My First IPA

A couple of weeks ago, I climbed Half Dome, in Yosemite National Park. Half Dome is a huge granite formation, towering almost 4000 feet above the floor of Yosemite Valley. It was a good 8 miles from the beginning of the trail, and 3800 feet of climbing. It also tok 14 hours, and by the time I was finished, all I could think about was where I could get a beer.

At the Yosemite Lodge, which was the only place still open at 10 PM, I had a nice salad and a beer. From the choices they offered, I picked a Mammoth Brewing Company Epic IPA. It was smooth and as tasty a beer as I have ever had. I enjoy a good IPA, as much as the next guy, but I rarely go out of my ay to order one. I prefer a pale or a red, myself. Maybe it was because I was so thirsty that I really enjoyed that one, and a second pint as well. I have found a Bevmo outlet that stocks Mammoth brews, and I'm thinking about going and getting some for the weekend.

While on my way home, I stopped off at the Merced River just outside the park, and pulled ten gallons of water out. I brought the water home, and two nights ago, I put six gallons in my brew kettle, and brought it to a near boil. Using a recipe kit from the Folsom Brewmeister, I brewed up my very own IPA with Yosemite Water. I filtered the water to get the particulates out, and boiled all of the water during the brewing process. Since it is summertime, I placed the carboy in a tub and put ice around it, and I'm watching the fermentation taking place.

Fermenting is my favorite part of brewing. Most of the cooking part is spent cleaning up before and after, and disinfecting stuff. I really enjoy the passive watching of the bioloical processes that result in That Which is Brew. Yeast is a wonderful organism, which has done a lot for mankind, maybe more than any other life form on the planet, even dogs. Maybe not more than cows, since cows give us milk and meat, but still a lot.

I still have a few bottles of my Summer Ale sitting in the fridge. After that, I want to sample a couple of Mammoth Ales, especially the 395 IPA. I had a bottle of 395 some years ago, also at Yosemite. I remember it had a sage component to the flavor, which I found to be quite refreshing at the time. When my IPA comes up for bottling, I'm going to have to wait a month to drink it, so I will have to be ready to brew something else. Self-beerficiency is an elusive goal.