Jalapeño Poppers

Last Sunday, after a snowy bike ride and before the football games started, I couldn't get Jalapeño Poppers out of my head.

If you know me or even just follow this blog, I suppose it wouldn't surprise you to know that I really like Jalapeño Poppers.

Strangely, though, I had never made my own.

So ... I decided to rectify that situation.

I had to head over to the grocery store because I didn't have most of the ingredients.

I had to buy cream cheese, bacon, and especially jalapeños.

My wife (aka the SheppyBrew Beer Model) suggested that I should get a couple of other things while I was there, but when I was actually there ... I forgot those extra things. 

Oh Well.

Q is for Six Capital Brewing and BBQ

Recently, I posted P is for Peak View Brewing Company in our A to Z Denver Breweries series of posts.

If you're familiar with the concept behind this series and are fairly well acquainted to the English alphabet, you probably can deduce that next up we had to find a "Q" brewery.

I imagine that is doesn't surprise you that the Colorado Brewery List doesn't have any breweries that start with the letter "Q".

In round 1, I visited a Meadery,  Q is for Queen Bee Brews. 

In rounds 2 and 3, I took artistic license and hit Q is for LiQuid Mechanics Brewing Company and Q is for barQuentine Brewing Company.

It's my game ... I get to make up the rules. So ... what did we choose this time? When it came right down to it, there was only one choice ....

Q is for Six Capital Brewing and BBQ

P is for Peak View Brewing Company

Here we are already at "P" in round 4 our A to Z Denver Breweries series of posts.

It is difficult to believe that we only started round 4 this past June with A is for A Bit Twisted Brewpub.

As it turns out, "P" is a fairly popular letter to start brewery names with. If I'm counting correct, there are 24 "P" breweries listed on the Colorado Brewery List.

Of course we can filter out breweries that are not in the Denver area ...

.... and we've already hit P is for Pints Pub, P is for Peak to Peak Brewery, and P is for Prost Brewing Company (Highlands Ranch).

Even so, we had a few choices. 

When it came right down to it ... the SheppyBrew Beer Model made the choice. She decided we would go to ...

P is for Peak View Brewing Company

2023 Arctic Vortex and Chucky

One thing you can pretty much count on at the SheppyBrew Brewery ... we'll brew 4 Saisons a year.

Winter / Spring / Summer / Autumn

I started brewing these Seasonal Saisons way back in early 2014 with Brewing Arctic Vortex Black Saison.

I skipped a Spring Saison that year, but followed up with Hail Storm Summer Saison and then Falling Leaves Harvest (Autumn) Saison.

Then, First Brew of 2015: Arctic Vortex followed by Melting Stream Spring Saison.

And ... other than missing that Spring Saison of 2014, every season I've brewed the Seasonal Saison appropriate for the time of year.

It being January and winter, it is, of course, time for our Winter Seasonal Saison ...

Arctic Vortex Winter Saison

Grumkins and Snarks Oatmeal Stout (Batch 326)

In BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines and Followup on BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines, I mentioned that there were a few entire categories of beers that I had not brewed.

Of course, this is something I wanted (and still want) to rectify.

The categories I'm missing were:

16. DARK BRITISH BEER 

17. STRONG BRITISH ALE

26. MONASTIC ALE

Last Sunday, I brewed a Category 16 Dark British Beer. More specifically, I brewed a 16B. Oatmeal Stout.

Shortly after those posts, I developed a recipe for a 16B. Oatmeal Stout. Last Sunday I finally brewed it.

Grumkins and Snarks Oatmeal Stout

O is for Old 121 Brewhouse

Happy New Year everyone! This is our first A to Z Denver Breweries post of 2023.

In late December we posted N is for New Image, Wheat Ridge, and so we're over half-way through round 4!

We only started round 4 in June with A is for A Bit Twisted Brewpub, so we're really flying through the alphabet.

So, after "N" comes "O". In previous rounds we did O is for Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company, O is for Ohm Brewing Company, and O is for Oasis Brewery.

According to the Colorado Brewery Map & List, we had a couple of options, but I really wanted to try out one in particular ...

O is for Old 121 Brewhouse

Sauerkraut Yogurt Kombucha in 2023

Before the New Year, it has been quite awhile since I've made fermented food or kombucha.

I've been missing doing both.

