Fuzzy Bear

I know its taken a while, but I am now mentally in the right state of mind to make another post. I realized that since this blog is suppose to be about how I am striving to become the best brewer in the world, occasionally I should mention how my beer is turning out. One more note before I post, I know I havent been posting on a regular schedule but after long posts my Creativity tends to hibernate for a few weeks! (Just go with me on the format its kind of a how to/reactionary tale)

I started brewing the day I got home from Arizona, I walked into the door and literally

just left my luggage in the middle of the room and started getting out all the equipment I needed to begin, The one main thing you need is the giant pot (left) to hold the wort (all the ingredients you will be combining to make your beer). I then began to boil 2.5 gallons of purified water, which because of my old stove ended up taking 40 minutes, from here this is where the actual process of making the beer begins.

So as the water is boiling you are suppose to add all of your ingredients (in my case I have a few different kind of nuts, chocolate, I added cinnamon and a little maple syrup) into this sock looking bag and then put it into the boiling water for 30 minutes or so. Well not even fifteen minutes into this excursion I had a little miscue with getting everything into this little bag and as you can see quite a bit of it spilled into my sink. I know the picture tells a different story but because I have no shame I just scooped up what I could out of the sink and put it into the bag, as if it never even happened. It may not sound significant but the main advice I have received is to keep everything clean. Im not really sure how sanitary that is considered but I think the soap pictured in the background should cut me some slack.

After cleaning everything up, I threw the bag into the boiling water to let it steep for the next 20 to 30 minutes. During this time I just sat back and relaxed for a few and got mentally prepared for the rest of my journey. (quick side note, the cover you can make out in the picture is actual size, for some reason I thought that could actually cover this gigantic pot and as you can see, not even close!) After the 30 minutes was up I took the bag out and brought the wort back to a boil. As I stated before, my stove was actually made in the 18th century so it takes a little while to get going, Well I thought I could just go in the other room and finish watching the game before I had to worry about it again. Did I have a surprise coming to me!!

This is what it looked like before I walked away. (Notice how its not even half way full)

This is what happened after being left for 3 minutes unsupervised. Im sure some of you are thinking, "not a big deal" but let me fill you in. Not only was this over half of my stove, it was also on the ground, the wall (still not really sure how that happened) and under my microwave. Not only was it in all of these places but it wasn't just a liquid you could soak up, No it was a sticky, boiling mess that when I tried to wipe up, the paper towel just stuck to it and ended up ripping. This was the kind of mess that if it happened at Carly's place she would of probably started scurrying (yes another mouse reference) around the house crying hysterically. (kidding but it would of probably ended up with her trying to nibble on my arm, (there's another one)

Before I go on lets talk about a few things happening in this picture. 1. My beard is looking phenomenal, its saying I'm classy but still a rebel (I would just like to thank my genetics and overall good looks) 2. My hair is eerily similar to Mcdreamy's (Patrick Dempsey) and overall its just doin its thang. 3. If there was such a thing as a neck model, I think its safe to say I would be one 4. I look like an actual giant in the picture, notice the door frame which is like 8 feet tall, Im towering over the refrigerator and it looks like the ceiling and I are the same size. (lets move on) This picture was actually shot as I walked in to the room to discover the mess. From here I had no real choice but to soldier on and worry about the mess at a later time. So after I fought back the tears (kidding, but not really, but kind of) I brought the wort back to a boil, this time watching carefully and then put some of the finishing ingredients into the batch. From this point my first batch was almost done. I allowed it to cool down and then poured it into another 3 gallons of cold water where I would then put some yeast into it put on the airlock lid and wait for the fermentation process to begin. After about a week, I siphoned the beer into a secondary bottle to allow it the beer to clarify and push some of the sediment down to the bottom. After about 2 weeks in the secondary I began to bottle.

I stated before the big rule is to make sure everything is sanitized before you use, so I was able to load about 18 bottles at a time into a bucket filled with hot water and 5 star sanitizer, after letting sit for about 10 to 15 minutes I would begin to grab them out of the bucket rinse them out and place them on the side to dry. I had about 50 bottles on hand so after a few hours of cleaning and drying, I was finally able to begin in bottling my (close) to finished beer.

