Scott Buffington

TGIF Beer Glass

Friday, March 27, 2009 in beer | leave a comment

When I first caught a glimpse of the </head> Tag Beer Glass over at Thinkgeek. I first thought it was a wonderful pilsner glass to go with the fine #include <beer.h> 12 ounce glasses I featured in 2004. This is a wonderful glass, but as Thinkgeek I believe correctly points out, it is not a pilsner but a Weizen (or wheat beer) glass. The tapered top is to focus the aroma of the wheat beer, a pilsner glass does not have that tapering.

I have actually been planning my first batch of homebrew in a while, an American-style wheat beer or Honey Weizen similar to what I brewed two years ago. That batch was well received by all my fantasy football mates, even those that claimed to not like homebrew. Finding this unique and geeky Weizen glass is what I would call a sign. This glass is 23 ounces of beauty, perfect for even my larger homebrew bottles. Now if I could only find out where to get the latest must have appliance, a beer pouring robot which Thinkgeek also links to. Please do read the entire description on the page, I enjoy the paragraph about the rice water.

Our beer glass supply is kind of embarassing and I never got around to purchasing the other glasses I featured from Thinkgeek. I feel an order of new glasses is in the making. Here is hoping this post makes you thirsty, happy Friday everyone!

Christmas Beer 2008

Saturday, December 20, 2008 in beer | 3 comments

Christmas Beer 2008
Originally uploaded by scotbuff

For some strange reason I titled this post last year with the 2008 year. I must have already started drinking before I made that post. Anyway, here is this years stash, so far. I expect I will pick up a few more come Christmas and of course some other winter brews throughout January and February.

YuleSmith Holiday Ale from AleSmith is a first for me. I have not tried YuleSmith yet but I expect it to be a fantastic beer. Another first for me is Leinenkugel's Fireside Nut Brown Ale, this is a good brown ale, interests me in some of Leinenkugel's other offerings. What is becoming a favorite holiday beer for me is Santa's Private Reserve from Rogue, which I think is just about a perfect beer for my taste. This is the second holiday season where I was able to enjoy Santa's Private Reserve. Another beer that I had for the first time was Winter's Bourbon Cask Ale from Anheuser-Busch, it was alright, kind of a booring beer but it did not taste bad. I certainly would not say I could taste or smell any Bourbon and it seemed to be very under hopped. It was just an okay beer. Of course what would the Christmas season be without a beer that has now been named the BEST Christmas beer by among others Playboy Magazine, the Mad Elf Ale from Troegs Brewery. I usually save some Mad Elf from season to season, but lately I have had the taste for Mad Elf and doubt I will have any left come Spring. Lastly, I have Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale, which is bursting with hops, this beer is for the true hop head, which I am.

Lancaster Brewing Company in Harrisburg

Thursday, January 31, 2008 in beer | 1 comment

Last night Julie and I finally had an opportunity to have dinner at the Lancaster Brewing Company in Harrisburg. While Lancaster Brewing Company does not necessarily make some of my absolute favorite beers, they brew some very fine craft beers and their menu at both locations is very nice. I have been looking forward to LBC opening in Harrisburg because I do feel their beers are more interesting than Appalachian Brewing Company and the LBC location on Eisenhower Blvd is right around the corner from me.

We had previously heard the atmosphere was a little "stiff" at LBC in Harrisburg and I agree, although we were in the dining room and not the bar area. The parking lot was completely full on a Wednesday night, so if the atmosphere means good business for LBC I am fine with it. The menu is not cheap but the prices are fair.

Now for the beer, I ordered a pint of Milk Stout, I usually will get the Milk Stout or Hop Hog IPA. Julie surprised me and ordered the sampler tray of 5 oz glasses. She actually found that she really liked the Strawberry Wheat and although she tasted everything, I acquired a few additional glasses which included Hop Hog for my own consumption. The full sampler tray last night included Amish Four Grain, Strawberry Wheat, Milk Stout, Hop Hog IPA, Fest Beer Amber Lager, Celtic Rose Irish Amber Ale, Baltic Porter, Dunkel Weizen and the Gold Star Pilsner.

I asked when the Harrisburg location would be brewing beer on location and we were told they were about 6 months out. So hopefully by July and certainly by next winter we might be getting some unique beers brewed on site that are different than the traditional offerings from LBC in Lancaster. We were certainly led to believe that something different would be brewed at the Harrisburg location, beer only available on tap. Overall the visit was awesome and I am thrilled to have LBC so close to home.

Christmas Beer 2007

Monday, December 03, 2007 in beer | 3 comments

Christmas Beers 2008
Originally uploaded by Scott

Enough with all these technology posts, I am going to lose my readers if I do not get back to the real issues. Deuane (brewing mate) came by tonight with my case of Christmas Beer for 2008. I actually have a few more coming at some point, but here is what I have so far. Flying Fish Brewing Company - Grand Cru Winter Reserve Lancaster Brewing Company - Winter Warmer Ale Rogue Ales - Santa's Private Reserve Wild Goose Brewery - Snow Goose Winter Ale Sierra Nevada - 2007 Celebration Ale Pyramid Breweries - Snow Cap Winter Warmer Bell's Brewery - Winter White Ale Summit Brewing Company - Winter Ale Troegs Brewery - Mad Elf 2007 (I still have some 2006 left) Abita Brewing Company - Christmas Ale Stoudt's Brewing Company - Winter Ale Breckenridge Brewery - Christmas Ale Avery Brewing Company - Old Jubilation Ale Smuttynose Brewing Company - Smuttynose Winter Ale The Brooklyn Brewery - Brooklyn Winter Ale Weyerbacher Brewing Company - Winter Ale This post aught to bring back some of the old readers. Now if you will excuse me, I have some beer to drink.

UPDATE December 2008 - Why did I title this post 2008 and the picture? It was still 2007. I must have started drinking before making the post. I updated the title, it is confusing.

Founders Breakfast Stout = Heavan on Earth

Saturday, October 06, 2007 in beer | leave a comment

Founders Breakfast Stout is the beer we modeled our very, very good homebrew breakfast stout after. Before this past week I had only tasted this fine beer while sharing a bottle and comparing it to our own version. In my opinion the word fine does not do this stout justice. I will say that our homebrew breakfast stout did a fair job of imitating this beer, particularly after we left it in the bottle for a while. That being said, I think I have tasted Heaven and it is Founders Breakfast Stout.

