Coming of AGe #6
Posted: May 21, 2013 Filed under: Beer, Brewing | Tags: Northern Monk Brew Co., Weird Beard Brew Co. 9 Comments »So far on ‘Coming of AGe’: I made a decision to brew commercially, I was in a reflective mood, I got my excuses in early. I learnt that buying a brewery and installing it into a suitable premises can cost a bit and that buying ingredients can be a case of I want never gets, but trying never hurts.
We’ve had a busy few weeks and the notable news is that we’ll be brewing a beer with Weird Beard Brew Co in June (more on that soon), and that we’ve decided on temporarily housing ourselves with North Yorkshire outfit Hambleton Ales. Having traded many emails and met on several occasions, including a good look at the kit, we are now looking forward to getting involved and finally brewing our first beer. When you consider that our first beer will be realised early in July, the speed at which Northern Monk Brew Co. has progressed has been a surprise to me and to my usual safe and steady approach to brewing – Learning point: you can’t control all of the risks, all of the time. It may seem obvious to say so, but decisions need to be taken and commitment is needed to steer a new business in a coherent direction.
When I consider the first meetings we had, sat in a local pub, cooing over branding and deliberating the essentials; such as when we’d take our first road-trip down the West Coast of North America, the last two months have certainly focused our minds. As I’ve already written in my previous posts, the challenges are numerous, (and in no particular order), choosing a host, licensing, duty registration, recipe formulation, sourcing ingredients, methods of dispense, deciding on a core range, storage, worrying about who we’ll sell to, how we’ll distribute it, budget constraints, investment temptations, deciding on what to Tweet…ok the last one isn’t so much of a challenge, but hopefully you get a feel for what I’m saying.
We feel as though our chosen approach to brewing, as cuckoo brewers, will (and should) be debated. Some will whisper in dark corners “…dirty contract brewers…”, some will draw from better-known Scandinavian reference points “…they’re ‘gypsy’ brewers ya know!…”, but we simply see ourselves as nomadic, for now. We’ve thought about all of this, perhaps a bit too much, and we’re shifting our energy to concentrating on the things we can control. A brewing kit is only half of the story, the beer will be 100% NMBCo, no compromises. Our aim is to be the heart and soul of the beer we brew - it’s our recipe and I’ll be brewing it. In summary, we’re two lads from Yorkshire, giddy with enthusiasm and resolute in achieving beer that we’re proud of.
Until brewday #1 is done, the beer safely fermented, transferred to its temporary housing before reaching some willing taste buds, we won’t know if we’ve overcome all of these challenges. We accept that we won’t necessarily ‘nail it’ at the first attempt, but like many other proud brewers before us, we’ll get there.
*Follow @NMBCo (Northern Monk Brewing Company).
**All Grain (AG)
AG#29 West Coast IPA Style Ale
Posted: May 21, 2013 Filed under: Beer | Tags: Amarillo, Centennial, Citra, Columbus (Tomahawk), Green Bullet, Leeds Homebrew, Leeds International Beer Festival, Northdown, Simcoe, US Cascade, West Coast IPA 10 Comments »This is my brew for the Yorkshire vs Lancashire homebrew challenge arranged as part of the Leeds International Beer festival 2013. I opted to brew a West Coast Pale style Ale….this plan evolved mid-brewday:
Original Gravity (OG): 1.058
Final Gravity (FG): 1.010
Alcohol (ABV): 6.4%
Colour (SRM): 14 (EBC):
Bitterness (IBU): 50 (Average)
4.400 kg Golden Promise Pale Malt
0.230 kg Dark Crystal Malt
14g Green Bullet (12.0% Alpha) @40 minutes from the end (Boil)
20g Northdown (9.8% Alpha) @30 minutes from the end (Boil)
35g Cascade (7.9% Alpha) @15 minutes from the end (Boil)
20g Simcoe (15.0% Alpha) @o minutes from the end (Boil)
40g Centennial (11.0% Alpha) @0 minutes from the end (Boil)
90g Amarillo (8.7% Alpha) @0 minutes from the end (Boil)
10g Simcoe (15.0% Alpha) leaf in secondary for 3 days (dry hop)
20g Amarillo (8.7% Alpha) leaf in secondary for 3 days (dry hop)
20g Centennial (11.0% Alpha) T90 pellets in secondary for 3 days (dry hop)
20g Citra (12.0% Alpha) T90 pellets in secondary for 3 days (dry hop)
10g Columbus (12.6% Alpha) leaf in secondary for 3 days (dry hop)
I’ll add the usual info on temperatures etc at some point, but the main thing I learnt from this brew is that it isn’t safe to brew a Pale Ale while drinking super hoppy hoppy IPA and watching a beer review of Magic Rock’s Unhuman Cannonball. I had already mashed in so the malts stayed the same, however my hop bill went out of the window and I delved into my freezer. I stuck with the shorter volume collected and the higher OG. I’ll add more dry hops than I originally intended on, et voilà! A West Coast/West Yorkshire/Northern Hemisphere inspired India Pale Ale, of sorts. The IBUs are lower than I would have aimed for had I intended to brew a 6.4% IPA, but the BU:GU ratio is still a respectable 0.86.
