Happy Handmade Wedding

Alex's brother Ben married Kim this weekend. It was a happy handmade affair featuring: home-brewed beer by Alex,

a home-sewn flower girl dress for Lil by Grandma Cindy (Thanks Mom!!),

home-cooked food by Kim's brother-in-law and a Taysetee cake by my sister Heather,

origami flowers folded by the bride and groom for centerpieces and bouquets,

and, the piece de resistance, one thousand gently folded paper cranes arranged as a background for the ceremony.

Ben and Kim, congratulations! May your marriage reflect the patience, love, and beauty of your handmade wedding details.

Friday Five: Why Alex Brews Beer

I'm not back quite yet. April Fools! I convinced one more person to write for me this week, my husband Alex. Here's a little bit from him about beer brewing. If you want more details or a tutorial, let me know in the comments.

I've been brewing beer for over a decade now.  The justification at first was that I could save money by brewing my own tipple.  However, between the cost of the equipment and the beer kits the savings just never materialized.  The kits contained liquid or dry malt extract which is fairly expensive thus I moved to the next stage of brewing: all grain.

In 2003, I set up a mash-tun and started brewing from grain.  Grain costs less than extract but it still couldn't cover another cost increase: drinking good beer makes you want to buy more and different kinds of expensive, good beer.  The moral here is don't expect to save money brewing beer.

Here are the five real reasons I brew my own beer:

1. The satisfaction of a homemade product -  I like being able to serve and see people enjoying something I have made.

2. Having beer on tap in my basement -  Ever since I went to kegs, it is awesome to be able to walk downstairs and come back up with a pint of draft beer.

3. Brewing styles that are hard to buy -  Ales and lagers are everywhere, but styles like Kolsch, Altbier and some of the more exotic Belgian ales are harder to come by. If you brew it yourself, any style is easily within reach.

4. Fermentation and yeast are awesome - There is something magical about using yeast in food production.  I bake bread as well and love the smell of yeast loaves rising.  Watching beer ferment is fascinating as the yeast flocculates, rises and swirls around in the carboy.

5. The vocabulary - What other hobbies have words like: sparge, wort, mash tun, trub, strike, flocculate, lovibond and others.  All of these describe some aspect of the brewing process as well as just being fun to say.

Beer Cheese Fondue Dip

I mentioned making beer cheese dip for a Superbowl party a few weeks ago and Kellie asked for the recipe. Ask and ye shall receive, readers! albeit on a delayed schedule... Alex made this dip from scratch. It follows the typical fondue method: dust grated cheese with flour and mustard, warm a liquid with spices, and gently stir the cheese into the liquid. Pour into a fondue pot or very warm dish.

We served the dip for the Superbowl in a warm dish with homemade soft pretzels and vegetable crudités. The leftovers rewarmed easily a few days later for a snack with pumpernickel toast sticks.

[print_this]

Alex's Beer Cheese Fondue Dip

15 minutes preparation time, 8-12 servings

1/2 pound grated sharp or medium cheddar 1/4 pound cubed velveeta or grated mild cheddar 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 2 tablespoon flour 1 teaspoon mustard powder or 2 tsp wet mustard 1 teaspoon worchestershire sauce 1 bottle beer - a few chugs (10 ounces), make it a beer you like as the flavor will be reflected in the final product salt to taste (don't overdo as cheese is salted)

1. Toss grated cheddar(s) with flour, pepper and mustard if dry. 2. Heat beer in a heavy bottomed pot on stove to a simmer. Turn heat to low. 3. Mix handfuls of cheddar into beer while continuously gently stirring with a spoon. 4. When cheddar has incorporated, add Worcestershire sauce and mustard (if wet). 5. Add velveeta chunks a few at a time and stir to incorporate, if using. 6. Add salt to taste but be careful not to over season.

Notes - Cheese amounts can be adjusted to make the sauce thicker or thinner as desired.  Pepper, mustard, and Worcestershire can be adjusted or omitted to taste. Be sure to stir continuously but gently on low heat or the sauce may break. [/print_this] Added to Hearth and Soul Volume 36

Stout Comparison

Tonight we are comparing three stout beers: Rogue Chocolate Stout (Oregon), Bell's Special Double Cream Stout (Michigan), and Goose Island Oatmeal Stout (Illinois).

Why these three? They were the only stouts available tonight at the unusually understocked Pace Hi, our nearest fine beer carryout.

First Impressions (head, aroma, and color) Rogue: Clean chocolate smell. Not much hop on the nose. Dark, near black color. Foamiest head. Bell's: Slightly chocolate, dark malt nose. Dark brown, cloudy color. Foamy head that remains throughout the drink.

Goose Island: Malty, medium hopped nose. Black, clear color. Least head that quickly dissipated.

The Drink (taste and palate) Rogue: Strong chocolate and heavy malt flavors with a heavy hop finish. Medium carbonation and light mouth feel. The chocolate was so strong that I asked "Does this have flavoring?" After digging the bottle out of the recycle, we found the ingredients list, including 'natural chocolate flavor'. Over the whole of the beer, the chocolate became overwhelming.

Bell's: Well balanced, mellowed malt and hop flavors. Low carbonation and smooth, easy drinking mouth feel. Like other Bell's beers we've tasted, this one is hard to complain about. Well balanced seems to be the name of their game.

Goose Island: Malty, low hop flavor. Low carbonation and rich creamy mouth feel. (Oatmeal provides this mouth feel every time.) Nice, non-challenging easy to drink stout.

