Everett Cellars

Hmm, might work. Depends on how well done the hea...

2012-05-21T20:25:21.888-07:00

Hmm, might work. Depends on how well done the head and trotters are I suppose; it won't set if all the delicious goo has melted away. Might throw another trotter in there just for insurance, or keep some dry gelatin handy in case it doesn't set.

Yeah, it was quite a deluge today!

Hi Russel! I was just googling for recipes for a s...

2012-05-21T18:19:13.832-07:00

Hi Russel!
I was just googling for recipes for a soup to make from all the bones (including head and trotters) of the pig roast we had yesterday. It was the unofficial end of season (almost) party for symphony musicians. Your recipe sounds awesome! Think I can do it with already roasted head and trotters? just for the broth?
Enjoying this wonderful Seattle rain after being teased into thinking we might be close to summer after all... guess that's why it's so green here!

Headed up there a couple weeks ago, only found thr...

2012-05-21T09:00:55.384-07:00

Headed up there a couple weeks ago, only found three morels. Went back Saturday and found another three, then headed over to the Tumwater Canyon area and found 30. Pretty picked over, but the area is still flushing. No kings yet, think it's been dry and it's still early.

did you ever go back to lake wenatchee for morels/...

2012-05-16T19:45:30.406-07:00

did you ever go back to lake wenatchee for morels/kings? I just went and only found a couple morels.

Nice! I wish you great luck and great times.

2012-05-03T16:30:56.904-07:00

Nice! I wish you great luck and great times.

Your chorizo looks fabulous. Will definitely try y...

2012-01-31T12:21:26.652-08:00

Your chorizo looks fabulous. Will definitely try you recipe.

Hey man! I was hanging out with a friend the other...

2011-04-23T12:53:58.357-07:00

Hey man! I was hanging out with a friend the other day who brews beer and you popped into my head. How are you and meryl doing down in Miami. Tried to facebook you but couldn't figure it out, but it took me to this blog. Let me know how you are doing sometime. I have the same contact info.
Hannah (tochni)

Be careful with the tire idea - those things leach...

2011-04-22T11:24:50.572-07:00

Be careful with the tire idea - those things leach all kinds of nasty stuff into the soil.

Nettles are up all over. I was driving around and...

2011-04-18T09:36:50.340-07:00

Nettles are up all over. I was driving around and could spot patches from the car. As for fiddleheads, Foraged and Found has had them at the farmer's markets these last few weeks if you just want to eat some. Langdon has a good overview of the supposedly carciogenic Bracken Ferns up on Fat of the Land. http://fat-of-the-land.blogspot.com/search/label/fiddleheads I usually just keep an eye out for Lady Ferns and go with those. Sword Ferns are too woody and hard to clean for my tastes.

I'm going to try to make a couple trips in sea...

2011-03-28T11:36:41.299-07:00

I'm going to try to make a couple trips in search of the wily nettle this spring. I can spot them pretty easily - even in the dark if stumbling through the woods in shorts and tee shirt... :-)

The fiddlehead is still too exotic - too many ferns to choose from and not sure which of them are edible (or even if there is a difference!).

Thanks again for the fun and informational blog!

Keep meaning to update with more non-beer posts. I...

2011-03-15T11:56:32.842-07:00

Keep meaning to update with more non-beer posts. It's winter, so there's not a lot of foraging going on. Although we've just started nettle and fiddlehead season. And I think morel season will be a little late this year, there's a lot of snow in the mountains!

Glad to have you back. I check your blog quit oft...

2011-03-15T11:42:26.904-07:00

Glad to have you back. I check your blog quit often here at work (though gave it a rest recently with your inactivity).

Always fun to read about your brewing experiments. I'm a mushroomer, so there's that too...

Thanks!

I fixed the T key.

2011-03-02T11:49:14.206-08:00

I fixed the T key.

Do what you're comfortable with - I've als...