This beer will now be tasted alongside other Leeds Homebrew/Team Yorkshire beers, before we put forward our gladiator beers to be scrutinised by a panel of judges selected by the Leeds International Beer Festival. Our Lancashire foe will be doing the same, and the best of Yorkshire will be pitted against theirs during the @LeedsBeer Fest in September.
Coming of AGe #5
Posted: May 7, 2013 Filed under: Beer, Brewing | Tags: Northen Monk Brew Co 4 Comments »So far on ‘Coming of AGe’: I made a decision to brew commercially, I was in a reflective mood, I got my excuses in early. I learnt that buying a brewery and installing it into a suitable premises can cost a bit and that buying ingredients can be a case of I want never gets, but trying never hurts. Next up I formulated a basic game plan.
How soon is too soon to buy a pair of Puroforts?
And
How long do I have to brew for before I can buy orange ones?
*Follow @NMBCo (Northern Monk Brewing Company).
**All Grain (AG)
Coming of AGe #4
Posted: May 2, 2013 Filed under: Beer, Brewing | Tags: Northen Monk Brew Co 5 Comments »So far on ‘Coming of AGe’: I made a decision to brew commercially, I was in a reflective mood, I got my excuses in early. I learnt that buying a brewery and installing it into a suitable premises can cost a bit and that buying ingredients can be a case of I want never gets, but trying never hurts.
Rules suck, but for someone like me they’re important. I read this week that craft is no longer creative, and don’t worry I’m not going there, the article was exploring all things craft. I consider myself to be a creative person, but as a 35-year-old with a steadyish job, this is an indication that my free-thinking gene never really kicked-in. I listen carefully to what others have to say, generally agree with them and then try my best not to copy. I’m also musical [no not me, I play Brass], I brew beer and have the ability to craft [almost] any shape necessary to win a game of that relatively unknown Pictionary spin-off where you use scissors to create the clues. What I’m saying is that I’ve never felt the need, nor had the drive to conquer the world. When it comes to brewing beer that will be sold, I’m applying the same tentative approach.
Stuart Howe, a man needing little introduction to anyone who has a vague interest in beer, wrote a blog [still does] about his thoughts and experiences as an already seasoned brewer with Sharps Brewery [still is]. His opening post read:
“This is it. The first post in my new blog. I’ve got to be up in five hours so it’s a quick one. I am embarking on an exciting journey in which my very soul will be open for all to browse”.
I’m not trying to make any comparison where there isn’t one: not even the faintest skid-mark of resemblance in what he’s achieved and what I have yet to achieve, no. However, my sentiment is the same as his, writing this stuff down is a personal thing, but we both decided to put it on the equivalent of the Britain’s Got Talent stage.
So what do I want to achieve? I want to support my family and I want to do that by getting paid to do the thing that interests and excites me: brewing beer. How I go about doing that is also important to me and I need a game plan. Over to Stuart:
“The apparent conflict between idiosyncrasy and balance brings me to the question which I ask myself today. Am I trying to get a number one single or win the Turner Prize? Does there need to be a compromise?”
As a brewer just starting out I want to brew decent, tasty beer. I want the beer to be good enough to allow us to brew a second beer and so on. Don’t get me wrong, I want to do the best I can, but I’m not aspiring for a number one single. Not yet!
This time last year, I was sat at the European Beer Bloggers Conference, listening to people like Stuart, Mark Dredge, Leigh Linley, some other dude banging on about hops, and Zak Avery who said (and I paraphrase) “…enjoy writing what you write, use your blog to catalogue your thoughts and think of this as being prepared to maximise any opportunities that may come your way“. Stuart tried one of my beers that day, another blogger shared a bottle of mine with him, which I’m sure he won’t remember, but it made me want to go and brew that bit more. Since that time, both Mark and Leigh have a book published and Zak has another tank top, among other more notable achievements. And me? I’m still dreaming, but I’m close to where I want to start.