Overall We will not buy the Rogue Chocolate Stout again, instead dreaming of January 1, 2009 when we allow ourselves another purple and orange beauty: Young's Double Chocolate Stout (brewed in the UK). We will choose the Goose Island when we are introducing someone to stout, or want something non-confrontational. It would pair wonderfully with a rich stew or meat dinner. The Bell's was lovely. We will certainly buy the double cream stout when looking for a sweet smooth stout to pair with a dessert or for a special occasion.

The Current Bar

One of our rules is that what is in our liquor cabinet at the beginning of the year is fair game for drinking, even if it is foreign. Here is everything we start with, with links provided for the unusual or highly recommended:

Tools:
The Little Black Book of Cocktails by Virginia Reynolds
Cocktail shaker
Selection of shot glasses
Plastic flask
Small pocket flask
SIGG stainless steel flask/bottle
Wooden muddler
Wooden reamer
Beer bottle opener (wall mount, hand held, and Homer Simpson voiced)
Wine bottle openers (lots because we can't take them through airport security and are constantly buying them on trips away from home...but our opinion of the TSA is another topic...)

Liquor:
White Rum (foreign generic)
Bombay Gin (England)
Bulleit Bourbon (Kentucky USA)
Sauza Tequila (Mexico)
Vermouth (France)
Tuaca Liquor (Italy)
McClelland's Single Malt Scotch (Scotland)
Paul Masson Brandy (Kentucky USA, home flavored with orange peel to resemble Grand Mariner)
Laphroaig Single Malt Scotch (Scotland)
Blue Curacao (Ohio USA)
Skyy Vodka (California USA)
Feist Madeira (Portugal)
Rain Vodka (Illinois USA, home flavored with ginger, orange and lemon)
Angostura Bitters (Trinidad)
Pinnacle Vodka (France)
G.E. Massenez Framboise Sauvage Wild Raspberry Brandy (France)
Kahlua (Mexico)

Wine:
Hoshi Sake (California)
Ozeki Sake (California)
Gnarly Head 2006 Old Vine Zin (California)
Razor's Edge 2005 Shiraz (Australia)
Merum 2005 Monastrell (Spain)
Mo's Strawberry Wine (home brewed by a friend of foreign and domestic fruits)
Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (New Zeland) Mixed at Camelot cellars by Alex's parents
Sula Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc (India)

Beer:
Lindeman's Rasberry Frambroise (Belgium)
Chimay Cinq Cents (France)
La Fin Du Monde (Canada)
Michelob Ultra Amber (USA) my mama's favorite

Mixers:
Homemade Grenadine (California?? Pomegranates)
Homemade Sours Mix (Florida sugar and lemons)
Creme De Menthe (USA)
Nellie and Joe's Key Lime Juice (Florida)

Wow...that's a lot of alcohol!

Last Foreign Drinks

We are having some of our last foreign drinks until 2009. Last night we had friends visit from Cincinnati, so we went for something special. First was a very nice Brut Champagne from France followed by an Italian Prosecco (sparkling wine) and finished by Lindeman's Cassis Lambic from Belgium. I also picked up a 4-pack of La Fin Du Monde by Unibroue of Quebec, Canada. I'll miss all these drinks in the coming year, but there are some nice American equivalents. Champagne and Italian sparkling wine - Several excellent sparkling wines are available from the wonderful vineyards in California. Korbel is common, but actually quite good in their Extra Dry variety. It is also not too expensive for those worried about cost.

Belgian Fruit Lambics - Lambic is tricky, and I have had no great success trying to create it in my homebrewing practices. Domestic Lambics are available, but they tend to be fairly different from their European counterparts. A good alternative are any of the fruit wheat beers produced by American breweries. They tend to be less sour, but are fruity and refreshing like a Belgian Lambic.

La Fin Du Monde (End fo the World) - This is a Belgian-style Trippel brewed in Canada. Several US breweries make Belgian Trippels. My two favorites are Ommegang and Allagash. Ommegang is located in Cooperstown, NY, and Allagash comes from Portland, ME. Both breweries distribute their beers widely and maintain excellent quality in their entire product line.

The Beginning

On our way home from a Xmas lunch today, Alex and I were discussing the globalization of trade, especially food trade. We already make efforts to eat locally by participating in a Columbus area Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and shopping our local co-op grocery store. We buy durable goods from ethical businesses and limit our purchases to things we 'need' as much as we can. What's left to do to limit our resource footprint?

I just read the book Plenty, an account of two writers who challenge themselves to eat only food grown and produced within 100 miles of their home. I know we can't do that because it would require too much time and the few healthy foods our toddler will eat (bananas and cranberries) come from far far away.

"What if we pledge to only drink US made alcohol in 2008?" I suggested. We each have a drink or two most every day, so this change wouldn't be insignificant. We started talking varietals: "We would have California, New York, and Ohio wines." "Does anyone make gin in the US?" "Can we make our own gin?" "There's always PBR." Finally, Alex said, "I like this idea."

We talked about a few 'rules' for the challenge:
1) What's in our liquor cabinet on January 1 can be used anytime throughout the year, domestic or not.
2) If traveling (Alex travels in foreign countries frequently) drink products produced in the host country.
3) Do without alcohol if we are in a situation without a domestic option.

We have a few days of 2007 left. I'll surely drink a few margaritas - we can't think of a US tequila substitute yet. When the year turns we'll start updating this blog with our domestic finds, recipes, and adventures.