Oh what shall I brew?

So until construction of my brew kit (which currently does not have a name - suggestions welcome) is complete, I have a heck of a lot of planning to do. Most of which will centre around what exactly I will end up brewing once I get my kit.

This, of course means "research" - in other words, drinking lots of different beers and thinking about what to use as an "influence" (also known as copying other brewers). Because let's be honest, I'm hardly going to create a beer from a recipe created from the analysis of a 2,700-year-old jar found in the tomb of King Midas. So instead, the game plan is to think of what I like to drink and go from there.

At the moment, it has been bloody freezing where I am. It's managed to hit under zero degrees Celsius already. C'mon Mother Nature, it's only May! Cut me a break!

Photo: beerforayear.wordpress.com

However, being cold enough to freeze the ball off a brass monkey means I've been drinking a heck of a lot of stout, mainly Three Boys' fantastic Oyster Stout. The Celtic Inn - which has quickly transformed into my local - stocks the entire Three Boys range, and charges grin-inducing Palmerston North prices. For example, this goes for about $15 a bottle in Wellington bars. Coming from that environment, $10.50 looks like a bargain - which it really is for something this good.

There's something deliciously moreish about this drop. After pouring it into a glass and letting it warm up, it has that typical roasty stout flavour with just that little something different. If that something different is simply brine or a not-so-subtle aphrodisiac taint, I'll leave up to you and your imagination and/or tastebuds.

But while I like stout, I love things just that little bit - how else is there to put it - BIGGER! I'm a huuuuge fan of imperial/Russian imperial stouts. It doesn't matter if you give me the sweeter, condensed-milk-and-coffee flavour of The Twisted Hop's Nokabollokov or the fruitier, slightly more bitter hit of Moa's Imperial Stout, I'll lap it up. In fact, I love Moa's so much I once had an imperial pint of it, after a shift at work, on an empty stomach, probably with a pint of something mildly more mellow beforehand. Let's just say that made the usual trot home just that bit more interesting.

Photo: simplyrecipes.com

I definitely want to brew an imperial stout at once stage, if only to have an easily available stash with which to make this cake with (also pictured). While the recipe calls for Guinness, using an imperial stout just gives it a bit more punch.

I and my girlfriend are both fans of Belgians. Not the people - bugger knows if I've met one ever before, but I'm sure they're lovely - but the delicious beers they make.

The first beer she ever fell in love with was Chimay Blue, and I tend to love anything funky - James Brown, composting, my fugly brown jacket - so it would make sense to brew some up. She also makes a wicked elderflower fizz which has a great yeastie character to it. It relies on the wild yeasts on the flowers to get fermentation going, so the funky flavour is not much of a shock.

I'm also a fan of IPAs - like most these days - and love the fact I can get a recipe for Yeastie Boys' Digital IPA and for the NZ Collaboration/Epic Mash Up. But I have no idea what any of it means, or how to dry hop. It also gives me a firm reminder that I'm starting this whole brewing journey from scratch.

However, I think making crazy 10%-plus brews or trying to mess with the huge flavours of Belgians in my first foray into fermented fluids may be a bit ambitious. So instead, I think I'll start with something a bit more simple. I figured that would be a good idea for the follow reasons:

1) If I screw up, it won't be as expensive a mistake
2) If I screw up, I should be able to tell what is wrong and work out what to do differently next time
3) You gotta walk before you can run

However, this is where I get a bit stuck. What is an easy beer to brew? Should I start with a hoppy IPA, a lush golden ale or a warming porter or stout? Or am I just being silly, and it is actually just as easy to brew a crazy 18.2% imperial stout as it is anything else?

So, suggest away! Remember, I'll have a brew kit made of 50L kegs so I'll probably be making a fair wack of beer. I also won't make wheat beer. I'm saving that for later.

Postscript:

Next week is an exciting time for me. I'm heading to Wellington for my graduation, which means drinking some great beers. I'm annoyed I can't get Flying Dog's Gonzo (a non-grey import version anyway) as it would be the best beer for the occasion (once again, suggestions welcome). But while that's exciting, it's a date further down the track I'm looking forward to the most.

Hashigo Zake beertender and all-around great guy Shiggy Takagi sent me a message via the Twitters earlier this week, letting me know him and the rest of the Funk Estate crew will be brewing at Massey University in Palmerston North sometime soon. I'm looking forward to hanging with them and learning a bit from some semi-professional brewers. So, expect a post where I actually take some pictures for once!


Post-postscript

Earlier I said Funk Estate would be in my town on June 3. Turns out it isn't happening. Which, while making me sad, gives me something semi-unexpected to look forward to.