BOB Begins.
I’m not sure how this voyage, Bradford on Beer or BOB, really begins. I simply want to become an expert on beer. After all these years in the industry I want to invest the time in learning about this beverage I love and have worked for all these years.
It’s going to be a fun, curious trip. I have the time to invest. I’ve got some trips planned, some courses to take, some brewing friends to visit and learn from., a few really cool books, and hundreds and hundreds of beers to try and explore. I’m excited and looking for company.
Hopefully somewhere along the road I might get a shot to join a lot of good friends as a judge at the Great American Beer Festival.
While writing this I’ve got a pint of Top of the Hill Restaurant Singleton made with a single malt and a single hops. Here’s the really cool part, I have it on cask in my shop.
I modified a refrigerator to maintain 54 degrees, using a gizmo from a homebrew shop. I got a couple of pins (half a firken) from UK Brewing supplies, along with a refurbished hand pump. The best part, John Withey, brewer at Top of the Hill, makes up the pins. I’ve also had some help along the way with cask ale from Ray Daniels and Steve Hamburg on getting the cask right.
I tapped this pin yesterday so it hasn’t had a chance to drop bright. However, it’s quite golden already with a floral nose that’s massive. (I’m using one of Boston Beer’s unique glasses.) The mouthfeel is medium with a slight caramel sweetness, and silky finish. The floral bite has a lot of citrus fruit to it. It finishes too refreshing for such a big beer.
Now, what would my more serious beer friends and colleagues say? How would they describe the beer such that you the reader could almost taste it? That is my quest for the next year.
Daniel
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