*Follow @NMBCo (Northern Monk Brewing Company).
**All Grain (AG)
Coming of AGe #3
Posted: May 1, 2013 Filed under: Beer, Brewing | Tags: Northen Monk Brew Co 5 Comments »So far on ‘Coming of AGe’: I made a decision to brew commercially, I was in a reflective mood, I got my excuses in early. I learnt that buying a brewery and installing it into a suitable premises can cost a bit.
When Henry Ford told the good people of the US “any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black” they may have looked at each other for a moment before duly getting in line. I don’t know much about Henry Ford but I’m assuming that the limitation of his showroom colour-card wasn’t based on his penchant for the macabre. Simple economics dictated that his process needed a splash of realism.
When I built my first beer recipe, the recipe that will soon be in production, I sat at my desk, opened the gateway to global gallivanting and ran down the aisles using my arms in a sweeping motion to push the finery into my trolley. It was so easy, I’ll have 5kg of that and 25kg of that, and so on. I had Simcoe, Centennial, Columbus, Citra, Riwaka, Motueka, Galaxy, Special this and Belgian that, the whole shebang. At the checkout a friendly face was masking a terrible truth: “good evening sir, I hope you enjoyed your retail experience, however these items are out of stock”. As I repeatedly hit the mouse button “purchase now!, purchase now god damn it!”, the clerk calmly informed me that they were expecting a delivery in twelve months and that if I left my details they’d get in touch nearer the time. I was then shown into a smaller room, packed with quality, quality I could afford and available off-the-shelf. The names were familiar to me, but I’d never picked them for my team, instead opting for the kid wearing Puma Kings… sorry, where was I?…
Oh yes….there will be begging, stealing and/or borrowing. I will get creative. I will meet the guy around the back of the shop with my briefcase full of twenties. Learning curves might be a nice shape, but try climbing one with one of your hands tied behind your back.
N.B. I’m aware that…
“in the first years of production from 1908 to 1914, the Model T was not available in black but rather only grey, green, blue, and red. Green was available for the touring cars, town cars, coupes, and Landaulets. Grey was only available for the town cars, and red only for the touring cars. By 1912, all cars were being painted midnight blue with black fenders. It was only in 1914 that the “any color so long as it is black” policy was finally implemented. It is often stated that Ford suggested the use of black from 1914 to 1926 due to the cheap cost and durability of black paint. During the lifetime production of the Model T, over 30 different types of black paint were used on various parts of the car” – Wiki
…please don’t spoil my fun or poke holes in my weak analogy. Thanks.
*Follow @NMBCo (Northern Monk Brewing Company).
**All Grain (AG)
Coming of AGe #2
Posted: April 29, 2013 Filed under: Beer, Brewing | Tags: Northern Monk Brew Co. 6 Comments »Last time on ‘Coming of AGe’: I made a decision to brew commercially, I was in a reflective mood, I got my excuses in early.
Starting a business doesn’t look to be an easy choice, regardless of the industry. I’ve had ‘big ideas’ about starting my own brewing company and really believed I’d give it a shot “someday”. Or, should I say, I’ve had ‘big ideas’ about starting my own brewing company and knew that despite my tall-talk I’d never realistically need to worry about proving myself as a business owner or a brewer.
To recap, I’m a homebrewer, I have no formal brewing qualifications, but have attended a three-year open university of life course in Alcohol Research. I also have a growing collection of plastic buckets that have heating elements in them, plastic buckets that I want to put heating elements into, and a well-adjusted hoarding mentality: If it looks like it could be useful, put it in the garage.
Now I find myself in a dream-like-state, happy in the knowledge that I’m about to reach a goal, but daily realisations that I can’t wake myself up and that the ratebeer-daggers will soon be drawn.
When my friends and other interested folk ask me about the Northern Monk Brewing Co setup, I don’t have a straightforward answer for them. You see, we have big plans and we have some faith in my brewing abilities and lots of faith in the owner’s business know-how, however our answer to the most common question; “so what size is your brewery” doesn’t satisfy everyone.
Buying a brewery and installing it into a suitable premises can cost a bit. Not buying a brewery and not putting it in a premises can also cost a bit, and not just the initial investment. Let me explain myself.