In this picture you will notice a few things; First off my table was a mess, all of this took place during finals so everything I needed to study was located on or near my table. Next you will notice the tin foil tops, I did this to make sure no dust or anything could make its way into the newly sanitized bottle. This one is for Sars if you look closely (underneath the tin foil holder) you will notice the planner I will be sending to you here shortly. One thing I also just noticed was the container of oatmeal on the ground, don't judge me on that.

This picture was taken right before bottling, as you can see I have the remaining of the bottles drying out and I am about to syphon the beer from my secondary into my bottling bucket.

It's hard to make out what I am boiling but I have about 50 bottle tops in there. Not really sure why I enjoyed doing this but I started trying to toss them into the pan from about 5 feet and if I made it I would back up another few feet etc etc. I made it to 7 feet then gave up.

As I started to actually bottle I had to rig it so my bottling bucket was high enough that it would consistently dispense the beer, now Im not proud of how I did it and honestly there were probably a few easier ways to do it but I ended up putting one of my dining room chairs on my counter and then placed the beer on top of that. I could of sworn I had a picture of it but I think I may have deleted it but I do have the aftermath of bottling 49 beers. I was able to taste one of the beers and I really did enjoy it, I think after I added the priming sugars and letting it sit in the bottles to carbonate it will only get better.

Heres all of the beer finally bottled and waiting to be drank. I will probably wait around 3 weeks to actually trying one but initially like I said it was pretty good. As far as the name goes I talked it over with my brew Collin and we decided that the with all of the ingredients in the beer it just felt right to call it the Fuzzy Bear!!!

Since I stayed in New Orleans for an extra week with nothing to do, I also ended up brewing another beer (I take suggestions for names) which should be ready when I get back. (since this picture was taken it has become a lighter yellow with an orange tint)

Well thats it, I have taken you on a roller coaster ride of emotions, We visited some highs and a few lows but ultimately I think you walk away feeling better about yourself. Im just gonna stop right there, I promise at some point I will begin posting regularly, I also want to say I hope everyone has a Merry Xmas or had a Happy Hanukkah, My next post will be about this break and give an update on how the beers tastes!!!!! I will also tell you my best and worst gift of Xmas so if you're reading this (Marisa,Mom) make sure your gifts don't suck!!!! I also love receiving gifts in the mail from any of my other readers, if your a true friend I expect a gift (Im totally kidding by the way) Have a Happy Holiday

MO

New Orleans

Before I say anything, I want people to know that I struggled with a decision on whether to post about this past weekend or not. But the people want what they want, so to any Parents who read this I apologize beforehand.

To say this New Orleans trip was something I was looking forward to for months would be an understatement, when this trip was planned I knew we would have the best time possible and as planned I can say its the most fun I have had in a long time. Now off to to the post

Before all 10 people got in town, I met up with Kristi and Andrew on Friday morning to take them around town but to also take them to get a New Orleans favorite, a shrimp po-boy, after consuming 2 pounds of shrimp I took them back downtown so I could go and pick up the mouse who was arriving from LA. After picking up Carly, we checked in at the hotel and got ready for what was to come! Still with about 3 hours to kill, Sarah informed us she was having problems at the Dallas airport (which we later found out was due to Alice not wanting her to come, kidding) so instead of dinner we went to the first bar we saw, (which also coincidentally was running buy 1 drink get 3 free) Now to anyone who has never been to the city, I wouldn't even consider this a special, but we acted as if the world was ending and we didn't want to miss a drop. (Several things will happen from this, Andrew and I's bromance will rekindle, but it will also make Carly the hungriest midget I have ever seen!) One thing to know about Carly (and I touched on it a little in the last post) is when she is hungry she turns from a cute cuddly mouse to a 300 pound angry man, so after she intimidated both Andrew and I we walked a block over to one of my favorite places in New Orleans; Deanies

One of the great things about Deanies is you get unlimited servings of these magnificent potatoes, I'm sure some of you are wondering how is this significant and I will tell you, In the 10 years I have dated Carly I have not once seen her eat a potato, but when these hit the table, before I could grab one Carly had inhaled two and was yelling for more (its better if you picture her as the 300 lb man) After ordering a few more beers (Abita X-mas Ale, which is phenomenal) we waited for our food which could not come soon enough.

