It's a typical Saturday morning after the work week. Nine hundred errands, a needy but deserving toddler screaming from his baby seat strapped to the middle of a Ford Expedition about going to a park to swing and slide. And at 10am, the first ever brew club meeting hosted by Hydro&Brew... Typical dad deal where I commit to showing up but between the wife rolling her eyes and a trip to Sams Club, I become seriously late and have to send an email to my new best friends, Jason and Jenny that I will be tardy. I hate being late. But when I arrive, it's awkward. There's a home made still in the parking lot brewing something and a small group of enthusiast in the store shooting the shit. I head for the store and immediately get a recycled bottle of Sierra Nevada handed to me with a disclaimer that it was actually a Baltic Porter made by some dude. I'm not hesitant or afraid, rather excited to pop the top and see where I fit into the competition of brewing. It was delicious! I questioned whether it was even a home brew? Rich, malty, hints of coffee and almonds... Perfect! It was for real with ABV also, like a vodka nasal finish to every sip. Funny how a couple of sips encourages social interaction with strangers. I learned a ton just shooting the shit with these backwoods brewers. Every dude had his own personality and contribution to the craft. There was the purist who only brews one gallon batches. The chemist who doesn't even brew but knows the ph of every drop of water and wort. The naturalist who was just driving by and saw the banner and decided to stop. The pessimist who complained the entire time about prices and quality. And then me, who didn't give a shit about the vibe, rather seeking knowledge and business perspective to the industry.
I loved the home welded brew stand and the keg kettles. Reminded me of the area and the lineage of shiners and thugs indicative to the region. But for real, this was a serious set up. A double burner, gravity fed all grain still, ready to turn out 1.070 OG all day long! Notice the water filter in the lower left? Nothing but a garden hose to fill the hot liquor tank (HLT) with perfect soft water to convert the grain. As ghetto as the black cooler looks, it's tremendously efficient as a mash tun. As 175 degree water mixes with the grain, a nine to fifteen degree cooling occurs allowing for a 158 degree hour long sugar fest to make wort. Some added copper welds contributed to the backwoods aura.
Two five gallon batches were born today as several new networking connections were made in this small but vibrant zymurgists culture.
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