Cubs Win! Munich Dunkle Chili

My team at work decided to do a "Chili Cook-off" last week as sort of a festive pre-holiday "team building" activity.

That meant that I had to make some chili Tuesday night.

Generally speaking, I don't follow any sort of recipe when making things like chili. I just throw some things together, and hope it tastes good.

I know I'll like it, because I use ingredients that I like. I never really know how others will like it.

You may recall that quite awhile ago I made Stouticus Chili - icus as part of a work-competition. I thought that chili deserved to win. The judges did not.

Anyway, Tuesday night, I started by looking around in the house for ingredients.

Usually we have a decent supply of canned goods in our basement that make good chili. There wasn't really anything that would work this time, though.

I had to run to the grocery store. Where I got:

Brewing some Eric's Red (2016)

If you've followed this blog for awhile, you know that I started my brewing hobby with a Mr. Beer Kit that I got as a Christmas Gift from my sister.

I was a Mr. Beer Brewer for a long time. In fact, I still have and use a Mr. Beer Little Brown Keg (LBK) from time to time.

In fact, I have my "X-Mas Graff" fermenting right now in the LBK. I should bottle that soon.

In mid-February of my first year of brewing (way back in 2009) ... I came up with a "recipe" I called "Eric's Red".

It was a can of Hopped Malt Extract. A can of Unhopped Malt Extract. Some corn syrup and water. Oh ... and that awesome Mr. Beer Yeast.

That was the recipe.

At the time I was really into Amber Beers. And I loved this beer. Loved it. I considered it a beer worthy to be my "Breweries" Signature Beer.

S is for Spangalang Brewery

It is time for another post in my A to Z Denver Breweries series.

In case you don't know ...

Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

If I counted right, there are currently a total of  18, all of which you can review by looking at Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

The most recent one was R ... R is for Ratio Beer Works.

If you know your alphabet (or read the title) you probably can figure out that the letter S is up next.

... And I picked another "River North" Brewery.

S is for Spangalang Brewery

Random Hiking Pictures

Well ... recently, this blog has been dominated by the A to Z Series of Denver Breweries.

I thought you'd like a break from that. I also thought I should demonstrate that I do more than to do breweries and drink ...

Here are some recent pictures from various hikes ...

Enjoy ...

R is for Ratio Beer Works

As I mentioned in O is for Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company, I had already visited my "R" brewery before writing up OMF.

Actually, I visited "R" the same night as "O".

Let me step back a little in case you are new to this and wondering what the heck I'm talking about.

You see ... Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

I've done things like ... B is for Baere Brewing Company; G is for Great Frontier Brewing; and L is for Little Machine Beer.

You can read every single one (including this one) at  Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

And so here we go ...

R is for Ratio Beer Works

Q is for Queen Bee Brews

Q.

Did you know that there are no Breweries anywhere close to Denver that start with the letter Q?

If you've been following this blog at all, you know I've been working my way down the alphabet in a quest to visit more of the little local breweries in the area.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

I've made my way through to P ... you can see a sampling at D is for Draw, Boggy; I is for IronWorks Brewery and Pub; M is for Mockery Brewing Company.

You can go back and see them all (including this one) by going to  Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

Most recently, I hit P is for Pints Pub

No breweries start with the letter Q. I've known from the beginning that Q would be a challenge.

P is for Pints Pub

As I mentioned in O is for Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company, I had already visited my "P" brewery before doing OMF.

Let me step back a little in case you are new to this and wondering what the heck I'm talking about.

You see ... Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

I've done F is for Factotum Brewhouse; J is for JoyRide Brewing Company; and M is for Mockery Brewing Company. In fact, I've done one for every letter up to and including  O is for Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company.

You can read every single one (including this one) at  Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

And now .. I am pleased to announce ...

P is for Pints Pub

O is for Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company

It has been a couple weeks since I posted N is for New Terrain Brewing Company.

It is time for another post in my A to Z Denver Breweries series.

In case you don't know ...

Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

I did C is for Comrade Brewing Company; H is for Hogshead Brewery; K is for Kokopelli Beer Company.

There are currently a total of  15, all of which you can review by looking at Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

The most recent one was N ... N is for New Terrain Brewing Company.

If you know your alphabet (or read the title) you probably can figure out that the letter O is up next.

O is for Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company

My 1000th Blog Post

Hey hey hey ...

You are reading this blog's 1000th blog post. Can you believe it?

My first blog post was on June 27th, 2005 (see Blogging).

I got to 500 on February 5th, 2012.

And now, here I am at 1000.

I don't know of many personal blogs like this one that last this long.

At the beginning, I didn't really know what I was going to write about. Now I've settled into this being mostly a beer blog and most of those articles being about my adventures at my SheppyBrew Home Brewery. But, I've managed to sprinkle in other topics from time to time.

Brewing Chelsea Dagger Again

Remember Chelsea Dagger?

Chelsea Dagger is the Fratellis song that gets played whenever the Blackhawks score a goal or win a game.

It is also a SheppyBrew Beer that I brewed after the Blackhawks won their 3rd Stanley Cup in 6 years.

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager

It was one of those beers that really surprised me how much I loved it. The cluster hops really taste good in the light bodied lager.

X-Mas Graff

I didn't share this at the time, but when I brewed my 2016 X-Mas Ale (see I brewed a peppermint (X-Mas) ale) ... I had a little too much for the fermentor and moved about 3/4 of a gallon to a glass jug and fermented it.

