Beer beer the beer beer

We have beer! The 14ish bottles finished up yesterday, so I chucked them in the fridge. We had one last night, and I have to say, it didn't turn out half bad. It is fairly amber in color, as you can see from the bottling pictures. It has a light taste, not overly hoppy, but we're not talking Tecate here. Maybe closest comparison color and taste wise is Gordon Biersch Amber? Very smooth, and well carbonated. For our freshman effort, I'd say it was a success. Big up to J & R for helping us with our first batch. We've decided to call it Anarchy Slum Town After Birth Ale, given that halfway through the process JP gave birth to our daughter, A. We'll be distributing the bottles out to all of the wonderful folks that have been helping us with food for the past three weeks. Thanks everyone!

Ever Wonder how the Crest Neat Squeeze Works?

Are you one of those people that squeezes out toothpaste onto your toothbrush, brushes your teeth, and gets on with your day? Yeah? Ok, you're done, read no further.

Are you one of those people that squeezes out toothpaste onto your toothbrush, starts brushing your teeth, and two minutes in you say "Wait a second...." Yeah? Cool, this one's for you.

Toothpaste tubes are pretty pedestrian things, and if you manage to get most of the toothpaste out of the tube, most people would call that a success. But countless times we've all used the edges of our toothbrush, or the counter, or something to get the last bit of toothpaste out. Well, seems there is finally a solution. Crest has this cool little dispenser they call a "Neat Squeeze." It stands up in the medicine cabinet (another bonus), but it also squeezes out nearly ever dollop of toothpaste without all of that annoying flattening, rolling, or otherwise. How's it work?

Notice in the bottom there are three little holes in a circular pattern. This is the inlet of an air check valve.

If you cut open the bottom you'll find a very thin film of plastic heat (or ultra-sonically) staked down over it. Since the tube is otherwise sealed, when you squeeze the tube, the check valve is closed, and when the tube is released it draws air in through the air check valve.

Now, chop through the top of the container and you find a similar check valve, this time for the toothpaste. It consists of two plastic parts, a flapper and a face seal. These two parts make sure that when you squeeze the tube the toothpaste comes out, and when you release it the valve closes, and air is pulled into the tube. The toothpaste itself is contained in a metalized foil bag.

So, there you have it, a pair of check valves and you squeezing the tube will eventually empty the toothpaste, without ever flattening or rolling it.

Bottled Beer

I just finished bottling the first batch. Specific gravity was 1.010 to 1.012, giving a final alcohol of at least (1.060-1.012)/1.060 = 4.5%. I chose to follow R's advice and the Brewcraft directions, and go straight from the secondary fermenter to the bottles. I made up a dextrose solution with 2 cups of hot water and the pre-measured dextrose from Brewcraft. I poured that in to the carboy, trying to get it to cascade down the side. Then I used the auto-siphon to gently stir the beer, doing my best to not stir up the sediment on the bottom. After a few minutes of that, I primed the auto-siphon, which was a bit of a trick. The bottle filler has a push valve on the bottom, so you have to simultaneously hold down the tip of the filler while pumping the auto siphon. Easy if there were two people, but for one it is a little bit of a trick.

I was able to fill just about 14 of the 32oz bottles from IKEA, or roughly 3.5 gallons of beer. I did sample what was left in the auto-siphon tube when I was done, and it tasted like beer, though slightly sweet from the dextrose solution. In a couple weeks we'll have beer.