Beer Diary...

One of the more popular beers we're brewing here in San Miguel is a Belgian tripel with honey. Belgian tripels are one of my favorite styles and the reason I brew it to begin with but it's nice to see that it's being received well here. It could be the people are drawn in by the rarity of a higher alcohol beer but I believe it's the high quality and unique character that is the selling feature. Nice chunks of hot break material After the boil As you know, I've been working to modify my challenging brewing water in order to brew better beer and for this recipe I've tried to mimic the water used from the region that Chimay is brewed. By diluting my tap water with a percentage of reverse osmosis water and adding back in some essential minerals that the filtration stripped out I am finally able to see the positive results from these efforts. One clear sign that I'm on the right track is the great 'hot break' material I'm seeing ...

Really nice hop flavor and aroma used some new hops with this beer - describe them No need for dry hopping but may consider it in the future if the aroma dissipates. Did not reach the gravity I wanted - why? Full on bitterness with non of the harshness The large amount of hops also adds to the head and head retention Will plan to brew like this often Not sure if I can pull this off with my IIPA but willing to try Stats on the recipe and recipe Pic of beer and hops? Pull a glass off the keg for a pic of this technique show the hopping schedule and the math to get to the IBU's I wanted

I met with the local homebrewers here in San Miguel de Allende and tasted a mix of Mexican homebrew. Although the group was small (only 7 of us at this meeting) all were enthusiastic about brewing beer here in SMA and sharing information about their processes. Mexican Homebrewers Caguama field Behind these walls are brewers The club doesn't have a name yet and this meeting was really the first in a series of efforts to solidify the group. A unanimous decision was made to elect Mike Baumgartner (possibly against his will) as president or at least the official organizer responsible for bringing this band of renegade brewers together for regular meetings and brew related activities. Mike brought out several caguamas of ales that he has designated by batch number. I think we sampled #'s 9, 16 and 26? Each one tasting different than the other but all with a malt forward quality. Barry brought a good example of an English ale similar to 'Old Peculiar' and I al...

One of the big challenges I'm facing as I try to get this tiny brewery up and running is brewing with the local water. Water that is far from ideal when it comes to making good beer. The primary problem is the very high alkalinity as a result of the extreme hardness from bicarbonate, calcium and sodium levels. These mineral not only cause a high ph level that inhibits starch conversion in the mash but also leave the final beer tasting muddy, dull and uninspired. To brew a good beer you have to start with a good mash ph level. A ph of between 5.2 and 5.5 will enhance the enzymatic action that occurs, converting starches to sugar and at the same time producing a fermentable wort. It allows for a good 'hot break' in the boil which later helps with beer clarity, yeast flocculation and enhanced hop flavor and utilization. I wasn't sure what the water was like here in San Miguel except that it was hard. The local water company would not or could not provide me wi...