Franklin's Brewery

Vanilla Bean Stout

2011-10-30T13:01:00.000-07:00

My first trip to the Great American Beer Festival was back in 2002 as a representative of Martha's Exchange Restaurant & Brewing Company of Nashua, New Hampshire. My friend and former co-worker Greg Ouellette was celebrating his first year as brewer at Martha's with a trip to the mile high beer festival. Greg's most popular beer at the festival was by far his Velvet Elvis, a vanilla bean stout. Its a seasonal favorite for stout lovers at Martha's ever since. Now almost a decade later I found myself taking a shot at such a beer here at Franklin's.

In order to handle the vanilla bean flavor without it overpowering the beer the grist bill was loaded up with Maris Otter pale malt, crystal malts, oats, and the trio combination of chocolate malt, black patent malt and roasted barley. To insure there would be a nice residual sweetness in this beer lactose sugar was added to the boil. For a mellow bittering hop addition we stuck with English Fuggles and fermented with our house English yeast strain. This stout finished out with a rich malt body, creamy mouth feel, with notes chocolate and roasted goodness.

After fermentation was finished Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans were split,cut and steeped in the beer. After a couple weeks the combination of the stout with the beans produced a very pleasing combination of aromatic vanilla and chocolate decadence. We've tapped this on our nitro line for a rich,creamy indulgent dessert in a glass. Enjoy!

Ludicrous

2011-10-11T18:09:00.000-07:00

There's been a lot of interest in this beer since we tapped it,including a lot of questions from home brewers, so here we go. This project has been years in the making since I can recall having my first ever sour mash beer, Spuyten Duyvel, a Flemish-style red ale from the Seven Barrel Brewery in West Lebanon, New Hampshire ( at the time the sister brewery of Vermont Pub & Brewery in Burlington, Vermont) way back in 2001 . I believe the beer originated at VPB with Greg Noonan (R.I.P. )& his crew and made its way to 7B, as the long time brewer there Paul White( R.I.P.) once mentioned to me " I hate that fucking beer, Greg makes me brew it". Paul was always one to tell it like it is and his statement about the Duyvel could never be more true that some beers are extremely polarizing, even to brewers.

So why has it taken me a decade to make an attempt such a procedure? Well, the situation was never right to try it. In my mind two things would need to come together for this to happen, 1) the proper brewing facility and 2) an owner who would give me carte blanche to try such a crazy endeavor. So now 10 years later equipped with a mash tun that has not only the ability to seal and hold pressure but can also sustain temperature due to its own heating jacket I was off to the races.

One small piece of equipment was eluding me however, an Argon regulator. You read that right,Argon and its not typically found in a brewer's tool box so even after many attempts at reaching out to brewers near and far to borrow one, contacting tool rental companies and even the company that was going to rent me the tank of gas I had nothing. Finally I was able to locate a equipment supplier locally who had one for sale so one small investment latter I had a new tool for my box.

Brew day was actually split into two days, day one consisted of mashing in a grist consisting of Pilsner, Rye and Munich malts into the mash tun and holding it at 147 F for 90 minutes. Then the mash was recirculated and run off into the brew kettle. After the spent grain was removed, the mash tun was rinsed out of as much remaining debris as possible. Then using the heat exchanger the wort was pumped back into the mash tun from the kettle bringing the temperature down to just above 120 F. Fresh pilsner malt was then milled into the mash tun to inoculate the wort with the naturally occurring lactobacillus that is present on the surface of the grain. The heating jacket on the mash tun was then set to 120 F in attempt to keep Acetobacter ( a bacteria that will convert ethanol into acetic acid in the presence of oxygen ) out of the wort otherwise we'd be producing vinegar. To aid in the anaerobic aspect of this process we used Argon gas to flood the mash tun and keep oxygen out of the wort. Then we waited...

After two days and a significant PH drop in the wort we returned to the brew house and ran the wort from the mash tun into the kettle,boiled and processed it as any other normal beer. Repitching our house Saison yeast and allowing the fermentation to free climb. The temperature reached the upper 80s and the resulting combination of an acidified wort and high fermentation saison yeast fermentation was nothing short of amazing.

I've never encountered in beer what I was smelling and tasting in the days after fermentation. Never in beer is what I said, and that's because what I was encountering was that of a young white wine. Reminiscent of young Chenin Blanc in appearance as well as aroma and flavor, it was remarkable. The unique aspect was a sharp note of citrus, very much like freshly squeezed grapefruit juice lingering in the background.

As this beer has aged the sour character has smoothed out and the wine character is a little more subtle, as is the grapefruit. All in all this was a fun project and the results were delicious. Look for more sour mash beers to come.

Sorachi Samurai

2011-07-30T12:51:00.000-07:00

After the success of our Nelson Ha Ha this past year I thought about doing another pale ale to showcase a unique hop variety. This time it was Sorachi Ace hops which originated from Japan and our now available to the US market. Straight forward and simple as it gets this recipe is simply 2-row barley malt,some Millenium hops for bittering and Sorachi in the late stages of the kettle as well as the dry hop. Summer is the also the best time for this pale ale as Sorachi Ace hops showcase a fragrant lemon citrus zest that I hop you find very refreshing.

(Hattori Hanzō sword not included)

Saison '11

2011-07-30T12:10:00.000-07:00

If you asked 100 different people their definition of Jazz or Barbecue you'd get 100 different opinions.

In the world of beer, Jazz is otherwise known as Saison.

I can never truly say enough about Saison as its not only the most interesting beer style but also one of my favorites. Its the one style of beer that's less about style and all about artist interpretation. While styles like Kolsch and Pilsner have little room for creativity and focus on execution of process, Saison is about executing the process of creativity. In a nutshell Saison can be whatever you want it to be...well within reason...though that could be argued as well.

At Franklin's I produced as Saison in the early fall of 2010 and now again in summer of 2011 with one concept in mind, to make the most complex beer possible out of the least amount of ingredients and process.

