Tonight we started our first batch of homebrew beer. Actually my Husband and his Runnin’ Buddy started it. I took pictures and smelled the aromas.
It’s a complicated process that requires specialty equipment and ingredients. Fortunately Runnin’ Buddy and my Husband went on a man-date Monday to get the necessary supplies. Runnin’ Buddy’s daddy-in-law provided the equipment.
The process of making homebrew beer goes through several phases and takes about a month, for the shortest cycle and up to two years.
The smells of the ingredients and brewing process itself constantly reminded me of feeding cattle in the winter while gnawing on a cowcake cube. The malt extract and the milled grain smell remarkably like finishing feed for cattle. (it’s the same stuff).
Through the process, we all kept talking about how people figured out how to make beer. Considering all the sanitation we did in a modern kitchen, I can’t imagine how the monks did it.
I wonder how many people got sick or died from drinking bad beer? And who thought of adding hops? Back in the dark ages someone figured out that hops was a natural preservative. So it makes sense to add it to the brew, but who knew? By the way, hops are part of the cannabis plant family, a curious fact indeed.
We’ll be posting more about the steps and process to making your own homebrew. Being the foodies we are, I’m not surprised we are attempting this. But unless you have a burning desire and a good friend who will loan you the equipment, it’s not for the faint of wallet or novice in the kitchen.
I can’t wait until next month when we can uncork our own bottles of brew. More fun to come from Arcadia. But for now, we have a wort in the closet, fermenting. (I hope we can find the vacuum). The step-by-step recipe will be on Its way to a blog post soon.
The Arcadian Experience 