Annie Keys Released

Find Out First, Then Invest

annie — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 05:33:55 +0000

I really had no intention for this blog to become a make beer blog and this is probably going to be my last one on beer for a while but I wanted to say this about starting and maybe you can avoid some of the mistakes we made.

When it comes to home brewing, that will only happen when you too can make your own beer at home. But a mature approach to this very adult hobby means checking it out and knowing the investment of time, money and space in the home before you spend your first dollar to get set up as a home brewer.

And there are almost certainly a number of home brewing societies and clubs in town that you can find out about online or through your local retail brewing supply store. So you will get plenty of chances to sit in with a new friend to step through the brewing process and not only learn what equipment you will need but how it is used as you get training from an “old pro” in home beer making.

If you do so you will have already witnessed that home brewing is a big event in the house filling up the kitchen, the refrigerator, making a mess sometimes and requiring places to store, refrigerate and ferment the beer in the various stages from ingredients to finished product.

If they can attend meetings at the home brewing club or go to competitions or other events that are all about home brewing, they can catch the same enthusiasm you have. By getting a feel for the equipment when you are preparing to start your home brewing hobby, you can prepare a storage space for the equipment when it is not in use.

Be Patient and the Rewards Will Come

annie — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 17:05:38 +0000

Well in keeping with the thread of beer making in the last few posts I broach a really tough subject this post and that is the waiting. And when it comes to brewing your own beer, maybe the most difficult step of them all is the fermentation and aging process.

But you also know that if you break in and interrupt the process too soon, the beer you drink will be unsatisfactory and not nearly as rich and flavorful as how it will be when the aging process is done. If you went that route, you would eventually end up with a lot of beer in various stages of fermentation and aging and you would have to date and mark the storage bottles so you know which beer is ready to use and which needs more time to reach maturity.

And when you consider that an average minimum size of a home beer brewing cycle results in five gallons of beer, that can mean you will have a lot of finished beer around unless you have a big audience of beer drinkers to help you drink up the stuff. The time between when beer is bottled after the brewing process is complete until it is ready to taste can be anywhere from six weeks to six months if you include both fermentation and aging.

As opposed to perhaps your impression before you became a home brewer, you will not store the beer in the refrigerator during this phase because colder temperatures actually stop the fermentation process. So take my advise and do it right and just wait until it is all done and then the process will be all the more satisfying. Besides after the first batch is done and you have honed your skills and you know about how much you and your friends will drink you can have a steady flow of available beer ready for consumption.

Sweet Slow Blues from The Brian Feist Blues Band

annie — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Brian Feist sings and plays sweet blues on a ’58 Les Paul reissued flame top through a modified 18watt Maz Jr. by Dr. Z

Sweet Blues in F

annie — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Sweet Blues in F from Dany Casavant. Epiphone 335 Dot with Gibson 57 Classic pickups on Vox DA5

Beer Kit or Orginal Style?

annie — Sun, 18 May 2008 13:57:25 +0000

My last post was about a new Keys Family and friends tradition of beer making and I have been reading a lot about making it with a kit and here is my observations about doing it with a kit. You can decide what is best for you, to go it the orginal way or buy the kit and take the shortcuts. Here are my thoughts:

There are a lot of people who have taken the plunge to buy all the equipment and get started making their own beer from scratch at home. By buying a simple device called a beer making machine, you can easily make a batch of beer right in the home The good thing about a beer making machine is that it is basically a plug and go situation.

The entire design of a beer making machine is based on the idea of reducing the mess and fuss of beer making for that first time home brewer who needs to have some of the joy of making their own brew but not as much of the work and the worry. But as with any ready made solution for discovering something as great as home brewing your own beer, there are pluses and minuses to breaking yourself in on a beer making machine.

The down side of using a beer making machine to break into the craft of home brewing is that because it is completely set up when you buy it as a kit, you don’t get the change to play with the ingredients and enjoy the creativity and experimentation that is a big part of why beer making is so fun.

By breaking into home brewing with the beer making machine, you get some of the experience of making and fermenting your own beer and then bottling it to serve a few weeks later as a genuine product of your little at home brewery.

Everybody’s Kung Fu Fighting Music Video

annie — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

martialartscinema asked:

This is a highlight of Shaolin Monk performances and demonstrations edited together to the song everybody was Kung Fu fighting.

Keys Home Made Beer

annie — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:51:35 +0000

We started a little tradition a few months ago in the Keys home and that is beer making and I thought I would tell you a little about it. It has turned into quite a nice thing as we gathered a few friends together and this is kinda what we did.

First you get a new passion in your life that will keep you busy and learning a side of beer making that you never knew could be so fascinating. And finally, once you get set up with the equipment and learn the “ropes” of brewing your own beer at home, you can make beer that is 100 times better than anything you can get at the liquor store or in a restaurant.

The great thing about home brewing that in addition to all these benefits, it really is not difficult to learn how to make great beer right at home. One great way to get some help with this process and make it even more fun is to learn to make beer with a group of friends. Then when the beer enters the fermentation stage and what you all need is patience not to break into the beer and drink it before its time, you can be a support group to be willing to wait for it because you know how good it will be. But the other value of working together with good friends is that you can eventually get a feel for how much beer you will make with each batch and how much each of you will use in a period of time.

jesse feelin the blues

annie — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

oh the sweet blues

Birthdays or Any Day in San Diego is Beautiful

annie — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 16:24:09 +0000

My oldest daughter had her birthday this last weekend. She is two now. We had all the family and many friends over for the event. I don’t think she will remember many of the events of the weekend but we sure had a good time. A lot of my family came here to see my new daughter and celebrate my oldest daughter’s birthday at the same time.

It was my favorite thing to have my family together for whatever the reason is and this is even better having them here for my daughter. We had the blowup water slide for the kids and we did our usual bbq on the grill thing and the following day we all went to the zoo for a day with the animals. It was quite a treat for those that were here from out of town and they seemed to be very jealous of the place where we lived. I would be too. I have said it before but I love it here. There are some drawbacks and you all know that we struggle paying all the bills but it is all in trade for the beautiful moments that come so often that you don’t get living elsewhere.

It is really like getting a little piece of vacation all the time. It just does you heart and your mind good to have that enjoyment comes so often. For me the weather is a major factor in making it all real and what we have here is almost perfect.

Sweet Blues on Fire

annie — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

This is My Favorite Sound,Feelings, Heart and Soul all thrown into this one.The Full Version will be Available soon on CD!!!!!Long Live The Blues!!!!