A Brief Lecture in Thermodynamics

Brewing beer is all about thermodynamics. Pour hot water over malted barley. Let sit in an insulated container. Drain off malty water. Hit grains with more hot water (called 'sparging'). Boil wort (the product of hot water and grains) with Hops for bitterness. Cool wort. Pitch yeast. That's it.

Last weekend I forgot all about what happens when you add a too hot liquid to a not as hot glass carboy. The carboy, the wort, and 3 and a half hours of work all shattered at the same time. If anyone heard the low sound of thunder in the distance last Sunday it was most likely me venting my frustrations through various oaths, both profane and scatological.

After a return trip to the homebrew supply store I was ready for a rematch. I brewed the same recipe - an Irish Red Ale (think Smithwicks not Killians).

This is my custom made Weber Sparge Master 2000 - the ultimate in hi tech brewing technology. Note the pint of homebrew. It's standard operating procedure to drink a pint of beer when brewing. It makes the process go faster.




This video demonstrates the advances in brewing technology that the Weber Sparge Master 2000 brings to the backyard brewer. Background music by Andrew Bird.



One week in the fermenter than a month of bottle conditioning and it'll be ready to drink. If I can wait that long.