Among his many other talents, the Sailor is a brewmaster. He has been making homebrew for the better part of a decade and is pretty knowledgeable about zymurgy, the branch of chemistry related to fermentation.
Two years ago, the Sailor introduced me to the art of beer-making when we brewed a clone of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. It was ready to drink just as winter arrived. We called it Snowday Pale Ale in honor those much-loved days off from school or work, treasured free time spent doing whatever your heart desired.
Little did I know beforehand, that the Sailor's way of brewing is no "Mr. Beer"operation. It's the real deal-- lots of steps and quite the process for someone who has little patience (i.e. Me). It's all worth in the end though...
As we prepared to brew this year, the Sailor took a few days to examine recipes online for the beer I wanted to make, Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale-- described on the Sierra Nevada
website as robust and rich, perfect for a festive gathering or a quiet evening at home.
Although the recipe for celebration wasn't easy to find, the Sailor performed a few calculations based on the information on the Sierra site and a handy online tool at
Make-A-Beer-At-Home.
| alcohol content 6.8% by volume | bittering hops Chinook |
| beginning gravity 16.0 Plato | finishing hops Cascade & Centennial |
| ending gravity 4.0 Plato | dry hopping Cascade & Centennial |
| bitterness units 65 | malts Two-row Pale & English Caramel |
| yeast Top-fermenting Ale Yeast |
The Sailor already has a lot of the requisite beer-making supplies, including the brewer's handbook, fermenting bucket, airlock, stopper, hydrometer, thermometer, sanitizer, a giant mizing pot and long-handled mixing spoons.
But we needed to go to the homebrew shop to gather fresh ingredients -- filtered water, malt extract, yeast, hops, and grains for the Celebration Ale.
A few tips for selecting ingredients:
Use filtered water-- but not distilled (no minerals)-- to avoid any funky tastes like chlorine. Water is the primary ingredient, so if you're going to use tap water, make sure it tastes good.
The grains contain the starch that converts to sugar so the yeast have something to ferment. Beer, by definition, contains at least 50% barley. Add specialty grains for flavor.
Hops inhibit spoilage, give the beer flavor (bitterness to balance out sweetness) and aroma. They also help keep the "head" or ensure the beer is frothy when it's poured.
Yeast obviously starts the fermentation process and determines what kind of beer you're going to make. The ale yeast hangs out at the top of the fermenting jug, while lager yeast lands on the bottom.
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