The players in this were 100% pilsner malt,Saaz hops,Belgian Saison yeast and of course the terrior of the brewing world, the local water supply. This combination of straight forward ingredients along with allowing the yeast to do something that if 99% of yeast strains in the world were allowed to do would produce detrimental results. The process or lack there of is a simple free climb in temperature with no cooling whatsoever. Normally when a yeast consumes sugar during fermentation one of the byproducts is heat. In a enclosed space like a fermenter the thermal mass can get quite warm and as a result if it isn't cooled (typically between 60-70ish degrees Fahrenheit) the yeast will produce off flavors in the beer that in essence contaminate it making it very unpleasant to drink.

The exception to this in the brewing world are Belgian Saison yeast strains, which researchers speculate might have derived from wine yeast strains which seem to perform well closer to blood temperature. So here on Baltimore Ave we allow the yeast to start fermenting and because we have turned off the controls to our glycol cooling jacket on our fermenter what results is a fermentation the build higher and higher temperatures each day. Typically I've seen the digital thermometers read as high as 88 degrees Fahrenheit and I've heard of other breweries hitting 95. Maybe next year we can turn off the AC in the building and see how high we can get the fermenter...just kidding.

This years version in my opinion is a much better example of what I'm shooting for as its substantially drier than last years version enabling the yeast and late hop additions to shine in the glass. I hope you can find the simply joy in a very straight foward exotic beer.

Mic Czech

2011-07-30T11:54:00.000-07:00

Pils, glorious pils. Since its inception in the Czech Republic in 1842 this beer has been brewed and changed the world of beer like no other style. It has inspired many great Pilsner beers since and many not so great, regardless it has produced along with its red headed step child offspring the number one style of beer consumed in the world today.

In Mic Czech we pay homage to the original, Plzeňský Prazdroj, better known world wide by its German name Pilsner Urquell. Our Bohemian style pilsner is the result of a long and delicate handling process. Using high quality Bohemian Pilsner malt, Saaz hops and one of the world's oldest and most notable lager strains this beer was the result of seven weeks of patience. We think its worth it and hopefully you do to as you enjoy its light body packed with crisp malt and hop flavor.

Cruel Summer

2011-07-30T11:40:00.000-07:00

The Washington D.C.'s metro area has an incredibly brutal summer season with blistering heat and humidity so fowl that even your sweat droplets have sweat droplets. To counter this I thought it would be a good idea to have a summer thirst quencher on our menu. Though marketed as an English pub ale on our menu, this recipe is nothing more than my take on English Ordinary Bitter.

That's right, "ordinary bitter"- its truely one of the awful style names that the world of beer has established and stuck to. First off these beers are not bitter,especially in the light of the modern appreciation for pale ales and I.P.A. and they can be far from ordinary when made right. Its been my experience that American beer drinkers don't take well to certain English monikers like bitter,mild or ordinary so....Cruel Summer it is.

Serving this beer via our nitro tap keeps this beer creamy and light in carbonation making it extremely quaffable since the alcohol is only 3.9%. An array of malted grains including a touch of wheat and British crystal malt help keep this beer light in body and give a touch of sweetness to balance the use of Fuggles and East Kent Goldings hops, two of the most traditional hops used in English brewing. Our house English yeast strain helps provide fruity esters to round out the beer making it a very refreshing bevergae because it's a cruel ... cruel ... cruel summer.

Brewmaster Flash and the Furious Five Hops

2011-07-30T11:27:00.000-07:00

The Hippity Hoppity Series
Volume 6

Don't drink me cause I'm close to the edge
I'm trying not to lose my head,
It's like a hop jungle sometimes it makes me wonder
How I keep from going under

The sixth installment of our Hippity Hoppity Double I.P.A. series is a no nonsense straight forward hop experience. BMF has the simplest grist bill for a DIPA that we've brewed in a while coming straight at you with 2-row barley, carapils and Weyermann's new Carabelge malt. First wort hopped with Nugget and additionally again half way through the boil helped provide this beer with a solid aggressive bitterness from the start. Later additions of Columbus,Cascade and Amarillo made sure the hop character stayed with you till well after you swallowed. Not to be outdone by the surplus of kettle hops, this beer was then double dry hopped with Chinook,Centennial,Columbus,Cascade and Amarillo for a full out attack on your nose and the beer's finish.

From having watched people in this area take a simple dish and spice it up with Old Bay I think this beer was no different. A simple yet solid malt base with abundance of wrist flicked hop seasoning sprinkled throughout.

Belgeastie Boys

2011-07-30T11:02:00.000-07:00

The Hippity Hoppity Series
Volume 5

No Sip til’-Brookland…

Hop on the petal never brew with nettle
My thirst brewing hotter than a boiling kettle
My job's ain't a job it's a damn good time
I'm an East Coast hop boy climbing the vine
While you're at the job working nine to five
The Belgeastie Boys in the beer garden cold drinkin' it live

For the fifth edition to the Hippity Hoppity series we have without a doubt the most complex and intriguing recipe so far, a American Double I.P.A. fermented with a Belgian yeast strain. This was probably the most fun I’ve ever had mashing in the grist bill for a any beer that I’ve made. Wait, did I say grist bill, I meant grist/hop bill because I did something I had never done with a beer before, I mashed hopped. Yeah, you read that right, nearly 20 pounds of Centennial and Amarillo whole leaf hops were added to the mash tun for what was the greatest smelling mash of my brewing career.

Then in the kettle, Chinook was added at the start of the boil and in the whirlpool along with more Centennial. The aroma coming out of the kettle at this point would have made for a great air freshener. Things weren’t over just yet though since the wort still had to ferment with our house Belgian yeast strain and then later it was dry hopped with both Chinook and Centennial again.

The finished product was a cross cultural combination of grapefruit/orange-citrus, spice, mild herbal notes and a smooth bitterness.