The options available to us (and others in our position):
- Purchasing a brew kit and premises
- Use someone else’s brew kit and premises
- Email a recipe to a brewery and have them deal with it
- Don’t do anything and enjoy brewing beer in your garage/kitchen for your own enjoyment
Speaking in the most basic terms: if we were to purchase a brew kit and premises it would require investment from outside of our immediate influence. If we ‘buy’ time on someone else’s brew kit we have to work under their terms and it isn’t that cheap either. If we were to email a recipe to a brewery and ask them to handle it, we would both pack this in before it got started: that option just isn’t for us. Despite the compromises we make when deciding on the best way forward, we know that we’ll be criticised to some extent.
Why not just purchasing a brew kit and premises? We’re one of many start-ups in a competitive market and many of ‘us’ won’t survive the inevitable shake up after an industry booms, saturates and then discards what it no longer needs to satisfy demand. A brew kit and a lease on a premises are risky assets to start-ups. Also, can a start-up brewery be confident in making a significant investment when the returns cannot be guaranteed? Most people need some level of income.
‘Cuckoo’ or ‘gypsy’ brewing is a broad church. There is no recognised definition or boundaries as far as I can see. Being a cuckoo brewer does not limit the output, the quality of the product or the perceived credibility of the brewer(s). A cuckoo brewer may be a ‘small-batch’ brewer of ‘artisanal’ beers, beers that are furnished with reviews fit to burst with superaltives; or their output may be on a macro scale and those involved in the brewing company may not know their AAs from their elbow. What I mean to say is, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that not everyone involved with beer cares much for it, but they may like the smell of money. I/we may not like it, but everyone is entitled to do it their way.
So you see the dilemma. Mortgage yourselves to the hilt in an attempt to prove to the world that you’re serious about the vocation and the industry, accepting the financial risks that go with this, or mitigate some of those risks by renting kit time at an established brewery, accepting that there will be those people who dismiss your efforts as “in it for the short-term gains”.
The choices are there for anyone to explore, and it seems to me that one’s risk factors will vary depending on one’s bank balance (and other liabilities).
It’s interesting for me to read my own thoughts, when more often than not they are fleeting ideas or worries with no real cohesion. I can see that I am thinking about the criticisms before they’ve even happened, but what I can say is that it feels helpful to me to get these thoughts written, explore them and then move forwards in better shape for doing so.
I guess what I’m saying here, is that while future posts in this series will include the challenges of starting a brewing company, they won’t need to cover the same ground if I set the foundations early in the process/journey ….blah.
More on our decision once everything is in place.
*Follow @NMBCo (Northern Monk Brewing Company).
**All Grain (AG)
Coming of AGe #1
Posted: April 23, 2013 Filed under: Beer 14 Comments »With any luck, my bad attempt at a brewing-pun-title should suggest to the reader that I’m in a reflective mood. I started brewing beer at home a few years ago and as my general interest in beer has grown, so has my basic knowledge of brewing and my circle of friends and industry acquaintances. I’ve blogged about it before and it’s generally well-known that I am one of ‘those’ homebrewers who dream of a full-time job brewing beer. Last year I entered competitions and to my surprise won some of them. This part of homebrewing is fun and rewarding in many ways, but it isn’t what homebrewing is about to me. I’ve enjoyed competing and the five minutes of joy that go with winning, but the best thing to come out of these adventures to date, other than the beer and the friends, is an approach from a guy who wants to start a *brewing company (the Northern Monk Brew Co. I’ve tweeted about this a bit, but as yet the details we’ve released have been basic and this is down to the simple facts: starting a brewing company is not as straight forward as you might think….or should I say, as I thought it would be! I’m excited about my involvement in this company, not least because it’s going to give me the opportunity to learn to brew: I know how that reads, but it’s the truth and there is no point in pretending otherwise.
I know that I’m a novice, but we all have to start somehwere, right?; and I know that I can brew 5 gallons of beer and that the beer usually turns out alright. Putting the business of business to one side (thanks to a very committed business partner), I/we will face numerous challenges though ‘scaling up’; including ingredients/recipe considerations, yeast management, water treatment, not to mention getting to grips with a hefty brewing plant, and I know this will push me: the question is “how far?”. I have already been in touch with a couple of the friendly brewers out there (and there are plenty to choose from!) tentatively asking for advice, but always mindful of how this might come across. Plenty of brewers have uttered the words “we’re all learning”, but this is on a sliding scale of learning, a metaphorical sliding scale that at the moment I’m stood looking at, and one that I’ll soon be slipping and sliding all over.
In summary, my brain is busy with brewing related stuff. This series of blog posts will be my space to write it all down.
*Follow @NMBCo (Northern Monk Brewing Company).
**All Grain (AG)
