Jim's Northeast Brewer's Night.

[Jim]

I'm up for it. We just need a date that suits everybody.

[Eric]

Me too.

[Normski]

Coming together nicely.
So a big invite to any of our fellow brewers or would be brewers.
It'll probably be a Monday or Tuesday night within the next week or two.
Fitzgeralds Sunderland 7.30 pm till closing.
Norm

[f00b4r]

Have fun, I will get to one of these eventually! Unfortunately I am off the booze waiting on an impending birth, although the upside is that I have got to brew twice eight days staying out of the wife's way

[VANDEEN]

I'm up for one as well, even though I'm not brewing at the moment as lifting is a problem & I'm trying to lose weight whilst waiting for an opp. Long overdue.

[Normski]

It had been decided the next meet up Is,
Fitzgeralds in Sunderland. Tuesday 30th Aug 7.30pm.
All welcome.
Norm

[Normski]

Really enjoyed last nights meet up.
IMO Best beer's of the night goes to Eric.
We gathered at Eric's house on our way to Fitzgeralds.
And being the generous fellow he is, He gave us all glasses and pointed us into his brew shed.
We got stuck in, and every one of them was top notch.
Cheers Eric
Norm

[Jim]

Aye, a good night, and hats off to Eric; his beers were spot on.

[Goulders]

So what delights did Eric have on offer? Do tell!

[woblylegs]

humbug. it was my turn to chauffeur. always nice to get together and have the crack. thanks to Eric for inviting us in and sampling your wares.

[vacant]

Really enjoyed last nights meet up.
IMO Best beer's of the night goes to Eric.
We gathered at Eric's house on our way to Fitzgeralds.
And being the generous fellow he is, He gave us all glasses and pointed us into his brew shed.
We got stuck in, and every one of them was top notch.
Cheers Eric
Norm

Did you get any further than Eric's brew shed?

[Jim]

Really enjoyed last nights meet up.
IMO Best beer's of the night goes to Eric.
We gathered at Eric's house on our way to Fitzgeralds.
And being the generous fellow he is, He gave us all glasses and pointed us into his brew shed.
We got stuck in, and every one of them was top notch.
Cheers Eric
Norm

Did you get any further than Eric's brew shed?

We sampled a Penine Bitter clone, some sort of Jarl type hoppy stuff, a stout and a strongish ale who's name I forget - all very good indeed.

Then on to Fitzgeralds in Sunderland for a few.

[Eric]

A very pleasurable evening as always.

humbug. it was my turn to chauffeur. always nice to get together and have the crack. thanks to Eric for inviting us in and sampling your wares.

Not only chauffeur, but courier too. Many thanks.

So what delights did Eric have on offer?

Greater priorities determine brewing here and life of late has been disrupted by the unexpected. My beers are in plastic barrels of several types, the majority from Wilkinson's, all having S30 fittings. A gas bottle usually lasts a year, most beers up to six months and I will usually brew 23 litres 15 times a year typically having six beers on tap. Most recipes have been decided by what will balance stock of beers and ingredients, but as said, times and brewing have been disrupted recently.

There were five beers on tap and another in an FV. One, GW's Caroline, had been in the cask just six days and with OG > 1060 was, as expected, rather sweet with hops hidden. Another, an old Porter 6% ABV when casked but now like an old wine. This is in an old Hambleton Bard cask, one marked to six gallons which had not had a single drop of CO2 added since it was casked last year for Christmas. My beers are not fined beyond the copper, with some yeasts they keep long periods of ever changing character.

Many beers are made with unmalted adjucts, barley, wheat, maize, oats and rice as well as sugars, a subject we both discuss at our meetings and practice in our brewing. One such beer had been sitting mostly untouched for several months made with some over enthusiastically roasted barley and a large dosage of yeast that ripped it to 8% ABV inside 3 days. I'm not surprised Jim couldn't remember what it was called, its name doesn't readily come to me either. So there were basically just 2 beers on that night, Pennine Bitter, again GW's recipe, and an attempt at Jarl by Fyne Ales, for which I didn't have Citra hops and used Amarillo with Cascade for aroma with Bramling Cross to bitter.

With life now comparatively settled down, I hope there can be a bigger choice next time although it will take six months or more to get back to normal.

[VANDEEN]

Sounds like you all had a good time. Sorry I couldn't make it but due to me getting a date for my opp on the Thursday the other half decided it would be nice to take the "condemned man" out for a nice meal. :-\ Hopefully next time.

[Eric]

Sounds like you all had a good time. Sorry I couldn't make it but due to me getting a date for my opp on the Thursday the other half decided it would be nice to take the "condemned man" out for a nice meal. :-\ Hopefully next time.

Have they done the repair then? If so, how are you?