Firstly, the Irish Blog Awards ceremony was last night, and though I didn't win owt, I was listed on the site as a contender in the Newcomer category, so I'm happy with that. The blog needed a little tart up anyway. However, in the meantime I've come up with a great idea to get noticed for next year! I'm going to make some beer using only ingredients I've grown myself and blog about it. Seems easy, really, considering barley can grow in most places, and you can’t stop hops growing in others, but that's just the easy bit. I'll also have to malt and toast the barley, dry the hops, and find some way of bottle conditioning the beer. Now do you see where it becomes more challengeing? Anyway, I've got my eye on the 'Food & Drink' category. Read Homebrew Challenge for more information on the challenge.
In addition to that new page, I'm looking forward to receiving a review of the Triple from Richard, which you'll find on Richard's Review page soon. And after St. Patrick's Day, I'm pretty sure I know what it'll say!
17th March is St. Patrick's Day in Ireland (he was Welsh too), and as per our new household tradition, we got all our muckers to parade with us a bit, before spending the rest of the afternoon with a drink in our hands. And like last year, it wasn't long before we cracked open some homebrew. Edward brought down 5 bottles of his Brewferm Pilsner, the same as I’d brewed the year before, and I opened a couple of bottles of the Triple. I think I can say without fear of contradiction that the pilsner went down better. However, there’s a redeeming factor in this. The main problem with the Triple was the strength of flavour and alcohol, made all the more prominent by the fact we’d been drinking canned tasteless lager all afternoon. So, really, in spite of the initial reactions, the triple was enjoyed, and none was left to waste. And as for the pilsner, which was excellent (well done Eddie B.), who will brew next years’ batch?
Oh, and finally, I've finally bottled the cider! I'd been putting it off for ages as I had no idea when it was ready to bottle, but 5 months ought to do it. So, here's to a little more waiting.
