Adventures in Meatiness

Charcuterie:

the branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, galantines, pâtés, and confit, primarily from pork. Charcuterie is part of the garde manger chef's repertoire. Originally intended as a way to preserve meats before the advent of refrigeration, they are prepared today for their flavors derived from the preservation processes. (from wikipedia)

Charcuterie is an obscure and in many ways obsolete food preparation craft involving the butchering, curing and aging of piggy goodness. This practice also happens to be the most recent exit I've taken on the superhighway of Flavor.  The more I read and learn about the craft, the more intrigued I become!  The symphony of salt, meat, fat and smoke is, in my opinion, one of the highest forms of food craft around.

That brings me to my latest endeavour:

 

Home made sausage!!  My first try was a venison/ wild boar breakfast sausage with garlic, ginger and fresh sage.  I also made an Italian sausage of the same wild boar meat.  Admittedly, I did use some fatback from Allen Harrison of Harrison Hog Farms (they're at all the local farmers' markets!), but overall they were all hewn from animals shot this deer season.  As I didn't have a stuffer, they were both "loose" sausage that I cryo-vac'd.  They should be outta sight!!

Barleywine Update

The barleywine is bottled and peacefully cellaring until March, 2011.  Final Stats:

1. Beautiful copper- mahogany color and wonderfully clear; that 1056 American Ale yeast strain does a great job!
2. With a F.G. of 1.020, this beer is nice and full bodied, but not syrupy.  Makes nice legs on the glass.  Perfect for the style. Attenuated to 12.1% ABV, for those who are counting!
3. American hops are assertive and balanced, but not overpowering. ~92 IBU.
4. Long, lingering finish that sticks to you cheeks and continues to spread the toasty caramel and toffee flavors across the palate. A very complex brew that should be fun to taste monthly and make notes about how it ages.

Next in the Keg:
Belgian Aromatic

Next in the Kettle:
Chai Spiced Ale

Cheers!

Introducing: Belgian Aromatic Ale

Hello dedicated beer knurds!

As I mentioned in the previous post, I was so inspired by that spice ale I tried in DC that I decided to take a crack at the concept.  I started with a base recipe for lighter Belgian Strong Ale, and then toned back some of the Candi sugar to lower the OG a hair.  Next, I used only 1 oz. of Glacier hops at 5.6% Apha at the beginning of the boil as the only hops addition, and added 3/4 oz. each toasted Rose Hips and Corriander seeds, as well as a 1/4 oz. or Paradise seeds for a fragrant, herbal nose in the beer.  I utilized the Wyeast 1762 Abbey II for a delicate, fruity ester profile and that classic Belgian finish.

Should be very cool, but time will tell on that.  I'm hoping for a bright, effervescent brew that makes you sniff twice before the first sip.

Stay tuned, I'm finalizing the Chai Spice Ale this week.

You heard me right... chai spice

Cheers!

New Year, New Beer

I hope all of your holidays of choice were safe an enjoyable!  Brooke and I enjoyed our time in New York and Washington, D.C., but we're glad to thaw out again in Houston.  This new year brings some interesting new ideas that I'm itching to try.

While I was in DC, we ate at a place called Birch and Barley (check it out!!), and I had a beer that was made at an Abby off the coast of Canada.  The brewers use only items that grow on the island where the beer is made, so that means a mixed grain bill and no hops.  Instead, they spice the beer with ingredients like rose hips and other aromatics, and it's fermented with a wonderfully fruity Belgian yeast strain.
It was like a cross between a nice herbal tea and Belgian golden ale.  Outstanding!

If you've been reading this blog, you know by now that I'm all about deconstructing the flavors of items I like to eat/ drink and referencing that in a beer. To that end, I had to take a swing at my favorite non-fermented beverage, Chai Tea.  Where to begin?  I'm thinking a malty English brown ale grain bill with little to no hop bitternes, and additions of Chai spices, honey and lactose. More to come on that!

The next order of business is to bottle and cellar the Brazos River Barleywine, and then fire up the brewery to make a Belgian Strong Ale (easily a favorite) and Berliner Wiess (a sour wheat ale that's my first attempt at funky beers).

As always, feel free to comment and help steer the direction of our malted adventure together.

Cheers!

Black Bulldozer's Debut

Hear ye, hear ye.  Black Bulldozer, my Texas Imperial Black IPA offering, has arrived just in time for the weekend! 

Here are the stats:

1. This is a BIG beer.  Temperature corrected OG was 1.092, and it finished at a beautiful 1.019, which by my calculations make it around 9.7% ABV. Hold on to your hats!
2. The nose is all American hops with a piney, floral, resinous head with the slightest roasted malt sweetness.
3. On the palate, this sucker is like technicolor!  In the front, the floral hoppy bite is assertive but not astringent. That gives way into malty carmel, toffee, raisin and dark chocolate, with a little dark fruit ester from the ale yeast and 68F fermentation temp.  The beer finishes dry and clean, with lingering coffee and dark chocolate. VERY complex, and a must- try.

A few of these and you'll be singing carols to the dog.  Just ask Dozer.  It'll be on tap Saturday for the Gumbo Party.

Cheers!

Bacon 2.0... this time it's personal...

Everyone likes a little drama in a title.  But seriously, folks, I know you all loved the bacon from October.  The one compliant was that I didn't make enough!  So, to everyone that I've promised, this is the news you've been waiting for:  I have 24 lbs of pork bellies curing for the second installment of LeGrue's Bacon this season.  Most of it is spoken for, but if you are wanting to get a little for yourself, comment here to let me know.  Priority will be given to those who comment on the blog.
P.S.: A small batch of pancetta is in the works, too.

On another note, the brewery is working diligently to meet demand!  Here are the most recent updates:
Rudolph's Revenge is on tap and ready to enjoy, so get it while it's here.
Black Bulldozer is making it's debut on the 18th of this month, and is finishing at over 9.1% ABV.  WOWSA!

The next offering is a Belgian Blond Ale (name to be announced at a later date), and my Grand Reserve 2011 Barleywine will be ready to take home in January.

Cheers!

Christmas time again

Now that the turkey and dressing is over for another anum, we all turn our attention to the yule tide.  Or something. What is a yule, anyway?

Sorry, back to the point.  Thanks to the brew-day help from Ryan, Doug and Eric, LeGrue's 1st annual Christmas ale is fermenting happily and should be ready just in time for caroling.  It was inspired by St. Arnold's holiday offering, but with a twist.  A cinnamon, clove and vanilla twist, to be exact!  Nice and malty, with notes of carmel, biscuit and toffee. Malt is balanced by Perle and Liberty hops and the spicy finish, and there's enough booze to keep us a little warmer. Perfect with a nice spicy chili or pork roast.

S.G. is at 1.074 and should finish at 1.020 or so, so we're looking at around 7% ABV.

Cheers!