At the beginning of 2023, I brewed some more kombucha, and this past weekend, I made some jalapeno sauerkraut and yogurt.

I'm hoping I don't go as long between doing either again.

I'd like to get to a point where I have yogurt almost all the time. We'll see how that goes.

I'd also like to have sauerkraut to eat most of the time, but sauerkraut doesn't get consumed as fast.

2022 #Strava #YearInSport

If you've been following along on Sheppy's Blog: Strava, you know that I passed 6,000 miles and 290,032 feet climbed on my bike in 2022.

According to Strava, I totaled 6,086.8 miles and 298,780 feet climbed. Not bad, although in 2021, I totaled more (6,216.4 miles and 326,749 feet climbed).

In addition to biking, I also use Strava to track hikes and some other activities. Just like last year, Strava gave me a "Year in Sport" summary of my 2022 totals.

 

SheppyBrew 2022 Year End Brewing Stats

So ... as I'm typing this, we still have over a week left in 2022, but I won't be brewing again this year, so I can actually report on my 2022 Brewing Stats.

I did brew quite a bit of beer in 2022, but I am on a steep downward trend after an absolute ridiculous amount of brewing in 2020 and considerably less, but still a huge amount in 2021.

I brewed over 160 gallons in 2020, and over 140 in 2021.

In 2022, I only brewed 122 gallons of beer. Even with this downward trend, 2022 was my 3rd highest brewing volume ever. I blame covid.

This 4th Quarter, I only brewed 5 times for 26 gallons. Practically a reasonable amount.

• Mr. Awesome Merican Lager
• Will-o-Wisp Autumn Ale (no pumpkin)
• Wien Zerschlagen (Vienna SMASH)
• Dudocs Red IPA
• X-Mas Ale 2022

Mr. Awesome (and Jethro Bud)

2022 SheppyBrew Seasonals

Earlier in the year, I published a blog post in which I talked about beers that could be considered  SheppyBrew Seasonals, attaching them to each month of the year.

As I was working my way through brewing over the year, I kept this list in mind. I didn't hit every month, but I brewed most of the beers close to their month this year.

A Blonde, two Redheads, and a Brunette

For Christmas,  the Beer Model's parents were in town. While watching football, I got her dad a flight of SheppyBrew beers. 

While getting the beers, the beers I had on tap reminded me of the post I made a long time ago ... A Brunette, a Read Head, and a Blonde. 

I told him his flight was One Blonde. Two Read Heads. One Brunette.

Mr. Awesome Merican Lager was the blonde. Wien Zerschlagen and Dudocs Red IPA were the Reds. X-Mas Ale 2022 was the Brunette.

Another Whole Chicken in the Vortex

It's been quite awhile since I've cooked a whole chicken. 

I think the last time (before this time) was Whole Chicken in the Vortex.

I told myself at the time I wanted to try cooking inside the vortex cone again. I've just never gotten around to it.

Until a couple Saturdays ago.

And this one turned out better than last time. In fact, I think this might be my best whole chicken ever.

For a rub, it was basically just SPG. (Salt / Pepper / Garlic).

I set up the vortex just a bit off-center with unlit charcoal all around. I lit about 3/4 of a chimney and placed that in the middle of the unlit coals, allowing the fire to move both directions around the cone.

N is for New Image, Wheat Ridge

As I type this, M is for Mobcraft Dee Tacko just posted.

We only started this 4th round of the A to Z Denver Breweries project in June with A is for A Bit Twisted Brewpub.

And ... here we are already half-way through the alphabet, needing an "N" brewery.

As I keep saying, the SheppyBrew Beer Model (aka my wife) is really pushing this process along.

This past Saturday, the Beer Model surprisingly agreed to play Pickle Ball in the cold. Then, she wanted to go hit our "N" brewery for lunch.

In round 1, we did N is for New Terrain Brewing Company. Round 2: N is for New Image Brewing Company. Round 3: N is for Novel Strand Brewing Company.

What did we decided to hit this time?

N is for New Image, Wheat Ridge

M is for Mobcraft Dee Tacko

My wife (aka the SheppyBrew Beer Model) and I played Pickle Ball a couple Sundays ago.

I don't quite get the popularity of Pickle Ball. To me, it is basically tennis for people who can't move well enough to play tennis.

But, the wife likes it. It is fun enough. I suppose it is ok exercise. So, we play.