You have to enjoy coffee to like this stout, and if you have visited this website for any length of time you know I like coffee. Sumatra and Kona coffee is used to flavor Founders Breakfast Stout along with chocolate and oatmeal. The other night I first sat down with a glass of this beer and slowly drank it while relaxing after a days work. Each sip was pure tasty goodness with a chocolate finish that is just perfect. There is nothing better than a well done stout and this hard to acquire beer is a well done stout.

A big thanks goes out to my brewing mate Deuane for getting me three bottles of this beer. I am about to enjoy my second bottle while watching the LSU versus Florida game. There are some beers that we have brewed and I have had that I truly hate to drink the last bottle. Founders Breakfast Stout is one of those beers, the last bottle will go in the beer cabinet in the basement for a later date.

Troegs Brewery Tour

Monday, April 23, 2007 in beer | leave a comment

This past Saturday, April 21st, 2007, I toured Troegs Brewery with my friend Tom Steck, of BDFL Hated Legs fame. We tried to take in the tour a few weeks ago but could not make it. Going this past Saturday instead turned out to be a really good thing.

I am a big fan of Troegs beer, mostly because it is local and they brew some wonderful beers. Troegs Nugget Nectar and Naked Elf are two of the best beers I have enjoyed. Lucky for us, there was some Nugget Nectar still on tap, so I enjoyed a few tastes of the Nectar along with some of Troegs regular offerings while waiting for the tour to begin. Tom found that he enjoyed the smooth taste of the Troegenator Double Bock. The tour was very well attended, a lot more people than I expected. Though since the brewery pleasantly offers up taste after taste of free beer, I should have expected, no matter the Saturday, that a lot of folks were going to be there.

Right before the tour started, the gentleman giving the tour informed us that we were going to want to bring a glass along. Halfway through the tour we were going to have the very first taste of the very first 10th anniversary Scratch Beer from Troegs. Right out of the fermentation tanks they filled several pitchers, Tom and myself both managed to have two full tasting glasses of a wonderful Steam Beer. I mentioned to Tom on the drive over that a special scratch beer was going to be released soon, but never imagined we would be among the first to taste it.

We were informed that bottles of the Scratch Beer #1 would probably be available on Thursday the 26th of April. Right now I plan to split a case with my brewing mates, giving me a six pack. The tour was really enjoyable, it was a lot of fun hearing about the start of the brewery and the Friday and Saturday boxing and bottling adventures of the breweries early years.

No Victory For Brutal Deluxe Brewery

Tuesday, April 17, 2007 in beer | 3 comments

I am not going to cry the blues, but it was a little disappointing to hear we did not place in the ABC Homebrew Contest. All the same, I did not feel so bad when hearing that 117 entries were in the contest. As you can imagine, as varied as beer tastes go, it was probably anyone's contest to win. I have certainly achieved my goal of brewing, and that is brewing my own quality brew that myself and many others have enjoyed. If I get the opportunity, I would like to taste the winning entry. However, a Coconut beer would most definitely not be something I would drink much of. Here is the email we received:

Dear Beer Lovers:

I would first like to thank all of you for your efforts in entering the First Annual Home Brew Contest at the Appalachian Brewing Company of Camp Hill. The response was fantastic with 117 entries and we all deemed it a great success. All of you should be congratulated for a job well done. We tasted a lot of great beers that were very unique and different than your everyday beer. It made judging very difficult and tedious with the quality of your hand-crafted beers. So without further ado, these are your winners:

Grand Champion: The team of John Stotterback and Fred Rogers of Ashland, Pennsylvania with their entry of a Coconut Porter.

2nd Place Finisher: Donald Root of Carlisle, Pennsylvania with his entry of a Weizen/Weissbier

3rd Place Finisher: Ben Seiber of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania with his entry of a Honey Ginger Ale.

Again I would like to thank everyone for their efforts and hope for an even bigger response in 2008. Start developing your winning recipes now!

Thank you,
You're Friends at ABC Camp Hill
Craig, Justin, Melissa, Phil, and staff

Perhaps next year we will give it a go again. We have a wonderful Belgian Triple that has been in the bottle for a month now and another batch just bottled. This Sunday, provided we do no have an early arrival of the next Buffington, we will be conducting our last brewing get together before the new baby arrives.

Buff's Pub - Saint Patrick's Day

Sunday, March 18, 2007 in beer | 3 comments

Oatmeal Breakfast Stout
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

I spent a nice weekend at home with family, but I still managed to get my share of beer tasting and enjoying in on St. Patrick's Day. The advantage of being a homebrewer and having brew mates that travel the country bringing craft beer back to Central Pennsylvania for me to sample, is that there is always a nice supply of quality brew in the house. I decided on Saturday that I would sample the last three beers that we brewed that have reached maturation. For my own records I like to snap a photo of each so that I can compare color when we brew them again. The beers pictured are the Oatmeal Breakfast Stout, the Cherry Vanilla Porter and the Red Rye Ale.

The first beer pictured and the first I enjoyed was our Oatmeal Breakfast Stout. This is actually the first pint of this beer I have enjoyed all to myself. This beer might be one of my favorite recipes we have done so far, in addtion to the obvious ingredient of oatmeal, a generous amount of malt, both dark and sweet chocolate was added at the end of boil. But the other ingredient that fits myself and a big part of what Nitevilla has been about was the addition of Kona and Sumatra coffee after boil. Since tasting this beer the first time, I am amazed how the beer has matured. A mild chocolate taste greets you on the initial taste, followed by a mild coffee aftertaste. This has become my favorite stout beer of all-time.

