In anticipation of the dark days to come, our seasonal brew for 2014 is a belly warming ginger stout with orange peel and coriander.  Adam hasn't made a stout since our earliest brewing days.

Juniper berries are what make this brew special. Active brew time is about four hours. 

First tap for our Juniper IPA landed on Valentines Day, when Laura got here from Seattle. After brainstorming with Mike and Erika we landed on a ramped-up-pub-night for our inspiration. We made chicken wings, french fries, and pizza. 

Mike and Erika whipped up a saucy wing that braised in cinnamon, star anise, ginger and other delicious Asian flavors. 

This recipe is adapted from Cook's Illustrated. 

Wings Ingredients

• 3 lbs chicken wings
• 3 tbls cornstarch
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp cayenne

Instructions: "Shake and bake" the dry ingredients with the wings in a ziplock. Deep fry the wings for 12 minutes and move to a pan with a rack. Keep it in a 200 degree oven while cooking the remaining batches. Right before serving, toss the wings in a large bowl with the sauce. Be careful not to over sauce, a little goes a long way. Serve with green onions sprinkled on top. 

Sauce Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Frank's Red Hot
• 4 tbls butter
• 2 tbls Serracha 
• 1 tbls brown sugar

Instructions: Heat the ingredients in a pan until combined. 

Traditional and easy french fries in duck fat

• 2 1/2 pounds potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch match sticks
• 6-8 cups of oil, we used a combination of duck fat and peanut oil

Instructions: Add potatoes to oil and heat to a rolling boil over high heat. Stir early in order to prevent potatoes from sticking. Let the potatoes fry for 15-25 minutes. Stirring occasionally with tongs. 

Transfer with a skimmer to a paper towel lined baking sheet and season with salt. 

For our second fry variation we used the same method as above, but Erika added two sprigs of rosemary for the last 1-2 minutes of cooking. The result was a mellow and utterly delicious rosemary aroma and taste. 

The fries are cut thickly and then cooked three times. 

• First, they are vacuum sealed with potato starch and water. 
• Next, they get a rinse and are vacuum sealed again with 500 grams of water with 10 grams of salt. 
• They get 20-25 minutes in the sous vide machine. 
• Then the moisture is pulled out in the vacuum sealer.  
• Then they are deep fried twice. Once at 325 degrees for 3 minutes. 
• Then cool. 
• Then deep fry again at 365 degrees for 3 minutes. 
• Transfer with a skimmer to a paper towel lined baking sheet and season with salt. 

This batch of our original APA recipe was dry hopped with fresh ginger, orange peel, and hops. It was brewed on Matt's birthday, hence Matt's "Ginger Ale." 

42 IBUs
6.3% ABV

Instead of putting up a Christmas tree this year, I decided to repurpose all of our decorations to create a mantle tree. Christmas tree on the wall… why not?

Late yesterday morning, Adam and I looked around the house and looked at each other and realized:

The house is decorated (and clean)
The beer is fresh 
And king crab is on sale at Carrs… 

Sometimes, when you're not looking, everything falls perfectly into place. Erika and Mike contributed some delectable dishes.They whipped up the iceberg lettuce salad from Smitten Kitchen and some delicious risotto. The night was finished with a chocolate mousse over fresh raspberries and Christmas cookies from Kathy's kitchen. Hey, and we even have some beer left!

This late-winter, early-spring has been a prolific time for the conical. As nature begins to melt away the the weight of winter, we too are shedding the heavier IPAs. The aroma of fresh cracked coriander and orange peel is as seductive as the burgeoning sunshine.

Wet Wilson IPA: White IPA brewed with coriander and orange peel
Brewed on February 23th & March 30th
6.3%
53 IBUs


Blonde IPA
Brewed on March 9th
6.3%
66 IBUs

Brewed in December, 2012 
Adam's cousin, Tim was up at Christmas and we were excited to brew with him. The beer came out better than expected. I think it's the best beer Adam has brewed to date! For the first time, we added orange peel and coriander; it is refreshing and flavorful. It finished at 6.2% and 55 IBUs.

Crafted in early December, 2012
This was the first wine that we produced at our house. It is still very green, but I really like it. We didn't bottle it. Instead, Adam decided store it in a corny keg with a layer of CO2 on top. 

Crafted in October, 2012
We used an Alaskan wildflower honey from McGrath. It is a medium dry mead that is lightly carbonated. It finished at 9%.

Brewed in June, 2012
8.5% double IPA, whew!
110 IBUs

Crafted in September, 2011
This is like chocolate raspberry heaven. There are only a few bottles left. I'll be looking to making a new batch soon! 
We bottled the port with tea corks and wax.
They made really beautiful Christmas gifts for 2011.