Bunchgrasser’s quote of the day

“Anatomy is destiny.”

-Sigmund Freud

Awesome Gluten-Free Beer Recipe

My friends and family know that I’m a homebrewer and homevintner (is that a real word?). I wouldn’t call myself an “experienced” homebrewer, but I have made some very tasty liquid refreshments over the past few years. I’ve been more into winemaking the past couple of years, but I still make time for a few batches of barley pop for special occasions.

I remember stumbling through my very first batch of homebrew many years ago. I had no idea what I was doing, but the wonderful thing about brewing beer – is that it is soooo easy to do. I just bought the basic brewing kit at a local shop, took it home and followed the directions, step by step. Beginners sometimes make mistakes or have “sanitation” issues, but generally the process is easy enough for anyone with some patience to follow. My first batch of ale was a rich caramel color and tasted heavenly – beginners luck perhaps?

Anyway, back to the point of this posting. My dad loves beer, but several years ago he was diagnosed with Celiac disease, which is a severe allergy to gluten. For those not familiar – it means you cannot ingest anything with gluten which is just about everything it seems. Beer, which is made primarily from grains (such as barley), along with hops, yeast and water is an obvious no-no. Or so I thought…

My friend Kevin who runs the local brew shop told me about a gluten-free beer recipe. It uses sorghum extract rather than malt extract, so there is no gluten. I immediately bought the ingredients and headed home to fire up the ole brewpot. For those that are interested, I’ve included the basic recipe and process below. For homebrewers, this will be all you need. But if you’ve never done this before and want to give it a try – I recommend contacting your local brew shop for more detailed instructions and supplies.

 Gluten-free beer recipe

7.5 lbs. sorghum extract
2 cups lightly toasted buckwheat groats (crack with rolling pin)
3 oz. Cascade hops (60-15-10-5 schedule)
1 packet Danstar Windsor brewing yeast

I cooked 6 gallons in 32 quart stainless steel brew pot over propane burner. Soaked buckwheat groats in a grain bag in water and brought it up to 180 degrees. Squeezed out and removed grain bags and then added sorghum extract as it was coming to a boil. Added first batch of hops, then added successive batches as the boil progressed. I saved ½ oz. for dry hopping in secondary but this is optional.

I had to remove the pot a couple of times to keep it from foaming over. I remembered to add an extra gallon of water to compensate for evaporation during boil. I might actually go with 6.5 gallons next time as it still came up a little short. Set brew pot into large plastic tub with water and 2 large bags of ice. Had to add ice several times but it did bring the temp down to 80F pretty quickly. Poured hot wort through strainer into 6 gallon ale pail and took it into the house. Pitched 1 packet of yeast at 80 degrees F and sealed with an airlock. Starting specific gravity was 1.044.

 

The beer turned out much better than expected and my dad loves it. I’ve drunk a few bottles as well and, although it has a distinctive taste – it is very drinkable and great for quenching your thirst on a hot summer day.

 

Cheers

 

 

Bunchgrasser’s quote of the day

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”

M.K. Gandhi

United Sodium wins 2008 Oregon Cup!

The hard working United Sodium ladies held off a very determined FC Portland Platinum in a 2-1 win to clinch the U12G Oregon State championship for a second year! Both teams took to the pitch looking for victory, but some great passing and two unanswered goals in the first half by Marissa Reid put Sodium in the drivers seat.

FC Platinum came out strong in the second half, scoring a goal to cut the difference to one. But the exceptional Sodium defense put up a brick wall, effectively sealing off their goal to the opposing team. When the whistle sounded, Sodium had the 2-1 victory and a second consecutive state championship.

Watching these two talented teams battle it out was great fun, and I think my heart rate is finally back to normal now. My hat is off to all of these amazing athletes, who work so hard and truly enjoy the game. Both teams are now off to Regionals in Hawaii for some tough competition, sunshine and more fun.

Congratulations Sodium!

Aloha

2008 Oregon State Cup Finals – United Sodium vs. FC Portland Platinum

Who: THUSC Sodium vs. FC Portland Platinum

Where: Tualatin Hills Rec Center – Field 5

When: Saturday, May 3rd at 3:00pm

Oregon State Cup – Final Schedule

 

United Sodium clinches spot in championship game

The United Sodium ladies showed their resolve with a last minute (literally) goal to beat the Keizer Hotshots 1-0 on Saturday. It was a hard fought victory in a game where both teams battled with no score down to the last 60 seconds.

With the pressure on and time running out, Payten Sonnen and Dayna Carlson teamed for a pass to Bailey Hall who found the back of the net. As usual, the Sodium team looked poised, but intensely determined on field, their defense all but closing off access to their own net.

This well-fought victory was a relief to all (especially parents and other supporters) and earned Sodium not only a spot in the championship game this Saturday, but also qualified them for regionals in Hawaii.

United Sodium blog   Tualatin Hills United Soccer   US Youth Soccer National Championship

Well Done Sodium!

Aloha