Cherry Vanilla Porter (Christmas Beer 2006)
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Our 2006 Christmas beer is the next beer pictured, I realized I never took a picture of this beer or talked about how good the recipe came out. I had so many Christmas and Winter brews this year, courtesy of my brew mates, that I kind of forgot to give this beer the credit it is due. I poured this beer a little soft, so there was not much head in this photo. Do not let that fool you, this beer poured more roughly works up as nice a head as any beer. A Cherry Vanilla Porter was the style of choice and for some of my brew mates and some others that have tasted it, this beer rates among our best. Unfortunately we had to go with frozen cherries in this recipe, but it obviously did not take away from the flavor. This is the only porter I have ever brewed and judging from how well it turned out it will certainly not be the last. That being said, I imagine myself and my brew mates will probably select a different style of beer for next Christmas, this porter was so good though we might have to find a way to keep it in our brewing rotation. As are most Christmas or Winter related beers, our porter is a full bodied beer with a nice warm finish. An absolute perfect choice to relax on a cold Winter night.

Red Rye Ale
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

The last beer pictured is one of our latest recipes, a Red Rye Ale. I really liked the California IPA we brewed at the end of Summer, so much so that I only have one bottle left that I have purposely saved. I think our Red Rye Ale has replaced the California IPA as my favorite as far as a hoppy style of beer that we have brewed. At first taste a perfect hop bitterness is the first thing you notice, followed immediately by a spicy finish. The finish is courtesy of Amarillo hops, this Red Rye is a perfect beer in my opinion.

Another reason I chose these beers to feature is because we are entering all three into the ABC Homebrew Contest. If we are so lucky as to have one of these brews win the contest, we will observe and assist with the brewing of the winning beer at ABC’s Camp Hill location on May 19, 2007. No idea if they will actually bottle the stuff, I doubt it, but those local will have the opportunity to taste one of our craft beers. Wish us luck!

Brewing Night News

Sunday, March 11, 2007 in beer | 2 comments

Tonight we held a brewing session and along with brewing a Biere de Garde, we spent the evening sampling a variety of beers including those within the styles that we have attempted to imitate. We officially tasted our Breakfast Stout and our Red Rye tonight and everyone was impressed and happy with the outcome.

Along with tasting some of our brews and of course overseeing our current product, we listened to The Beer Guy, who interviewed two of my brew mates on his show. The Beer Guy is a fairly short and to the point podcast and if your listen to the show entitled Brew-centric Tourist you will hear two of my homebrewing companions. The Beer Guy is out of Asheville, NC and I know at least two of my loyal readers are from that part of the country. Deuane said he regretted not mentioning a few more of the fantastic breweries located in the area, but they became kind of side tracked with the weird laws we have here in Pennsylvania.

We also decided to enter three of our beers into the Appalachian Brewing Company Homebrew Contest. We entered our Cherry Vanilla Christmas Beer, our Red Rye Ale and our Breakfast Stout. I just realized that I never followed through with a picture of our Christmas Beer, I promise that will be coming soon. Now that we have equally split the bounty amongst the brew crew, I will be sure to post pictures of each in the coming weeks.

Two Kettles Rolling

Sunday, January 14, 2007 in beer | leave a comment

Tonight the home brewery will have not one but two kettles of beer brewing. We are brewing two recipes as well as sampling our Chocolate Oatmeal Breakfast Stout for the first time. Our crew will be manning two Propane burners and managing the recipes for our first batches of 2007.

I will definitely try to get a picture of the two separate turkey fryers not frying turkey but brewing wonderful homebrew. This is a first for us and it may get kind of hectic, so I will see if I get a moment to snap some photos.

The sampling of the Chocolate Oatmeal Breakfast Stout with dark and sweet chocolate as well as Sumatra and Kona coffee additions is definitely something we are all looking forward to.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Saturday, December 02, 2006 in beer | 2 comments

Christmas Stash
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Over the past couple weeks I have been accumulating some official seasonal brews. I have already enjoyed at least some of all of the beverages you see pictured here and none of them have disappointed. Having no idea what the Christmas season has to offer me yet, I can only say that this has been a very nice start.

Each year I enjoy Starbucks Christmas Blend, and I can say that I always find it an enjoyable brew. We have actually been enjoying it here since before Thanksgiving and we drank several pots of the Christmas Blend last weekend. Most of the Winter and Christmas beers that my friend Deuane hooked me up with I have not tried before. I have had Weyerbacher's Winter Ale before and have always enjoyed all the offerings I have had from Weyerbacher. The other seasonal I have had before is Troegs Mad Elf, which is a massive beer. I like the Mad Elf a lot and because of the 11% alcohol by volume it is an excellent candidate for cellaring. I will be saving some of the 2006 Mad Elf for Summer tasting and at least one bottle for Christmas 2007. For the record, Troegs had a single batch beer called Naked Elf without the cherries and honey and I liked it even more than the Mad Elf. Hopefully they will brew Naked Elf again this coming Summer.

The rest of the beers that I have for this Christmas I have not had before. We start with Sly Fox Black Raspberry Reserve. I actually have two bottles of this interesting beer and I have not opened either of them, I will probably drink them for Christmas dinners and perhaps one for New Year's Eve. While visiting Seattle earlier this year I visited Pyramid Breweries and I have now had pretty much all of Pyramid's regular offerings. Over the Summer I had their Summer seasonal beer and now for the first time I have had Snow Cap Pyramid's Winter seasonal. I have had one of these and I enjoyed the beer, having had their Weizen beers this was a big change from what I am used to from Pyramid. Deuane was pretty excited about Anchor Brewing's Christmas Ale which even if I had tasted it before it would not matter. Anchor has been brewing a Christmas Ale for 32 years and they change the recipe and they also keep the recipes a secret. I would like knowing a little bit about the beer, but I can respect tradition. Anchor's Christmas Ale for 2006 is good and it is dark, so it is right up my alley. The final Winter beer I currently have in my beer cellar is Tommyknocker Cocoa Porter Winter Warmer. I have two bottles of this and I have had one of the bottles so far. I was not sure what to expect from this Winter Warmer and the taste surprised me. The best way I can explain it is that it has a chocolate sour taste to it. It was not difficult to drink, but the taste definitely let you know it was there each gulp.

I am sure I will stumble across a few more Winter beers, especially since Winter does not start until later this month. Also, tonight marked two weeks in the bottle for our Christmas homebrew. So in another week or so you will no doubt be seeing a photo of a refreshing pint of our Christmas Porter. We also brewed our Oatmeal Breakfast Stout last weekend, it is currently racked in secondary. I will be bottling that interesting beer next weekend and with real coffee and chocolate in the beer it might pick you up as much as it knocks you down.

