T is for Two22 Brew

As I mentioned in T is for ... Time Out, my A to Z Denver Brewery Project has been on hold due to the Covid-19 pandemic protocols.

I published S is for Station 26 Brewing Company at the beginning of March. Since then, we've been buying beer to-go from breweries, but not really going to breweries to drink.

Until that point I had been flying through my 2nd time through the alphabet. 

After that point ... not at all.

But ... breweries have been opening up some lately, and this past Saturday, I thought I'd check out the "T" brewery I've been targeting. 

We took a bike ride to ...

T is for Two22 Brew

More on the Jaded Hydra Chiller

As you may remember if you've read any of my recent brewing articles on this blog ... I recently purchased:

The Hydra - World's Fastest Immersion Wort Chiller

T.Ra.Sh. Light Mexican Lager (batch 261)

It was only a couple months ago that I brewed T.Ra.Sh. Light Mexican Lager (see T.Ra.Sh. Light Mexican Lager (batch 256))

We might be seeing some of the T.Ra.Sh family towards the beginning of August, so I thought I'd brew it again.

It is a nice clean golden beer with just enough hops to balance out the malt sweetness and give a little herbal noble flavor in the finish.

Great simple lager beer.

I'll have to turn this beer around quicker than a "traditional" lager process, but I actually don't usually follow traditional lager processes anyway.

Still ... this may be quickest I've ever brewed a lager grain-to-glass.

We'll have to see how it goes ...

Anyway, Sunday was brew day for me.

T.Ra.Sh. Light Mexican Lager

Blackhawk Black vs. New Belgium 1554

A little over a month ago, I brewed SheppyBrew Blackhawk Black as the third beer in my Homebrew Colorado 6 pack.

This is the 5th time I've brewed this recipe. The recipe has been tweeked quite a bit over the years, but I think the spirit of the beer has remained the same.

It was never meant to be an actual clone, but the beer that inspired me to brew it was New Belgium's 1554.

I don't think I've ever tasted it side-by-side to 1554 ... until this batch. I was assuming the two beers would be significantly different.

I kegged this batch on 6/24, and it was ready to drink by early July.

Jaded Hydra Chiller

So ... I mentioned in my last 2 brew days (see 2019 Hail Storm Summer Saison (batch 259) and On Your Left (batch 260)) ... I've recently purchased a new brewing toy ...

The Hydra - World's Fastest Immersion Wort Chiller

On Your Left (batch 260)

If you follow SheppyBrew on the blog or facebook or instagram, you probably realize that the Brew Master (aka me) has really done a lot of cycling over the past few years.

In fact, my goal in 2020 is to log 5000 miles on the bike, and at this time am well ahead of accomplishing the goal. See Sheppy's Blog: #5000MilesIn2020.

While out on the bike, several times a day, I will announce himself to slower riders and pedestrians with "On Your Left". At some point I thought ... "that would make a good beer name".

I thought the low alcohol of the Ordinary Bitter style of beer would be appropriate for a cycling themed beer, but I didn't want to just make an English bitter.

I decided to add Golden Naked Oats and keep the color on the lighter side of the style. I also decided to add more of an American hop flavor, using Galena hops.

Check out the recipe:

On Your Left

Keg Kooler

So ... for my birthday this year, my lovely wife (aka the SheppyBrew Beer Model), bought me a Pancho's Keg Kooler.

It is sort of a portable kegerator for homebrew.

Really, it is a 20 gallon round cooler with a tap and beer line attached.

It is a perfect fit for a corny keg and a 2.5 pound CO2 canister.

With a little ice ... voila ... bring your homebrew anywhere.

Awesome!

With the whole COVID SIP situation this year, I have not used this Keg Kooler as much as I thought I would.

2020 Q2 SheppyBrew Stats

As you may know, the Brewery likes to post quarterly updates on how much we have brewed. You can see all these updates (including the one you are reading right now) by following this link: Sheppy's Blog: Brew Stats.

And ... believe it or not ... the 2nd quarter of 2020 is done. Finished. Complete.

Colorado Strong

As I type this, I'm drinking SheppyBrew's Colorado Strong Pale Ale.

The recipe was based on the beer that Left Hand's Brewing Foundation came up with to help raise money for the Colorado Strong Fund.

Many breweries across Colorado have brewed their own versions, donating a certain percentage of the sales to the fund.

They all start off with the recipe and basic ingredients. They are free to modify the recipe to make it their own, but the basic recipe is similar across all the breweries.

As part of my civic duty to support local businesses, I have been picking up quite a few to-go crowlers from local breweries, and I've been searching out the various versions of this beer.

June Progress on #5000MilesIn2020

It's July. If not for the whole COVID situation, I would have ended my Great Cycle Challenge yesterday.

But, with the whole COVID pandemic a reality ... the Great Cycle Challenge has been postponed until September.

I would have had a goal of 1000 miles.

I still cycled quite a bit in June, as I still am trying to log #5000MilesIn2020, but not as much as I would have.