We ordered a crawfish,shrimp, crab meat pizza which may sound nauseating, but it honestly lasted all of 5 minutes (another thing I couldn't believe Carly ate). For my main course I got the BBQ shrimp which while messy is some of the best food you can get in town. After devouring our food we got the call that all of our partners in crime were on the way to meet us.

Here's the thing, when you have 10 people in a group it sometimes can be a hassle, but not with this group, after giving out hugs and kisses and butt slaps (maybe that was just Andrew and I) the first thing that was said is, Its time to get after it. For a few of our guests this was their first time ever in Nola, so we had to go straight to Pat O's for the inaugural Hurricane. But before we could make it to the bar, Hand Grenades and Huge Ass Beer's were in order.

After taking in a few of the sights we made our way into Pat O's , where finally everyone could have the "World Famous" hurricane! The great things about Hurricanes is, that when you first start drinking them they taste like fruit punch, but as a few people found out, the next day the last thing you want is a hurricane. We sat at Pat O's for a few hours and here is a few pictures of the mayhem

From Pat O's we walked right across the street, to Tropical Isle to get another hand grenade, this is pretty much where the night took a turn from being out late to being out early morning. (At this point of the night having a girlfriend can have its down falls), In the mix of hand grenades, Drew and Mike were gracious enough to buy Mind Erasers for everyone in the group, (Here lies the problem) Carly had decided she could not consume any more liquids so not wanting to be rude, she gave me the shot which now not only did I have my own, but I also had to drink hers, (I've never had a Mind Eraser and surprisingly they were really good), (Thanks D and M!!!) But we weren't done, Next thing I know Tommy, had shots in hand, and before I could even think about the ramifications of what was happening, Sarah had 10 more shots in hand. (Thanks guys!!!!!!!!!!!) At this point it was nearing 3 AM and since almost everyone had worked before coming in we decided to only make one more stop before calling it a night.

I think this picture pretty much gives you a great idea of where we went, (If you guessed

anything other than Cafe Du' Monde, shame one you). Depending on who in the group

you talk too, this was either a great decision, or just further added to naseusim (Pretty sure that's not a word) of the

night. After consuming these beauties, being the responsible adults we are, we loaded up my car (kidding) and began the the treacherous walk home. At 430 AM everyone was back safe and soundly in the Hotel and recuperating for Saturday.

The great thing about sharing a room with Carly is, when she is up I also had to be up. So even though I was asleep, I was woken up to Carly telling me that she was up! Naturally the first thing I could think to do was call Alice, after chatting for a while we decided everyone would meet down in the lobby at 11 56 Am (it was pushed back to around 12 06 pm) After meeting in the lobby, a few of us walked ahead in order to get us a spot at Mothers. Honestly, I don't believe we could of gone to a better restaurant! I ordered the Famous Ferdi Special which is ham, roast beef and debris (all the meat that fell off the roast during the cooking phase), The biggest winner of that meal had to be Tommy, who not only had one of their famous sandwiches, but he also had an egg biscuit which probably could of fed a small pack of kittens. The meal re-energized everyone physically but also got us ready emotionally for an event none of us saw coming! A PARADE!

As we walked out of Mothers, we had the pleasure of being apart of the Fox Christmas Parade! (This picture is special for one reason, it held the important celebrity guest, Bob Breck, yup the one and only Fox news weatherman!) Since we were at the very beginning of the parade, we also reaped the benefits of not having a huge crowd around us which allowed everyone to get as many beads as possible.

This was no ordinary parade though, for some reason a herd of mini horses were escorted along with the floats, and don't worry I was able to get a picture of these cute little guys. (On a side note, in the background those are the roller derby ladies, I'm not really sure what the purpose of them was, but either way this gives you a great idea of what kind of parade was going on.

