Taking Root

Erin hard at work in her gardening clothes;-)

Enemies meet eye to eye

Company Shops Market

Golden Hops

      Luckily the last few weeks have been temperate.  The rain has helped water our crops, and our hops are finally starting to take root and explore the sky.  We have already enjoyed some lettuce from Erin's garden plot in Gibsonville, as well as the mescalin(sp) in ours.  After sitting in a few pounds of strawberries from Julie, Erin's mom,  I decided to get creative.  I dehydrated most of them, making a great addition to tea Erin made last night from our mint plant outside.  I let them dry out a little bit too much, so snacking on them isn't the best, but mixed in a tea releases that sweetness and aroma you look for in a summer drink.  The other 11 strawberries were used in my second home brew, an Autumn Amber Ale.  It was impulsive, but I boiled the strawberries for  the last ten minutes of the brewing process, and then steeped them for another fifteen before pulling out what I could with a sanitized spoon.
       I can smell the sweetness in my fermentation tank, a promise that there's not only good balance between bitter hops and sweet berries, but also plenty of sugar for the yeast to consume.  My air-lock, which is a one way valve letting CO2 out and keeps oxygen from getting in, was dismal at first, compared to my first brew.  After research, I've decided I will implement some chemistry skills and follow the process using my hydrometer instead of watching for bubbles.  My OG, or original gravity reading is the cornerstone for this experiment.  It is essential to record the initial amount of dissolved solids in your wort, so you can track the decline in consumed sugars as the yeast goes to work.  Water has a specific gravity of 1, and the closer you get to secondary fermentation or bottling, the closer you want that reading to be to 1.  Generally you are between 1.080 and 1.020 with beer, and with wine you should be a bit closer to one due to higher ABV, or alcohol by volume.  Spirits may read below one, because of alcohols buoyancy being less than water.  Think of a boat in the water. If its salt water, it'll float higher than fresh water.  The amount of dissolved solids prop the boat up higher, thus letting me know there is a higher specific gravity.
       My goal is to brew 100% from non extracted malts like a real brewer when my brother and his wife come up to visit.  The addition of the second home brew was that I crushed my own grains, which I did with a pint glass.  This releases the nutrient rich endosperm, but also leaves the husks of the grain behind to help filter during the boiling process.  It was an important step to learning the process just a little bit better.  I learned how to read a hydrometer correctly, and became more familiar with the equipment I'm using.  Sterility is so important, it eases your mind for the next three weeks while your beer brews.  You never want to doubt cleanliness, because a brewer's mind tends to wonder with the eminent "what went wrong" frame of mind.
       All this has been my free time.  I have gotten close to forty hours a week of work at the co-op now, after busting my ass for a month, in hopes of moving my way up their local ladder.  I am passionate about whatever I do, and am beginning to see the big picture at the store.  In the produce department, where I spend the majority of my time, I am building relationships with the local farmers that bring in our vegetables, as well as our fruits.  I also dabble in the meat department and have met a few folks from Braeburn farm, where we buy lots of really good meat.  They are located 25 miles from the store.  The importance of this local movement is our future.  I am beginning to change the way I think and eat.  Do I get a dollar cheeseburger at mcdonalds, or do I buy a two dollar samosa made 5 miles from where I purchased it?  The result is that one I don't feel like shit from eating garbage, but I've also put money back into my community, not some corporate monster that I'll never have the pleasure of meeting.  This job goes right along with my new found passion of farming, gardening, and brewing.  I am so lucky to have a beautiful fiancee that knows so much about local sustainability as well as gardening and farming.  Erin is an invaluable resource while I experiment with all this earth work.  Erin got accepted into a yoga instructor school in Greensboro, which I think is such a step in the right direction for her.  She is meant to make peoples lives better, and I can't think of a better way for her to start off doing that.  When we had a partner yoga session many moons ago, I felt the power of Yoga, and how important the connection with yourself is,as well as your partners, while you prop her up with your legs while on your back.  This summer will be great, and we're looking forward to getting the ball rolling on our wedding plans, which have seemed difficult due to our own lives needing planning.  We are both ready to get married, but we want to do it right, and we want it to be at a location where we can have our friends and family from out of state visit without long flights and road trips!
       So as it is now, I have set up the new place and it is finally becoming a home.  I have plenty of space for dogs and friends, so let me know when you want to come crash for a while, the doors are always open!  Have the best week of your life, and always extend a helping hand to a stranger in need :-)