Thursday, December 18, 2008

Tapping the Keg!

Regular readers will recall that I won the opportunity to have a full batch of my beer brewed at 75th Street Brewery. It now appears to be ready for prime time - they'll be serving "Triple Sugar Tripel" beginning on Monday, December 29th. Yes, I'm working on putting together some kind of party for that evening, and I'll post details here when I work them out.

I haven't sampled the beer, and we made a few significant changes to my 10 gallon recipe in the process of scaling it up to 200+ gallons, so I'm relying a bit on guesswork to predict how it will taste. The last time I saw this beer it was nothing more than sweet, tea colored water being pumped from the boiling kettle through the chiller and into a fermentation vessel where it would meet up with the special Belgian yeast that does all the work.

I expect that this beer will be the color of medium-strong tea, with a subdued but long-lasting head. The aroma will probably be honey mixed with just a suggestion of hops. The flavor will be sweet, with a strong note of honey flavor, followed by all the esters thrown off by the 75th Street Brewery's Belgian strain of yeast. Those esters will add a fruity, spicy taste to the beer, which I hope will combine with the honey to create a sweet, warming beer that will stand up to rich holiday meals and accompany traditional holiday desserts. At 9% alcohol, it will be a strong sipping beer. My hope is that the sweetness will make it appealing to those who think all craft beer is dark, hoppy and bitter, while the Belgian complexity of the beer will appeal to the beer snobs. It's not really a Belgian Tripel, because those ales focus more on the yeast characteristics than on the sugar, and it's a little dark for the style. Go here for a good article on the tripel style.

In light of the monkish lineage of this beer, it seems appropriate to use the occasion of its tapping to support a good religious cause here in Kansas City. While I'm still working out exactly how it's going to work, I'll make certain that samplers of the beer will have some opportunity to voluntarily support the Central City School Fund, which helps four wonderful Catholic elementary schools in the Old Northeast and the Westside give kids a great education.

Stay posted for more info on the party and the beer.

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14 Comments:

Blogger les said...

Dan's brew is on the calendar. And to think I knew you when...when, uh,...anyway, back then.


Is it appropriate to combine a comma with an ellipse?

12/18/2008 9:57 AM  
Blogger Average Jane said...

I'm looking forward to it!

12/18/2008 10:17 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Can't wait. 75th is right around the corner from work, making it a great stop on the way home.

12/18/2008 10:48 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Can't wait!

AF

12/18/2008 11:03 AM  
Blogger Pete Dulin said...

PresentMagazine.com is putting together Top 10 Lists for the year including Top 10 local blogs. Care to submit a list to us? Also, would you be willing to post a call for submissions? We'd like to hear from as many local bloggers as possible about what blogs they're following and would recommend. Responses can be sent to us via email - present@presentmagazine.com - no later than December 21.

Thanks,
Pete and Pam

12/18/2008 2:00 PM  
Blogger kcmeesha said...

Me,me,invite me!

12/18/2008 3:50 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Now now Al. The politico's pal. You make enough money from the political appointments you get - why the bitter tone?

Anybody care to find out more about Al Reiderer? Read this thread

http://primebuzz.kcstar.com/?q=node/16174#comment

They could write a movie about Al.

(Reiderer, not Capone. Close though.)

12/18/2008 9:16 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The beer sounds delicious. I hope I get to try some.

12/19/2008 1:27 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i'll be there!

along with the rest of dan's family.

all of whom also hate funkhouser, commenters, so don't hate on us.

12/19/2008 9:21 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

lol... is that your child Sam? Because.. that makes me laugh. =)

AF

12/19/2008 9:35 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

yep. it is.

alvin brooks and i will be there, in a corner booth, having more fun than anyone else

12/19/2008 1:16 PM  
Blogger Dan said...

Yes, indeed, that is Sam my "Coal for Christmas" son!

12/19/2008 1:27 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

CENSOR ME, GO AHEAD.

YOU CAN DELETE MY COMMENTS BUT YOU'LL STILL BE WRONG.

12/19/2008 1:51 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Is it sad I'm more excited about this than I am Christmas?

12/22/2008 12:44 AM  

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