Whoa Sweet Stout

Holy crap its been a long time since I have brewed some beer!  My last batch was the Wee Heavy I made for Thanxmas which was probably almost 8 months ago.  Weird.

Hadn't done a stout since the Irish I made a winter or two ago so I went with a sweet stout, also sometimes called a cream stout of milk stout.  English brewers used to make them as a nourishing drink for nursing women...that's probably not true but it definitely is awesome.  And I read it somewhere so it has to be at least partially based in fact with the rest based in lies.

 seriously though, no turtle shit. it messes with the flavor.

The main difference between this and other stouts is a pound of Lactose is added during the boil.  Lactose is a milk based sugar that is unfermentable (i.e. the yeast won't eat it) so it remains in the final product to add a twinge of sweetness and malty flavor.

I got up earlier this morning to start things off and was able to brew and catch the Amstel Gold Race on a live feed from Holland.

Biking Watched, Beers Made

I also need to get a 'lawnmower beer' in the works pretty soon.  Its damn near summer and I will be mowing my lawn before I know it.  Gonna have to start searching around for my next go of it.  I have done wheat beers in the spring in the past and I do like a good wheat but I also kind of want to mix it up...suggestions?

**UPDATE**
My incredibly wise and lovely mother has informed me that nursing mothers are indeed told to drink some beer for the B vitamins from the hops, it helps relax the mother and also assists in the "let down" of the milk.  So this batch is legit, based in 0% lies.  Thanks Mom!

oh and this batch fermented just fine and I will probably be moving it over to secondary this evening to hang out for a bit while I gather my bottles.

**UPDATE**
This batch is bottled and this time around I primed it with brown sugar instead of dextrose which I usually use.  I had brown sugar on hand and after a bit of research I think brown sugar might add a nice touch and should work just as well.  Figuring out how much to use was a bit tricky but I went with about 2/3 cup packed down.  Hopefully I converted right.