Oregon..... and especially this part of Oregon ( the Willamette Valley) with the city of Portland in particular, has been coined the Craft/Micro-Brew capital of the world...for quite a number of years now, and you know.... I believe it. This area is home to more craft breweries per capital than any other place on the planet. We grow the most hops, make the most amazing brews, and have the greatest number of grass roots beer drinkers in the world.

Oh sure.... the MEGA BREWERS might sell more beer...... but that's only because of the media/advertising/marketing machine that they are paying for. If you want to visit Hobbiton, or Bree, or P'town and see what REAL brewers are creating...... not mass marketing...... creating, and providing for the LOCAL clients to consume....then this is the place for it

 

It sounds idyllic. I don't generally drink alcohol but I'm very partial to a couple of pints of good beer, not necessarily heavy SG or thick and malty, just light to medium hoppy tasting beer.

When I can't get best bitter https://www.google.fr/webhp?sourceid...bitter%20photo or it's real hot I sometimes drink a Becks, Peroni or Schlitz beer. In France the regular half decent beer seems to be a Stella Artois on tap but they often chill it too much. I think a visit to Willamette Valley Oregon is on the cards

 

Bruges is a beautiful city although I'm not big on chocolate I did find this in the window

There were hoards of tourists brought in by bus. But they left early and we had the run of the place. One of our favorite places was Cambrinus pub. 400 beers +-
Being an independent traveler is the only way to travel. No tour bus for us!
the world needs more beer

 

So tomorrow me and my buddies are brewing a batch of Imperial Espresso Stout. We are not using any of the hops that I've grown..... but brewing ANY beer is always a good time. I'll take some "process pics" tomorrow

 

Sounds delicious and it getting that time of year. Most stouts here are consumed seasonally here due to the heat and humidity. I did notice pumpkins and October fests are out now, guess I missed summer here.
Good brewing

 

Yup....here too. Brew now so it will be ready when the cold weather hits.

So... I want to apologize now for not getting pics of the entire process. I was so excited AND we had a house full of people..... I forgot to capture it. But here are the few I did manage to get.

Six gallon carboy (hecho en mexico) being sterilized with bleach. Everything.....EVERYTHING has to be clean clean clean !! Any bacteria in/on anything will ruin your beer batch.... and you won't know for two months when you crack one and taste it.... or get a gusher



The "wort" boiling. This is after the foam has broken and the worry of a boil-over has passed. That pot is a 7 gallon capacity pot.



Here is our cool down system in play. The wort has to be cool enough to NOT break the glass carboy when we pour it in and add the yeast. My two sided sink serves as a perfect convection system. Water plus ice and the faucet slightly running provide the dispersal of heat into the other sink side and down the drain.



Adding the wort to the carboy. This ain't your momma's beer. This is thick. This is creamy. This is black as used motor oil, Imperial Espresso Stout beer. That's me on the left. Ya.... the hair is going






And now.... the yeast does it's magic. Eating the sugars.... converting them to alchohol and creating carbon dioxide.....( I think that what it's called ) .... which flows through the tube into a water filled recepticle and bubbles away till done.

 

HoD beer goes for 2 grand a bottle

Check this out. That's an expensive bottle of beer.

This brewery is 100 miles up the highway from here. They brew amazing beers with a special gift for high ABV sippers. They have won multiple awards and yet they remain a local neighborhood style pub. All the beer stores up here carry 2 or 3 of their brews. I really don't know if they make it across the states or not. Anyone on the East Coast ever hear of Hair of the Dog Brewery?

Wish it was in my neighborhood.... but I've been there

 

HaH Hah !! I just noticed that I'm now a "Senior Member"

What happened to the middle ages ?

 

This glass is close to the Peabody one.... but not quite as cool.

 

Happened to me too last year, I thought i hit the wrong button on here or something and somebody thought I knew something LOL Turnes out I just pestered everybody a bunch