Homebrew Recipe: Matty Mike Homegrown Amber Ale

Matty Mike Homegrown Amber Ale

Brewing Premise: My homegrown centennial and nugget hops needed a place to be showcased. I didn’t have very many, but what little I had, I wanted to be on display in a beer as the aroma feature. Mrs. Hacksaw’s brother had an upcoming birthday and so I crafted an amber ale that would then be a tad bit hoppy (I hoped) with the addition of my hops at the end of the boil. One  a side note – Birthdays are an incredible way to share your homebrew and bring joy to people. Anybody who halfway enjoys craft beer typically loves having a case of beer that had the recipe and label and name crafted specifically for them.

Brewery Visit: Howard Brewing Company

Nestled in the foothills of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains lies the city of Lenoir.  City really only describes the governmental structure of this little town of about 18,000 people, but what it lacks in size, it certainly makes up for in charm.  Once a prominent player in the furniture industry, consolidation efforts by furniture companies shut many of the area facilities down and robbed Lenoir of one of its major employers.  Driving around town, its industrial past is still quite evident in the shape of abandoned factories and unused shipping facilities. 

Beer Tasting: Natty Green Freedom IPA

Freedom IPA – Natty Green Brewing Company

6.5% ABV, 70 IBU

Enjoyed 08.16.14

As the Father of homebrewing said about a zillion times – “Relax, Have a Homebrew!” This has been expanded by homebrewers everywhere to imply that you ought to be drinking beer while brewing. What better time to drink that while making beer? I always feel my palette is heightened during brew sessions so I will try to review beers every time I brew. This particular brew sesh was a pale ale I’m making for an upcoming celebration dinner. I picked up the Freedom IPA from Natty Green because I honestly didn’t even realize Natty Green made an IPA! I do believe this is a seasonal offering so grabbing it while it’s available was hard to pass up. I’m an NC Beer connoisseur and pride myself on trying as many beers from NC breweries as I can.

Brewery Visit: Aviator Brewing Company

After sweating out a Wolfpack victory (in every sense of the word) on opening day at Carter-Finley stadium, it was time to cash in on last year’s Christmas gift.  My mother-in-law had gotten me a Groupon for a tour and a bunch of SWAG at Aviator Brewing Company in Fuquay Varina, NC.  In addition to the joys of visiting a brewery and getting a bunch of free stuff, Aviator was one of the stops on 2012’s Beerventure and I was excited to see how they had changed since last I visited. 

Homebrew Recipe: Shadow of the East Black IPA (Extract)

The black IPA is kind of like the liger of the beer world.  Except lions and tigers are at least kind of similar.  Black IPAs fuse two styles that really just don’t seem like they would work together.  So naturally, I was a bit apprehensive when I was putting this recipe together.  I didn’t want it to be dominated by hops, but I didn’t want it to just be a bitter stout either.  So, the only thing really to do was to jump in and give it the ol’ college try. 

Wort City Brewers - September Meeting

Back to Wilmington Homebrew Supply Store for the September meeting and the members of the club really turned out. Maybe it was because they knew we would be sampling all the IPA entries from the quarterly competition? Maybe it's because sitting around and drinking homebrew while discussing homebrew is just plain awesome.

Sometimes this is a forum for people to show off and provide inspiration to fellow homebrewers. This night was no exception with one member bringing a giant bag of Zeus hops he had grown. He has so many hops he brought some in just so everyone could get a smell of them. If that isn't inspiring - I don't know what is. Makes me want to plant about 10 more hop plants and run trellises from the second story of my house!

Beer Tasting: Duck Rabbit Milk Stout

5.7% ABV

Enjoyed on 08.28.14

Football season. I think I drink twice as much beer during late summer/early fall due to football season.  So with the kickoff game between South Carolina and Texas A&M on the newly founded SEC Network, I knew it was time to pop the top on a beer I've been saving. Good thing I opened it before trying to get the game on - because the SEC has apparently decided that Time Warner customers will not be able to watch its prized new network on the WATCHESPN app.  No worries, I had this delicious brew to keep me company and plenty more football to watch later.