I guess I forgot that I was on Great Waters’ mailing list. However, I got a message the other day offering a free pint with a food purchase good for the month of February. I’m not one to turn down good free beer, so I guess I’ll be dining at Great Waters soon.
Aaw, twist my arm…
…not really, but it was certainly less than ideal. I made a higher-gravity hefeweizen , nicknamed “el jefe weizen,” today. I mashed indoors and heated water and boiled the wort out in the garage. My garage is detached and unheated and no thanks too the cold weather, it took me a while to reach a boil. The poor propane tank was cold, and I suspect I was nearing a freeze-up as my usually-noisy burner was relatively quiet, even at full-bore.
The wort reached a boil and I added some hops and decided to stir a bit. A stroke of idiotic genius hit me and I stirred just a bit too deep, dipping a couple of knuckles and the end of my thumb in boiling wort. It was a first, and hopefully a last. Ouch! The beer is presently chilling and my fingers are crossed that nothing else goes wrong… wish me luck!
If you’re heading to the Food and Wine Experience (Feb 24-26) look for
the Minnesota Craft Brewer’s Guild booth. We’ll be the one without any
decorations (you’ll understand what I mean if you go). Planning on
having 6 breweries there each day, serving probably 4 beers each, so
we’ll have a better beer selection in our little booth than most bars in
the state.The 6th Annual Autumn Brew Review will be Oct 7, 2006. We’re limiting
tickets to 2500 this year, and after the Winterfest experience, I don’t
doubt we’ll hit that. This will probably be the last year at Peavey–we
need more room. We’re kicking around the idea of having a VIP hour for
those of you who are willing to pay a little extra and have a run of the
event without the crowds. I’ll keep you posted.The 6th Annual Winterfest will be Jan 20, 2007 at the Landmark Center in
St Paul. New digs, more space, should be fun.Last but not least, I’m putting a PDF on the website
(http://www.mncraftbrew.org) of the
really cool t-shirts we
had printed. Price is $15+ shipping (if I have to send it–I can’t
believe it would cost very much to send a t-shirt). The only sizes we
have now are L and XL. If you need a different size, let me know and
we’ll get one made next order.
I just caught wind of this one, a superbowl chili cook-off at Minneapolis Town Hall. I predict good times and lots of gas. 🙂
Join us before and during the Super Bowl Sunday, February 5th, for a Chili Cook-Off. Enjoy a bottomless bowl of chili with all the fixin’s for a mere $6, and it includes a pint of beer! Then join the fun and cast your vote for your favorite. Doors open at 2:30pm.
We just received Aver Hog Heaven back in and two new products from Avery. The one that intrigued me the most is The Czar Imperial Stout at 11.03% ABV!! NWOW!!!!! I will bring this one home tonight and try it so everyone can have a review when they stop into the store. Avery also just launched their New World Porter that is a traditional porter with a kick, it is dry hopped. Stop in and try one of your old favorites or possibly find a new one.