Pumpkin Ale 2006 and Brewing Get Together

Monday, October 23, 2006 in beer | 2 comments

Pumpkin Ale 2006
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Sunday evening saw my my brewing partners and myself getting together once again to sample some beers and of course brew our next batch. The full crew arrived this time around, much like the night we brewed our West Coast IPA. That means in addition to the aforementioned folks, Brett and his brother joined us and even brought some Pumpkin Ales along. The highlight of the evening was the official unveiling of our own Pumpkin Ale that has been in the bottle for about five weeks.

The beer we are brewing this time around is a Christmas or Holiday Porter. Some of the interesting ingredients in this batch is the addition of cherries to the primary fermentation, maple syrup and vanilla extract. While brewing we sampled Michigan Brewing Screamin Pumpkin Spiced Ale, which is a tasty light Pumpkin Ale and Weyerbacher Brewing Company's Imperial Pumpkin Ale, the mother of all Pumpkin Ales.

As mentioned, we chilled some of our own Pumpkin Ale and we all tasted it while the Holiday batch was boiling. All I can say is wow, what a fantastic Pumpkin Ale. Complete with a great scent, good pumpkin taste and a pleasant bitter finish to let you know the hops are there. Our rendition of a Pumpkin Ale rates up there with the best I have ever tasted, and the way it finishes with hops while still presenting a pumpkin flavor is a nice testament to the effort we put into producing a great Fall beer. Producing a beer like this is the reason why I enjoy Craft beer and why I wanted to homebrew in the first place. We did not just make beer, we made an interesting and very tasty Pumpkin Ale that I would be proud to offer to those who appreciate good beer. That is if I did not want to keep as much as possible for myself.

Once I move our Vanilla Cherry Porter to secondary, I will be sure to post pictures. Since a decent amount of 100% pure cherry juice will find it's way into the beer, it will be interesting to see the coloring produced. For the record, the next beer we are planning is a Breakfast Stout, complete with oatmeal and real coffee.

California-style IPA

Sunday, October 01, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

West Coast IPA
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Tonight myself and my brewing partners got together for an impromptu tasting of our California-style IPA. Since they were here, we also tasted a small sample of our Pumpkin Ale, which has only been bottle conditioned for one week. After letting the IPA breath, I think we were all happy with the outcome. As far as the Pumpkin Ale goes, I stand by my initial thoughts, it is all natural and a decent Pumpkin Ale. We will see how it matures in another few weeks.

The California-style IPA is pictured and that was the beer that I was most looking forward to tasting. Nugget, Warrior and Yakima hops flavor our IPA and the hoppiness was noticeable in the scent and taste of the beer. As the beer warmed a bit, the flavor really settled in and stuck to the tongue and we all finished our glasses excited with the outcome.

Deuane and I happy with the hop flavoring talked about potential additions of more malt the next time we brew our IPA and also talked about a holiday beer brewing get together later this month. Great minds think alike, because prior to meeting Deuane I had wanted to do an IPA, Pumpkin Ale and a Holiday beer. Early thoughts on the holiday beer have a variation of vanilla and cherries in the mix. Definitely a bold but exciting undertaking.

The best part about all this brewing is that the Buffington Beer Cellar is becoming more and more stocked with a nice variety of beers. Once the Pumpkin Ale bottle conditions for another few weeks, I will post a picture. It will be fully ready just in time for Halloween.

Happy Early Halloween To Me

Saturday, September 23, 2006 in beer | 3 comments

Bottled Pumpkin Ale
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Tonight I bottled the Pumpkin Ale, two cases of Fall brew. I have been anxiously awaiting the opportunity to bottle this brew, having had a fantastic Disaster Recovery Test at work and returning home early, tonight was the night.

While bottling I decided tonight was also the night to attack the growler filled with my American Honey Wheat. I also received an additional treat when I reached the bottom of the bottling bucket. Only enough beer was left to half fill a bottle, certainly not worth capping that bottle. So I decided to try the non-carbonated Pumpkin Ale, and WOW am I happy that I did. We of course used fresh roasted pumpkin and a host of spices you generally associate with pumpkin pie. The beer tasted very smooth and there is a perfect pumpkin flavor to the beer. Many pumpkin ales come across with a fake almost artificial pumpkin flavor, common especially with cheap pumpkin ales.

Judging by my taste tonight, and this is unbiased, our Pumpkin Ale may very well be the best tasting Pumpkin Ale that I have tried. It certainly makes using all fresh ingredients worth it. I have no doubt that my fellow brewers will be happy with the outcome.

My American Honey Wheat Ale

Saturday, September 16, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

American Honey Wheat Ale
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

This brew has actually been ready and actively consumed for several weeks. Those at the BDFL draft were treated to it. Since I have not really blogged any brewing photos for a while, particularly shots of the finished product I thought I would share one with you.

I actually have the West Coast IPA ready ready to drink in bottles as well, but I want to wait for the guys who helped brew it to be available before I try it. Problem is, I am going out of town on Wednesday and may not return until Sunday. So you might be waiting a while for a report on how it turned out, we are expecting it to be very hoppy with a decent kick. Then of course, come October, we will have our very own Pumpkin Ale to consume. The beer cellar is going to be full for the holidays. That is not a bad thing.

Schaefer Beer Lighted Sign

Monday, September 11, 2006 in beer | 5 comments

Old Schaefer Beer Lighted Sign
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

A few weeks ago Julie's dad brought this old lighted beer sign over for the "Guy Room". He has been keeping an eye out for older and obscure beer signs and antiques. I am sure some of you have heard of Schaefer Beer and others may even still grab it in 30 packs.

I cannot say that I remember Schaefer beer at all. In the first half of the 20th Century it apparently was the world's best selling beer. The spot was relinquished by the 1970's to Budweiser. Schaefer beer traces its beginnings back to the 1840's in Wisconsin. The demise of Schaefer seemed to occur somewhere in the 1970's and 1980's as Schaefer tried to take on Budweiser and the other big breweries in the advertising wars. Schaefer also at the time made the mistake of doing what the other big breweries did and adding additional adjuncts to replace traditional grains, to make their beer lighter-bodied or cheaper. This was a big mistake that probably cost them a large portion of their loyal customer base.