Dank U

2011-07-30T10:07:00.000-07:00

I first met Pierre Celis in a hotel lobby while in Denver for the 2004 Great American Beer Festival in Denver. He had just finished a meeting with what appeared to be a group that was anxious to import "Celis" branded beer into the states. After the meeting I stopped Pierre in the lobby and had a brief conversation about his upcoming beer projects and a brief stroll down memory lane about his former breweries and of course his revival of Wit beer. In under three minutes he educated me, made me laugh and most importantly made me fall in love with brewing all over again.

A year later back in Denver at the Colorado Convention Center I saw him again. Pierre was autographing his new autobiography "My Life" and taking pictures with fans. I stopped over and said hello, picking up a few copies for him to sign for me and a couple of friends. He remarked that he thought we had met before and I mentioned it was about a year ago here in Denver. As if he had a "eureka" moment he said "in a hotel right"? I smiled and said "yes, you've got a good memory", we both smiled and then he asked how my wit beer recipe was progressing. I was a bit startled that he remembered our brief conversation and I responded that it was coming along but was no where as good as his. Pierre then told me something that stuck with me, that hard work is rewarded and to keep working on it, but not to forget that the only way to make a wit beer better than his was to make it my own. That even the greatest imitators will always just be that, be original.

When I learned of his passing this spring it once again reminded me of his advice to be original and make something my own. Our wit beer here at Franklin's is greatly inspired by Pierre's wit beers, but to honor him with another rendition of something his name is synonymous with seemed a bit redundant. Instead I choose to brew something more original and my own. The idea was to re-pitch our Wit beer yeast from our Witty Twitty ( a yeast originating from his original wit beer in Belgium) into a Porter recipe unlike any other I had ever created.
This recipe started with 2-row barley malt, melanoidin, malted oats,Vienna malt,flaked oats( oatmeal) smoked malt,caramunich, two types of crystal malt,biscuit,chocolate and black patent malt, that's right, a dozen different grains. In addition cane sugar was added to the kettle to increase the gravity and American,English,German and Czech hops were added to the boil.
The end result is a Belgian inspired porter that checks in at 7.45 % ABV with notes of chocolate roast,subtle smoke and fruitiness on a body of good malt depth. In addition to what we tapped I have reserved a 60 gallon wine barrel of which was inoculated with multiple strains of Brettanomyces and other funk inducing microbes, so be on the lookout for special release from our funk cellar in the future.

Spring Blog Cleaning

2011-03-30T19:49:00.000-07:00

I'm guilty of letting things getting a little dusty over the end of the winter months here on the blog, but I hope to make better strides in the future. So after getting emails about some of the beers we've tapped in the last couple months and unfortunately I haven't posted much information about them...so here goes.

Batch 500- Wanting to make something unique for our 500th batch I really pulled from a lot of different influences. This beer started with pale malt (88%), special aromatic malt ( 11%) and crystal -120 malt (1%). The goal was to make a rich amber colored hue with a little malt in the background. Sugar was also added to the kettle to lighten the body and increase the gravity. German grown Tettnanger hops were used at 60 minutes and 5 minutes before "flame out" as well as bitter & sweet orange peel,lemon peel,coriander and chamomile flowers. These spice/floral additions were made in very small amounts as to not become noticeable in the finished product other than adding some depth and complexity. During the kettle whirlpool buckwheat honey was added which gave the wort additional sugars as well as further complexity.After fermentation, a secondary fermentation was sparked with the addition of Merlot grape must and blackberries. This addition not only raised the alcohol slightly but also gave the beer unique fruit note and some esters that would best be described as wine like. Finally the beer was then transferred onto medium toasted french oak where it sat for 30 days before serving.

Nelson Ha Ha- This beer was probably one of the biggest hits in my tenure here at Franklin's while being one of the simplest concepts. The Nelson Sauvin hop was developed,grown and first released in New Zealand in 2000. Descriptions of the hop's essential oils described it as “fresh crushed gooseberries” which is often used for the grape variety Sauvignon Blanc, thus where this hop variety got its name. The small production of this hop combined with demand of it in craft beer brewing community makes it really hard to attain. Our 11 pound box was result of a trade with Hill Farmstead Brewery in Vermont for which we are very thankful. The beer was designed to do one thing, show case the Nelson Sauvin hop, so with that in mind the grist bill was 100% Pilsner malt. This simple base allowed the hop to shine in all of its kiwi glory without being interfered with by rich toasty or sweet caramel malts which are often used in pale ales and I.P.A. styles. The Nelson Sauvin was divided up into three stages in the beer after a hop called Warrior provided the bittering hop addition. Nelson was added twice towards the end of the boil and then again as a "dry hop" after fermentation was complete. In the end we were left with a golden colored pale at 5.9% ABV which with its firm bitterness and distinctive hop character that showcases white wine like citrus and fresh tropical fruit rind. I've had a lot of requests to make more of this beer and/or to showcase this hop again in another beer, but until we can get our hands on more Nelson we'll just have to wait.

Hop Madness '11- This year's version was quite the improvement over last year in my opinion, simply from the fact that I didn't screw up the grain bill. There's people out there who believe you should never admit when you've done wrong and to never apologize. I'm not one of those people and because of that I can admit that the inaugural batch of Hop Madness that we released a year ago in March of 2010 was not what I had envisioned before making it. I made a mistake in reading printing on a bag of malt and accidentally added a very dark caramel malt to the beer and in proportions that added too much color, caramel sweetness and left it with too much body. So this year I felt the best way to ask forgiveness was to pay my penance with a more appropriate version of my original concept. Hop Madness '11 started out with the same pale malt,carapils,biscuit and Munich malts but did not included any of the caramel malt from last year. The result was a much better foundation to hold up to the copious amounts of Simcoe and Columbus hops that were used in this beer. Now that we're back on track with this recipe I look forward to the '12 release as I think there are a few ways we can make this an even better double I.P.A..

