One tradition to which we adhere in our household is having a seasonal fermented beverage ready for the long, dark, cold months of winter here in Vermont. This year’s beverage is a recipe Rick created with traditional English Christmas pudding as the inspiration. This sweet stout starts off with the smell of figs and a
Articles with the Tag beer
L’odeur du Printemps: The Smell of Spring in a fruity French Saison style
L’odeur du Printemps is our first saison in a very long time, and we were overdue brewing one. This recipe uses French yeast and (mostly) German malts and hops, coupled with some honey malt for a little added sweetness to accentuate the fruit notes found in the Mandarina Bavaria and Huell Melon hops. A little
DiploMEADic CHAImunity – Braggot
DiploMEADic CHAImunity gets its start and origin from a recipe by Rob Friesel, whose blog Rick has been following for over 15 years. The recipe was published along with his article in Brew Your Own magazine on the Braggot style. Having done a few meads this past winter we were very interested in this fusion
2019 VT NanoFest – Small Breweries with Big Ideas
VT NanoFest is a tiny festival celebrating some of Vermont’s smallest breweries, and it’s held at the Tunbridge Fairgrounds, which means it’s right in our back yard. In this week’s video we’re sharing our impressions of old favorites and new brews that we sampled this year. The 2019 Vermont NanoFest — the 4th annual —
Strawberry Melonball MIPA: A First Attempt Combining Fruit & Lactose
A trip to Portland, Maine in February 2019 reminded us that there is still some fun to be had with even with the most familiar styles of beer. Strawberry Melonball is our first attempt at the milkshake style as well as working with whole fruits, and after some unexpected delays we were finally ready to give it
Photo HOPortunity – American Pale Ale
This week, we’re tasting and sharing the recipe for Rick’s latest brew. For those who would like to brew this beer it is available below, as well as on Brewer’s Friend. This was the first beer done on the new 1800W induction burner in our dedicated brewing space in the basement. It should be a
Brewery Upgrade: New equipment and a fresh space for a better brew experience
Over the years, we’ve come to realize that each iteration of our homebrew setup was lacking in some way: convenient access to water, adequate storage space, reliance on fossil fuels for heating water, or just a pleasant space to work and hang out while waiting for various steps in the brew process to complete. In
Waterbury, Vermont Field Trip: Local Yarn, Food, Beers
This weekend, my mother and I made a quick trip up to Waterbury, Vermont a town about an hour from the homestead. Our venture was prompted by the relocation of our local yarn shop from Montpelier. We were happy to see the new space: bright, open, and buzzing with lots of visitors. Congrats to Lee
Tasting New York Beers: Standby styles and unusual experiments
While on her recent trip to New York for the big sheep and wool festival, Sarah picked up some new-to-us beers to try. In this video, Rick and Sarah taste three beers from two different breweries and compare notes. Sarah found the first beer at a restaurant in Kingston, NY called Boitson’s. In addition to
Tasting Big Llama Bräu with Scott Russell
A few weeks ago we met up with Scott Russell at the homestead. Scott had been kind enough to develop a special beer recipe for Gage Hill Crafts called Big Llama Bräu, and we enjoyed the brew day with him. Now it’s time for the moment of truth with a taste test of the first