Yesterday was a beautiful day in Central Virginia and, surprisingly enough, my family had nothing scheduled to do. So we decided to take a drive, have a picnic, and tour some local wineries and distilleries. That is right, I said distilleries. There are two operating distilleries here in Central Virginia and both of them are within an hour drive of our house.
The first one, the Belmont Farm Distillery (http://www.virginiamoonshine.com) has an advertisement on Route 29, near Culpepper. It was fun to visit and really looked the part of an old time farm-based distillery. The pot still used there was built in the 1920s and several parts of the bottling line were from the early 1900s. There are several modern pieces to the operation, most notably all of the different water filtration systems, but the place still has a very authentic feel. They sell two types of whiskey there, both available from the farm, an aged whiskey and a raw, unwooded whiskey.
The second distillery was the real gem, and the most fun stop for me on our entire trip. I first saw mention of The Copper Fox Distillery (http://www.copperfox.biz) on the Mad Fermentationist's blog, where his club was looking to possibly get a used barrel from the distillery (http://madfermentationist.blogspot.com/2009/06/oubreak-2009-infected-barrel.html). Copper Fox is located in Sperryville, VA in an old apple processing facility. The owner, Rick Wasmund, and his "Master of Malt" (Mom) operate the distillery and provide very personal and educational tours. They have an innovative aging process where they age the whiskey in contact with apple and cherry wood, which imparts an interesting color and taste to the whiskey. But, the coolest thing of all is that they malt their own barley.
Copper Fox uses 6-row barley as the sole ingredient in their whiskey. They get the barley from one farmer, who lives about 3 hours from the brewery, and bring the raw grain directly into the distillery. Then, during the cool times of the year, they soak the barley in giant vats and then lay it out on the floor of a special section of the building. They let it germinate and then they kiln it right on site, using apple and cherry wood (http://www.copperfox.biz/products/). This imparts the malt with a interesting smokey note that helps make the whiskey distinctive. As far ask Rick knows, they are the only distillery in North America that malts their own grain.
Rick was kind enough to send me home with a sample of this special malt. I am planning on using it in a German-style smoked lager sometime in the near future. I would encourage any readers in Virginia to pay the distillery a visit, as the tours are well worth the drive. While you are at it, pick up a bottle of Wasmund's Single Malt Whiskey and give it a try.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Friday, June 12, 2009
Baker Summer Party Brews
Mr. Baker and I have been busy brewing beer for his annual 4th of July Crab Fest. We brewed the last batch of beer this past Sunday and it is mostly done fermenting now. John asked me to do a brief write up of the four beers we will have on tap, which he includes in the invitations and posts near the kegs on party day. I figured I would post that text here, just so people could see what we have put together.
Hippy Hawk Bohemian Pilsner
OG: 1.055 FG: 1.014
ABV: 5.3% IBU: 40
Bohemian pilsners are more malty and rounded than their dry German cousins, while still retaining the crisp and sharp hop edge that defines the pilsner style. This characteristic roundness is emphasized by a lower mineral content water that provides a softer body that helps bring the malt body in balance with the Czech Saaz hops. Our Hippy Hawk Bohemian Pilsner is named for a hawk we saw circling over the deck on brew day, as well as the Bohemian quality of the beer that will leave you wanting more and more of this beer. Groovy, man . . .
Pissed Black Cat Pale Ale
OG: 1.050 FG: 1.010
ABV: 5.1% IBU: 48
The pale ale style is one that has defined the American craft beer movement. It originally came from England, where its slightly higher alcohol content and lighter color than traditional English bitters and milds made it very popular. American brewers have made it their own by using citrus hop varieties, such as our use of Millennium and Centennial, higher hopping levels, and larger alcohol concentrations. This beer was the crowd favorite from last year, being the first keg tapped on that rainy Saturday. The beer's name came from a previous brew session, where John witnessed my neighbor's black cat urinating on my smoker. I hope she was not commenting on the quality of the smoked dishes I like to cook.
