Entries have started coming in from all over the place-- the furthest so far being Colorado. Entries are due this Friday (August 24th), so bring them to the drop-off spots or FedEx / UPS them today.
The mailing address:
The Bruery
715 Dunn Way
Placentia, CA 92870
Here's the current drop-off spots:
Beer Beer & More Beer
1506 Columbia Ave. Suite 12
Riverside, CA 92507
O'Sheas Brewing Co.
28142 Camino Capistrano
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
Stein Fillers
4160 Norse Way
Long Beach, CA 90808
For those in LA, we also added the Home Wine, Beer and Cheese Shop:
22836 Ventura Blvd., Unit 2
Woodland Hills, CA 91364
If you're in San Diego, eMail or give me a call and we'll arrange for some sort of pick up. It's too late to add a San Diego drop off point, but I'd be happy to arrange something on Thursday for picking up entries.
This should be a great competition, so if you're debating whether to send anything in, please do! There's no entry fee, and every entrant will receive a gift from us. Cheers!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Mammoth Bluesapalooza
A couple of weekends ago (August 3-5 to be exact), Patrick and I went to Mammoth's Bluesapalooza. It was our first time at the event, and we had a great time. The drive up was excrutiatingly boring- we had no CD's or adapter for Pat's I-phone (lucky Bastard), so it was only the radio for us, which consisted of mostly fuzz in the middle of the desert- so fun. We reached Mammoth about lunch time, and grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed over to a California Small Brewers Association seminar at Mammoth Brewing Company that afternoon. We missed the first couple of sessions because we were late, but got to hear the tale end of a interesting marketing presentation, and heard a talk from a canning systems distributor, Cask Brewing Systems. We also got a first hand look at Mammoth Brewing Company's brand new canning line. We left feeling quite intrigued with the idea of canning beers, but don't think it goes well with the image we are going for. Perhaps in the future we will develop another Bruery off-shoot, where Pat CAN put his hoppiness to good use(pun intended).
We went to festival Friday evening, and got to hang in the special VIP Brewer's section. Thank you Dave!!! We got to meet a couple of really nice brewing folks from Kern River Brewing, Coronado Brewing Company, and The Brewhouse. After that, we met Tyler, a brewer friend from BJ's West Covina, for some beers back over at Mammoth Brewing.
Saturday morning we went on an early morning horseback ride. You don't think we could go all the way to Mammoth and not do something outdoorsy?? The ranch must have known of Patrick as an up and coming brewer, because they made sure he had a special horse- a former actor who was featured in "Scorpion Kings." There was some Hollywood personality left in the guy- he was definitely not enjoying Pat's manly frame on his backside, and would let out a grunt/moan (not the usually horsy noise) whenever Patrick gave him a gentle kick. I can see why he was turned down for "Brokeback Mountain."
After the ride, we washed the dust off us (did I mention even my teeth were covered in dust?) and headed over to the Festival of Beers. It was packed by opening time, and the bands were playing away. We immediately spotted several Long Beach Hop Heads-complete with shirts and tatoos! The highlight of the festival would have to be Craftman's lavender sour ale- fantastic. Firestone Walker's cask IPA was pretty great too. It was the perfect setting- beautiful scenery, great music, and most importantly, great beer. Oh, did I mention, unlimited pours??
Mammoth's Bluesapalooza and Festival of Beers will now be a yearly event for us. We cannot wait to be able to serve next year, and bring Barley too.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Progress Report
Sorry for the lack of updates-- things have been busy lately and I don't have any accomplishments to gloat about. The most important thing I'm working on is getting Orange County Environmental Health ("Health Department") approval, which we need before we can get our plans approved by the city, which has to happen before we start construction.
The Health Department has been pretty prompt so far, but we've come to a bit of a snag. They are requiring the brewery to be enclosed from the large cargo doors. This caught me off guard as in all of the production breweries I've been to, I've never seen this. Essentially, they don't want the large cargo doors to be able to open up directly into the brewing area, so I'm trying to figure out how to fix this in an effective way that won't impair my ability to run a brewery. Last week I sent a letter with an explanation of how my system is closed for much of the process, and completely closed from when the wort is 200 F+ in the whirlpool, among other reasons why enclosing the brewing area wouldn't have a positive effect on the sanitation of my brewery. I received a response on Saturday that I'd still need to enclose the brewery.