Schaefer was purchased by Stroh's Brewing in 1981, Pabst purchased the Schaefer label when it bought Stroh's Brewing Company in 1999. Schaefer beer is now the beer for those on a beer budget or perhaps if you want a trip down memory lane. I have not tried Schaefer beer and I am not even sure if it is available in the Harrisburg, PA area. Since I have become a sort of beer geek, I cannot imagine I would enjoy a beer loaded with adjuncts. All the same, I do enjoy my Schaefer Beer lighted sign proclaiming my guy room the "friendliest place in town".

What Has Scott Been Brewing?

Sunday, August 27, 2006 in beer | 2 comments

I have not blogged about any of my brewing experiences lately. The last brew really mentioned here was my American Style Honey Wheat, which seems to have quite a following already. Believe it or not, I have been busy with my new homebrew crew. Do your recognize the guy in this photo?

Two weeks ago I got together with the crew and we brewed a very hoppy California Style IPA. I will be bottling our IPA Tuesday night.

That is not all though, we got together tonight and brewed a beer type that I have wanted to brew since I began homebrewing, a Pumpkin Ale. I was reluctant to try a Pumpkin Ale on my own, the preparation involved is a lot for one person. What I love about the beer crew is that great minds this a like. Let me tell you, the smell coming off this Pumpkin Ale after adding the spices made it good enough to eat. I cannot wait until October!

Next on the agenda is some type of Oatmeal Stout and perhaps a Christmas beer. Like I said, great minds think a like. I love Stouts and I not only wanted to do a Pumpkin Ale but I wanted to do something for Christmas as well. I will let you know how the IPA and Pumpkin Ale (made with fresh roasted Pumpkin and all the spices) turnout.

Homebrew Equals Good

Saturday, August 26, 2006 in beer | 1 comment

How do you know when you are making a good homebrew? It usually becomes evident when you offer your guests a quality brewed beer, lets say Samuel Adams in this case and your guests drink four times as much of your homebrew as they do the Samuel Adams. When do you know that they are not doing it just to be nice? It is when one of the guests drinks it as his first beer, then enquires about the beer while continuing to only drink the homebrew on every trip back to the cooler.

Oh yeah, the American Honey Wheat is a big success and received rave reviews on this go around. I guess I could say that I even received a request for another type of beer tonight for this persons next visit.

Now I just have to figure out what I am going to do with all this store bought beer, Lord knows I do not want to drink it unless my homebrew is gone. I guess I am going to have to plan another get together.

That being said, we had our Brutal Deluxe Football League draft tonight. It was a lot of fun, but it would have even been better had another owner or two showed up in person. You really have not experienced the fun of the league until you have joined us here at the headquarters. I might be biased, but I would describe the experience to be something like going to the Pro Football Hall of Fame or visiting the Baseball Hall of Fame. For those who have been here for the draft, am I wrong? I don't think so.

Beer Shortage No Longer

Monday, July 31, 2006 in beer | 5 comments

I managed to put aside an hour or so to bottle the honey wheat beer I brewed a couple weeks back. I filled my growler before starting on the two cases of empties I had available. I wanted to post a photo of the two full cases, the final sixpack being the growler, but alas the camera memory card was full. So a real picture of my growler will have to wait until tasting day.

I have thrown around the idea of bottling more of my homebrew in growlers, just to speed the bottling process, but I have to make sure I will either have help emptying the 2 liter bottle, or that the beer is sufficiently an easy drinker. This honey wheat beer should be a Summer guzzler, meaning after a good workout or some hot yard work I should be able to handle the growler myself on a free evening in late August. Or I could pull it out for draft night in the BDFL.

I was running dangerously low on my homebrew supply, but those worries are nearly over. Myself and a new homebrew friend will be teaming up to brew what I believe will be an American India Pale Ale in about two weeks.

Adventures In Honey Beer Brewing

Sunday, July 23, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

The American Honey Wheat Beer I wrote about last week is still in it's primary fermentation container. As of last night the beer was still releasing air bubbles about one every six seconds and the foam level on top was only slightly lower than what showed in the picture that I posted. This morning I peeked at the airlock and it was bubbling once every two seconds, but the foam was nearly gone. So I am thinking that the fermentation is about finished.

None of the beers I brewed have remained active for so long. I can only guess that it is the honey, or perhaps the wheat. Last night was exactly 7 days since I brewed and I had hoped I could rack the beer to secondary, but there was still too much activity. Perhaps now with the foam dissipating from the top the fermentation is about complete and the bubbling will subside. The sooner I get this beer in secondary, the sooner I can get it bottled. The whole reason I chose this recipe is because it had a relatively short ageing process. I generally like to give the beer three weeks in the bottle before trying it. You can usually taste it with carbonation by two weeks, maybe sooner, but I like to go with three weeks.

I do not think I mentioned that I keep the carboys covered with a cardboard box and the picture I took is with a flash. So it is much darker in that section of my basement. Since I mentioned about light being an enemy of beer I wanted you to know that I do indeed have the carboy protected from light.

American Honey Wheat Beer

Thursday, July 20, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

American Honey Wheat Beer
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

It has been a while since I brewed a batch of beer and I must admit I was chomping at the bit to get started on my latest recipe. This past Saturday night I started on the inaugural beer of the new Buffington Tavern and Brutal Deluxe Headquarters. I chose an American Honey Wheat Beer recipe as my latest batch for two very good reasons.

Those reasons being, the recipe will be in a very drinkable state 6 weeks from brewing, and the two other recipes I am considering before trying my hand at repeating past recipes are beers that have to be aged anywhere from 3 to 6 months minimum. So in other words I wanted a beer that would be ready before the end of Summer and something that would replenish my diminishing supply of homebrew.