2011-01-11T10:51:15.168-08:00

Do what you're comfortable with - I've also blogged and know that it can be a burden. I'm a mushroomer and enjoy your fungi posts. But I also like hearing about the beer and sausages!

Thanks and have a great 2011!

Agreed. 290 is fairly risky, mostly because the s...

2010-11-17T11:26:29.053-08:00

Agreed. 290 is fairly risky, mostly because the syrup doesn't heat uniformly (unless you have the right size pan that's really conductive). I burnt a batch of honey that way, produced some bitter burnt tastes but also a pleasant 'toasted marshmellow' as well. I'd cut it off at 285 for the really dark stuff from now on.

I made a big ol' 10% Belgian Strong Dark Christmas beer with a pound of Amber (270 degrees) and two pounds of Dark (290). I got an enormous fruit complexity! But also a sort of tartness that was strange. It's like I put Black Cherries into it. Unfortunately, my yeast and ambient temp weren't up to the task and it pooped out at 1.023. So I'm hitting it with some oak and brett and I'll brew another batch to see if I can get it drier and really see what these syrups come out like.

In my limited experience: Getting above 285 result...

2010-11-16T21:36:09.952-08:00

In my limited experience:
Getting above 285 results in unwanted burnt tastes.
The pastry brush + water was a big help on crystallization, and temperature control.
I didn't get the complexity I was after in my beer - may need lower temps and a longer time than I went with.

way to go bro! could you rig a hinge for the glass...

2010-10-21T00:54:23.530-07:00

way to go bro! could you rig a hinge for the glass doors and maybe use the little lifty side things they have for truck bed covers to make the doors easier to open and close?

Nice use of "Poppycock"

2010-09-28T10:03:24.939-07:00

Nice use of "Poppycock"

Ha! Give it a try, it was a lot of fun. And my t...

2010-09-27T14:32:24.174-07:00

Ha! Give it a try, it was a lot of fun. And my taters and pretty tasty, if I say so myself.

you mean potatographs. Thanks for posting the res...

2010-09-23T15:36:20.330-07:00

you mean potatographs.

Thanks for posting the results. I'll have to try this out next year.

Ask and ye shall receive! http://russelleverett.bl...

2010-09-17T14:16:10.788-07:00

Ask and ye shall receive! http://russelleverett.blogspot.com/2010/09/you-say-potato-i-say-ye-chickn-of-dirte.html

Was their a preferred method of growing potatoes o...

2010-09-09T17:23:28.527-07:00

Was their a preferred method of growing potatoes or where they all the same by the end?

Hi Carlo. Thanks for the reassurance, I'm wor...

2010-07-19T17:41:44.172-07:00

Hi Carlo. Thanks for the reassurance, I'm worried about the sake slowly getting worse over time. I'm happy with how well it's pasteurized, but sake is not known for its shelf-life. I've got about 10 bottles left, so I'm trying to hoard them, squirreling them away for the future, trying them at intervals. I'll probably make a batch per year or so, and I will definitely be diluting next time!

I'm in the Nakazoe stage of my 2nd batch; both...

2010-07-19T16:42:05.061-07:00

I'm in the Nakazoe stage of my 2nd batch; both batches were 4L from about 5.5# highly polished rice. A very skilled homebrewer for over 20 years, I bought Fred Eckhardt's book in 1992 and was intimidated by it until 2009.
I wasn't clear on how much of the grain would get 'eaten', so I posted and a friend-of-a-friend of Fred's contacted Fred and he set my mind at ease.
I, too, didn't dilute my brew, but I *did* pasteurize it - Fred was adamant about doing this! A challenge was to steam the rice - as you found out - so I bought a multi-tier bamboo steamer, lining the bottoms of each layer with butter muslin. I like your couscous approach!
It has been almost exactly 1 year since I bottled/pasteurized my first batch and it got better over time, MUCH better.
That improvement spurred my interest in making a second batch.

Hah, ask and ye shall receive. Eventually.

2010-07-14T12:58:46.613-07:00

Hah, ask and ye shall receive. Eventually.