Beer #6 is aging

Monday, August 27. 2007
Since it is aging, I managed to get a taste. The executive summary is that it is okay and has an FG of 1.022 (~4.5% ABV, which is progress).

Mistake #1 (no, it wasn't adding hops to a stout - stouts are better bitter) was the hop ball. In theory, it'd work magically. I just overstuffed it. So my beer didn't turn out quite as bitter as it should have for the hops I put in it. Unfortunately, I only noticed towards the end of my hops boil. I should have boiled longer, but I didn't. I boiled the rest of the hops for a short time (normally to balance out some hop flavor, but in a stout aroma hops are a little silly).

So I need to shake harder, and use better water. I'm not sure that the better water is an option. However, the beer is getting marginally better. So maybe it'll be good in a few years. Horrah!
Posted by sweeneyb at 19:04 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Fingers = hurting.

Monday, August 27. 2007
And it is an electric guitar. That's just sad.

After about a 6 year break, I recently decided to pick up my guitar again. I'd forgotten how bad I am at picking. It came up in conversation with a friend last week (he's an amazing guitarist), and he said he realized he couldn't really pick when he heard Radiohead's "Street Spirit" -- and figured out that it wasn't fingerpicked. It is a guy, with a pick and a guitar -- fingers flying at mach 3.

Just for reference, check out the video on youtube: Radiohead's "Street Spirit"

So I sat down for an hour or so today and started picking it out. And boy do my fingers hurt. I bet if I played more than once every 6 years, I wouldn't be such a weenie.
Posted by sweeneyb at 18:50 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
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