Brew Day: Pumpkin Stout

The first weekend of October also marked the first sign of fall weather since I returned from North Dakota. The cool, crisp air usually entails football games and day-long tailgates that are usually followed by someone pissing in a black garbage bag in The Junction (you know who you are). Unfortunately, State was playing at Georgia this weekend (if you can call really call that playing), so I had to figure out another way to take advantage of this awesome weather while also satisfying my obsession with fall.

A quick trip to Martin’s Wine Cellar on Friday afternoon provided motivation for the weekend. The cooler and “beer wall” were lined with fall installments of seasonal beers- Oktoberfests, harvest beers, and even Brooklyn’s Post Road Pumpkin. I grabbed one of each of the autumn-inspired beers from the shelves and tucked them away into our fridge.

Once home, the afternoon supplied perfect weather for porch drinking. I then realized that this cool weather would also lend itself well to brewing beer, especially in a not-so-well-insulated, 100 year old house. Since I’ve been trying to get this Bovina Brewing project off the ground for awhile now, this seemed like the perfect time to get this thing moving. After quick trips to Brewstock and Rouse’s we had everything we needed to make our first batch of beer (and hard cider) in almost 3 years. With ole punkin’ heads hiding in every corner of the grocery store, it was only natural that our first brew would be a Pumpkin Stout (witty name to come later). It’ll be almost a month and a half before this brew is ready to drink (hopefully by the Alabama home game), but just from the initial smell and taste before it got thrown into the fermenter, it looks like this is going to be one awesome seasonal beer. Pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg hit me all of my senses right up front. Hopefully this project will be the beginning of good things to come.

The brewing didn’t stop there; we also brewed up a smaller 1 gallon batch of hard apple cider that should come in handy when we feel like we can't drink any more of the mulled apple cider vodka during the upcoming holidays. Anyway, below is a quick rundown of the Pumpkin Stout. Hopefully, a few months from now, or at least by Thanksgiving, I’ll be able to hand a few of these out at Tyrone Biggum’s next 5 o’clock free crack craft giveway.




PUMPKIN STOUT
3.3lb Briess Traditional Dark Liquid Malt
1lb Munton’s Dark Dry Malt
1lb Briess Traditional Dark Dry Malt
0.5lb Dark Brown Sugar
0.5lb Flaked Barley
0.5lb Roasted Barley
1oz Fuggle Hops (60 min)
1.5 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice (15 min)
60oz. pumpkin, roasted (15 min)
11g Danstar Nottingham Ale Yeast

The Joint, Pot Pies, and Avenue Pub

Even though I had just spent the final morning of summer trouncing around the sewage treatment plant in the 9th ward, food was on my mind. As I made my way down Poland Avenue towards the river in an attempt to check out Jack Dempsey’s, the half-and-half po’boy was all I could think about. As I approached the train tracks, I saw a hand written sign hanging above the door- “Closed: Power Outage”. Fortunately, this seafood joint just happens to be directly across the street from THE Joint.

While standing in line under a sign that read “always smoking”, I began to smell the smoky aroma of brisket, ribs, and pork. Once inside, which was actually hotter than the porch, I easily decided to go with the pulled pork plate. I took a seat at one of the makeshift patio tables and chugged down a whole styrofoam cup of sweet tea while trying to fight the urge to lift up the door to the smoker that was next to me for a quick appetizer before my food was brought out by a Marigny-looking girl. For some reason, I feel like I can’t eat pulled pork without cole slaw, and The Joint’s tangy version went well with their tender, juicy pork. The chunky potato salad was a non-mustardy version (thank God), and was slap-full of boiled eggs and herbs. Before heading back to the office, I capped off the best barbecue I’ve had since living in New Orleans with another cup of that delicious sweet tea.

Although I was still full from the ridiculously good pulled pork at The Joint, I gluttonously fought back the cats and went back for a second helpin’ of Erin’s famous homemade Chicken Pot Pie before we slowly rolled ourselves down busy St. Charles to a Brooklyn Brewery tasting.

We made our way over to Avenue Pub, THE beer bar of New Orleans, and ascended up the creaky stairs to the newly renovated upstairs bar. Avenue Pub has taken beer bars in New Orleans to a whole new level. They may not offer more drafts than other bars, but the taps are rotated and cleaned often, and they offer beers that you can't find anywhere in Louisiana. The bartenders are very knowledgeable and extremely helpful, and the Pub even offers review sessions for the Cicerone test (the beer equivalent of a sommelier). And if that’s not enough, the kitchen serves up some ridiculous food. Does life get any better than having a Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine with the St. Chuck Duck (cabernet sautéed duck, currant tapenade, granny smith apples, cheddar, and blue cheese on grilled sourdough) and homemade chips and guacamole?

Back to the beer, before I start trying to eat my fingers. After a brief history of Brooklyn Brewery's beginnings, Rich Nowak guided us through some of Brooklyn’s flagship and seasonal beers (thankfully it didn't turn out like the time I was in Ireland).

Brooklyn Oktoberfest
Brooklyn Post Road Pumpkin Ale
Brooklyn Brown Ale
Brooklyn Local 1
Brooklyn Detonation

The best of the night? Brooklyn Local 1, a Belgian Strong Ale. This ale is conditioned in champagne bottles and pours an extremely hazy golden color with a thick fluffy head. It begins with a slightly sweet, champagne-like mouthfeel (high carbonation), with hints of citrus, clove, and apples, and ends with a dry, slightly hoppy finish. As usual, Avenue Pub enhanced the beer experience with a free pint of your favorite beer from New York’s best brewery. The beers were good, but I knew it was time to go when a fellow taster ordered the Oktobefest-inspired duck sausage and German potato salad plate. After all, like these guys, it’s not pretty when I eat after midnight.