I was already emailed a name suggestion of "The 13th Warrior Honey Beer" back before I made the move. I really need to get some labels going for these brews again. The picture you see here is of the honey wheat beer during primary fermentation. That airlock was bubbling away at just about 1 bubble every second or two. The rate has fallen in the last day or so to about a bubble every 6 seconds. So fermentation is slowing down and I am looking forward to racking the beer to the secondary carboy you see right behind the beer. Despite the heat the new basement has been maintaining a perfect temperature in the upper 60 degree Fahrenheit range, perfect for beer. Plus the basement keeps the beer safe from another major enemy of beer, light.

For those who are wondering, the beer will not be sweet, despite the addition of about 1 pound of honey to the recipe. All the honey is eaten by the yeast during fermentation, which should leave me with a light, crisp and sparingly hopped beer, great for Summer drinking and relaxing.

My Beers

Saturday, June 10, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

I admit it, I have been suffering from brewing withdrawal. Just another thing that has been placed on the back-burner as a result of the upcoming move. BTW, I have saved some Red Ale and Stout for the moving days for those that help out to sample. I picked up a variety pack of Victory Beers to hold me over as well as to provide my moving mates an alternative. I will be sure to save some Victory Lager for each of you.

The good part about me having to put my brewing on hold is that it has allowed me a long time to think about the types of beer I want to brew next. I probably would have quickly chosen a recipe or two without much thought had I not been forced to wait. The next two recipes I brew will be a Barley Wine and a Honey Wheat Beer. The Barley Wine will not be ready to drink until after Christmas, but the Honey Wheat Beer will be my Summer brew. I really want to stick with about 6 recipes and then try to perfect them, so other than those mentioned I have my eye on an India Pale Ale recipe and a Fall Spiced Beer that will go nice with the Holidays.

All that being said, I have absolutely fell in love with my Imperial Stout, meaning I may skip one of those mentioned in favor of the Imperial Stout. Because of the extended ageing the Barley Wine and Imperial Stout require, brewing those will require I increase my carboy stock.

Brutal Deluxe Brewery Beers (So far)

Red Dragon Red Ale

Anesthesia Imperial Stout - "By which we endure the operation of life" - courtesy of Andrew Bolin

Buffzilla Barley Wine - All Barley Wines have monster names it seems.

The Honey Wheat Beer is yet unnamed and I am unsure if the other recipes will come to fruition. It depends on how quickly the others disappear. ;)

American Craft Beer Week

Monday, May 15, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

Blue Mountain Breweries Scotch Ale

Wednesday, May 10, 2006 in beer | 2 comments

Mike's Scotch Ale
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

The great thing about homebrewing is that you begin to build relationships with other homebrewers. This results in them wanting to let you try their homebrews, and that is just what I got to do tonight after mowing the lawn and hitting the home gym. After a long day at work and long yard work followed by a quick workout, nothing tastes so good or is as refreshing as a cold, cold homebrew.

Co-worker Mike was kind enough to bring me a Scotch Ale and I now owe him a Imperial Stout. Mike calls his home brewery the Blue Mountain Brewery and this is the second homebrew Mike has let me sample, the other being a Pale Ale, not quite as potent as this Scotch Ale, but just as smooth. Mike has been extremely proud of his Scotch Ale and received many compliments from others who have put a dent in his homebrew supply and I see why. You would be hard pressed to drink a smoother better tasting beer.

You can see from the picture that this Scotch Ale is a good dark color. This is complimented by a great aroma, easy taste and finishes with a nice alcoholic warmth. A variety of Pale Ale is next on my list of homebrews and Mike allowing me to sample his has only solidified my decision.

Russian Imperial Stout

Sunday, May 07, 2006 in beer | 3 comments

My Imperial Stout
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

My as yet to officially be named Imperial Stout was ready Friday night. Julie and I were out of town so I had to wait until late Saturday night for the taste test. I poured my first one a little rough as to work up the head to show it off. Very frothy, very thick and very dark, it is indeed a Stout.

The taste comes across as a coffee or chocolate tone with a flavorful first taste. I really think this Stout will be an excellent candidate for cellaring. The Red Dragon Ale I brewed first is really tasting better and better each time I have a bottle. Homebrew can and almost always does get better with a little more ageing. If you think it tastes good on that first taste, pat yourself on the back, because in another few weeks it only gets better. I think my Red Dragon Ale is a beer that would appeal to more palates than a Imperial Stout. I like them and have tried quite a few and I rate the taste of mine right up there.

I always describe a Stout as smooth beer, with little or no aftertaste. The only time I really notice this changes is that if it is something like a Raspberry Imperial Stout, then the taste might be a little bit bigger. Not sure if everyone would agree with my description but that is how they always taste to me. I always notice the malt taste, but it ends quickly. Now some of the Stouts I have had are special brews with additions that of course can change this taste. Almost always with the Stouts I have sampled this just gives it a bigger taste and I enjoy it.

My Imperial Stout
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Tasting these homebrews just keeps the fire lit, I am really enjoying the process and always thinking of things I want to change on my next recipe. After tasting my latest batch I cannot wait to try the next recipe, at the same time I have over three cases of beer sitting in my basement. So I am going to try to hold off before brewing another batch. I have decided that rather than using a primary fermenting bucket I am going to get another carboy and use that for the primary fermentation. Being able to fully view the full chemical reaction will definitely be cool. Also Phil's setup and my co-worker Mike have me thinking of getting something to help speed up the brew process. Regardless, I am looking forward to hearing about Phil's brew and I know Mike has a few batches lined up ready to go. It is fun to talk homebrew!

My Red Dragon Ale

Friday, April 14, 2006 in beer | 10 comments

My Red Dragon Ale
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

The official unveiling of the "Brutal Deluxe Breweries" first beer took place tonight in a private ceremony. It was a glorious event that saw the Breweries second beer, an as yet to be named Russian Imperial Stout, be racked in a carboy for a secondary fermentation cycle. As you can see in the photo, I relaxed and enjoyed a fully carbonated homebrew while racking my Stout.

Homebrew definitely has a slightly different taste and feel than a traditionally prepared beer. The carbonation is lighter or just different, this is the second homebrew I have sampled and in both cases I noticed the difference. The taste is more pure and less manufactured. I can definitely see the attraction and why so many catch the homebrewing bug. Some of these feelings are undoubtedly because I am all to aware that I brewed the beer I am enjoying while I type this. Rather than just thinking about the first few tastes, you analyze each mouthful, and compare it to other beers you have had.