My goal is to find a solution to prevent insects / vermin from entering the brewery as well as maintaining good access and ventilation. Rachel found a good solution: Clear View Motorized Power Screens. These would work great as they'll keep out everything except the air. There's a few other ideas I have for enclosing the brewery without putting up walls.
I'd like to avoid putting up walls in the brewing area as it would greatly impair my ability to add fermenters, as well as remove spent grain with the forklift. The ventilation and humidity of an enclosed area is another potential problem. Another way to enclose the area would be building a vestibule around the cargo doors, creating a small gap between the cargo door and a conventional double door. In this case, it would be difficult to bring in the dozens of pallets we'll receive when we order malt, glass, etc. and it would make bringing in oversized parts like additional fermenters extremely difficult, if not impractical. I'm sure we'll come to an equitable resolution that will work for the Health Department and for myself.
As for when we'll start brewing, you'll likely have to wait a few more weeks from when I've been telling you we'd be open. It's looking more like we'll start selling sometime in November. It is very difficult to project when I'll be brewing, as new surprises come up all the time that take an extra day, week, or month than I anticipated. Opening as soon as possible is the ultimate goal, so I'm pushing myself and others to make it happen by Fall.
Opening in the Fall is not just important for maintaining my sanity, it's important that my beers are on shelves during the Holiday season, as it is a strong time for sales and happens to be my favorite time of the year when it comes to seasonal beers. After New Years, many go on a diet, or no longer have disposable income after buying too much, and beer sales tend to be flat until March. If I'm not selling until after the holiday season, I hope you'll make an exception in your diet and wallet for my beers!
The Health Department has been pretty prompt so far, but we've come to a bit of a snag. They are requiring the brewery to be enclosed from the large cargo doors. This caught me off guard as in all of the production breweries I've been to, I've never seen this. Essentially, they don't want the large cargo doors to be able to open up directly into the brewing area, so I'm trying to figure out how to fix this in an effective way that won't impair my ability to run a brewery. Last week I sent a letter with an explanation of how my system is closed for much of the process, and completely closed from when the wort is 200 F+ in the whirlpool, among other reasons why enclosing the brewing area wouldn't have a positive effect on the sanitation of my brewery. I received a response on Saturday that I'd still need to enclose the brewery.
My goal is to find a solution to prevent insects / vermin from entering the brewery as well as maintaining good access and ventilation. Rachel found a good solution: Clear View Motorized Power Screens. These would work great as they'll keep out everything except the air. There's a few other ideas I have for enclosing the brewery without putting up walls.
I'd like to avoid putting up walls in the brewing area as it would greatly impair my ability to add fermenters, as well as remove spent grain with the forklift. The ventilation and humidity of an enclosed area is another potential problem. Another way to enclose the area would be building a vestibule around the cargo doors, creating a small gap between the cargo door and a conventional double door. In this case, it would be difficult to bring in the dozens of pallets we'll receive when we order malt, glass, etc. and it would make bringing in oversized parts like additional fermenters extremely difficult, if not impractical. I'm sure we'll come to an equitable resolution that will work for the Health Department and for myself.
As for when we'll start brewing, you'll likely have to wait a few more weeks from when I've been telling you we'd be open. It's looking more like we'll start selling sometime in November. It is very difficult to project when I'll be brewing, as new surprises come up all the time that take an extra day, week, or month than I anticipated. Opening as soon as possible is the ultimate goal, so I'm pushing myself and others to make it happen by Fall.
Opening in the Fall is not just important for maintaining my sanity, it's important that my beers are on shelves during the Holiday season, as it is a strong time for sales and happens to be my favorite time of the year when it comes to seasonal beers. After New Years, many go on a diet, or no longer have disposable income after buying too much, and beer sales tend to be flat until March. If I'm not selling until after the holiday season, I hope you'll make an exception in your diet and wallet for my beers!
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Happy Birthday, Patrick!
Our Patrick turns a young 27 today. That's right, he is an eighties child, and some of you may be old enough to be his father or mother, or atleast had the opportunity to babysit.
