Woo hoo! It's finally brew day here at the Sharp as a Marble compound. Mrs. Marble is still sick, so it's a little on the hectic side, but she seems to have control of the girls so this should be fine.

Now, the whole reason I am making a simple, extract based beer is because my next beer is going to be a behemoth and is going to need lots and lots of healthy yeast to help it on its way. The best way to get lots of yeast is to make a starter, which is nothing more than a mini-beer. Well, to get even more yeast, you can make a full size beer and simply use the yeast that is left over from it!

What I am making today is a pale ale I'm calling Beyond the Pale. Here's the recipe:

Directions:

The night before, make a 2 quart starter using 2/3rds of a cup Munton's Light DME and 2 quarts water. Boil for 10 minutes. Since I use an erlynmeyer flask, I can do this directly on the stove. Then, cool the starter down to 70° and pitch the yeast. Swirl the yeast every chance you get! When I got up this morning, the airlock was full of sludge!! I've got a great starter.

On brewing day, get 1.5 gallons of water to 155° and dump in the crushed Crystal malt. Stir often for 30 minutes. Drain the liquid, removing all the malt grains and ick (I use a funnel with a screen on it). Then, to the liquid mix in 5.75 pounds of the DME. This is an easier place to do it than the boil kettle since (a) the water isn't boiling and (b) I can get in there with a whisk and thoroughly mix in the powdered malt.

While the malt is soaking, get 4 gallons of water to a full boil in the boil pot. That way, when you add the malt soup, it's already ready already. Boil for 15 minutes, then add 1 oz. of Northern Brewer hops.

That is where I'm at right now. I've got a few pictures, but those will come later. Watch for updates.