Hammer of The Gods- The first true lager that I've brewed since starting here and the first time I had ever attempted a Baltic-style Porter. This beer style is not extremely well known but has been steadily building ground in the craft beer community over the last few years. The first time I had ever tried a Baltic-style Porter was in 2004, Perkuno's Hammer, compliments of the now defunct Heavyweight Brewing Company of Ocean Township, New Jersey. A collaboration between owner/brewer Tom Baker (now of Earth Bread Brewery) and beer writer Lew Bryson. After that I discovered some imports of the style including Zywiec, Carnegie and Baltika, which have all been go to examples to this day when I'm craving this dark lagered beer.

97 Pound Weakling- Angelo Sicilano was born in Italy then after moving to the US and getting sand kicked into his face at the beach by a bully he transformed his scrawny 97 pound frame into his legendary muscled physique and changed his name to Charles Atlas. America has always taken inspiration from the world and made it its own. Barleywine is no different, originating in England as a high gravity ale then making its way to the States and transforming itself into an aggressively hopped strong ale. American ingenuity also brought us a new take on the American strong ale years later in the wheat wine which simply replaced a large percentage of the barley in the grist with wheat. Wheat lightens the body and adds a light tartness to the beer, but its liberally hopped in the kettle with Warrior and Liberty to provide an assertive bitterness and dry hopped with Cascade for a pleasant citrus and pine aroma. At 10.5% its deceptive in its strength as its light orange body coats the pallet with a touch of malt sweetness but reinforces hop dominance long after it dissipates.

We will reserve a small portion of 97 Pound Weakling for a future tasting to see how it ages.

The Hatchet Job- DC's National Cherry Blossom Festival brings people to the area to appreciate the beauty of nature and rouse the spirit of community. At Franklin's we feel the same way about community and what better way to celebrate nature than by drinking it. We've noticed that many area breweries brew a "cherry flavored" beer for this event so we chose to go against the grain (pun intended). Thanks to Greg Ouellette of Martha's Exchange Brewing Company in Nashua N.H. who without his vision this beer never would have come to fruition. Greg has made 2011 'the year of the wood" at Martha's as he's using various types of wood including cedar and Douglas fir. The Hatchet Job is a beer designed with one purpose in mind, to showcase wood,in this case cherry wood. Starting with a base of Maris Otter pale malt then adding touches of Vienna, Melanoidin,Oat Malt and De-husked Carafa III this beer leans towards a copper-brown color with complex and full malt flavor. Hopped to balance and allow the cherry wood to come through with subtle fruit and mellow tannin. Checking in at 6.1 % ABV The Hatchet Job takes charge with is toasted bread-like malt body, fruity wood notes and dry finish.

Imperial Stout

2011-02-17T07:10:00.000-08:00

I've always equated brew days to starting pitcher's once-every-five-day appearance, even though starting pitchers are doing other activities behind the scenes on their "days off" we only really seem to focus on them when they're "working." As a brewer I feel much the same way as I often feel brew days are the easiest day of the week because you get to take the mound,toe the rubber and do what you love...which often doesn't feel like work, unless you brew Imperial Stout.

Beers like Imperial Stout can not only test you physically but also mentally...and sometimes emotionally. This beer is actually the make up of two seperate batches in order to fill our fermenter since its a very high gravity beer. This starts with over 2,000 pounds of grain including English Maris otter pale malt, caramel malts and dark roasted malts. Each batch averages a 4 hour boil (90 minutes is our usual standard) in which we add 34 pounds of hops to balance the plethora of sugar derived from the abundance of malt. After fermentation which we implemented two different yeast strains,one Scottish and one American we aged the beer for 3 months before serving.

Thankfully all this time and effort results in something so worth the wait as our Imperial Stout fills your stomach and spirit as solidly as it fills our glass. Rich with roast and chocolate notes,viscous ,bittersweet and warming to the swallow. It should help take the chill out of the winter months and keep you warm through the spring.

North West Alpha

2011-01-18T13:08:00.001-08:00

The Hippity Hoppity Series
Volume 4

You are now about to witness the strength of hop knowledge. Straight outta Yakima!

Make it black and hoppy...

From one side of the country where the vast majority of American hops are grown to another in Vermont where this style is credited to have originated at The Vermont Pub & Brewery under the late Greg Noonan. What's this style called you ask? Well its gone by everything from the simple Black IPA, to the elegant Cascadian Dark Ale, to Totalitarian names like American-Style India Black Ale and American-Style Black Ale. Personally I like to keep it simple on this so I'll go with Black IPA or as in this case Double Black IPA.

We started with English Maris Otter pale malt,light crystal malt,Belgian biscuit malt, German munich and roasted black malts. This culmination of grains results in a black as night color that combines a bouquet of roasted cacao beans and a citrus fruit basket from the use of hops like Amarillo, Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Simcoe and Warrior. Medium bodied in palate with an assertive bitterness, fresh baked Russian black bread with a touch of Seville oranges and fresh grapefruit zest.

Grab a pint, find yourself something to dance to and keep it real by keeping it hoppy.

Oatmeal reduces cholesterol

2011-01-16T18:24:00.000-08:00

Who would argue with that scientific fact? Now can the same be said about Franklin's Oatmeal Stout? While there are currently no studies that can state that consumption of oatmeal stout can reduce cholesterol, I'm a firm believer that it can help eliminate a case of the "frownies". Don't believe me, then see for yourself by sipping a glass or two and tell me the world doesn't look a little rosier. Made with fine Maris Otter pale malt,chocolate malt,roasted barley and of course creamy flaked oats its full bodied with a rich toasted malt character,touches of chocolate,coffee and mellow fruit esters. At 5.9 % ABV its sure to keep help the chill off your extremities this winter and seeing as we're serving it via our nitro faucet it goes down easier than a cough drop.