I don't think much needs to be said about this special guy, but one thing to point out is the size of his feet!, This could be considered the tallest midget ever!!!!! (Andrew's face is priceless, my vote for picture of the weekend)

from here, we followed the parade but learning nothing from the previous night we ended right back on Bourbon street. Where buy 1 get 3 free began all over again. The good thing about being on Bourbon early is you have a chance to go on a balcony and from there it truly is a different experience. (Above) You can judge from the picture that we may of gotten there a little to early. After relaxing and just talking for a few hours, we made our way to Acme Oyster House for dinner.

The Meal was fantastic, I got red beans and rice in a bread bowl, Alice schooled us in how to eat oysters and the overall favorite was the sweet potato fries which after several requests were served in a bowl to appear bigger (Original size was honestly 8 fries on a plate. we went through 4 orders) From here, the Bourbon Street flu set in on more than half the group. So while half went back to the hotel, a few of us braved the elements and set out for one more great night. (While on this subject I should bring up that over the entire weekend I had been battling a sore throat/headache etc, after dinner my voice went from low to barely audible) We immediately set off for the same bar we went earlier, to see if we could reclaim our spot on the balcony, we got there and not only did we reclaim our spot but it was once again 3 for 1's again. We pulled up a few chairs and got ready for the long haul.

After about an hour or so Andrew decided it was time for him to brush up on his negotiating skills, so when the waitress came around asking us to buy shots for 3 dollars a piece, he talked her into 5 shots for 10$ with a promise of buying more. During all of this, all of the beads we had on were slowly being thrown over the balcony (and if you're wondering did anyone flash us? Yes it happened and I probably could not think of a worse candidate to do it) We sat at this bar for almost the entire night and instead of describing everything that happened, here is every picture I have from that spot.

One thing I will mention is, we were lucky enough to see a Santa Parade (sorry Tommy) go through Bourbon.

I mentioned earlier that my voice was barely audible and after a few hours out it officially was gone, But from here we made a stop at the Cats Meow to see some karaoke, after a few minutes we left and went into the oldest bar in America; Lafittes. This place was awesome, it has no electricity in the building so they run an extension cord from a neighboring house so they can run the bar. Also we sat there and listened to some live music from a guy playing some famous piano. Around midnight since no one could hear me anymore I decided to take it back to the house, Alice and Drew accompanied me back and around 12 3o we were sound asleep in our beds.

Sunday morning rolled around and we all started walking to a little breakfast place called Surreys, Carly and I ordered a banana pancake along with several other dishes and it was extremely good . Unfortunately our time was dwindling down before everyone had to get to the airport but the last thing we were able to do was take this group picture

I was sad to see the weekend end, I really did have a great time and could not ask for better friends. Thank you guys for coming and I hope you had just as good a time as well, and like I said everyone should come out for Mardi Gras! Also I would like to say Happy Birthday to Sarah, Alice and Mike hope you guys had a great day!

On a quick side note, as if the weekend wasnt full of surprises, I came home from the airport on Sunday to find out I had missed a final on Saturday. After some sweet talking and a little luck the teacher let me make it up on Tuesday!

I also realize the format is a little iffy, this post took me 3 hours and 19 minutes so please just disregard it!!!!!!

I'mmmm Baaaccckkkkk

Hey guys, hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I know I was suppose to post while I was in AZ but I might be the worst typer ever on an Ipad ( I think Alice can agree with me) But better late than never right?

I arrived in AZ on Tuesday afternoon and immediately went back to the Unit to prepare for the BBQ. Immediately the first thing I noticed is that it was FREEZING not only outside but also inside (which will be a re-occurring theme, through out the week). Back back to the BBQ, we had a ton of food, chicken, hot dogs, salad, spinach dish (which Sarah thought she could trick me by not telling me there was onions in it, Needless to say I didn't eat it) chippers and red velvet cake. Everything was a hit except for one item which I will talk about coming up. After the BBQ I passed out from too much food.

