We are thieves. Dirty, filthy, rotten thieves are we. To call us unseemly would be an insult to all of the unseemly folk you’re likely to see around town. Same goes for the dishonest, unscrupulous, unwashed, crooked, amoral— Would that I could list these delicious adjectives all night, but we’re on a schedule here, people. Everyone on the bus… the bus to Lyingbastardville.

For you see, we brewed with a stolen recipe on Saturday. Steph and Tim were kind enough to offer us the recipe for their Foreign Extra Stout, and we accepted it… right from under their noses.

Steph asked us to refrain from listing the detailed recipe here, but I can at least give you their description of the beer:

Just as its appearance suggests, this beer is malty, roasty, and chocolatey. However, this style of stout is actually intended to be enjoyed in tropical climates. Smooth and refreshing, with a substantial alcohol kick, our Foreign Extra Stout will make you feel like you’re on the beach in Cancun…
OG: 1.074, 7.2% ABV, 30 IBU

This was one of the five beers that Steph and Tim brewed for their wedding back in April, and Mel and I have been wanting to try putting our own spin on the recipe for a while. We’ll fill you in on just what that spin is in a couple weeks, as long as it doesn’t fail in an epic manner, but, for now, you may rest assured that it will be awesome.

And now I’ve spent 246 words telling you that I have nothing to tell you. In place of the usual recipe listing, here is the first chapter of Moby Dick:

Call me Ishmael. Some years ago — never mind how long precisely — having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen and regulating the circulation. Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses…

Yeah, all right, I can’t keep that up.

I can’t believe Ray did that … anyway, you guys are going to love this beer once I put my little twist on it. Though I can note that I goofed and did not order the correct amount of hops. We had a half ounce too little from what the original recipe called for, but since the average alpha acid was for this particular hop from this particular supplier was higher by roughly 0.7 percent, we were okay. C’est la vie!

Well damn, now I gotta write a post about why what she just said makes so much sense…

Homebrewing, Our Brew Days