Old Miser

2010-12-24T08:20:00.000-08:00

Its that time of year again when spirits are merry and tidings are good. Sometimes this can get a bit overwhelming and when it does sometimes you need a little something to take things down a notch. That's where our Old Miser steps in with its rich warm malt body,hint of molasses, mellow fruitiness and 8.5% ABV to take the stress off the holidays. Who knows, after a glass or two you might actually find yourself with more cheer than before.

Cheers

Highland Hugh

2010-12-24T07:47:00.000-08:00

Scotch ales are big bold statements of a beer. They fill you with sweet warm cheer and never leave a bitter taste in your mouth. Our Scotch ale is no different as its brewed with a thousand pounds of malt and a touch of dark brown sugar. We also take the time to slowly caramelize a portion of the wort in the kettle by preheating it, allowing it to slowly trickle in and boiling it down. What's left is a full bodied dark copper ale rich in caramel malt sweetness and a warming alcohol presence. Highland Hugh is named after Hugh Colston, a long time friend of Franklin's. I first met Hugh almost a year ago upon my arrival. Hugh welcomed me with a sweet warm cheer and always had a great story to tell me. Farewells are never an easy thing in life, so instead we'd like to say welcome Hugh, with a beer that we hope brings as much warmth and good times as you did.

Fàilte

Stonehenge

2010-11-15T09:56:00.000-08:00

In ancient times...
Hundreds of years before the dawn of history
Lived a strange race of people... the Druids

No one knows who they were or what they were doing
But their legacy remains
Hewn into the living rock... Of Stonehenge

I just couldn't resist a Spinal Tap reference for a beer that is a revival of an "ancient" English beer style. English Dark Milds can be some of the most interesting and satisfying of session beers. They can have a rich and complex malt depth while still have a light and refreshing body. Stonehenge is no different with its deep ruby brown color accented by roasted malt lending a touch reminiscent of coffee and sweet finish.

Pumpkin Pie Stout

2010-11-15T09:03:00.000-08:00

It was ten years ago this autumn while brewing at IncrediBREW in Nashua, NH that I formulated my first ever brewing recipe, Pumpkin Pie Stout. So with the harvest season upon us and the dreaded thought of brewing the traditional old pumpkin ale I went back to my Hall of Beer Records and dug up my virgin brew. Ten years gone things are bound to change including tweaking this recipe slightly to marry a more modern approach to brewing as well as increasing the batch size from 15 gallons to 310! This recipe was quite fun to create and brew, but not to cleanup after. For those of you in the know the first attempt at brewing this beer was met with a bit of disaster. While trying to bring the wort to a boil in the kettle I had some mechanical issues with the brew house and couldn't generate steam flow into the kettle to bring it to a boil. This resulted in the infamous home brew Stout giveaway....more on that story to follow. So with a few repairs made we were back up running the following week and the results can now be tasted for yourself here at Franklin's. The recipe utilizes English Maris Otter malt for a rich malt profile,along with Crystal,Roasted and Chocolate malts giving this beer a rich black color,tan head and full body. The nose is a blend of pumpkin,spices(cinamon/nutmeg) and roasted malt. Sipping through the creamy nitro pour you'll be awakened by liquid pumpkin pie, minus the whipped cream. Roasted malts balance the sweetness as the pumpkin coats and your tongue sizzle with the dazzling of seasonal spices. Enjoy it now bef0re your Mom gives your relatives the leftovers to take home.

Hop E Soul

2010-10-14T10:45:00.000-07:00

The Hippity Hoppity Series
Volume 3

Beer glass beer glass on the bar
Tell me beer glass have I gone too far?
Could it be this watering hole
Or is it just my Hop E. Soul
What I brew ain't make believe
I brew it honest that's no lie
But when it comes to being Hop E
It's just me myself and rye

The third installment in the Hippity Hoppity Double IPA series is Hop E Soul. This beer is probably the most unique so far in the series as it utilizes a large percentage of malted rye in the grist bill which brings out an interesting spice character. Combined with heavy handed usage of Chinook,Liberty and Columbus hops it electrifies your palate with green bitterness,floral and citrus accents. Orangey-copper in color with a thick light tannish head, the aroma hits your nose with floral,citrus and spice. Its full body stickiness coats with an impression of bitter oranges and spicy grain as its 8.7 % ABV warms your mouth as it trickles towards its final resting place.

Saison

2010-10-13T18:15:00.000-07:00

Well here we go, a Franklin's farm exclusive...Saison. OK, so I know we're not a farm brewery, but the spirit of this beer definitely is. Saison, which is French for season, is a rustic Belgian Farmhouse ale. Traditionally brewed by Wallonian(Southern Belgian)farmers during the fall and winter so that they could be consumed during the warmer weather. They are in short Belgian Pale Ales that are highly hopped (for Belgian standards),sometimes spiced and always very refreshing as they were consumed by farmhands who's access to potable water at the time was limited.

Our version is a pretty straight forward entry, made with 100% Pilsner malt, Saaz hops and a yeast from a classic Saison brewery in Belgium. Its moderately higher carbonation really helps the esters and hops come forward to your nose. On the first sip it attacks you with a pleasant bitterness,citrus, a touch of tartness and a subtle sweetness in the finish.

Miami Weiss-Version 2.0

2010-10-13T18:00:00.000-07:00

Great literature isn't written, it's rewritten...

We just tapped our new batch of Miami Weiss yesterday, a slight reformulation from the version we introduced this spring. This time around I added twice as much Orange Blossom Honey and three times the sweet orange peel. In addition I changed the hopping to try to bring a little more citrus into the fold. In the end I think we are closer to the vision of a South Florida orange grove in your mouth,fortified with barley of course. This version has a bit more honey upfront and in the nose, while the citrus zest from Centennial hops have a lingering finish. American Wheat beers don't all have to be boring, this one is far from it...though far from perfection, stay tuned.