On Wednesday I woke up to the sound of Howard on the phone (which for those of you who haven't ever had the pleasure of witnessing 15 phone calls in 5 minutes its a sight to see) From there we watched Parenthood, which was incredible, and at about noon Sarah and I loaded up the car and went to my all time favorite place in AZ...... OREGANOS!!!!!!

I got the standard sausage deep dish and Sarah got the Mediterranean pizza which surprisingly was also really good. I said before that it was only noon or so when we got there but that did not stop me from getting my all time favorite beer, Kiltlifter. I wish I could tell you I ended the meal with a pizookie but sadly I made a mistake and did not end up getting one. (But looking back at everything I ended up eating maybe I made the right call). From Oregano's we went back to pick up Howard and set off to pick up Bret from the airport, with 2 hours to kill before Carly came in we went to Scottsdale Fashion Square and walked around until we had to go back. Well it turns out Carly's plane was delayed and unfortunately for us Howard decided that he liked driving around in circles instead of parking because it was "Enjoyable" and "Relaxing" after several nauseous circles we finally saw the mouse waiting for us on the corner. Now the thing about Carly is she ultimately decides where everyone eats for a few different reasons, 1. No-one wants to hear the complaining 2. The wrath that comes from a bad meal is indescribable. From the airport we went straight to Lucille's where I watched Carly rip off top after top of the biscuits, after dinner we went back to the house to get ready for Thanksgiving!

Earlier in the post I mentioned that it was freezing in the house and while I love sleeping in cold weather I woke up to it being 60 degrees in the house and because I'm an idiot and

didn't bring a sweatshirt I sat

shivering drinking coffee all morning. Now here's a rule at the Unit, if someone brings over food (doesn't matter what kind) and its not eaten in a short time period, that food is loaded up and then thrown not in the trash but instead outside over the rail. On this particular day I had the honor of throwing several different things out. In the picture (right) I threw out an entire red velvet cake, which no one ate, I then threw out all of the french toast that Sarah made (sorry it wasn't a hit) and for the finale I threw out the rest of the food from the BBQ. But back to the day, for breakfast we had the famous Monkey Bread which lasted all of about an hour. After breakfast Carly Sarah and Bret decided to take a 3 hour walk (they assured me that it would take only 15 to 20 minutes to walk where they were going, 40 minutes to walk up the mountain, and 20 minutes back) Howard and I sat around and watched the Patriots game and waited for the mice to come back. At about 3 we loaded back up and went over to Billy's for the big day. When we got to Billy's Carly and I entered our self into the pumpkin carving contest and after a hard fought battle (and Carly giving up several times) we were voted the winners with this beauty!

After the contest we sat down to another incredible meal made my Billy and Leah and after stuffing my face we all relaxed to a nice game of Apples to Apples. I don't think it needs to be said but I won,. I don't really remember much about Thanksgiving because I was so full at some point I'm pretty sure I blacked out. When I awoke from passing out I was able to watch the Nevada Boise St. game which I can honestly say will be considered one of the best college football games I have ever seen.

(Side note, awoke to it being 59 degrees) Friday rolled around and we had a full day right from the get go. After running several errands which included stopping to get Howard some pants bc his jeans had holes everywhere, we met up with everyone at Pita Jungle and of course I got my usual cilantro hummus w/ chicken.

From Pita Jungle we went to the new Fry's grocery which is huge and has some of the most ridiculous things in it (cupcake bar, wine bar, TV rooms etc) After the grocery we split up and saw different movies, the ladies saw Burlesque and the guys went to see Unstoppable. I personally liked the movie a lot, Denzel is a great actor and didn't disappoint. After the movie we went back to Billy's to have Thanksgiving rd 2 and just relax for the rest of the night. The last full day of the trip was Saturday and once again it revolved around us eating. Carly, Sarah and I went to Olive & Ivy for lunch and then walked around Scottsdale Fashion again. We stayed out of the house until about 3 and then met up with Howard and Bret who had just got done golfing. For dinner we went over to Howard's brothers house where we had pizza and steaks and all of the leftovers again from Thanksgiving. (honestly as I'm writing this I am sick to my stomach to think about how much I ate over such a short time period.)

