Our first homebrewed beer is finally done! It’s dark and syrupy, with hints of vanilla and bourbon, and seems to be improving with age. This is chewy, almost syrupy beer that comes in at about 7% ABV. We’re pleased with the first brew and are already planning our next.
With brew #2, we’ll likely make a smaller batch (1 gallon versus the 5 gallon) of all-grain, rather than using malt extracts. The malt extracts seem to lack the depth of flavor of all-grain brews. With smaller batches, we can also be more creative, without the risk of making a large batch of bad beer.
Our area is light on homebrew supply stores, so we were pleasantly surprised to find that a large local liquor store has a homebrew section and all the basics for homebrewing, like bottles, beer kits, winemaking supplies, siphons, brewing spoons, dry and liquid yeast, and more. We felt like “kids in a candy shop”, wanting to buy one of everything (we managed to exercise some restraint).
So what’s next? So many choices…imperial stouts, scotch ales, belgians, sours, saisons, IPAs…and did we mention pumpkin ales? Check back and find out what’s coming up next.