Overdue Oktoberfest

2010-09-22T15:43:00.000-07:00

Hey all a quick shout out since I'm overdue on an update, we just tapped our Oktoberfest tonight (September 22 2010).I'm very happy with the way this beer turned out considering all the issues we had this summer. This pseudo lager was fermented at 55 degrees and lagered for three weeks at near freezing temperatures. Its crisp,clean with a toasted malt backbone and balanced with enough hops not to be cloyingly sweet. It checks in at 5.7% but is extremely quaffable, come on in and tell me what you think yourself.

As you all know we've had some issues here at the brewery this summer, but I'm happy to say things look they are in the clear . We now have full temperature control of all our fermenters and I've already started the exciting process of brewing and filling them up. Right now we've got Oktoberfest batch #2 lagering, Hop E Soul (double rye IPA),Sierra Madre and a Belgian Saison that's pumping in as I type.Upcoming beers include Miami Weiss version 2.0, an undecided upon Stout and bigger beers for the cooler months...stay tuned.

Malty Mark and the Hoppy Bunch

2010-08-24T06:47:00.000-07:00

The Hippity Hoppity Series
Volume 2

Come on sniff it.
Come on sip it.
It's such a good emanation.
It's such a bitter sensation.
I've a got my pint so get yours.
I wanna see lupulin comin' out your pores.
Strictly High Alpha-Hop boy, I ain't slingin' this.
I’m sippin’ this.
Bringing this to Franklin’s nation.
Come on come on.
Sip it sip it.
Taste the sensation.

The second installment in the Hippity Hoppity Double IPA series is Malty Mark and the Hoppy Bunch. As the name would suggest, a malty profile was sought for this beer, so almost 50% of the grain bill was Munich,Vienna and Cara-Vienna malts. This helped bring out a richer malt character to go up against a bunch of hops (pun intended). Kettle additions were Warrior,Centennial and the unlikely Saaz. Saaz is a noble hop of Czech heritage with a profile that typically resembles earthy,herbal and spicy flavors/aromas. Its not really known for its use in IPA, but I've had some really nice Imperial Pilsner done with Saaz and wanted to try it out myself.The beer was later dry hopped with a blend of Saaz, Centennial and Amarillo, the latter two giving off more of that familiar Pacific Northwest character of fruity citrus.

The result is a double IPA with a rich orange color and white head. The nose is a unique blend of herbal spice and mellow citrus. The flavor hits you with a big bitterness and warming malt sensation, leading into a long lingering bitter finish. Overall, this Double IPA is unlike anything I've ever brewed before, it truly has its own unique hop character and I encourage you to try it for yourself and give me your feedback.

Bear with us

2010-08-06T12:12:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, just wanted to give you all a heads up to the goings on around here and apologize for any inconveniences you might encounter in the upcoming weeks. We've been having some major issues with our chilling system that controls our fermenters and because of that have had a long layoff in between batches. We're now running at about 40% so I was able to get two brews in this past week, IPA and Blonde, and we hope after some upcoming repair work the Death Star will be fully operational. In the meantime there might be some gap in time of certain brands running out until we can get them on tap again, so please bear with us. We're not going to be even close to running out of beer, but we may not have every brand available. So maybe this is a chance to try something new and hopefully in a couple weeks things should be back to normal-The Franklin's Way.

Hope ya'll having a great summer.

Cheers,
Mike

Bourbon Smoked Porter on Cask Today

2010-07-23T09:02:00.000-07:00

Just tapped our Bourbon Smoked Porter on cask and its tasting delicious.Smoked Porter aged on American white oak and Jim Beam Bourbon. First come, first serve, don't expect this to make it past tonight.

Cheers,
Mike

Take home a little Bliss

2010-07-20T14:00:00.000-07:00

Well kids, I've gone and done it now. Here at Franklin's we are now selling pre-filled one liter growlers out of the General Store.A while back Papa Franklin and I went up to Duclaw Brewing and checked out a one head counter pressure bottle filler they had for sale and well...bought it, along with a sh$* ton of one liter flip tops. So last week Jared Aumen(the brewery's summer intern/lackey) and myself took the task of filling these packages complete with a label.The first offering is our Tripel Bliss, a Belgian-style Tripel that checks in at 9% ABV. These one liter flip tops are unfortunately not refillable in the pub, but they have many other great uses including using them for home brewing,crafts, storing oil/vinegar/homemade hot sauce or anything else you can think of.These are limited, so when we sell out we sell out. We don't intend to package our whole lineup, mainly just some of the bigger/specialty beers that we feel will hold up decently in the bottle.

Cheers,
Mike

From Dairy to Brewery

2010-06-25T12:50:00.000-07:00

Today we welcome our Milk Stout to the taps for our customers to enjoy. Now as we know, historically stout derived from porters in the 18th century, Milk Stout hit its height following World War II. In fact it was common for breweries to tout its nutritional value and promoted it to nursing mothers.Now while we are in no way touting our Milk Stout as a replacement for any of your daily vitamins, we do believe it will hit the spot for the kid in you that wants a more "grown up" chocolate milkshake. Now to make it clear, this beer is in fact brewed with lactose (milk) sugar so if you have an intolerance to this sugar derived from cow's breast milk than I suggest you avoid it. We're pouring this beer exclusively from our nitro tap at the upstairs bar so expect a rich creamy mouth feel with notes of creamy chocolate and subtle roast.

Picture note: The above image is not our Milk Stout, just thought it was a fun picture that conveyed the idea. We won't lace your glass with syrup before pouring, so don't even ask.

Peace, Love and Beer,
Mike

Hefeweizen

2010-06-24T14:44:00.000-07:00

Here's one for all you wheat beer drinkers out there, our Hefeweizen is soon to be tapped( most likely this weekend June 26-27). Its a beautiful looking beer with a deep hazy straw color and stark white head. It's very refreshing as it tips the scales at just under 5% ABV and has a devastatingly complex fruit and spice character.Personally I get a nice mix of banana,citrus,clove and mellow bread. Get it while you can as I expect the tank to go down quicker than a Bavarian sunset.

