It has been a while since I did any woodworking. This weekend I decided to carve a special spoon/paddle used to stir the boiling wort when making homebrew. Most people refer to this utensil as a “mash rake”. I prefer the term “spurdle”. It is made from a Brazilian tigerwood board that my brother salvaged. […]

I just noticed that one of the local Portland, OR restaurants was featured on the FailBlog. It used to be located downtown, but now it is on 82nd across the street from our SE Center.

Finally completed the disassembly of Sam’s R80/7. Just wanted to post a photo.

Also know as the Lord Of The Rings marathon. Showed up at 9am for a lite breakfast before waiting in line. Then movie 1 (extended version). Spent some time exploring the building. Then movie 2 (super extended version). A costume contest. Then movie 3 ( ultra uber super extended version). Cigar bar, bluegrass and a […]

My parents are suckers for strays and currently have two large dogs from the pound (Oregon Human Society). “Mabel” and “Indigo” are both are beautiful and unusual beasts. The former is a brindled mutt – probably with Plott Hound and/or Blackmouth Cur origins. The latter is a Catahoula Leopard Dog. It is Indie that became […]

I love antique stores – even though they often try to rip off people who don’t know the real value of an item. Here is a good example: The store around the corner had several cast-iron cornbread pans for sale. They ranged in price from  $20 – $55. I had recently picked one up at […]

Several years ago, I planted some timber bamboo in a big pot in the front yard. One stalk turned into two, then into twenty. Last week, the heavy snow toppled the (half buried) pot – blocking the front steps. We decided to do something about it, but when we cut the pot open, there was […]

After the success of the last all-grain stout, we decided to try an oatmeal version. We cooked oats in minimum amount of water as recommended by a book. Turned clumpy – probably kept it from adding much to the mash. In turn, the OG was low (1.042). Added 1lb natural cane sugar at end to […]

I have been brewing more and more lately. The basics are firm, but I am still learning and finding new resources. Just spotted this great calculator on powersbrewery.home.comcast.net

Everytime that I reload the forecast for today seems to change – swinging wildly between 25 to 45 degrees. Here it shows a current temp outside the range. WTF? You think that the programmers would have accounted for that. if (current > forecast) then updateForecast();