After our Pickle Ball adventure, the Beer Model wanted lunch, and we decided to head to downtown Denver for our next of the A to Z Denver Breweries.

Last time we did L is for Little Dry Creek Brewery, so this time it was time for an "M" brewery.

Big M. Little M. What begins with M?

M is for Mobcraft Dee Tacko

Butt and Biking

As I mentioned in #10Everestsin2022, I went on a fairly long bike ride last Sunday.

62.8 miles to keep my #MetricCenturyEveryMonth streak alive.

I had committed to smoking a Pork Butt, and as you probably know, smoking a Pork Butt is an all-day process.

Luckily, like a lot of the things I do on the weekends, smoking allows for multi-tasking.

As long as I set up the kettle to burn long enough at about the right temperature, it doesn't really take a whole lot of effort on my side.

I just let the fire and smoke do its thing. I don't really have to do all that much for most of the hours the meat in on the smoker.

Bursting Fatty

So ... I've only made Fatties a couple of times in my life, both of them documented on this blog.

See Easter BBQ and Fatty!

I decided to make another one a couple weekends ago, the same day I brewed my X-Mas Ale. 

In case you don't know ... a fatty is ground meat surrounding a filling wrapped with bacon.

In my case, the filling was a mixture of cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and onion with spices. 

The ground meat was 1 (or more) pound each of ground Italian sausage and ground beef.

Last time I made a Fatty, the filling burst out of the side, making a little mess and making me lose a little of the gooey goodness.

#10Everestsin2022

I have not ridden a whole lot in November or December, but as of my bike ride yesterday, I met my elevation goal for the year ... #10Everestsin2022.

It was also over 100 km, so I continued my #MetricCenturyEveryMonth streak. 

I passed up my original 5000 mile goal, and will end up with over 6000 miles. 

So ... everything I said I was going to do on my bike this year, I've accomplished.

Some of those miles were on the stationary bike at the gym, but really the vast majority were actual outdoor miles on my various bikes.

I expect I'll leave the Strava goals the same in 2023, so I'm aiming for another 6000 miles in 2023 and another 290,032 feet elevation gained.

Followup on BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines

When I started writing the post BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines, my intention was to set myself up to brew every style in the 2021 BJCP Guidelines next year.

However, as I went through the exercise, I realized that I don't really want to try to brew every style next year.

First ... there are 3 entire categories that I have not brewed a single beer in. AND ... I am missing enough styles that there is no way this is a one year project.

Second ... there are lots of styles I don't really have a desire to brew. 

The categories I'm missing are 

• 16. DARK BRITISH BEER 
• 17. STRONG BRITISH ALE
• 26. MONASTIC ALE

There are styles in each of those categories that I would like to drink and therefore will brew.

2022 X-Mas Ale (Batch 325)

Every year since I started brewing in 2009, I've brewed a special X-Mas Ale.

Every year, the beer is a similar base with some "Christmasy" flavoring added.

2009 was an extract kit with Cherries, Almond Extract, Vanilla Extract, Cinnamon, and Cloves.

Over the years, I 've done a Hazelnut X-Mas Ale, Peppermint X-Mas Ales, Cherry Pomegranate  ... all kinds of things.

I've even brewed just the base beer a couple of times.

I got started a bit late this year (much like last year). Generally, it is ideal to have this beer ready for Thanksgiving.

However, this year, I didn't even decide on what I would make until a few days ago. I brewed the beer this past Sunday.

X-Mas Ale 2022

BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines

Back in late 2012 (it blows my mind that it was ten years ago) I started the effort of making sure I had brewed at least one beer in every category of the BJCP Style Guidelines. 

See SheppyBrew Styles. You can also follow the progress on Sheppy's Blog: BJCP Goal 

I made it through all the categories, and shortly after I did, the BJCP made a fairly major update, which meant there were new categories to hit.

See 2015 Style Guidelines.

I know I knocked out most of the categories, but I'm not 100% sure I hit them all. I think I did, but I may have missed one or two. (EDIT ... after going through the list, I see now that there are 3 that I missed. I'm going to have to work on fixing that)

Regardless, we now have another new version of the guidelines. BJCP 2021 Style Guidelines. The 2021 version isn't as much as a total overhaul that 2015 was, so I think I've probably hit as many of the categories as I had before.

But, I thought I'd take some time to take inventory on BJCP Styles that I have and have not brewed ...