tony b

Some of the folks in my homebrew club have fermenters than can be pressurized, which allows them to hook up their CO2 supplies and force transfer their beers to kegs without opening them up to the air (oxygen), similar to how a commercial brewery does it. I'm old school and have to syphon transfer my beers in the open. There are some tricks to help minimize the oxygen exposure, but there's always some. In a big IPA, with a lot of dry-hopping, even small amounts of oxygen can have an influence on the final beer. Just something you have to live with - or spend more $$ on upgraded equipment (homebrewing is a lot like BBQing - LOL!!)

I use several different configurations when using the rotisserie - Dennis' basket (with insert), the straight rod with forks, and the same straight rod with an adjustable rectangular basket. Each has it place/use. YMMV

Pretty cool to have a special water source like that. I've been brewing over 25 years, so I've just about done it all, including meads and ciders. Don't have a particular favorite, but if you look at my brew log over the last decade, you'll see a few batches of Baltic Porter, my winter beer. COVID has put a damper on my brewing this summer - with all the Festivals being cancelled, I'm only brewing for myself. Have a few hops I want to experiment with, so maybe some pale ales/IPAs are in the works? I struggle with the super big IPAs, as I am not set up for oxygen-less transfers, so it's hard to pull those off.

PBW to the rescue again!

Welcome - I'm a homebrewer as well, but I wish that I had this sweet bartering deal!!

Don't we all?? 😄

Birthday present from a friend. They obviously know me well - LOL!

Grabbing the local corn while it lasts. Grilled chicken breast, corn and a nice crusty bread. Side of curried rice and a green salad. Lovely white Rhone wine to wash it all down with. Direct, Main grate, 375F, apple wood chunks.

Reach out to Dennis - he's super nice and easy to work with. He'll answer all your questions without any pressure or upselling.

I like a chuck roast, as it's a lot less meat to deal with than a full brisket. Well, corn season is winding down here, but I did manage to score some local stuff this week. Porkchops and snags with local corn. No plated pics as I had a dinner guest who was hungry! Another friend was over for dinner last night. Ribs and corn this time. Indirect, smoker pot of hickory & apple, 250F. Country style ribs got a slather of mustard based sauce at the end. This friend wasn't as ravenous, so I got to snap a plated pic. Side of homemade potato salad and air fryer hushpuppies.

Looks wonderful, even with the "wrong" bread.

I thought that he was getting ready to smelt some iron ore. 😆

Post over in the other Forum thread for admin help.

I don't use it, no help here. It's probably a plug-in app and the admin just needs to add it.

Says the man with just about every toy for cooking with fire! LOL

Now, THAT'S armageddon!

It actually is the nickname that I gave to the Tazmanian mountain pepper berries.

It was surreal in Napa. Monday it was 110F. Tuesday it dropped like a rock and the sky stayed completely overcast all day. This was Tuesday morning at Trefethen @ 10 am.

@Troble - same scene up here in the Bay area. Left Napa yesterday after folks started closing because of the poor air quality. This was taken as we were leaving at 10:30 am. Quality didn't improve substantially as we traveled south back to San Jose.

I use a small battery-powered blower, called a FiAir. Works well in tandem with my MAPP torch.

Welcome to the Obsession! You are about to be amazed. I have NEVER owned a gas grill. No comparison. But, use good hardwood lump charcoal - Fogo and KJ Big Block are my current choices. Red Devil is good. But, stay away from Cowboy - it's cheap scrap lumber, so you never know what kind of wood it is and it burns up super fast, so it's not really a bargain. Can't wait to see pics of your uncrating and first cooks!

Yeah, we're definitely going to be taming our consumption in the heat. Lots of water. Stags Leap, Trefethen, Cuvaisson, Saintsbury and Walt are on the 2 day agenda. Stops at Stone and Russian River breweries, too.

I hear yah. I'm visiting a friend in San Jose and it's 101F today and suppose to hit 109F tomorrow up in Napa, where we're headed in the morning for 3 days. Hoping to not burn up - both literally (wildfires) or figuratively (heat exhaustion).