Graduation Day

Graduation day was upon us. Four grueling years of our lives gone by, and we have two degrees in chemical engineering to prove it. Actually, our diploma sleeve was empty, with a nice letter saying we will receiver our diploma after our final grades are submitted. Nobody slips through that easily...

Two chemical engineers make the perfect brewing team

Both of our families would be coming into Golden for graduation, so Sam and I decided to brew a special batch of beer for the occasion. It was Sam's choice of recipe, so she decided on a raspberry porter. After the porter had fermented for about a week, we added the raspberries, 3 pounds of them! It was interesting to see them turn from a dark red to a white-brown color as they soaked in the fermenting beer.

It only took three days for these to lose all of their color!

The fruit flavor was strong, but still tasted like a porter. This was the first beer that anyone in our family got the chance to taste, so we were very happy with the result. I like to describe it as a dessert beer, similar to a port wine. You can drink one after a meal, and that's about as much as you will want. 

Because of this, the porter lasted a few months. It was very surprising how the flavor profile changed over time. After a few months, the raspberry flavor mellowed out tremendously, giving the beer less of a dessert flavor. This was the first time Sam and I tried to create a flavored beer. We unanimously agreed to use less raspberries next time, or perhaps add them earlier in the fermentation.

Two degrees in chemical engineering gave us more than just brewing experience, it also gave both of us jobs in Baton Rouge, LA. That is where our journey will take us next, from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains down to the heat, humidity, and Cajun culture of south Louisiana.

Pint Glass Collection

So Sam and I visit as many breweries as we can. It's partially a hobby, and partially research. Aside from drinking tasteful, unique beers,we like to see what aspects of the brewery give it a good atmosphere and what features could be done without.

Living in Colorado gave us a great advantage in visiting breweries because it seemed like a new brewery was popping up every weekend. Each visited brewery means two pint glasses. It is definitely a fun collection, because we have a different story for each one. When friends come over, they always get to pick their pint glass to drink from.

They make for great decorations in the kitchen

When we finally open our brewery, the idea is to use these pint glasses. Each visitor will get to drink out of a different glass. We consider it a big thank you to all of the breweries that we visited. Each one has been an inspiration to the beers we brew.

The Beginning of an Obsession

So here is the first post. It all began in February 2013. Sam convinced me to purchase a homebrewing kit from the local homebrew supply shop. I was hesitant to cough up $200 for the kit and ingredients for our first batch of beer, but I am so glad we did. Homebrewing has become a hobby that we can do together. With two chemical engineering degrees, I was sure we could have fun making great tasting beer.

For our first batch, we brewed 5 gallons of a partial mash red ale. We brewed on the stove, cooled the wort in the tub, and bottled on the bathroom floor. It was by no means pretty, but we had fun doing it.

It all began in a college apartment.

The first batch wasn't even in bottles before we brewed a second batch. Since Sam chose the red ale, we decided to alternate who made the recipe. Thus, the concept of "His and Her Brews" was born!

Sam suggested that I can pick the second recipe "as long it is dark". She loves dark beers, and I love hoppy beers. Naturally, I chose the best of both worlds, an English Double Black IPA... she was not thrilled.

Rule #1: You can't brew beer without enjoying a homebrew.

 In a matter of two weeks, my apartment had carboys fermenting in two closets. Good thing we had extra space!

Finally bottling time came. That's when we figured out that in order to bottle beer, you need to drink beer. Our favorite Old Chicago's waitress (also named Sam), helped us out by supplying Sam and I with extra bottles from the restaurant.

Peeling labels off 100 bottles is very time consuming.

This is a quick history of how Sammi and I got involved in homebrewing. There will be plenty of posts to come about new beers we brew, equipment upgrades, and hopefully changes in the Louisiana distribution laws.

Our big dream is to open a nano brewery. There will be many steps between our 5 gallon batches here, until nano scale brewing, so hopefully you enjoy following us on our journey.