Cracked open the homebrew last night. Mixed results followed.
Our first batch – the Bavarian hefeweizen – was fantastic, if I do say so myself. Great flavors with a tart, crisp finish. Plenty of carbonation.
Our Second batch – the German hefeweizen – was a bit less than fantastic and will not be seeing the light of day. Some bottles were severely under carbonated and we didn’t achieve the right balance of tastes we were looking for.
Some of the best advice I’ve heard regarding homebrewing was from Megan Parisi of Cambridge Brewing Company speaking at the American Craft Beer Festival. At the session two panel discussion she mentioned that she got her start as a homebrewer. Her friends would ask her how she managed to make such good beers. She told us that the secret was to be highly selective to what she distributed, and she would only pass out the best of the best and leave the duds at home. Her friends never realized that she was making far more beer than she passed around.
I am taking this advice to heart. Kristin (My beer aficionado sister-in-law) commissioned me to brew this batch for her farm-day celebration. I had originally planned to give her half of each batch and save the rest for myself. But in light of the poor outcome of the German hefeweizen, Kristin is getting all of the Bavarian. I will not tolerate a single drop of sub-par beer escaping my kitchen. Best foot forward, as they say.
Instead, that batch will be consumed by me and I will have plenty of time to consider how I could improve on the recipe as I drink one sub-par beer at a time. Mistakes were made, but at least the price tag wasn’t too high. So long as it ends up as a learning experience it won’t be a waste.
A note to new homebrewers: This is one reason why you should keep accurate notes! You can be sure that I will be scrutinizing mine over the next few days. I’ve already hit the homebrew store and picked up the ingredients for the redemption batch. I asked for advice from brewers. I’ve analyzed my brewing process and I made some changes that I believe will help.
I will hit the next ball out of the park.