That's right, this weekend I will be brewing a beer with vegetables in it for the first time ever. The recipe comes from an old issue of Brew-Your-Own Magazine. I'll be brewing the Sweet Potato ESB, though only in a half batch (2.5 gallons). This may sound odd, but last summer I spoke with the head brewer at Lazy Magnolia Brewing who told me that they brew their Jefferson Stout with sweet potatoes. Every beer they make over there at Lazy Magnolia is delicious, so I trust the guy.
North Carolina is a big producer of sweet potatoes, so big in fact that they have a Sweet Potato Commission. This will be my tribute to my former life in 'Whavul' in the southeastern part of the state, where much of the sweet potato farming occurs. I figured the things ain't any good for eatin', so maybe they'll be good for beer makin'!
I found your blog to be quite interesting. I am a student attending Arizona State University and am working on an article about the art of beer brewing and why people, like yourself find it gratifying. I am wondering if you would be alright with speaking with me. I have a few questions I would like to receive your input on. My email is dlsalaza@asu.edu. I look forward to hopefully hearing from you.
ReplyDeleteDesiree, if you want to interview locally you have a new homebrewing store near you called Brew Your Own Brew (http://brewyourownbrew.com/index.htm). This is their second location that they've opened, the first is in Tucson down the street from me, and if you go there and want some help, ask for Joel. He was the best staff member at Tucson, and the boss-man stole him from us!
ReplyDeleteBrew Your Own Brew
Retail Store
525 E. Baseline Rd.
Gilbert, AZ 85233
Phone: 480-497-0011
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Anyway, Jason, how did the wort taste? I was just trying to look up the sweet potato recipe that I remember seeing in BYO (I'm on the road), and couldn't find it. I had an idea of using okinawan sweet potatoes to make funky naturally-colored beers. I love cooking with them because, well, they're delicious, and they are a beautiful purple color (both cooked and raw) and the water you use to boil them is a lovely deep blue!
From what I can figure, I might be able to make some pretty tasty brews that are green, blue, and purple with the sweet potatoes, and I had the idea of a blood-red brew from an episode of Boy Meets Grill the other day where they used purple corn (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/purple-corn-and-pineapple-sangria-recipe/index.html).
-Brandon
I didn't taste the wort, but it came out with a OG of 1.070! It wasn't really orange to start out, but as the fermentation is settling down it's got a definite orange color to it. I'd be interested to see how some of those purple sweet potatoes would work out.
ReplyDelete