A Brewer for a Day

One of my favorite things in this world is beer.

I love everything about it; from basic domestics to complex, robust micro brews. These days, it's nearly impossible to throw a rock without hitting a new brewery; especially here in Minnesota. I think one of the things that I love the most about it is learning about it...besides the buzz that is!

Visiting breweries while I travel--both personally and professionally--has become a big part of my planning process. I truly love eating and drinking like the locals when I visit a new place. It builds a common bond with new friends, plus allows them to share some of their favorite, regional specialties.

Next week, I'll be the emcee of a local charity dinner hosted at my neighborhood brewery, Brau Brothers Brewing Company. In a discussion about the dinner with the brewmaster, Dustin Brau, I indicated that I'd love to learn more about how it is actually made. He mentioned they were doing a double batch the next day. I asked if I could join along and learn to be a more informed host...you know: for charity!

He agreed. I was thrilled!

Saturday morning, I got there just as they were starting the second batch (I got to sleep in a bit). Dustin was there and put me right to work. I documented the entire process to my best ability with photographs from my phone (not the best, but they'll do). So crack open one of your favorite beers and learn along as I assist these masters as they turn simple ingredients into the beverage that we all love! 

The Basic Building Blocks of Beer

Kegs of fresh beer

Almost all beer is four simple ingredients: Yeast, Grains (barley/malt), hops and water.

There are two types of beers: ales and lagers. The difference is primarily the type of yeast they use and the temperature in which it is fermented. 

That's basically it...from these four ingredients and two styles, thousands of combinations have been honed to create a vast variety of beers. I'm not going to get that technical, but wanted to give a little background to establish an understanding. The beer we made this weekend was an ale.

A new batch of yeast

Propagating the Yeast

The first step, before all ingredients are processed, the yeast must first be propagated. This means that it is allowed to flourish so that when it is added to the beer, it will be hungry and ready to eat the sugars from the grains and convert them into alcohol and carbonation. 

When I arrived, they had already begun this process and were ready to add it to the fermenting chamber. They informed me that they extract the yeast from other beers as they are living organisms that are purged prior to bottling. There is large attention to sustainability as yeast and grain is kept cycling throughout the brewing process This is the most science I can get.

Remember, I'm a banker not a brewer. this is just as I understand it.

From Grain to Wort

Mixing the milled grain into water

The next step, we put roasted barley malts from their whole grain form into a mill that grinds it and adds it to water in a large kettle called a Mash Tun. This kettle held hundreds of gallons of water and grain and I had to stir it as over 250 pounds of grain was poured into the water. I had to make sure the grain didn't clump up, otherwise it would not allow the sugars to be fully extracted.

Monitoring the sugar content of the wort

As the water was heated, it was transferred from the Mash Tun into another huge vessel  called the Boiling Kettle. The extracted liquid had a high sugar content and is referred to as Wort. We had to monitor the wort to ensure that it was getting all the sugars we could from the grain. This was done using a light filtering device. Once the boil kettle was filled, we were ready to bring it up to a full boil.

Hop to it!

Hopped up wort boiling away

Once the wort is at a full boil, we added the hops. If you are not familiar, hops are a flower that are used to give flavor to the beer. If you've had a pale ale or IPA, these are the things that give beer that citrus-like or pungent flavor. Some people love them and others hate them. I love them.

Harvesting Spent Grain

The beer we were making was a Scotch Ale; which did not have a hop-forward flavor. It is a more malty varietal and used smoked barley as the primary flavoring agent. However, there were still two batches of hops that are added to the mixture.

As the hops and wort boil for an hour, we cleaned out the Mash Tun. The by-product of the Wort is a bunch of cooked grains called Spent Grain. This is reserved and sold to local farms to feed livestock.

I've been to some breweries that use the spent grain to feed the cows from which they get the milk with which is used in making a milk stout--talk about sustainability!

A Quick Spin to the Fermentation Chamber

As the beer spins out the solids stay in

Once the hops have been boiled, a machine is used to create a whirlpool in the boil kettle so that the solids are all forced to the middle and all liquid is able to exit out the edges. As the liquid escapes, it is sent through a radiator to rapidly reduce its temperature from boiling to one that it will ferment at in the Fermentation Chamber.

Original Gravity sample

As the beer is extracted and travels to the Fermentation Chamber, we extracted a sample to test so we can understand the Original Gravity of the beer. This is the first indication of the attenuation of the beer.

The fermentation chambers.

Attenuation is the way they determine how alcoholic a beer is going to be. As it ferments, the yeast process the sugars into alcohol and carbonation.

