Beer Making: Part 1

Mike received a beer making kit from the Brooklyn Brew Shop for Christmas, and we were excited to brew up our first batch together - a Chestnut Brown Ale. Although it was all completely new to me (unless watching Brew Masters counts....), Mike had done a little bit of brewing before, so we weren't both newbies! Our set-up in the kitchen was pretty extensive:

Getting started: our mix, roasted and peeled chestnuts, checking the water temperature, and adding in the grain ("mashing in").

Collecting the wort (the liquid from the hot grain mash above). Hana was extremely interested in what was going on, and didn't mind a bit when we accidentally splashed some wort on the floor, she quickly lapped it all up!

We collected about six gallons of wort, boiled it, added in hops and the chestnuts, and after about an hour, set it in an ice bath to cool.

Next we added in yeast, and then had to remain patient for two weeks while the beer fermented. Next up - bottling!