Brew time this Sat. and I have a new request from the family to make a Kolsch style beer. A great rundown on the history and a great simple recipe go to beersmith's blog at: http://www.beersmith.com/blog/2008/04/05/brewing-a-kolsch-beer-recipe-beer-styles/

Now for the twist, small but changes the look and a little flavor, I'm adding .25lb of de-bittered black patent malt and 1lb of crystal/caramel to get a nice foamy head and add a little sweetness. That should do the trick. an amber Kolsch if it's still allowed to be called a Kolsch.

To keep things warm my partner gave me a fridge and I slapped a temperature controller on it to make sure I keep it at 60 degrees. In Austin, TX it really gets freakin hot so this method has saved all my beer as well as controlled the temps even better than I could have ever imagined.

New Texas Beer and recommendations

I've seen the latest round of seasonal by Real Ale, which is called Devil's Backbone. Great name, haven't tasted it yet and from my knowledge its really Belgianny, meaning sweet with a farmhouse type of yeast. I look forward to tasting it and will give tasting notes when I do. My personal favorite Belgian is an IPA from La Chouffe called HOUBLON CHOUFFE Dobbelen IPA Tripel. It's sweet but bitter balances nicely, and wow what an aroma. Get out there and get both and compare. It's at Grapevine markets and central market in Austin, and I'm sure other places that has great beer.

Cheers!

Jeff Bell