diet, environmental conditions such as enclosures (ie houses) can solve so many of our ailments. This is the root of the move to improve our diets and excercise habits as a way to better health.

How's that for a thought for today?