Seasoning my new Smoker

Here is a quick video of me seasoning my new Weber Smokey Mountain smoker for this weekends brew day!  In the lineup we have a harvest ale made with our own hops.  Also, I picked up a couple racks of locally naturally raised baby back ribs to smoke.  Saturday is looking to be a good brew day full of good food and drink!

Cheers,

Philip

Brew Kettle Upgrades!

It has been over a year since we had made the jump to all grain brewing! It is now time to make a couple brew kettle upgrades.  We will be adding a thermometer, a bulkhead with ball valve, and a sight gauge.  These upgrades will make it easier to for taking temperature and volume measurements throughout the brew day.

Stainless Steel Bulkhead and Ball Valve

Brewmaster in Chief

Even the leader of the free world is a home brewer:

http://news.yahoo.com/obamas-tap-white-house-home-beer-023924580--finance.html

Hop Yard Build 2012 - Part 3

Wow, it's already August! Summer flies by when you are having fun growing hops and brewing beer along with all the other fun stuff to do. In the last update back in May, we had finished the trellises, laid manure, formed the hills and finally transferred the hops outdoors to their real home. I had mentioned last time that with all the hot weather we have had this summer, it took some trial and error to find the right balance of watering to keep the plants happy. Many of the larger plants had a bit of a setback due to the sudden change in environment. We are happy to report that they have all made a full recovery and are doing very well, especially the Cascades. Some of which are easily 14-15 feet in length!

The largest Cascade plant

Lots of leaves!

Fluke Homebrew is now on Facebook!

Fluke Homebrew is now on Facebook! It's about time, right? My grandmother even has a Facebook.  Check us out and don't forget to "Like" us!

Fluke Homebrew Facebook

Beer aged in Templeton Rye Whiskey Barrels

Rye whiskey is unarguably what America was founded on. During the Revolutionary War, whiskey was used as a form of currency. Americans love their whiskey so much, that back in 1791 the Whiskey Rebellion was started over an increase in tax that was levied against it. The true test of time occurred during the Prohibition era of the 1920's and 30's, when all alcohol sales were banned in the country and made rise to bootlegging and mobsters like Al Capone. It was said that Templeton Rye whiskey (a.k.a. "The Good Stuff") from Carroll county Iowa was Scareface's favorite.