Prost,
Mike

Operation keg kick

2010-06-22T08:05:00.000-07:00

This past weekend's American Craft Beer Fest in Boston was a success in my mind as we poured 3900+ beers in under 7 hours of festival time. Accordingly to the festival staff we were the second brewery to run out of beer as we kicked the last drops of Sir Hop-a-Lot around 6:30pm Saturday night, 30 minutes into the last session, with 3 hours still left! We made a lot of good contacts, ran out of business cards and spread Franklin's Nation to crowds upwards 15,000 people over the three sessions.

American Craft Beer Fest

2010-06-17T07:54:00.000-07:00

Hey gang I'm heading up to Boston this weekend to pour Franklin's beer at Beeradvocate.com's American Craft Beer Fest and marking the first time Franklin's will make an appearance on the New England beer scene. Boston is a strong craft beer market and already in the few months I've down here inside the Beltway I've had several visits from beer drinkers from these parts. Just trying to further our exposure and make sure that when beer lovers come to the D.C. Metro that we make their short list with the likes of places like the Brickskeller and Churchkey.....I know those are high hopes, but I think lofty goals are the ones most fun to strive for.

Have a great weekend!

Cheers,
Mike

Even white boys got to shout!

2010-06-16T14:46:00.000-07:00

We're proud to announce the first beer in the Hippity Hoppity Double IPA series, Sir Hop-a-Lot, has been tapped today. Coincidentally, today I brewed the next beer in the series, Malty Mark and the Hoppy Bunch.

Peace, Love and Lots and Lots of Hops,
Mike

Van Damme

2010-06-08T12:01:00.000-07:00

"In an action film you act in the action. If it's a dramatic film you act in the drama." - Jean Claude Van Damme

"At Franklin's when you order food you eat it. If you order a beer you drink it." - To embarrassed to be sited in a public forum guy

So here we go the last of the bigger Belgians you'll see rolling out of the brewery for a while, a Belgian Strong Dark Ale....Van Damme. Why name a beer after JC? Why not? He's Belgian, has a great name and is one of the world's most sensitive action film stars.

Ok, maybe JC hasn't gotten better with age, but his namesake beer has. Its been lagering in the cellar for eight weeks and will no doubt hold up well as I plan on storing some of it away for future vintage releases. At 10.2 % ABV this beer has some interesting depth balancing a large Belgian malt bill including Special Aromatic,Biscuit,Cara-munich malts and over 100 pounds of sugar added to the kettle to help with some caramelized flavors and a lighter body. Abbey yeast from Belgium gives this beer a distinct fruitiness and complexity along with a touch of sweetness.

Like our beer menu states, "enjoy this from a tulip glass,minus the roundhouse kick".

The Hippity Hoppity Series

2010-06-03T15:35:00.000-07:00

Volume 1

Sir Hop-a-Lot

I like big hops and I cannot lie.
You other hopheads can’t deny.
If you like ‘em bitter and juicy.
Taste this juicy double.
Hop-a-Lot’s in trouble.

This beer’s got hops!

Well it was bound to happen sooner or later, you know when your adolescence merges with adult hood. In this case its the hip hop music of the 80s & 90s merging with the big bold hop flavors of a Double IPA,thus giving birth to Franklin's Hippity Hoppity Series.

The first installment is Sir Hop-a-Lot, an American Double IPA loaded with hops from front to "back". Despite its clever and witty name, this is a beer that's meant to be taken seriously. To ensure this I employed massive amounts of honorable hops including Warrior, to unleash the fight within and Glacier because SHL is not only hoppy, but cool. This however wasn't enough because I felt the need continue hopping this bad boy with Centennial,Chinook,Columbus and Simcoe. Enough hops already right? Wrong! Its a Double IPA which means its not finished until its dry hopped, so pound upon pound upon pound of hops were added directly to the fermenter. Now this is where a bit of selfish gluttony comes in...I dry hopped it a second time!! That's right,wash,rinse repeat..

So what's the outcome you ask, well its a highly drinkable 8% IPA loaded with the character of peaches,apricots,orange,grapefruit and basically an aroma I wish I could turn into an air freshener. I'm watching and tasting this beer very closely to assure you the customer get the highest quality, but I can not guarantee how much this will yield or how long it will last. Look for it on tap in mid-June but don't be surprised if we're kicking the keg by Independence Day.

Smoked Porter

2010-05-31T14:24:00.000-07:00

Our latest offering is one of my favorite styles of beer that I feel never gets enough love. Smoked Porters are sort of a niche beer in the way that people tend to love or hate them.The ones that love them tend to describe them at times as drinking a barbecue pit, the ones that hate them describe them the same way. I side with the former as I'm a fan of smoked food whether it be meats,fish or cheese. This is a great beer to enjoy with such treats as it will not get buried in flavor like some lighter ales and lagers might.
This version utilizes an English-style robust porter recipe consisting of mainly Maris Otter barley malt,Chocolate malt, Black Patent malt and caramel malts.The smoked malt however is derived from a German maltster who smokes their barley over Beechwood fires producing and extremely pleasant smokiness without much acrid character.Its hopped with English East Kent Goldings and fermented with an English ale yeast which leaves some subtle fruit esters and residual sweetness to help balance the smoke and roasted malts.At 5.5 % ABV its very session-able yet is a very full bodied beer.

Bees do it

2010-05-13T15:56:00.000-07:00

No, not that, they make honey, glorious,glorious honey.

Deep down inside all of us lurks a character that you would not simply match with what you know about someone's background. For me its that despite being from Northern New England a large part of my heart and soul is actually that of a Southern boy. Make all the jokes you want, but its not going to keep me from being ashamed of the fact that I enjoy collard greens, dirty rice and of course biscuits.

If only one could drink a biscuit.....

