Tonight we took the wort out of its nice cool and dark little hiding place and bottled it (after adding the priming sugar). It was good enough to fill up a six of 16-oz bottles.

 

Brewed: Rye IPA

Final Gravity: 1018 (aiming for 1008)

Brewmasters: Steven and Jaco

Taste notes: VERY hoppy, but great aroma and not too bitter.

On TV: College Hoops (Buckeyes vs Golden Gophers. Go Buckeyes!)

Drank: Shiner’s Wild Hare Pale Ale.

Lessons learned:

• Carbonation at room temperature! Don’t throw the ales in the fridge (lagers maybe. ales no)!
• “After priming and filling, the newly bottled beer should be stored at 70-75F for 2-3 weeks or until fully carbonated. After this time the bottles can be chilled or stored below 60 degrees to stabilize the beer”. [source]
• Depending on carbonation achieved, we may have to open one bottle and taste it. If it needs more carbonation we do what it says on the website: we add some dry yeast to the other 5 bottles and let them condition for an extra 1-2 weeks.

I ordered the thermometer that I was missing from Northern Brewer and a couple of extra kits for our next sessions:

• West Coast Radical Red [link]
• White House Honey Porter [link]

This morning the brew was bubbling. So far so good.

Tonight we opened the brew box, cleaned up the equipment, got started on our first batch, and drank some good beer.

Brewed: Rye IPA

Original Gravity: 1045

Brewmasters: Ariel, Steven, Andres, Liat, Bernardo, Jaco

On TV: Broncos at Bengals

Dinner: Peanut Butter/Facon Burgers

Drank: Left Hand 400 Monkeys IPA, Left Hand NITRO Milk Stout, Newcastle, Ariel’s Own “La Velga” (Belgian Dubbel) and “Choko Loko” (Chocolate Stout).

Lessons learned:

• Keep a close eye on the wort as it boils to prevent spillage!
• Need to buy a bigger funnel to transfer the wort and prevent spillage!
• Need a cooking thermometer for the wort.