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The night started with a lot of enthusiasm. First brew. Who couldn't be excited? After running a few shake down tests for power draw and gas fittings we pretty much got straight into it, first on the list was to fill the Hot Liquor Tank - a wanky way of saying a big pot of hot water.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2.../MYBREWERY.jpg

We were pleasantly surprised when we were able to boil 70+ litres in less than 20 minutes, that is COOKING baby. So we were able to mash in quite a lot early than we thought. The malt that was milled is a bit of a secret combination, KFC special sauce if you will, but I can say there is 4 different strains in this brew. The beauty of such a small brewery is the ability to use the finest quality ingredients without compromising to a bean counter.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...ptyingWort.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...NightMates.jpg

Stirring the grain in was made easier by the great design of the miniature brew house - here you can see the recirculation tray (so as to evenly push hot water without splash) and a hand.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...rringGrain.jpg

This is a bit closer on the tray, well designed it moves up and down an internal pole to get to the required level. The mash in is ideal for this brew at about 66deg, we were a bit short of that, but that's what happens when you're new to a brew house!

Here is a sparging image, which is throwing hot water over the grain as you drain into the kettle, so we can obtain the desired amount of boilable wort.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...rgingGrain.jpg

This is the setup to hook into the kettle;

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...rlpoolConn.jpg

This is what the kettle looks like inside, you will note the angles pipes, that is so we can create a whirlpool effect - just like a big boy brewery!

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...gWhirlpool.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...nEyeOnTemp.jpg

The beer boils for 1 hour on this recipe, quite short, but the control you have over a small brew is exceptional.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...tleBoiling.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...leBoiling2.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...oilingTemp.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...othVessels.jpg

During the boil, hops are added, we were using CITRA hops for this, so basically a very American Pale Ale is in the works here. I won't give away the hop additions online, but this will be a bitter beer.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...one/HopAdd.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...one/HopAdd.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...appyHopAdd.jpg

After full boil we sent the beer to Fermenter One - this is a nice shot of the 'cookie' left behind;

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...HopRemains.jpg


Here is us pitching the yeast;

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...chingYeast.jpg

And here is the morning after!!!

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...rningAfter.jpg


The brew has sat since Monday, and we kegged her today. Looking at a 6% Pale Ale with strong bitterness, awesome.

I will keep you updated.

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