It has been sitting around since then waiting for me to make Graf (or is it Graff?)

What is Graf (or maybe it is Graff)?

According to the Dark Tower Wiki ...

Graf is a strong hard cider or apple-based beer widely consumed in In-World. The specifics of the beverage are not mentioned (except to say that some varieties of graf are weak while others are eye-wateringly strong).

N is for New Terrain Brewing Company

It has been a little over a month since I posted M is for Mockery Brewing Company.

It is time for another post in my A to Z Denver Breweries series.

In case you don't know ...

Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

The most recent one was M ... M is for Mockery Brewing Company.

There are 9 in between which you can review by looking at Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

If you know your alphabet (or read the title) you probably can figure out that the letter N is up next.

N is for New Terrain Brewing Company

New Terrain didn't even exist when I put together the list on Denver Breweries II.

Cubs Win! Munich Dunkel

So, if you follow this blog at all, you have probably picked up that I am a Chicago Blackhawks and Bears fan.

You picked that up ... right?

I'm a Blackhawks and Bears fan because I lived in the North Suburbs of Chicago-Land when I was in Jr. High and High School. My parents still live over there.

I'm not really that much of a baseball fan, but I do enjoy going to games. And I do usually watch parts of the MLB Playoffs and World Series.

And if I were to say I'm a fan of any baseball team, it would probably be the Cubs (unless and until the Rockies ever do anything that makes me think they might someday have some sort of chance to make the playoffs).

And this year (as I hope you know), the Chicago Cubs had a very good year.

Really really good.

"Alexa ... Open Homebrew"

A couple of weeks ago I received an Amazon Echo.

I have been surprised how many people have no clue what an Amazon Echo is ... even when I mention the Alec Baldwin series of commercials for "Alexa".

In case you need to refresh your memory ...

I think these are well-done. They amuse me.

M is for Mockery Brewing Company

I has only been about a week since I posted L is for Little Machine Beer.

Not bad!

This blog post marks the shortest turn-around between articles in my A to Z Denver Breweries series.

What is this series of A to Z Denver Breweries? you ask?

Well ... as a reminder ...

Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

The most recent one was L ... L is for Little Machine Beer.

There are 8 in between which you can review by looking at Sheppy's Blog: A to Z.

If you know your alphabet, you probably can figure out that the letter M is up next.

M is for Mockery Brewing Company

2016 #GABF Members Only

Well... if you read my post yesterday (see 2016 #GABF Friday Night), you know that the SheppyBrew Beer Model and I were planning on attending GABF again for the Members' Only Saturday afternoon session of GABF.

And indeed we did.

Again, we got in very fast. Much faster than any previous Saturday Sessions we've ever been to.

It was awesome.

2016 #GABF Friday Night

Well ... as you probably know, last night was the Friday Session of the Great American Beer Fest.

As per tradition, the SheppyBrew Beer Model and I attended.

As always, there was lots of beer. And lots of fun. And interesting sites.

Following are some of the pictures from last night ...

Enjoy ...

L is for Little Machine Beer

Well ... I guess I'm doing a little better this time on my A to Z Denver Breweries series.

Early last month I posted K is for Kokopelli Beer Company, and now I'm "already" doing L.

I still need to improve my timeliness or I'll never get through the alphabet.

As a reminder ... in regards to my A to Z Denver Breweries series .....

Back in early 2015, I composed a list Denver Breweries that I had not visited (see Denver Breweries II). As I was composing the list, I realized that most of the letters in the alphabet were covered by the first letters in these brewery names.

I started with A ... A is for Alpine Dog Brewing Company

and now I am up to L.

L is for Little Machine Beer

I brewed a peppermint (X-Mas) ale

Not too long ago, I asked the beautiful SheppyBrew Beer Model what sort of  X-Mas Ale I should make this year.

Her favorite of the X-Mas Ales so far was the 2012 version, which just happened to have peppermint flavoring in it. The peppermint with the winter warmer made the beer sort of a chocolate candy cane.

And, when I asked, she told me this again.

So, I decided to make the 2016 X-Mas Ale with peppermint flavor.

Of course, peppermint is one of those flavors you have to be careful with. Too much is ... well too much. Too little is ok, but if you are making a peppermint beer, you want people to be able to tell you put peppermint in it.

Luckily, I've had experience with peppermint. I simply copied the amount I used in 2012.

The base beer is different than any X-Mas Ale so far. Last year, I started adjusting the recipe to include less crystal malt and replacing it with dark Munich malt. My 2016 recipe has more Munich than 2015. It is also designed to be significantly lower in alcohol.

2016 Falling Leaves Autumn Saison

This past Sunday, I brewed my Falling Leaves Autumn Saison.

Falling Leaves is, of course, the Autumn version of my Seasonal Saisons series of beers.

The 2016 recipe is exactly like last years, except last year I did a protein rest in the mash whereas this year I didn't.

The SheppyBrew Autumn Saison is designed to be darker in color than the Spring and Summer Saisons, but not as dark as the black Winter Saison.

It gets most of its color from a Dark Munich malt from Gambrinus Malting Corporation. The malt flavor is heavily Munich breadiness, but it does have the distinct French Saison taste from the yeast and lots of late Saaz hops.