Monday Night recap: “A little help from the little people” edition
You’re never too young to teach Joel how to sparge correctly. Joel’s niece pitched in and helped us with a slightly stuck sparge on our double IPA last night. Other than that, things went smoothly. And if this batch turns out anything like the first batch of double IPA, we will be ecstatic. By the way, I’m still lobbying for “Blind Pirate” as the name for this beer. You like it.
And let me just say that we are itching to get our new Brew Magic system in. It should be here in 2-3 weeks. Last night we also kegged a Belgian wit and added hops and applewood to last week’s Belgian pale ale. We’re hoping it ferments down a little bit more this week, though it tasted pretty good one week in. We’ve only used applewood one other time, so this will definitely be an experiment. We added one pound of applewood, which may not sound like a lot, but it sure looks like a lot.
Thanks to everyone who came last night, despite the BYOB stipulation. I think we had a record number of people drinking out of 22 oz bombers. Craft beer straight from the big bottle. You stay classy, Monday Nighters.
BYOB, IIPA, TTYL
For those of you versed in internet lingo, the title of today’s post needs no explanation. For those of you who still think a “keyboard and mouse” is just a good dream for one of the Aristocats, let me break it down for you.
Due to a shortage of “the good stuff” (Monday Night beer), tonight is Bring Your Own Beer, or BYOB. May I suggest you take this opportunity to head on down to Hop City and ask for the Monday Night discount? You can get a percentage off of all your craft beer purchases every Monday night at Hop City.
While we won’t be drinking “the good stuff,” we will be brewing it. On deck tonight is a second batch of our especially delicious double IPA (IIPA).
Last, TTYL. Just Google it.
Tap handle designs – feedback requested!
We are in the midst of the all-important tap handle design process. Most future MNB consumers will have one of two first experiences with the brand:
- Seeing a six pack on the shelf
- Seeing a tap at a bar or restaurant
The second experience is arguably the most important because we craft beer drinkers are finicky. I know a lot of us prefer trying new beers on draft. If we like them, we might give the bottled version a try. With all of this in mind, we’ve been working with Tap Handles, Inc. to design and manufacture our tap handles. These things need to be darn near perfect, both in conveying our brand image and in encouraging initial purchase. Here is our favorite from the second round of designs:
Before we start producing these willy-nilly we’d love your feedback. Imagine these in your favorite bar. Imagine these in your least favorite bar. Imagine these were made into nunchucks. What do you like? What would you change? We will be compiling all feedback and adding our own in the next couple of days, so don’t dilly-dally!
(I just wanted to use the phrases “willy-nilly” and “dilly-dally” in the same paragraph)
The official Monday Night Brewery tour
Not a Monday goes by when we don’t get asked, “What the crap is going on?” Usually it’s put a little more delicately. This is a question we happily answer with something like, “I’m glad you asked. Let’s take a little walk over to the grain mill, shall we?”
And that is where the Monday Night Brewery tour starts. While Joel and I give a pretty decent tour, the honor usually falls to Jeff. Part of it is because he is particularly gifted at tour-guiding. He can walk backwards and talk at the same time. He is articulate with his hand motions (though some would argue too articulate). He has mastered the art of the corny beer one-liner. But the real reason why he gives the tours is because if he actually helps with the brewing process we’ll end up with a stuck sparge. Or worse.
Brewing isn’t the easiest process to explain, and it can take a few times around the tour circuit to fully comprehend. If you’ve been blessed to be a part of a Jeff Heck Signature Guided Tour, you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t yet partaken, be sure to ask for the Deluxe Package* and we’ll point you in the direction of Jeff, who will be wearing a Harvard ballcap or a Pabst Blue Ribbon ballcap. He likes to mix it up. It makes for a more lively tour.
*Jeff Heck Signature Guided Tour Deluxe Package includes a high five from Jeff, and is offered at no extra charge
Monday Night recap: “Eye candy” edition
Sometimes forgetting to do a yeast starter can be a good thing. Last night, for instance. We couldn’t do our regularly scheduled brew so we got to experiment with a hoppy Belgian pale ale which we will add smoked applewood chips to next week. Our OG, for those interested, was 1.049. Some of you might be asking what our target OG was. It was 1.049 too. That is what makes us ballers.
In other news, esteemed wedding photographer and MNB regular Matt Altmix brought his trillion-dollar camera last night to take some shots. He got some great stuff. I’m going to include some of my favorites here, but be sure to check out the entire set on Flickr.
Thanks to everyone who showed up last night, it was a fun time. Now sit back and enjoy the eye candy. NOTE: I have added exclamation points to each caption for emphasis, not because my keyboard had a seizure.
Watermelon!
Empty beer bottles!
Jonathan cleaning a fermenter with a bunch of people in the background!
Hydrometer clearly reads 1.049! The camera is just at a weird angle! I swear!
Jeff, Joel and Jonathan smiling probably because Joel made a fart noise with his mouth!
Joel monitoring our new cooling system! And he’s also trying to get that hose to make another fart noise!
A glorious experiment (and yes, we are brewing tonight)
Tonight we will be brewing a hoppy pale ale with a Trappist yeast. We might even throw in some smoked applewood chips for flavor. Come on by around 8pm if you’re ready to witness history in the making. As usual, we will have a few beers available for tasting. And please keep in mind that it is our goal to improve all of these beers, so be sure to share your honest feedback with us.
We’re also going to try to end a little earlier than normal, so keep that in mind when making plans.
ATTENTION COUNTERFEITERS, CARPET BAGGERS AND SCALAWAGS
Dear villains,
All of your carefully constructed plans have been foiled. Under cover of dark, you wanted to steal our beer names and slap them onto an inferior product. But before you had a chance to do so, we filed for trademarks.
The process was grueling and the online trademark application was less than user-friendly, but we pressed on, because we knew that dastardly scum like you existed. Yes, there were fees involved. But the slight trademark fees will pale in comparison to the legal fees we will exact from you if you try to use our beer names. Know this.
Drafty Kilt and Eye Patch Ale have been protected! We consider this event a victory not only for Monday Night Brewery, but for America. You have been thwarted. Slither back into your Den of Iniquity and start simmering a sinister stew for dinner. We know that utter defeat makes you hungry. You pompous toolbags.
Sincerely,
Jonathan, Jeff and Joel