Oh, but he is wise beyond his years. From taking up the occasional cigarette when he was 5, to getting his first computer job when he was 12, and finding the love of his life at a mere 16, Patrick has always been ahead of the game. And he has the grays to prove it!!
So 3 cheers for our owner/brewer!!!
-Rachel
PS- the picture is of our adorable niece and nephew, taken by our talanted sister-in-law. I am not sure if she does beer glamour shots though.
Monday, August 6, 2007
Two of Three: Saison Rue
Saison Rue is our second year-round offering. You can probably tell it's going to be of the Saison style, which isn't much of a style as far as guiding what a Saison should taste like.
Our saison will be made with a fair amount of rye (about 35% of the grist), and a small amount of pale chocolate malt and Special Roast to give it a beautiful orange glow and a touch of biscuit-like maltiness. The rest of the fermentables will be pilsner malt and minimally processed sugar. There will be a small amount of spices that will give Saison Rue some additional complexity, but you shouldn't be able to tell spices were added. The Sterling and Crystal hops will add a slight spiciness and citrus aroma. I'll be using a mixed Belgian yeast culture for primary fermentation, and brettanomyces ("brett") as a secondary yeast for bottle fermentation. The brett will add complexity as this beer ages, and will eventually dry out the malt character. Saison Rue will weigh in at a bit over 8%.
I'm excited to brew this beer as a year-round offering. There aren't too many breweries using brettanomyces or rye in their regular offerings. There are potential problems in using both of them-- brett can 'infect' the brewery, as it is a hearty, strong yeast that can live off of almost anything. Rye doesn't have a husk, so it can cause sticky mashes that can result in a very slow mash runoff. I won't be deterred. Great beers come to those who have the guts to make them, or buy them, in your case.
Our saison will be made with a fair amount of rye (about 35% of the grist), and a small amount of pale chocolate malt and Special Roast to give it a beautiful orange glow and a touch of biscuit-like maltiness. The rest of the fermentables will be pilsner malt and minimally processed sugar. There will be a small amount of spices that will give Saison Rue some additional complexity, but you shouldn't be able to tell spices were added. The Sterling and Crystal hops will add a slight spiciness and citrus aroma. I'll be using a mixed Belgian yeast culture for primary fermentation, and brettanomyces ("brett") as a secondary yeast for bottle fermentation. The brett will add complexity as this beer ages, and will eventually dry out the malt character. Saison Rue will weigh in at a bit over 8%.
I'm excited to brew this beer as a year-round offering. There aren't too many breweries using brettanomyces or rye in their regular offerings. There are potential problems in using both of them-- brett can 'infect' the brewery, as it is a hearty, strong yeast that can live off of almost anything. Rye doesn't have a husk, so it can cause sticky mashes that can result in a very slow mash runoff. I won't be deterred. Great beers come to those who have the guts to make them, or buy them, in your case.
Thursday, August 2, 2007
Brewed at Left Coast and Stacked Pallets
Yesterday I had the opportunity to brew with Rick Smets at Left Coast Brewery, the production brewery for Oggi's in San Clemente. Rick is a great guy and a very knowledgeable brewer, so I picked his brain as I helped him brew a batch of hefeweizen. I found out Left Coast is going to start bottling their IPA, stout, and Hop Juice in 22 oz. bottles. They are all great beers, I recommend seeking them out. They were going to bottle Hop Juice yesterday, but their new bottling line is still being worked out. I also helped out with the filtering of their IPA with their plate and frame filter. I'm glad I won't be filtering, it's a bitch! It's amazing to see the difference between an unfiltered beer and a filtered beer. We started at 5:15 AM and finished up around 1 PM, leaving me the rest of the day to work on my own brewery.
After brewing in the morning, I didn't feel like doing much for the rest of the day. I sucked it up and decided to do something about my bottle storage problem. After 4 hours of moving stuff around and carefully stacking pallets, I can see that ordering this many bottles will work for me. Here's some before and after pictures:
Before:
After:
As a sidenote, I get a lot of enjoyment visiting brewers and getting to know them. There are so many passionate, generous, interesting people in the brewing industry, and I feel lucky that I get to work in this business alongside them. I hope they feel the same way about me (don't worry, I won't always ask this many questions or be this annoying!), and I look forward to doing my share of helping out new brewers and brewery owners. Alright, enough sucking up.