Initially while waiting for my first real taste over the past few weeks I nervously questioned whether I would want anyone to taste my beer. Now after nearly finishing my second frosty mug, I welcome others to try my Red Dragon Ale. I named this Red Ale after the Red Dragon Tavern board on the Nitevilla forums.

Last Saturday I brewed a Russian Imperial Stout recipe and tonight I racked that homebrew for secondary fermentation. Let me tell you, the Imperial Stout has a lot of malt and is a dark, dark brew. This beer is as dark as coffee and I nearly talked myself into trying a small mug of it uncarbonated tonight. I love Stouts and I am really looking forward to my first taste of this dark coffee like beer. The primary fermentation was so aggressive that the foam had risen high enough to touch the lid of my container. I am taking suggestions for a name to give to my Russian Imperial Stout.

I have more than enough of a beer supply to last me a while, and my next planned beer will likely be an IPA recipe that I found. I have found that I like beers that have a lot of hops and that spurred me to search for an IPA recipe. My plans after the IPA is to perfect the three recipes that I have and perhaps try a seasonal brew or two. A Pumpkin Ale and maybe a Winter Ale will likely be the seasonal brews I attempt. Then again, I have been reading about Porters and this might mean a fourth beer will be added to the Brutal Deluxe Brewery in place of the Winter Ale.

Time to Bottle the Homebrew

Friday, March 31, 2006 in beer | 6 comments

Bottled
Originally uploaded by Scott.

Tonight is the night, the night I scheduled to bottle my first batch of homebrew. After cleaning everything and setting it out in an orderly fashion I prepared my priming sugar and devoted a good hour or so to moving my homebrew to the bottling bucket and bottling the beer. I now have to wait a minimum of two weeks to enjoy my first carbonated homebrew. Following the recommendation of The Complete Joy of Homebrewing, I syphoned a frosty mug full of some of the beer. Of course it was flat, but no mistaking the taste of fresh beer and it had a wonderful red ale color in the mug. I officially, "relaxed and enjoyed a homebrew".

I ended up with nearly two cases of homebrew, bottling was made relatively easy with a bottling wand. However, it is a process that could progress much smoother with two people. I filled five to seven bottles at a time and then capped. The tools available to the homebrewer are really slick. I was actually a little worried about capping the bottles and I did not have one issue.

My homebrew mentor was kind enough to hook me up with a bottle of his last batch, a Pale Ale, earlier this week. Of course, that was chilled and consumed the day he gave it to me. No worries, Mike and I split a case of Tr�egs Nugget Nectar, a seasonal beer, so I had a quality beer to sip while getting everything situated.

I like a big tasting beer, while a lighter ale is fine sometimes, I usually like to only have one or two beers with a big hop taste. That being said, I already decided that the next recipe I am going to try is an Imperial Stout. My ultimate goal is to find three or four recipes that I really like and then try to perfect them to my taste.

Brutal Deluxe Brewery First Batch

Friday, March 24, 2006 in beer | 7 comments

Secondary Fermentation Underway
Originally uploaded by Scott.

I proudly cracked the lid on my primary fermentation bucket tonight and was greeted with the scent of... BEER! Yes, my first batch had finished primary fermentation and was ready to move to my 6 gallon carboy for secondary fermentation. I uploaded photos from the various stages to a Homebrew set. The next photos you see in the set will be when I bottle the beer. I cannot wait, from that time on I will have a two week wait before I can have my first taste.

I could have actually bottled this weekend had I wanted to have the beer sooner, but from everything I have read, secondary fermentation is the way to go. If you want truly great homebrew, the best beer that can be made, you have to do secondary fermentation. I am unsure how long I will allow the secondary fermentation go, it will depend on whether I see any activity with the beer over the next few days.

Opening the lid on the primary fermenter and actually smelling a pleasant beer aroma provided a great feeling of accomplishment. As anyone who knows me can attest, I enjoy brewing coffee. Indeed brewing a great batch of coffee is wonderful. But with all the effort and time that brewing a batch of beer involves, the feeling of realizing you have done it and are nearing the finish is much greater than making any variety of coffee drink. Coffee may be king, but beer rules!

My Mentor

Friday, March 24, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

DSC00591
Originally uploaded by riverbound01.

As I continue along the process of finishing my first batch of homebrew, I thought I would give a shoutout to my fellow UNIX Systems Administrator and Brewmaster Mentor. Mike (who is a father to be) uploaded some photos while preparing his last batch of homebrew, a Pale Ale.

Mike is the guy who finally got me fired up enough to give homebrewing a try. Which is nice on many levels, because I have someone to run questions by as well as another guy who can point me to great resources, such as The Complete Joy of Homebrewing. The whole process seemed kind of overwhelming at first, but as the book says and Mike likes to repeat, "relax and have a homebrew". Now there are some words to live by. Here are all his Brewing Photos.

Brewing Time Nearing

Friday, February 24, 2006 in beer | leave a comment

Case #2
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Looks like I will be able to begin brewing my first homebrew just after returning home from my trip to Seattle. Two cases of empty bottles will be available and I can begin brewing. I plan to document the process via Flickr and my blog, though since I need to age the beer during multiple phases of the process the photos will be spaced out a bit.

Official Beer of the Nitevilla Forum

Wednesday, February 08, 2006 in beer | 1 comment

Label For Home-brew
Originally uploaded by Scott B.

Ever interested in brewing the best coffee right in my own home, I have always been interested in trying my hand at home beer brewing as well. Obviously home brewing beer involves a lot more effort, but the pay off is worth it.

Having recently received my home brewing kit, I am now working on collecting the 48 plus quality bottles that I will need for the bottling process. Sure I could have bought the bottles, but it is far more enjoyable to go out and pick a quality micro-brew and empty those bottles on your own. I am halfway toward my bottle goal and going strong, having been slightly derailed this week by a nasty cold.

