Strange Brew*

Tonight I bottled up the Pumpernickel ale. I got all my previously washed and sanitized empties from the basement and scouted around for a few that I drank while working down there and didn't bother washing out.

Being the Virgo that I am, I needed to clean and sanitize the bottles again, especially the dirty ones. I looked inside them and one had only a little mold and the other one still had some yeast and beer left in it and a nice carpet of slimey yuckiness. That one gets the extra bleach and long soak.

I made it through the already clean ones and hit up the slightly moldy one, all good, then attacked the slimy one. I saw the mold mat had risen up in the bottle and I tried to dump it out. Usually they just ooze on out in a gloopy sort of way, but this bugger was stubborn and I started shaking the shit out of the bottle and nada. I took a closer look at the slime to see if I could coax it out with a chopstick or something.

Nope. Dead mouse.

Which is why you always clean and inspect your bottles before you fill them.

I also built a wort chiller.


*As you may recall the MacGuffin in that movie was a mouse placed in a beer bottle by Doug and Bob in an attempt to get free beer from the beer store.
Hilarity ensues.
They all live happily ever after.

Ewww...

Fucking loved that film! I remember my big bro bringing the video back from the rental shop and telling me and mum we had to see it. We all watched it together and laughed our tits off.

I still remember the beer in the dog bowl :P


[eta] 30 years later, and certain phrases from that film still crop up in conversation. I still feel compelled to stick 'eh' at the end of 'beer' when asking Martin if he wants another one.

High protein beer footy, think about it,

Ouch, Foot.
Astrology? Really?

Still, dead mouse discovered so I suppose your belief system works as well as any.
And the ale sounds such a marvellous endeavour I have been trying to avoid the posts, being on the wagon with a vengeance.

@Dana, Yeah I still say "Beauty, eh?" and "Take off you hoser" though almost no one has any idea what I'm talking about.

@Griff, Protein in beer kills the foam in the head. Not to mention the mousebeer of Cambridge is never strained...

@Sundae, I just like to joke about how clean virgos are, we're not really, just analytical and anal-compulsive.

I feel the same way about Lola's food blog, it really upsets me. Not that she's eating such good food, but that mine is such crap.

I don't know how we got it, but there's a bottle of Bitches Brew in the basement fridge.

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A tribute to Miles Davis.

Pale dog makes a raging bitch ale. Not bad. Eh?

I love Raging Bitch, it's a great IPA. Snake Dog is also excellent, both from Flying Dog Brewery. Of course, you have to like IPAs.

eta - I like brown and dark ales too. I first encountered them on my one trip to the UK in 1985 and have loved them ever since. I haven't gotten so much into the wheat ales - I was planning to let my third son educate me on those, as he's learned more about those than I've had the chance to - but now I guess that won't happen if I'm not supposed to drink anymore. Meh. More studies I have to look up. :(

Try DogFish Head 90 Minute IPA. very nice. got a 95 score from beer advocate



also, Victory Yakima Glory for a darker IPA...


And Yards




and then there's Troeg's Perpetual IPA

Nice! I'll look for them. Options locally are limited but I'll give it a try.