After brewing in the morning, I didn't feel like doing much for the rest of the day. I sucked it up and decided to do something about my bottle storage problem. After 4 hours of moving stuff around and carefully stacking pallets, I can see that ordering this many bottles will work for me. Here's some before and after pictures:
Before:
After:
As a sidenote, I get a lot of enjoyment visiting brewers and getting to know them. There are so many passionate, generous, interesting people in the brewing industry, and I feel lucky that I get to work in this business alongside them. I hope they feel the same way about me (don't worry, I won't always ask this many questions or be this annoying!), and I look forward to doing my share of helping out new brewers and brewery owners. Alright, enough sucking up.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Happy August!
You know when you can't tell what day it is, or you forget what month it is? I am now reminded by a menstrual cycle known as rent. Progress is being made, so it shouldn't be too many more months of paying rent without any beer being sold.
I received 21,000 bottles of bulk glass yesterday from California Glass. That's 20 pallets of glass, each pallet costing more than I want to think about. I was very nervous I was going to topple one over as they are structurally not so stable. They are just layers upon layers of bottles with cardboard in between that are then plastic wrapped a few times, strapped to a pallet. I learned quickly how to be more gentle on the forklift.
Rachel and I had a fun day on Saturday visiting a few San Diego breweries. We went to Oceanside Aleworks, Alesmith, and Port Brewing / Lost Abbey. Our main purpose was for me to check out how the ground loading cargo doors are separated from the brewing area (research for our health department permit) and for her to check out tasting rooms. We won't be opening a tasting room initially, but Rachel is very interested in designing something very cool and unique when we do open one. On the previous Thursday, I did the same 'research' at Craftsman Brewing and Skyscraper Brewing, and paid a nice visit to Tyler at BJ's West Covina brewery. Thanks to Peter, Tomme, Mark and Phil for letting me check out their breweries!
Julian's dog (forgot your name, Pooch!) sitting under Tomme's chair at Lost Abbey.
I received 21,000 bottles of bulk glass yesterday from California Glass. That's 20 pallets of glass, each pallet costing more than I want to think about. I was very nervous I was going to topple one over as they are structurally not so stable. They are just layers upon layers of bottles with cardboard in between that are then plastic wrapped a few times, strapped to a pallet. I learned quickly how to be more gentle on the forklift.
Rachel and I had a fun day on Saturday visiting a few San Diego breweries. We went to Oceanside Aleworks, Alesmith, and Port Brewing / Lost Abbey. Our main purpose was for me to check out how the ground loading cargo doors are separated from the brewing area (research for our health department permit) and for her to check out tasting rooms. We won't be opening a tasting room initially, but Rachel is very interested in designing something very cool and unique when we do open one. On the previous Thursday, I did the same 'research' at Craftsman Brewing and Skyscraper Brewing, and paid a nice visit to Tyler at BJ's West Covina brewery. Thanks to Peter, Tomme, Mark and Phil for letting me check out their breweries!
Julian's dog (forgot your name, Pooch!) sitting under Tomme's chair at Lost Abbey.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Rachel's First Blog Entry
Howdy Folks,
It’s Rachel here. Patrick asked me this morning if I would like to contribute to The Bruery’s blog, so I thought I would give it a try. He was probably sick of my rantings on the infrequency of the blog entries, or how they can sometimes be boring enough to put both computers and their readers to sleep. So I am thinking this is revenge time, so let the criticism’s rip!
I am the OTHER Bruery employee. I am Co-owner/ Beer Wench/ Brewery Designer/ Publicist/ Beer namer/ Designated Driver/ Beer Lover (not while I am the Designated Driver)/ Paper Pusher/ Marketing Director of the Bruery. I was the lucky recipient of Patrick’s first homebrew batch, and every beer since. We were high school sweethearts, which means I knew him when his only craft brew exposure was Sam Adams. So if you are lucky, I will let some little known facts surface about him that the deserving public wants to know.
Unfortunately The Bruery cannot be my only job right now. Patrick is the only one to live, breath, eat The Bruery. I just get to do it after work and on weekends, or when I am sneaky at work, like now! When we are up and running, and are making sufficient income to support Patrick, Barley, and my shopping habits, I will take on The Bruery full time.