Double Down Scottish 80/~
OG: 1.053 FG: 1.019
ABV: 4.2% IBU: 15
Scottish ales are characterized by a massive, complex malty body that finishes slightly dry to make drinkable in quantity. The ales are meant to be session beers, where their relatively low alcohol concentration enables someone to have several pints in a "session" at the pub with friends and not get overly intoxicated. Scottish ales are named for the number of shillings of tax the brewer had to pay on each barrel at some point in long forgotten history. This beer is an 80 shilling, designated by use of the symbol "80/~" Our beer is named for the two kettle boil overs I had the first time I made this recipe, which created quite a mess.
Midnight Breakfast Oatmeal Stout
OG: 1.064 FG: 1.018
ABV: 6.0% IBU: 36
Oatmeal stouts are derived from dry Irish stouts, though the addition of oatmeal in the grist provides a rounder and less edgy finish, often described as a "slick" feeling on the palate. This has long been a favorite beer style of mine and we have had a version on tap ever since I started brewing for John's party several years ago. Last year, John purchased a stout tap for this beer, which uses a nitrogen/CO2 gas mix to carbonate the beer. It provides a rich and velvety finish to the stout and gives it a dense foamy head. The beer is dark as midnight, but the smell coming off the kettle on brew day reminds me of breakfast oatmeal. Thus, Midnight Breakfast was born.
Hippy Hawk Bohemian Pilsner
OG: 1.055 FG: 1.014
ABV: 5.3% IBU: 40
Bohemian pilsners are more malty and rounded than their dry German cousins, while still retaining the crisp and sharp hop edge that defines the pilsner style. This characteristic roundness is emphasized by a lower mineral content water that provides a softer body that helps bring the malt body in balance with the Czech Saaz hops. Our Hippy Hawk Bohemian Pilsner is named for a hawk we saw circling over the deck on brew day, as well as the Bohemian quality of the beer that will leave you wanting more and more of this beer. Groovy, man . . .
Pissed Black Cat Pale Ale
OG: 1.050 FG: 1.010
ABV: 5.1% IBU: 48
The pale ale style is one that has defined the American craft beer movement. It originally came from England, where its slightly higher alcohol content and lighter color than traditional English bitters and milds made it very popular. American brewers have made it their own by using citrus hop varieties, such as our use of Millennium and Centennial, higher hopping levels, and larger alcohol concentrations. This beer was the crowd favorite from last year, being the first keg tapped on that rainy Saturday. The beer's name came from a previous brew session, where John witnessed my neighbor's black cat urinating on my smoker. I hope she was not commenting on the quality of the smoked dishes I like to cook.
Double Down Scottish 80/~
OG: 1.053 FG: 1.019
ABV: 4.2% IBU: 15
Scottish ales are characterized by a massive, complex malty body that finishes slightly dry to make drinkable in quantity. The ales are meant to be session beers, where their relatively low alcohol concentration enables someone to have several pints in a "session" at the pub with friends and not get overly intoxicated. Scottish ales are named for the number of shillings of tax the brewer had to pay on each barrel at some point in long forgotten history. This beer is an 80 shilling, designated by use of the symbol "80/~" Our beer is named for the two kettle boil overs I had the first time I made this recipe, which created quite a mess.
Midnight Breakfast Oatmeal Stout
OG: 1.064 FG: 1.018
ABV: 6.0% IBU: 36
Oatmeal stouts are derived from dry Irish stouts, though the addition of oatmeal in the grist provides a rounder and less edgy finish, often described as a "slick" feeling on the palate. This has long been a favorite beer style of mine and we have had a version on tap ever since I started brewing for John's party several years ago. Last year, John purchased a stout tap for this beer, which uses a nitrogen/CO2 gas mix to carbonate the beer. It provides a rich and velvety finish to the stout and gives it a dense foamy head. The beer is dark as midnight, but the smell coming off the kettle on brew day reminds me of breakfast oatmeal. Thus, Midnight Breakfast was born.
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