As the attenuation goes down, so does the alcohol levels in the beer. According to the brewer, this would take 1-2 weeks for this beer to achieve the desired attenuation.

That was essentially all it took to make beer. Now, we just had to wait for it to ferment before we can drink it. By my estimation, this batch should be ready to drink by the time we have our charity dinner. I sure hope they like it!

The labels are added to bottled beer

Odd Jobs in the Brewery

The Biofine device

The above process took about four hours from start to finish, but that wasn't everything that I got to help out with. I got to help transfer beer from the vats into kegs to be sent off to bars for tap beer. I also got to work briefly as a labeler and packer on the bottling line.

There was another thing that I assisted in where we hooked up a machine that shot a dreadful smelling concoction of dehydrated fish guts and citric acid called Biofine. As I understand it, the Biofine is used to gather the yeast to the bottom of the fermentation chamber so they can extract it and use it in another batch. I'm not sure if that's right, but it makes sense to me.

Cleaning all the time

One of the most important jobs in the brewery is cleaning and sanitation, After each step, we cleaned and sanitized every instrument so it prevents bacteria from forming. If any unintentional bacteria finds its way into the beer, the entire batch can be compromised. I even had to crawl inside the mash tun and scrub the insides from top to bottom.

I had a great time learning about the process, but my favorite part of the day was sampling the end product in the tap room as we discussed everything that had happened during the day.I hope you enjoyed going through this with me and maybe learned a little new information about the process of brewing beer.

Thanks for reading!

A Return to the Race

A Return to the Race

Two years ago, this little blog was started and shortly after it was reduced to a dormant status. Its origination was intended to keep me motivated as I trained to complete a full marathon in 2013. I did complete that marathon, but shortly after I lost my aspiration to add entries to the site. 

I toyed around with new concepts and themes, but nothing inspired me to actually write new posts. Since that time, I've started a new career; which prevented me from embarking on much in the arena of endurance events. Sure, I did a half marathon and a smattering of shorter distances. Overall, I was lazy in 2015.

This is 2016. No more being lazy. 

I've got a good grasp on the new job and feel that I can once again dedicate myself to challenging and improving myself by logging thousands of steps on my Fitbit in the name of fitness. I've registered once again for Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, MN on June 18th. This year, I'm running for a cause and will be raising funds for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. More on that in a later post.

In addition to running, I'm continuing my focus on nutrition: I can't do one without the other. I'm not one of those runners that rewards a 5K race with a pizza and a couple pitchers. 

I'm in no way, turning my nose up at those that reward themselves with that, but I know how my body responds to such abuse. Don't take that statement as I'm giving up on indulgences. I'm human and LOVE beer and junk food. I'm just going to use this forum as a way to motivate myself, stay on track during my training. I'll do my best to share some recipes that you may enjoy, but that's not the point here. I'm not an aspiring food blogger trying to make a name for myself.

Enough of focusing on what this isn't. Here's what I want to do in the coming months, as a sort of resurrection of The Juggernaut's Cave:

1. Motivation and Training Log - Share my progress, hopefully inspire and get inspired by others as I log hundreds of miles prior to race day.

2. Music - Share favorite running music and hopefully get tips on new artists and songs from others. I still love compiling playlists and will share some of my favorites with you.

3. Recipes and Reviews - Food focused on nutrition and nourishment for training. In addition, I plan to review products that are used before, during or after a long run.

4. Travel Log - As I said, I got a new job and that job enables me to travel around the country. I'll use this to share stories from my journey and tips on how to keep motivated when away from home.

That's a lot of promises and I'm intending to keep them by checking in a few times a month. Please keep me accountable and if you want to hear anything from me, reach out to me in Twitter via my handle @juggernautscave.

This brings me to tonight's main event, the music playlist. I may have been lazy in the training area, but in 2015, I continued consuming a lot of music. One question I often ask myself when I listen to a song is: can I run to this song? As a final send off to 2015, I'm going to countdown my favorite 15 running songs of 2015.

In past lists, I've had a cross sampling of Top 40 pop to independent rock to electronic dance stuff. This list is a little more on focused in the indie/alternative rock genre. Sure, a ton of sites out there has a top songs list of 2015. This is in no way a list of my  favorite songs of 2015, but those that get me ready to run! I hope you enjoy the list and maybe find a new song or two to enjoy.

Top 15 Running Songs of 2015

15 Catfish and the Bottlemen - "Cocoon"

I don't know much about this band, but as they say (a lot): "Fuck it". This is a great opening track to get you running...nothing fancy. Just good a good driving rock song.

