Fermented Things!

So, this one is not about beer, but I thought I would share another fermented item I am currently working on, Sauerkraut.

So, I decided to do this one when I was cleaning out the fridge one day and I still had almost a whole head of cabbage. I originally bought it to fry in bacon grease, chop up the bacon into it, and then add cheese on top of it. One of my favorite snacks to slow cook on a grill or speed up the process on the stove top.



I was given the idea while reading BYO a while back but I did not really think of it until someone mentioned it on Twitter when I asked what should I do with the rest of it.



Making Sauerkraut is very simple. All you need is your cabbage and salt. Chop it all up, salt it up, and then put some pressure on it to help extract the fluids. Again, pretty fast and easy. The part that takes a little bit of time is waiting for it to finish... I am still waiting for that, but I am sure you will hear about it.



Cheers!

Sierra Nevada Beer Camp (2013)

So, it's unofficially official!!! I will be heading to Beer Camp this December!!!... Though, that last 12 hours or so was a real... how do I put this... lets just say I was scared like EFF!!!! We have come a long way since I first posted the announcement of my video.



I have so many people to thank for this and I cannot think of ways to thank you all enough! That last push to the finish was the key and I really am so appreciative!!! You have no idea! I guess I better put in my time off from work very soon. I hope that the official announcement comes quick!

But anyway, to celebrate (or get me through the last stressful hours of voting) I decided to drink a bottle of each of the currently released Beer Camp Beers! I wanted to do this sooner but I thought I might hold off a bit. Good thing I did! Check out my video below!!! Not like you haven't seen it already though...

The Best Beer In The World from L Allen Huerta on Vimeo.

I was disappointed by the fact that they were all essentially IPA's but I guess I can look past that as I am trying to think of ideas to pitch and collaborate with the other attendees. So, here we are starting with Beer Camp #93!



What better beer to do it with, too? Celebrator? That is TOO Perfect!!! Granted this IPA was not brewed for me, but hey. I can imagine.



A very floral, light piney nose on top of an awesomely crisp, clean copper body. A nice bubbly off white head with very distinct pine notes sticking to your throat and drying up on the finish. Some light juicy tropical notes, a bit of light sweetness and a light bready background but a very solid IPA overall. Made to the best standards and clocking in at 6.9% ABV. Not the beer I think about when going to Beer Camp, but this beer should be the definition of the style. Bravo!



I know one of the guys that was a part of this beer last year, OC Beer Blog as you might know him. He even used the tap handle in his car for a while as his gear shift! How bad ass is that? I love the name, too. Plus the label art is to die for! Sleight Of Hand. It only makes me wonder...



Honestly, this was my favorite of the bunch. And I am not just saying that. I just love the way the flavors all came together and at 8% ABV with 52 IBUs. A nice dark malt aroma and a bit charred and burnt. The first sip you get that roastiness with some nice Belgian fruitiness and a sharp hop bitterness. I feel it was more pronounced back when I first got this box but it is still very good. An amazing background on this beer. So full and flavorful. Dark Fruit, Dark Malt. I have never been into Belgian IPA's... though this one is a Belgian-Style Black IPA, but this one is fantastic!



This is a beer I know nothing about, but it was a creation of the last beer camp as well... well, the competition rather. Not the last beer camp. Blood Shot aka: What one would say about me if they saw my face right now.



At 8.5% and 95 IBUs (9.5% and 100 IBUs was the initial batch)the malty with a light spicy nose, that kind of reminds me of rye and a very distinct pine or... how do I put this aroma... I am not sure but it comes through in the taste too with a heavy sweetness and a strong bitter attack. Deep ruby color (my bad, the bottle says crimson) and an off white, amber tinted head. Some great flavors in there. Another very solid "IPA" out of this kit. I wonder what the future holds.

Now! Lets (unofficially) Celebrate!



Cheers!

One Of My New Projects

Ok, so once again I am doing that revamp my blog thing... I guess it has been about 6 months since I said that, no? Well, I just need to keep it moving this time. So, to keep everything in line, here it is.

1001 Beers: Of Course, I can't give up on that quest.
Homebrewing: Well duh, I have a few projects coming up. 2 for December.
Visiting The New Belgium Asheville Brewery: What's interesting about this?

Well, I decided I am going to Bike there for the opening day. It is only about 255 miles from where I live... Probably add a few miles because I do not have an exact address right now. But it makes perfect sense! On their logo, A BIKE! New Belgium is my favorite brewery and... I can probably think of a third reason.... Though, those two are perfect.

I am in no way in shape to ride that distance right now... not in record time anyway. So what am I going to do? Well, ride to several other breweries and track my progress here of course!!! Lets just hope I am still at Bragg when this place opens... If not I will have to choose a different brewery and maybe rework my plan.

I haven't exactly planned out the whole thing yet but I have put together a list of breweries I want to ride to. Tentative list at this point. Things can easily change as I think of more awesome places to go or things to do.

Huske Hardware House - 12 Miles: Just the closest one to me.
Railhouse Brewing - 30 Miles: A good distance.
Aviator Brewing Company - 40 Miles: Some good ones at a fest.
Raleigh Brewing Company - 60 Miles: Yup
White Street - 73 Miles: An Awesome New-ish Brewery
Mother Earth - 98 Miles: Stretch it to 100
NoDa Brewing - 126 Mile: I want to go SO BAD!
Conquest Brewing - 167 Miles: Huge Ride
New Belgium Asheville - ~255 Miles: DUH! Not paying attention?

Maybe I will find something to fill in that last major gap, or maybe not. Looking at the NC Beer Map, not much is in the between places. Maybe I will ride to other breweries of the same/similar distances, too. Just for good measure. I mean, one is in South Carolina.

If you have any suggestions, be sure to let me know. I have quite a bit of time to work up to that last ride but I want to be ready for it.

Cheers!

Beers I have Been Having Recently

Just catching up but not taking the time to write out post on this stuff. Just know, I enjoyed this. Plus another 1001 or two. I will fix this at some point.



There goes one 1001, the 90 minute. Not my favorite of the group, but good. You know. I will further fill this one in when I get the the brewery... or if I come upon another bottle soon...

889 Bottle Of Beer To Go!

Cheers!

CBN Con

It has taken me a long time to post anything from the day that will forever be known as CBNcon, but I wanted to share a little bit. Though, they say what happens at CBNcon stays at CBNcon, so I will just show you some highlights and make brief comments about some 1001 Beers I had while I was there.



The Table The Morning After The Bottle Share minus the growlers and homebrew bottles.



One Of The Many Selections I Had Out On The Town



Epic 1001 Flights I Brought



Side By Side 2013 Sexual Chocolate



Lobster Reuben During The Tart Of Darkness Party several others beers consumed as well



I Love Pumpkins



Speedway Stout Off The List

quite a bit more happened and I guess I didn't give full reviews on these 1001's but I have had most of them before and I am sure I will have them again. Especially the Hair Of The Dog Beers. It has been a while and I remember impressions but I did not take notes. I know I was looking forward to the review of the 5 but, yup.

Adam, I liked this one quite a bit. Fred, not so much. The Dissident, kind of medicinal, not the sour I was hoping for. The Stoic, not very quad-like but full at the same time. The Collage/Conflux No 1 - I did not think it was as good as it was when it was fresh, but it was after the best after date now. It was still fantastic though!

Speedway Stout, pretty damn fantastic. So much beer to talk about from that weekend, but I really can't haha some great stuff came out and I brought some great stuff home.

So I guess that gets me down to 890 Bottles of Beer To go! I may revisit these like I said before just to "redeem" the post about them. But you know, Cheers!