Sunday came way to quickly and I was off to the airport to come back home, of course my plane was delayed a hour and half but as some of you know this allowed me to sit down and be able to drink a few Kiltlifters. ( I really had a great time in AZ, so many things happened and while I tried to bring some of the Howard moments to light, there are always so many hilarious things happening, I feel that I could just make a post about it.) But Sunday also brought the Bears on national TV, I didn't see one play bc of the delay but it was a huge win for DA BEARS and put them alone in first place. I also came home and started brewing which later on the week I will post all the pictures and everything I did. Also I have several visitors coming this weekend which I'm sure we will have a great time and I will take as many pictures as I can and keep everyone updated.

Weekend Update

Every Monday I just ask myself wasnt it just Friday? But this week is different, I made the decision months ago that I would not be attending class at all this week. But more importantly I leave for AZ tomorrow which I have been looking forward too since school started. I will try posting as much as I can with the adventures with the Schencker family but it sounds like we have a full schedule ahead of us. But back to the Weekends festivities, I honestly can say I didnt do anything! Saturday I watched college football all day and what a game w/ Nebraska and A&M usually defensive battles can be boring but that was an exciting game. With the Bears winning Thursday I wasnt as pumped as I usually am for Sundays but I was able to watch the Jets vs Texans, and WOW, I am not a Texans fan but to lose in the fashion they did (for the 2nd week in a row) I felt terrible for them. Sunday I also tried 2 new beers (which now since I need bottles to start bottling, I find myself buying more beer than I prob should) Abita Christmas Ale which is extremely refreshing and overall a really good beer, I also got Abita Restoration which is hard to find bc it was made after Hurricane Katrina (sells out really quick, and Abita donates a portion of the money back to New Orleans) it was good, kind of citrusy but since I only drink one a day it is a nice change of flavors.

I also watched Toy Story 3, and it was probably one of the best movies I have seen this year! Surprisingly I found myself sad during some parts but it really is a great movie. To end the weekend I watched the Walking Dead on AMC, if you guys haven't seen this show it is definitely one of the best on TV right now. If your still hesitant it is not scary (and I hate scary shows, movies etc) its about a guy who wakes up from a coma to find out that most of the world has now turned to zombies.

Alright guys thats it for me, if I dont get a chance to update before Thursday, everyone have a Happy Thanksgiving and just remember that Thanksgiving is the one day you are suppose to eat as much as you possibly can!!

I also would like to thank Bella (left) for constantly checking my blog!!!!

What a great Friday!!!! I mean I really haven't done anything, but the fact that the Bears won last night (not only won, but dominated) it makes my weekend that much better. But I still find myself kind of sad bc Sunday is my day to bring out the Bears coozies, mugs, coffee cups, etc and do nothing but eat pizza and have a few beers. The one thing I do have going for me today is tonight is my night to order pizza (which is pretty much what I look forward to all week) and drink a new beer. Tonight Im going with UFO white (Ive had before) if you guys have never had this beer its well worth the price. Similar to Blue Moon in appearance UFO is (In my opinion) is extremely better in taste. This leads me back to my own beer (which Im currently taking names for). I have been debating wether to start today or not, but my sisters (Marisa) friend Mason (who has been helping me through this whole process) has assured me that it will be worth the wait. I am also taking off for Arizona on Tuesday and that was another factor that led me to wait. I also know Carly will be extremely jealous she doesnt have a picture on here so boom!!!! Yes you are seeing that right hahahaha

And it Begins!

Its finally happening!! For a few years now I have wanted to start brewing my own beer, well thanks to my good friend Alice and her brother JJ (who I have never met, but was inspired by his success) I went out to Brewstock, a local company in New Orleans to buy my brewing kit. After talking to the owner Aaron, he took me around the store and made me believe I could do this. I collected everything I could, and after paying the bill (which was way more than I expected) I have now set out to be the best brewer ever or at least better than Carly!!!

I will post pictures during all of the different steps, but right now all I have is the basics.