14. Courtney Barnett - "Pedestrian at Best"
Definitely the odd one of the list, but I love it. It sounds like if Nirvana circa Bleach were fronted by a female Kurt Cobain. It's chugging guitar, sloppy bass and drums should keep you going.

13. Baio - "Sister of Pearl"
Another newcomer, but you're probably familiar with his day job in the band Vampire Weekend. If not, visit my past lists as they are a prominent fixture in my running music. I really like this one for its simple, but infectious melody. (Trivia: the guitar line featured in the track was played using Adele's guitar, unbeknownst to Baio...spoiler, there are no more Adele references in my list.)

12 Cold War Kids - "First"
I'll occasionally throw a slightly slower track in my playlists to help me catch my breath and reclaim a more manageable pace. This song serves that purpose for me. I love the snare hits that a scattered throughout the song. This one gives me a reason to play chest drums and enjoy the run.

11. DREAMERS - "Wolves (You Got Me)"
Another band that I know absolutely nothing about, but this song has a great driving chorus that I find myself singing along with as I run laps around the track at my local gym. Not an aggressive pace setter, but a great pace maintaining track.

10 Big Data - "The Business of Emotions"
The ten spot is saved for my first of several guilty pleasure, pop-laden electronic tracks. I've had several Big Data songs on playlists in the past year, but this is the one that constantly gets in my head. Step back in time to the 80's pop group perfection. Note: don't listen to the lyrics...they are silly.

9. Metric - "The Shade"
Another driving synth-heavy pop song that I find highly addictive. I find that when this track comes on my pace picks up like they are sending electric pulses through me as I run.

8. The Struts - "Could Have Been Me"
A ridiculously flamboyant track that I have every intention of crushing in an out-of-the-way, no one knows-me-here karaoke bar. This song sounds like a garage band channeling Twisted Sister covering a Queen tune and it is fucking AWESOME.

7. Modest Mouse - "The Ground Walks, With Time in a Box"
The band that I have the strongest attachment to as they have been with me since my early college days. After 8 years, they return with this pulsating burst of pure energy and joy and I feel more complete having their creations in my running mixes.

6. Atlas Genius - "Molecules"
Another one that I find nearly impossible to skip whenever it comes on my shuffled playlists. It weaves synthesizers throughout the guitar work and I love getting lost in the layers. Plus, it sounds like science class, so it's educational.

5. The 1975 - "Love Me"
Another of my guilty pleasures is The 1975. Their style of throwback pop is right up my alley and this song doesn't disappoint. After first listen, it became a constant run mix track. One of my favorite part of it is the use of the synth effect that can double as a Halloween cartoon background soundtrack.

4. Grimes - "Flesh Without Blood"
I've been a Grimes fan for years, but her music has been more appropriate for house or yard work...not running music. This one she allows her pop flag to fly and it is a pure joy for me. I have always felt her to be a bit of a paradox: the artwork on her albums make her appear to be more of a Japanese horror metal band than the electronic master I believe her to be.

3. Passion Pit - "Until We Can't (Let's Go)"
I attach my earliest memories of Passion Pit to my first ever run training as I first got into them when I started running in 2008. Three albums later, I continue to keep their music in heavy rotation. This one is pure motivation as he screams "Let's Go!" You have no choice but to pick up the pace and run your ass off.

2. Matt and Kim - "Hey Now" and "Make A Mess"
One of my favorite bands to run to is Matt and Kim. Whenever an album comes out, I have to resist the urge to add the entire thing to my playlist. This past year's release "New Glow" continued that tradition; which is why I have two tracks on this list. "Hey Now" has this crazy horn groove that I fucking love to run to and "Make a Mess" is absolutely fucking bonkers. It's the best musical representation of what its like having ADHD. You may find yourself running beyond your normal expectations...enjoy the ride. Honorable mention: "Get It"

1. CHVRCHES - "Empty Threat" and "Leave a Trace"
Just like Matt and Kim, CHVRCHES albums are nearly fully represented in my running mixes. Its a combination of my affinity for highly caffeinated electro pop and my weakness for pixie-like front women. Ever since first hearing "Recover," I've been addicted. Their album "Every Open Eye" was another album that I could run to almost entirely. My two favorites are "Empty Threat" and "Leave a Trace". Honorable mentions: "Never Ending Circles," "Clearest Blue" and "Make Them Gold". Fuck it...add the entire album, I'll be glad you did.

OK, so my Top 15 Running Songs of '15 was actually 17 songs. I'm sorry I broke my own rules, but I didn't want to omit any of my favorites because I'm addicted to a couple bands. I hope you enjoyed reading and I look forward to continuing this tradition into the year and hopefully beyond!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Thanks for listening,
Ben