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- An Irish Toast
- May those who love us love us.
And those that don’t love us,
May God turn their hearts.
And if He doesn’t turn their hearts,
May He turn their ankles,
So we’ll know them by their limping.
- Paraphrased Benjamin Franklin:
- "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
April 29, 2003
I apologize for neglecting this site. I used to use FTP to upload everything which was easy. But Yahoo in a shrewd marketing ploy got us used to it, then started charging for it. And frankly I didn't have the money, nor time, nor inclination to upload each file separately. Plus a plethora of health problems which for now have subsided. I am brewing an Imperial Stout now and will post the results as well as the recipe as it turns out. I know Spring in Florida isn't the best time of year to brew a Stout. But I will watch the temperatures closely to elude the diacetyl bound to invade hot fermenting brews. Email me with suggestions for the site as it progresses and grows.
First you need the equipment to brew beer. This you can find at a couple of online places. In Orlando Heart's Homebrew Supply has a very good selection. The next site has the most extensive selection that I've been able to find online for the home brewer, and it is the Brew Mall. Or if you are in Melbourne Florida I recommend going to The Indian River Brewery, in the loft of the brewery is a homebrew supply store operated by, Bruce Holt he is very helpful and knowledgeable, he is also the owner of IRB.
The most invaluable resource I've found for the novice brewer is Charlie Papazian's "The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing". Another good additional source for brewing European ales and beers is "Brew Your Own British Real Ale".
All my beer is brewed with strict adherence to the Reinheitsgebot or German purity law. Except for the time the cat fell into the fermenter. And then there was the time the dog got sick...well. You get the idea. Anyway it's good to get a historical perspective on how and why to keep beer as clean as you can. Sanitation cannot be stressed enough. Many times I've thought "Well..you've ruined this batch" but to my amazement it turned out well.
I am using this venue to tout beer that I truly love, Dunedin Brewery of Dunedin Florida makes the best micro brewed ales I've ever tasted. And I've been around the world and tasted a lot of them. I tried their ale for the first time at the Florida Brewers Guild beer tasting event in Melbourne Florida where they had their Millennium Ale. What a beer! Excellent flavor, mouth feel, head retention, but as I could only get one glass of this (because of the queue) the editorial is a little lacking. (And to be honest by that time I had a pretty good buzz on). I have since purchased their Celtic Gold, Y2K ale, Leonard Croon's Old Mean Stout, Pale Ale, Red Ale, and Beach Ale. You can do no wrong buying any of these. If you are in the Dunedin/Tampa Florida area or are lucky enough to find this beer locally, try it you will be impressed. But buy a case because it'll go fast.
Sláinte
More beers you can't go wrong buying are Indian River Brewery's alt beer Shoal Draft or their Amber Jack. Also, Kelly's Irish Hard Cider is great for keeping cool during the summer. The brewery has been around for about 8 years. Jack Owens, Master Brewer is known for his clean refreshing brews. IRB now has a web presence, click on the link above to take a look and consider using them for your next local function.
This is the first recipe of what I hope will be many. You won't find any namby pamby American pilsner wannabees on this page. No American Budweiser clones or Old Milwaukee (God! who would want to do that?) What you will find is a very close approximation of some very fine European ales and lagers. You will only find beers that I've brewed and like. And believe me, if I can do it anyone can do it. Expect the recipe page to be updated regularly.
Here also, is a wonderful source of recipes. The Cat's Meow Beer Recipe repsitory. Enjoy.
I have been cajoling those at the Guinness Brewery for years trying to get the recipe of Smithwick's out of them...but they are not talking. I even went so far as to write the brewery in Kilkenny personally and received a very nice letter, asking me if I'd lost my sanity, and that such things were not given out freely. Understood, but what I don't understand is Guinness Brewery's reluctance to market Smithwick's in the U.S. They already market Bass Ale which is close but is nowhere as tasty as Smithwick's. Our French speaking brothers and sisters to the North are allowed this brew as an import, why not the Yanks? I guess if you want authentic Smithwick's ale you need to go to Canada or Ireland. So if you are going to Canada anytime soon will you bring me back a case or two?
I have posted the recipe for Bass Ale, and I have endeavored to make it as close to the Smithwick's as possible. Though close I'm not quite there yet. I keep tweaking the recipe every time I make it, and keep getting closer. I think I've found my calling in life. I have found someone who claims to have found a recipe for the elusive drink. I have yet to find time to try it, if anyone has the gumption to make this ale, here is the recipe. Please let me know how it turns out. Email me here.
Here is a recipe I tried last summer for Americaner Weizenbier, a good clean wheat beer, all extract. Very good.
