First though.. aren't these cool socks.. oh.. and the slippers. But the socks are just cool. Just thought I should share.
Okay.. we had help this weekend (
thank you!!! ) .. which was a good thing because I've been feeling too whacked to do anything since this cold
still insists on haunting me . I suppose it wouldn't be as bad if it was just a plain old cold to someone else but on top of all the other things for me.. well, it just wipes me out too much for beer bottling activities. First off , all the bottles have to be sanitized in the sanitizing bath then dried. The empty dishwasher works great for this . I'd already spent a very very long tiring day washing all the bottles (a few weeks ago) .. getting the labels and glue off and the mold out . I hate washing bottles.. I just hate it.. And I don't even drink the stuff. Why do I do this??? I still haven't figured that out yet.
ANYway, we sanitized the bottles and all the equipment.. well, they did.. I watched and offered encouragement . Then the beer gets siphoned from the secondary
fermentor where it has been sitting for the past month into the bucket with the spigot. You are actually supposed to use the siphoning tube and a little bottle filler
attachment thingy but Elly May and I have
never been able to get it to work. The siphon always breaks and it takes about 5 minutes to fill a bottle and not being the most patient soul in this world..
ahem.. we ditched that method. I know we might be oxidizing some precious stuff by our method but it works.. and it doesn't take years to fill the bottles and the beer tastes fine. Or so I'm told. Oh.. I almost forgot.. the priming sugar goes into the bucket too after it has been boiled and hopefully cooled (oops.. ours didn't have time) . That is what give it carbonation. The sugar reacts with yeast left in the fermented wort and makes bubbles in the bottle. Unless you want to drink it warm and flat like the Brits.. but we like our bubbles here in America .
Okay , I screwed up the order on this.. they get filled ,
then capped.. Just imagine it that way.
My sole contribution was taking bottles from the dishwasher and handing them over to be filled. Really strenuous.. ;-)
What didn't fit in the bottles went to the Official Tester and Bottle Filler. He has to be paid for his work somehow. ;-) Tasters said there was a very very slight taste of peach. So I'm wondering if it was even worth all the effort to put the peaches in. Maybe after it ages some it will mature in flavor. Next up, Nut Brown Ale. But I need energy for that. But hopefully soon. Then another batch of stout. It is the preferred beer around here apparently . I personally think it all stinks like beer but hey, it makes them happy.
First though.. aren't these cool socks.. oh.. and the slippers. But the socks are just cool. Just thought I should share.
Okay.. we had help this weekend ( thank you!!! ) .. which was a good thing because I've been feeling too whacked to do anything since this cold still insists on haunting me . I suppose it wouldn't be as bad if it was just a plain old cold to someone else but on top of all the other things for me.. well, it just wipes me out too much for beer bottling activities. First off , all the bottles have to be sanitized in the sanitizing bath then dried. The empty dishwasher works great for this . I'd already spent a very very long tiring day washing all the bottles (a few weeks ago) .. getting the labels and glue off and the mold out . I hate washing bottles.. I just hate it.. And I don't even drink the stuff. Why do I do this??? I still haven't figured that out yet.
ANYway, we sanitized the bottles and all the equipment.. well, they did.. I watched and offered encouragement . Then the beer gets siphoned from the secondary fermentor where it has been sitting for the past month into the bucket with the spigot. You are actually supposed to use the siphoning tube and a little bottle filler attachment thingy but Elly May and I have never been able to get it to work. The siphon always breaks and it takes about 5 minutes to fill a bottle and not being the most patient soul in this world.. ahem.. we ditched that method. I know we might be oxidizing some precious stuff by our method but it works.. and it doesn't take years to fill the bottles and the beer tastes fine. Or so I'm told. Oh.. I almost forgot.. the priming sugar goes into the bucket too after it has been boiled and hopefully cooled (oops.. ours didn't have time) . That is what give it carbonation. The sugar reacts with yeast left in the fermented wort and makes bubbles in the bottle. Unless you want to drink it warm and flat like the Brits.. but we like our bubbles here in America .
Okay , I screwed up the order on this.. they get filled , then capped.. Just imagine it that way.
My sole contribution was taking bottles from the dishwasher and handing them over to be filled. Really strenuous.. ;-)
What didn't fit in the bottles went to the Official Tester and Bottle Filler. He has to be paid for his work somehow. ;-) Tasters said there was a very very slight taste of peach. So I'm wondering if it was even worth all the effort to put the peaches in. Maybe after it ages some it will mature in flavor. Next up, Nut Brown Ale. But I need energy for that. But hopefully soon. Then another batch of stout. It is the preferred beer around here apparently . I personally think it all stinks like beer but hey, it makes them happy.
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