Who’s Barley, you ask? Well if you don’t remember, he is the official Bruery Dog.
He is now about 6 months old, and already a HUGE beer lover, longingly licking the outside of our chalices, scurrying after spilled grain, ears perking up whenever a beer ingredient list is read out loud. He is planning to work at the Bruery full time too, but has to work on his keg washing skills first. NOTE- Barley pisses fizzy yellow liquids, he does not drink them.
If I am not banned, hopefully you will see more from me soon. I usually accompany Patrick on the majority of his trips, so I look forward to chatting with you!
And yes- I DO like beer.
-Rachel
It’s Rachel here. Patrick asked me this morning if I would like to contribute to The Bruery’s blog, so I thought I would give it a try. He was probably sick of my rantings on the infrequency of the blog entries, or how they can sometimes be boring enough to put both computers and their readers to sleep. So I am thinking this is revenge time, so let the criticism’s rip!
I am the OTHER Bruery employee. I am Co-owner/ Beer Wench/ Brewery Designer/ Publicist/ Beer namer/ Designated Driver/ Beer Lover (not while I am the Designated Driver)/ Paper Pusher/ Marketing Director of the Bruery. I was the lucky recipient of Patrick’s first homebrew batch, and every beer since. We were high school sweethearts, which means I knew him when his only craft brew exposure was Sam Adams. So if you are lucky, I will let some little known facts surface about him that the deserving public wants to know.
Unfortunately The Bruery cannot be my only job right now. Patrick is the only one to live, breath, eat The Bruery. I just get to do it after work and on weekends, or when I am sneaky at work, like now! When we are up and running, and are making sufficient income to support Patrick, Barley, and my shopping habits, I will take on The Bruery full time.
Who’s Barley, you ask? Well if you don’t remember, he is the official Bruery Dog.
He is now about 6 months old, and already a HUGE beer lover, longingly licking the outside of our chalices, scurrying after spilled grain, ears perking up whenever a beer ingredient list is read out loud. He is planning to work at the Bruery full time too, but has to work on his keg washing skills first. NOTE- Barley pisses fizzy yellow liquids, he does not drink them.
If I am not banned, hopefully you will see more from me soon. I usually accompany Patrick on the majority of his trips, so I look forward to chatting with you!
And yes- I DO like beer.
-Rachel
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Celebrator Beer Magazine Mention
Rachel and I were very excited that we got our first mention in a publication! Here's what was written about us in the August/September 2007 issue of Celebrator in the "Beer Behind The Orange Curtain" section, written by Ed Heethuis:
"Orange County is slated to welcome another brewery in October... another Bruery, to be exact. The nme is a combination of the traditional spelling and owner/brewer Patrick Rue's surname. Located in Placentia, The Bruery is holding a competition to determine what beer will be brewed for the first batch. Patrick could not decide which beer to make first, so his wife and business partner, Rachel, suggested holding a homebrew contest as a way of honoring their homebrew roots.
Entries are due August 24, and the styles are restricted to Belgian and French Ale, Belgian Strong Ale and Specialty Beer (BJCP categories 16, 18, and 23, respectively). The beer may or may not be brewed as a regular offering, but the winning homebrewer will always have the distinction of having created the recipe for the first batch! Go to thebruery.com for drop-off locations and other details.
We wish Pat and Rachel all the best with this new endeavor and would like to remind them that any and all wisdom they may seek may be found within Karl Zappa's 100-Year Plan."
I'll have to ask Karl what this 100-Year Plan is. What a great article Ed, thanks for covering us!
"Orange County is slated to welcome another brewery in October... another Bruery, to be exact. The nme is a combination of the traditional spelling and owner/brewer Patrick Rue's surname. Located in Placentia, The Bruery is holding a competition to determine what beer will be brewed for the first batch. Patrick could not decide which beer to make first, so his wife and business partner, Rachel, suggested holding a homebrew contest as a way of honoring their homebrew roots.
Entries are due August 24, and the styles are restricted to Belgian and French Ale, Belgian Strong Ale and Specialty Beer (BJCP categories 16, 18, and 23, respectively). The beer may or may not be brewed as a regular offering, but the winning homebrewer will always have the distinction of having created the recipe for the first batch! Go to thebruery.com for drop-off locations and other details.