In the mean time, while working on my bottle collection goal, I thought it would be fun to design some labels for the red ale that I will be brewing first. Not to mention that before even attempting this task I want to read through the instructions many times. When the Brutal Deluxe Brewery rolls it's first Red Dragon Ale off the line, I will be sure to update you on my success. From everything I have heard and read, home-brews are far superior in taste to commercial equivalents.

Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale

Saturday, October 08, 2005 in beer | 4 comments

Being that it is now October and that I have been thinking of picking up a Pumpkin Ale since the thought of October came to mind, I decided to head out and see what I could find today. I saw Weyerbacher had Imperial Pumpkin Ale out and having liked many of Weyerbacher Brewing Company's other beers decided to give it a try.

I like the spicy pumpkin flavor that this ale has. Cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves are detected in the taste, along with pumpkin. When I think of pumpkin ales, this is the type of flavor I am looking for. Obviously that is not the case for everyone, but when I think of a beer for the autumn months, this is what I think of.

TGIF Beer Mug

Friday, June 17, 2005 in beer | 2 comments

TGIF
Originally uploaded by scotbuff.

I have not done a Friday beer mug in a long time, but all I could think about today was pouring a cold one in the smaller version of the mugs I keep in the freezer. I know, it is baseball season and all, I am even watching the College World Series, Nebraska versus ASU, but this Steelers mug is just a great beer mug. I picked up some Weyerbacher Raspberry Imperial Stout and filled the frosty mug for a very cold one, or two or three.

Might as well take the opportunity to catch up on current events. Paul provided me some good news for my fantasy baseball team. Good thing too, because I have been hovering in the basement all season long, but do not count me out, I came out of no where last year too.

I had lunch with Alex and Jonathan on Tuesday of this week. It is always good to get out of work and hangout with some of the guys. Jonathan was kind enough to hook me up with a Macally RFKey Wireless Keyboard. I just set it up tonight, fantastic Jonathan, thanks! It is nice to have a Mac keyboard to go with Cooper.

TGIF Beer Glass

Friday, November 19, 2004 in beer | 2 comments

Who needs a cold one right now? These draft glasses have a true geek meaning. But anyone understands "include beer", basically the geek meaning is the same thing. These glasses are so popular over at ThinkGeek, they are currently out of stock.

How nice would these draft glasses look filled full with Guinness? This week has been a particularly long week for me, and I know I am going to have a few beers tonight.

I have not done the Beer mug or glass thing for a few weeks nor have I done coffee mug Monday for a while. Partly because I have been very busy. If you sent me beer or coffee mug photos, rest assured I will get to them (so keep them coming). Some of them were seasonal and I have been waiting for the appropriate time and also I hate to do gimmicky posts on a regular basis. I would rather have it be unexpected and there be no pressure involved. We all have enough pressure in life than to have to add additional chores to the routine.

TGIF Beer Mug

Friday, September 03, 2004 in beer | 1 comment

Hey folks, you are more than welcome to send me shots of your favorite beer mug, or post them to the forums. You can attach images in the forum and from there I will post them to the main page on the appropriate day. I know some of you guys gotta have a favorite mug or two or three. I decided to post a shot of a very cool beer mug available over at the Yuengling website. For 10 bucks this mug is a steal, and it features America's Oldest Brewery. I can just see this mug filled full with a cold Porter or Lager, beads of moisture slowly running down the sides. Are you thirsty? I am, so I am going to get out of here, get some pizza and an ice cold brew.

TGIF Beer Mug

Friday, August 27, 2004 in beer | 3 comments

Last night we had our Fantasy Football League Draft and I drank a few beers to pass the time. I did not break out my famous beer mug for the draft, simply because I was running the thing and did not want to tie one on. But I did utilize a few of the empty beer bottles for this picture. I received this mug as a gift in 1984, it is a classic Pac Man mug capable of holding three 12 ounce beers. I was 13 when I received the mug and I somehow knew the mug would always be with me.

I keep the mug in my freezer all the time. Back in my partying days I used to take this bad boy with me to partys. Now I only break it out on special occasions. You can see from the picture the tall frosty mug awaiting some Friday night action. I have no idea where you could get a mug like this today, I have seen smaller versions but none of the 36 ounce variety.

Can man live on beer alone?

Wednesday, May 16, 2001 in beer | leave a comment

This would depend on the man and how much of a Homer Simpson he is. Most humans would not survive for more than a few days before being dropped by dehydration or alcohol poisoning. Beer does indeed contain water, however alcohol is a potent diuretic, resulting in the frequent trips to the head. In order to get enough water you would need to drink so much beer you would get alcohol poisoning which will pickle your liver and kidneys and kill you within 24 hours.

A heavy drinker, aka Homer Simpson, pounding nothing but darker beers could potentially survive for a few weeks since his body is accustomed to high levels of alcohol. Apparently 12th century Belgian monks survived 40 day Lenten fasts by snacking on double bock beer, Abbey beers, as they are called are high in alcohol and calories. So if you find yourself in the situation, drink dark malt beers. You will still die, but if you gotta go I suppose this is not the worst way to go.

Scott.Buffington.me

TGIF Beer Glass

Christmas Beer 2008

Lancaster Brewing Company in Harrisburg

Christmas Beer 2007

Founders Breakfast Stout = Heavan on Earth

Troegs Brewery Tour

No Victory For Brutal Deluxe Brewery

Buff's Pub - Saint Patrick's Day

Brewing Night News

Two Kettles Rolling

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Pumpkin Ale 2006 and Brewing Get Together

California-style IPA

Happy Early Halloween To Me

My American Honey Wheat Ale

Schaefer Beer Lighted Sign

What Has Scott Been Brewing?

Homebrew Equals Good

Beer Shortage No Longer

Adventures In Honey Beer Brewing

American Honey Wheat Beer

My Beers

American Craft Beer Week

Blue Mountain Breweries Scotch Ale

Russian Imperial Stout

My Red Dragon Ale

Time to Bottle the Homebrew

Brutal Deluxe Brewery First Batch

My Mentor

Brewing Time Nearing

Official Beer of the Nitevilla Forum

Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale

TGIF Beer Mug

TGIF Beer Glass

TGIF Beer Mug

TGIF Beer Mug

Can man live on beer alone?

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