One of my most interesting projects this summer was building my rolling kegerator (pics here).  I love tackling new home brew projects and this one was quite enjoyable.  It was inspired by a magazine article in Brew Your Own.  In the November 2008 issue, Kevin Mattie talks about how he built his rolling kegerator.

Well this seemed like something right up my alley.  So I decided to take it on.  First I gathered all of the parts.  Then I measured (twice), cut and/or drill all of the parts, then assembled this bad boy.

After carefully measuring, marking and then drilling pilot holes, I got the first tap in.  That is when I decided to take my first “union break” and have a beer.

 I then assembled the last two taps and attached the drip tray.  The trip tray is attached with strong magnets so that I can quickly pull it off to dump the waste.  Since stainless steel is not magnetic, and the tray is stainless, I had to weld two one inch galvanized washers to the bottom.  That worked like a champ.

On the second day, I assembled the inside of this kegerator.  I cut the Styrofoam sheets, taped the edges with duct tape then wrapped everything with construction grade trash bags.  I then assembled the CO2 and beer lines, tested for leaks and installed them inside.

I used a portable CO2 portable pneumatic system from a local big box hardware store per Kevin’s recommendation.  That works remarkably well.  I am very impressed.  And, believe it or not, I got this finished just four hours before a huge party.  I was very nervous cutting it that close.  I did not have the chance to play with CO2 levels and anything could have failed.  As it turned out, the CO2 level was perfect, everyone enjoyed the beer and we went through three kegs with no incident.

Here are some happy customers.  You should pick up this issue of BYO and build this.  It is fairly simple and very rewarding.  You’ll definitely be the hit of the party.

I opened my mailbox today and received my last issue of ‘Beers of the World’.  After 25 issues this publication has called it quits due to the tough economic times.  It is a sad day.  Thank you Sally Toms for all of the great issues produced under your watch.  I will miss your magazine.

Summer went by way too fast however, I had time to enjoy some great summer beers. During the summer, I usually enjoy great IPAs, Pale Ales and an occasional Cream Ale. Over the past few months I made several batches of my own IPA recipe, a couple of batches of a Mirror Pond clone and started perfecting a Vanilla Crème Ale. Now it is time to start focusing on Fall and Winter Beers. It is scary to think that Christmas will be here before we know it and home brewers always need to think ahead when it comes to seasonal beers.

I think that Fall beers need to have a slightly higher alcohol volume and in most cases heavier mouthfeel. However, I think that the big assumption that is made about home brew, or microbrews in general, is that they are “syrupy”. That is usually the assumption of those who are new to craft beers.

This is not always the case. I believe that higher alcohol volume is characteristic and serves well to keep us warm during the cool Autumn evenings. I also think that darker beers with the toasty notes just welcome the Holiday Season.

So what beers are coming soon to Holden A Home Brew? I have a few in mind (more to come in a future post). One that many of my friends have found enjoyable is Marie’s Beer.

I have a very good friend, Marie, who has a tremendous culinary talent. She makes almost everything from scratch and is not afraid to be adventurous in the kitchen. One day she approached me with the idea of creating a honey – almond – cranberry beer. Now, I am not a fan of many fruit beers, so I sat on this idea for awhile. I am partial to beers that obey the purity law (malt, hops, yeast and water – ONLY) however, I do not limit myself to those ingredients. I am a fan of extreme beers, as well. So after giving this some thought and after running into a copy of Sam Calagione’s ‘Extreme Brewing: An Enthusiast’s Guide to Brewing Craft Beer at Home’, I decided to take a stab at her request.

So how does Marie’s Beer differ from an ordinary “fruity” beer? Well, it has every bit of the normal malt bill of an all-grain beer for a ten gallon batch. Then seven pounds of dehydrated orange cranberry and five pounds of honey are added to the end of the boil. Almond extract is added at the end of the fermentation process. The end result is a very complex beer that is slightly dry, clear and yet has hints of cranberry flavor. You can think of this hybrid beer as being partly beer, partly wine and partly mead. This is a great transition beer going from summer to fall because it is very clear, has a light mouthfeel yet has great flavor complexity of holiday beers and has nearly a ten percent alcohol volume.

Anyway, I plan to start a batch of this in the next couple of weekends. I usually bottle this one since it ages very well and is more of a sipping beer that can be enjoyed throughout the winter and makes great stocking stuffers.