Update

Two things are being accomplished in this blog.

1. I'm giving you another beer recipe. I think it's delicious and I actually brewed it to welcome Alice back to the world of beer. Being pregnant and such limited her alcohol intake. I want to make sure I get her back on track! This is a delicious style of American wheat mixed with strawberry flavoring. It's a great summer treat. I recommend that anytime you add a fruit flavor, check with your supplier to see if that fruit will compliment with the other ingredients in the recipe. Fruit flavor is as good as the malts, the hops and the barley it stands next to. Just a recommendation.

2. More baby Sam pics! Thanks to you all who have been there to hold him, ooh and ahh over him, and throw out your love to him. He's a very lucky little man. He's doing well. We just went to the doctor a couple weeks ago and he's now in the 50% for his height and weight. He's also putting on the pounds! He was 6lbs 2 oz when born and now is over 8lbs! He's getting big and he has a bottomless pit for a stomach! He was doing an average of 2-4 oz when born and is not between 4-8 each feeding! Crazy. He's incredibly cute and very very happy. We catch him smiling about a lot of little things. People say it's just gas bubbles but we know the truth! He's happy to be alive!

BEER

Strawberry Wheat.

OG: 1.047

FG: 1.012

ABV: 4.5%

IBU: 15

Ingredients:

1 can (3.3) plain wheat extract

3lbs Light DME

.5lb crystal 20

.5 lb Carapils

1 oz Mt Had hop pellets

.5 tsp Irish moss

White Labs California Ale or 1 pack Safale dry yeast

3/4 c priming sugar

strawberry fruit flavor

couple of things:

No finishing hops! yay! really easy to make.

add your strawberry flavor during bottling. Don't let it sit in your fermentor!

Directions:

1. Steep grains in hop bag in 1.5 gallons of water at 155 degrees for 30 minutes.

2. Remove grains and bring to a boil.

3. Remove from heat and add both liquid and dry malt extracts. Bring back to boil.

4. Add hop pellets and boil for 20 minutes.

5. Add Irish moss last 15 minutes.

6. Combine wort with water to make 5 gallons.

7. Stir the crap outta the mixture and then pitch yeast when temperature is 70-80 degrees.

8. Let the mixture sit for about 7 days or until the beer is finished fermenting.

9. Dissolve the sugar in 2 cups of boiling water and then throw into your bottling bucket. Siphon the beer and toss in the strawberry flavor.

10. Bottle.

11. About 10-14 days from then, uncap and drink. Enjoy!

And here's SAM!!