This is the first beer I brewed. It was a 100% extract recipe, so it was very easy, but it turned out far better than I had anticipated, especially being my first attempt. It definitely tasted better after aging for a few weeks; by the time I finished it off, it had a taste somewhat like Chimay, with a hint of spices (ginger, perhaps?). I forgot to take the initial hydrometer reading, so I couldn't determine the alcohol content of this one. The recipe claims 4%, but I would guess it came out a little higher.

(5/30/05) This is my first attempt with grains, though not completely from grains. I still used a wheat malt extract, but this recipe also called for steeping grains. The recipe claims this is a Hoegaarden Wit beer clone.

(5/31/05) I went to bed after brewing this batch worrying about ferementation taking too long to start. When I got home today, it was fermenting like gangbusters, with foam flooding the fermentation lock. I have this vision of the fermenter exploding, like Homer's moonshine operation in the "Beer Baron" episode of The Simpsons.

(6/5/05) In the bottle. I'm still a little concerned about how this one will turn out. It smelled a little off going into the bottles, a bit like wine, almost. I tasted a sip, just to make sure it wasn't completely bad, which it wasn't, but it's going to need to age well for this one to be called a success. I broke the hydrometer while I was cleaninp up after brewing, so once again I'll have to guess about the alcohol content.

(6/18/05) Despite my fears, this turned out very nicely. It's a little sour, but that's to be expected, given the orange peel. I did learn the lesson that I need to withold judgement until my brews have been in the bottle carbonating and aging for at least two weeks. I shared a few bottles with my neigbors (who were curious about what I was up to) and I got rave reviews.

(6/5/05) I picked up this kit from O'Shea's while I was down there to get some other supplies. Depending on how this recipe turns out, it may be the basis for CLVIPA. I'm gonna shoot for having this one ready by the Fourth of July for a little patriotic innebriation.

(6/18/05) In the ferementer now. Given my experience with the last two batches, plus the fact that this batch calls for hops to be added at the end of fermentation, I think my original estimate that this batch will be ready by the Fourth of July is a little optimistic. I'll still give it a taste, but I think I'll have to wait till the 9th or 10th to show this one off.

(7/6/05) This one took a long time to ferment. The recipe called for dry hops to be added to the secondary fermenter after fermentation had slowed. I did that, and fermentation seemed to start back up a little. All in all, i left in the fermenter for about a week and a half, and it was still going just a little. So this one may turn out to be extra carbonated. Extra alcoholic, too. Fortunately, the bottles haven't exploded.

(9/3/05) This turned out VERY hoppy. I can only drink one bottle of this stuff at a time (which is a good thing, cuz one bottle has me walking on sunshine). A bit nutty, too, a little like Fat Tire. Took this to CLV's party a few weeks back and it got good reviews. However, I probably won't brew this one again for a while unless I get requests for it.

(6/5/05) I picked up this kit from O'Shea's while I was down there to get some other supplies. Given that New Belgium's Abbey is one of my all time favorite beers, I have high hopes for this one. I'm aiming for this one to be ready by the time my dad comes out to CA for a summer camping trip.

(7/2/05) I really enjoyed brewing this one. It smelled fantastic the whole way through. I had the Live 8 broadcast on while I was brewing this, and seeing Pink Floyd play for the first time in over 20 years really topped it off. If this batch turns out as well as I'm hoping, it will probably be the basis for the signature recipe of the brewery.

(7/6/05) All seems to be going well with this one — no exploding fermenter this time. Given my experience with the IPA, and that both of these recipes claim a 7% alcohol content, I'm prepared for this one to spend a long time fermenting. The addition of Belgian candi sugar is new for this one, so there will be plenty of nutrients for the yeast to feed on.

(9/3/05) Another one that I took to CLV's party. I like it, but it didn't get much buzz from the crowd. Not that it got any negative comments, but I guess people just thought it was a run of the mill abbey.

(7/6/05) Found a homebrew shop in Long Beach last time I went down to O'Shea's (I don't remember the name of the place off the top of my head, but I'll track it down). Not as friendly and helpful as O'Shea's, but a shorter drive when all I need is PBW or some minor thing. Anyway, they had this kit for a fruit wheat beer, with my choice of fruit extract to add. Since I love Lindeman's Framboise Lambic, I had to give the raspberry a try. I'm aiming to brew this one this coming weekend, and hopefully have it ready when my dad is here.

(7/17/05) Put this one in the bottle yesterday. I don't expect the raspberry flavor to be as strong as Lindemann's. The raspberry flavoring was simply a raspberry extract that I added durring bottling, which seems sorta like cheating. But it's a hell of a lot simpler than lambic.

(7/17/05) This was my first attempt at an all grain brew. First off, I needed a recipe, since all the kits at O'Shea's are extract recipes. I found a recipe for an abbey dubbel in my clone brews book (St. Feuillien Abbey Ale) that looked pretty good (though I've never had the beer it's based on). But, since I'm doing this one myself, I decided to experiment a little. I like the spicy flavor in New Belgium's Abbey (or maybe it's the 1554; it's been so long I might be getting them confused), so I decided to try some spices. Ginger, cloves, allspice, cinnamon all seemed like they'd work. More on that later. And since this was my first all grain brew, I had to get a mash/lauter tun, which I hadn't thought about when I bought the ingredients. So, after a trip down to O'Shea's (and a hundred fifty bucks) I'm now the proud owner of a mash/lauter tun big enough for a ten gallon batch. Now for the real work: brewing from grains takes about twice as long. There's 90 minutes of mashing, 20 minutes of recirculating, and 60 minutes of collecting the wort. The recipe also called for a 90 minute boil when using grains. Now, back to my spice experiment. I'm a bit impatient, so instead of trying each of these spices in turn, and in increasing amounts, I decided to throw them all in to a single batch. I think I may have overdone it, both in the number of spices and in their respective quantities. Also, the top of my stir spoon broke off and fell in the boil for about 5 minutes, so there may also be a nice glue flavoring in there, too.

I am pleased to announce that Brother Seamus is better than Vicodin.
-- Connie-Lynne Vilanni

Since the brewery brand is modeled after the DFMM, it only seems fitting that the individual beers should be named accordingly. Though most of these beers do not yet exist, coming up with good names should give me some direction as to what styles of beer I should concentrate on. Named after Corey Porter, one of the charter members of the DFMM, this one will be a porter, probably of the sweet brown variety.

(11/27/05) I enjoy the occasional dark beer, but they aren't my favorite. But this brew could change that. The only dark beer I've ever had that tasted better than this is New Belgium's 1554, which is a completely different style. I love this beer. It has a full, malty flavor, and a sweet, chocolate finish. probably works best after a meal.

Since the brewery brand is modeled after the DFMM, it only seems fitting that the individual beers should be named accordingly. Though most of these beers do not yet exist, coming up with good names should give me some direction as to what styles of beer I should concentrate on. Named after Connie-Lynne Villani — CLV to those in the know — this one will probably be one of the highest alcohol content beers brewed at the HBMM.

11/27/05 I started with the base recipe from the Happy Otter kit, but using grains instead of extracts. Also added a bit of Rosemary, per Connie-Lynne's suggestion. Give it two weeks for primary and secondary fermentation, and two more weeks of bottle conditioning, and this might be ready in time for New Year's Eve.

Since the brewery brand is modeled after the DFMM, it only seems fitting that the individual beers should be named accordingly. Though most of these beers do not yet exist, coming up with good names should give me some direction as to what styles of beer I should concentrate on. Named after Jeremy "The Cheat" Hansen, this beer was inspired by O'Shea's Hemp 420 Ale.