In the midst of a global pandemic many people have taken to improving themselves mentally, physically, and spiritually. I have watched countless Ted Talks, workout videos, and self-help gurus throughout this time only to realize that I needed an activity that combines all three. Allow me to introduce…brewing beer! I figured brewing beer would be a good mental exercise. I would have to measure things, weigh things, and work on ratios. I figured brewing beer would be good physical activity. Have you seen the size of the fermenting vessels in your local brewery? Some one has to lift all of that liquid into those vessels! I figured brewing beer would be good spiritually. If monasteries started brewing in the fifth century then this most have some spiritual significance, right?
Truth be told, I know nothing about beer other than I LOVE stouts and porters. I know the world loves I.P.A.s and I seem like an old out of touch hag every time I order one, but I don’t think there is anything better than a delicious stout, anytime or anywhere. A friend of ours has been brewing for several years and invited us over to teach us how to brew beer.
I was shocked to see this when we pulled into his driveway…
It looked like a science experiment my mom tried to “help” me with for my second grade science fair. I couldn’t help but wonder; how does this make beer? And if this makes beer, why am I am going to fancy breweries and spending money on stuff I can make with a propane tank? There was a table next to this contraption that had bags of stuff on it. I looked around for hops, yeast, and barley. I don’t know much about brewing, but I have experienced the Smithwick’s Experience in Ireland and the hologram monk said there were hops, barley, and yeast in beer. The lesson from the hologram monk comes before the tasting experience, so I have been able to remember it since my visit.
Apparently, the hologram monk didn’t know that all of the ingredients are widely available in prepackaged kits with clear and explicit directions on how to brew beer.
Thankfully, our friend Dave is an expert at brewing beer. He bought all the stuff and began to teach us the lengthy process involved in brewing beer.
We started out by hanging a cheese cloth bag inside the brewing vessel and poured the ingredients into the bag and allowed it to soak. After soaking all of the ingredients for the required time we had to stir the ingredients.
You really want to ensure everything is sanitary, so we had a bucket of cleaner next to us to clean all utensils after every use.
You want to ensure your beer reaches the required temperature so make sure your brewing vessel has a thermometer. It makes it easier to monitor the temperature of the contents during the brewing process.
While waiting for the beer to reach to required temperature. We needed to clean the fermentation vessels with iodine.
Once the beer reaches the optimal temperature, you need to cool down the beer with the copper chiller and add the final sugars and hops.
After it has cooled to the appropriate temperature you can transfer it to the fermenting vessel to wait…
Can’t wait to see it and taste it in a couple of weeks!
Felicity Arvizu takes on... 