Squamtoberfest Oktoberfest

Fall is quickly approaching and that means Oktoberfest or more importantly Squamtoberfest. Last years event was the first annual and quite the hit. Head count for this year is already looking to be on the high side and you can't keep that many people happy without home made beer.

I kicked off a 'Oktoberfest' style brew today in hopes that it will be ready for Squamtoberfest which is slotted for Oct 20th. It's gonna be cutting it real close. That gives us about 5-6 weeks. Probably wont get enough time to condition in bottle but oh well....we do what we can with what we've got.

This was a part grain / part extract brew that was fun to make. I had to toast some of the grain in the oven and there was even an ounce of chocolate barley, should make for an interesting flavor.

This is my little setup so that I don't have to hold the muslin bag while steeping the grain. You dont want to let it touch the bottom of the kettle because the grains might burn. Ingenious? No. Crafty? Yes.

Chill out.

Down in the Dungeon and ready to ferment. We are using a different yeast this time around, hopefully it kicks off with no issues. (otherwise your ass is grass Shaun)

**UPDATE**: This batch has been mostly consumed. Some bottles were more cloudy than others but all in all it came out great. This pic is pretty horrible, but the color was nice...bit darker than I thought it would be but the taste was a bit lighter than the color would suggest. Very smooth tasting, and Masha thought it was better than all the other store brand beer that was in the house. and if the Russians think its good....its good.