goodrichard.com

I don’t know why we didn’t think of it before, it was so easy. It’s only the second time we’ve bottled our home brewed beer, so perhaps the lack of experience played against us last time. Last night, though, we poured our latest batch of the dark golden stuff into its glass containers, learning some valuable lessons from the last time.

In April, we did it the tried and tested way, following the instructions to, quite literally, the letter. That means connecting the drainage tube with the filter on, and siphoning out the contents by way of an airflow into the bottles. Once it starts, it goes very fast and there has to be two of you; one to direct the siphon into the bottles, and one to have another bottle ready to swap when the previous one is full.

What the directions don’t tell you is that you end up with a very messy floor (unless you use a plastic bowl to stand the bottles in as we did), which the cat would delightfully drink up given half the chance. It’s undoubtedly a quick way of doing it, but as we found out, a bit too speedy. Then, it’s a case if wiping everything, and then capping the bottles themselves.

This time the method was a little longer, but much the better (and simpler) one. An initial siphon is given to separate any drinkable liquid from the sediment at the bottom of the fermenter, and any added wood chips which give the beer its ‘aged’ taste. Just the same as when we did the wine a few weeks ago, another fermenter is more than handy at this stage.

Then, rather than siphon the cleared brew into bottles, we used a large glass jug and a funnel to manually pour the beer into our brown bottles, which we’d already put a teaspoon of sugar into, to condition the liquid while it sits for a couple of weeks. And what a difference this method makes. While it may take a little longer, the whole process is much less messy, and virtually hassle-free.

In fact the only problem we had was a shortage of bottles. The home brew kit told us that we would make near 50 pints of ale, and as we only had 27 500cl bottles, we had to pour more than a good amount into a demijohn, and the remainder into one of the snap-top bottles we use for the fruit-tinged spirits. Even the capping seemed easier this time, too.

All in all, after just over an hour (and a little over a week to brew), another success. We had a taste, and our finished Woodforde Great Eastern Ale is very pleasant, and should be even more palatable once the sugar has worked its magic, giving us plenty of perfect brew, ready to be cracked open and drunk over the festive period and beyond.

Pleased with our first attempt at brewing beer at home, we started another fermenter’s worth last weekend. This time around, we’re brewing a Woodforde Real Ale Kit, and as we ride the trains five days a week, we thought Great Eastern Ale particularly apt.

With no sugar to add (it’s already included in the concentrate), this kit and the process is much simpler than the one which gave us such good results last time. The added airlock from the wine fermenter means we should be able to keep a more accurate eye on it, too.

First, we sterilised the fermenter, and stood the two 1.5kg cans of tar-like concentrate in boiling water for five minutes, as directed. Pouring them into the fermenter, we added 3.5 litres (6 pints) of boiling water and topped up to 23 litres (40 pints) with cold liquid, thoroughly mixing all the contents together.

Once they had dissolved, we then added the most potent ingredient, the yeast, and left it to bubble away next to the electric radiator in the kitchen for a few days. It’s certainly been doing something, as the bubbling has been almost constant, making us wonder how we managed to make so much good golden stuff the last time we tried.

All of that was on Sunday. It’s now Friday, and sometime over the weekend we’re hoping to test the brew for the correct gravity. If it’s all right, we can then bottle it, and learning from the wine and the beer the first time around, we should have it easier when it comes to siphoning. Fingers crossed.

We were entertaining again last night, as Will and Becs came to visit from Walthamstow. An enjoyable evening was had by all, but to push ourselves a little further and divert from our now almost traditional menu of soup, quiche and salad, followed by chocolate mousse (all easy to make and useful if you have a glut of eggs like us), I made a different soup for our starter course.

Like the roasted pepper and tomato soup I made a couple of weeks ago, this one is also packed full of vegetable goodness, and is thick and creamy, thanks to the blended tofu. Not enough people use squashes as they seem to be afraid of them, but the butternut variety gives this recipe a lovely taste and golden colour.

This recipe goes especially well with home-baked crusty bread (but it can be quite filling), and makes four hearty bowlfuls.

Ingredients
1 large onion
200g of carrots
1 butternut squash (approximately 750g to 1kg in weight)
1 slice of root ginger
600ml (1 pint) of vegetable stock
250g tofu (if frozen, defrosted)

Method
Chop the onion roughly, and the carrots and squash into large cubes. Place the onion in a large saucepan or stock pot with a little olive oil, and heat gently until soft or for 10 minutes. Add the carrots, butternut squash, ginger and stock to the pan, and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Chop the tofu into rough cubes and add to the vegetable mixture, returning the pan to the boil once more. Once boiled, simmer the mixture for a further 10 minutes. Process the whole mixture through a food processor until smooth and creamy.

Serve into warmed soup bowls, or pour back into the saucepan and leave until ready to eat.  When ready to serve, warm gently, and serve with crusty bread, stirring in a little cream if necessary. Like the roasted pepper and tomato soup, this recipe can be made in batches, bagged, and put into the freezer, providing that the tofu hasn’t been frozen before.