PCTBB

Finally, got around to brewing my entry for the Cheers to Belgium Beers in April. At the dart toss, I got low and light and having never brewed a Belgium before I am a little nervous. Joe offered up his Biere de Garde recipe for me but in my stubborness I decided to go it alone and brew my own recipe.

It is styled as a Belgium Pale and I hope with the fruit and spice addition in the secondary it will end up pretty tasty. Today was also the first time I had a chance to brew with my new kettle. My efficiency was off, a lot lower than I would like. I ended up with an efficiency of 69% but I was shooting for 75%. I manage to have exactly the right amount of water for the mash and the sparge, so no wasting water this time.

I did have Joe helping me today. Thankfully, he takes direction well and curbed his numerous urges to offer "suggestions" when I was brewing. I duct taped the airlock on the carboy and I'm hoping that helps it not blow out when it takes off fermenting.