We wish Pat and Rachel all the best with this new endeavor and would like to remind them that any and all wisdom they may seek may be found within Karl Zappa's 100-Year Plan."
I'll have to ask Karl what this 100-Year Plan is. What a great article Ed, thanks for covering us!
One of three: Blanc Wit
I realized I hadn't discussed much about the beers I'll be brewing, so over the next few days I'll be writing about the different beers that will be coming out in the Fall. There will have three year-round beers, and four to six one-time / seasonal beers.
Blanc Wit (if you couldn't tell from the name) is a witbier, meaning "white beer". The name of our beer, Blanc Wit, roughly translates to "White White". Yeah, I know it doesn't make sense, but I like it.
I didn't want to brew a standard wheat beer, or a standard witbier, so Blanc Wit will be a bit unusual for the style. First of all, it'll be 7.3%. I don't like the term "Double Wit" or "Imperial Wit", so you won't find any of that on the label. I don't think it's big enough anyway to call it imperial or double. A large proportion of the recipe will be malted wheat (not unmalted wheat, which is traditional), a healthy dose of oats (about 10%), and the rest pilsner malt. Cane sugar will also be used for about 10% of fermentables to dry the beer out a bit. It will be lightly spiced with Indian corriander, kumquat peel (if I can find any suppliers!), and a secret ingredient that I don't want to reveal at this point. It will be fermented with a saison yeast strain, the same strain I'll be using for the primary fermentation of our other beers as well.
I'm hoping this beer will be different from any other beer you've had, in a positive way. I think it'll be a delicious and special beer, but it will also be one of our more 'standard' offerings, meaning it will be more subtle than my other beers and a beer I wouldn't hesitate to give to that person who "doesn't like beer."
Also, if you've been following the equipment I'll be using, you may have noticed it's not sized too well. My mash tun is designed for a 23 bbl brewery, my kettle has a 17 bbl (20 hL) capacity, my whirlpool has 23 bbl capacity, and my fermenters are either 15 bbl or 30 bbl. This mismatch of equipment sizes is actually a good thing for me. I'll be brewing 17 bbl batches, and then will ferment the extra 2 bbl in oak, and then, depending on the beer, add the oaked portion back to the batch after fermentation, or bottle / keg the oaked portion separately from the main batch. I'm pretty excited about this approach-- I love the effect that oak has on beer and can't wait to experiment with it.
Blanc Wit (if you couldn't tell from the name) is a witbier, meaning "white beer". The name of our beer, Blanc Wit, roughly translates to "White White". Yeah, I know it doesn't make sense, but I like it.
I didn't want to brew a standard wheat beer, or a standard witbier, so Blanc Wit will be a bit unusual for the style. First of all, it'll be 7.3%. I don't like the term "Double Wit" or "Imperial Wit", so you won't find any of that on the label. I don't think it's big enough anyway to call it imperial or double. A large proportion of the recipe will be malted wheat (not unmalted wheat, which is traditional), a healthy dose of oats (about 10%), and the rest pilsner malt. Cane sugar will also be used for about 10% of fermentables to dry the beer out a bit. It will be lightly spiced with Indian corriander, kumquat peel (if I can find any suppliers!), and a secret ingredient that I don't want to reveal at this point. It will be fermented with a saison yeast strain, the same strain I'll be using for the primary fermentation of our other beers as well.
I'm hoping this beer will be different from any other beer you've had, in a positive way. I think it'll be a delicious and special beer, but it will also be one of our more 'standard' offerings, meaning it will be more subtle than my other beers and a beer I wouldn't hesitate to give to that person who "doesn't like beer."
Also, if you've been following the equipment I'll be using, you may have noticed it's not sized too well. My mash tun is designed for a 23 bbl brewery, my kettle has a 17 bbl (20 hL) capacity, my whirlpool has 23 bbl capacity, and my fermenters are either 15 bbl or 30 bbl. This mismatch of equipment sizes is actually a good thing for me. I'll be brewing 17 bbl batches, and then will ferment the extra 2 bbl in oak, and then, depending on the beer, add the oaked portion back to the batch after fermentation, or bottle / keg the oaked portion separately from the main batch. I'm pretty excited about this approach-- I love the effect that oak has on beer and can't wait to experiment with it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)