Our newest offering is a beer that combines Buckwheat honey and Belgian Biscuit malt. Buckwheat honey is much darker than other varietals, its coppery in color and is sometimes referred to as “black” honey because unless light shines through it, it appears to be very dark. It has a huge depth of flavor, often being very earthy with a rich malty molasses like character. Combine this with Belgian Biscuit malt which yields a very bready/toasty malt note and you have a very interesting Belgian Pale Ale we are calling Biscuit de Miel (Honey Biscuit). It checks in at 6.25% ABV, is unfiltered to allow its Belgian yeast to shine through with a complex fruit note and finishes with a slightly sweet flavor.

Extended Spring Training

2010-05-11T09:46:00.000-07:00

Greetings y'all, its been quite the interesting spring and things are blooming here at Franklin's. Business seems to be rising with the thermometer so to help battle this upcoming heat we'll be releasing our Belgian-style wheat ale entitled Witty Twitty.

Belgian-style witbier (white in Flemish is wit,bière blanche in French),is traditionally a top-fermented(ale) beer that gets its name from the high percentage of wheat and yeast used in the recipe. Wheat proteins as well as a yeast that stays in suspension cause this beer to look very cloudy/hazy and since the beer is very light colored the appearance is said to be white( to me its more reminiscent of lemonade). This style derives from an age when hops were not common place in brewing and other flowers,herbs and spices were used to balance the sweetness by providing bitterness.

Our take on this style produces a brilliantly unfiltered and hazy ale with a fluffy white head. Its refreshingly light bodied and tart with subtle fruit and spice character. Look for it on tap this week!

Wormholes

2010-04-19T05:43:00.000-07:00

^^^^^^^The new Blonde straight from the filter^^^^^^^

Watch out for these things, sometimes they appear out of nowhere, suck you in and make you not update your blog for three weeks...

In case anyone has been wondering what's been going on here at Franklin's, I'll give you the lowdown. The last few weeks has seen some new beers,revisions and old "new" favorites return.

First things first I'm happy to report our new batch of Bombshell Blonde hit the taps a couple weeks ago and I'm really happy with the results. There were no big changes with this beer, only a slight modification, but the results are highly noticeable. The major change with this beer was the use of our new house yeast which I implemented a "pseudo lager" fermentation. Fermenting this beer at lower temps (mid 50s F) helps make this beer much cleaner,smoother,crisper and anymore adjectives you'd like to throw on here. The result is a beer that although technically an ale resembles a lager due to its decrease in fruity esters and cleaner,crisper finish.Its already gaining more sales then the its previous versions and the weather is just starting to warm up, look out summer!

We've also tapped a new Belgian-style Tripel named Tripel Bliss. At 9% ABV this interpretation is quite legit as it incorporates a mix of fruit esters,delicate spice, candy sugar sweetness and a touch of alcoholic warmth underneath it all. Made with primarily Belgian Pilsner malt and a large addition of sugar this beer has enough complexity to continue to develop as it ages but is highly drinkable even now at eight weeks.

Finally we've tapped our encore batch of Golden Opportunity, but who am I kidding, this beer will no doubt be making more regular appearances throughout the year as time/space allows.Enjoy it while its here, if history is any indicator, it won't make it through Maryland graduation.
Every job has its perks.

Check out this article on-----> DCFOODIES.com

2010-03-25T06:48:00.000-07:00

There's no press like free press,though they say the camera adds 100 pounds...damn cameras!

Posted by Drew Long, Mar 24, 2010

There's been a changing of the brewing guard in Hyattsville.

Charles Noll, Franklin's first and only brewer, has returned to upstate New York. In his place, owner Mike Franklin has hired Mike Roy, a New Hampshire native who was brewing and bottling at a Boston area brewpub chain.

Understandably, the switch caused some concern among Franklin's regulars. It caused a little concern for me. After all, I did just name them a Best Beer Bar. That means something, folks. Sure, Franklin's has also been touted by The Washington Post and the Washingtonian, but it's the seal of approval from your favorite blog that carries the weight around here. Charles was a talented brewer who built a loyal following and put the brewpub on local beer geeks' maps.

So how does Mike Roy follow that? By building on Charles' success and putting his own signature on the brewpub.

Although Franklin's is a favorite among local beer enthusiasts, the restaurant side of the operation is the money maker. Given the rise of craft beer and the notoriety Franklin's has gained, owner Mike Franklin sees an opportunity to improve the brewpub's brewing operation, a lot.

When Mike hired Mike (I know, this can get confusing), the owner told the brewer that if nothing else he expected him to maintain the popularity of the beer program. Ideally, though, both Mikes want Franklin's to be among the premier craft beer spots in the Baltimore-Washington area.

Based on the beers Mike Roy has produced in his short time at Franklin's, the new guy just might do it.

"You don't need 100 taps to be a great beer bar," Mike Roy told me. "You can have 10 taps and have a great beer bar."

(Quick aside. During the transition from Charles to Mike, the production of beer dropped a bit. As Mike Roy gets his new lineup of beers brewed, Mike Franklin put regional craft brewers on tap, including Heavy Seas, Troegs and Dogfish Head. He could've cut back on the number of beers available or put something cheaper on draft, but he didn't. That's worth noting.)

Out of the gate, Mike Roy is giving local beer geeks exactly what the want: hops and Belgian-style beers. Big, hoppy beers were a signature of his predecessor, and they will remain a staple of the Franklin's lineup, but they won't dominate the draught list as they did. Even Mike's first hoppy beer wasn't an IPA. Instead, Mike led with his hopped Scotch-style ale, Hop Zen. Scotch ales are traditionally a favorite of the malt-head set, thanks to their sweet, rich character, but Mike adds just enough hops to not only balance the malt, but give the beer a pronounced bitterness. It's a good beer.

In a couple weeks, the Hop Zen will be followed by a double IPA he's calling Hop Madness. Here again, Mike goes a little nontraditional. Most double IPAs follow the recent craft beer trend of big alcohol bombs (not that I'm complaining), ranging anywhere from 7 percent A.B.V. (Hair of the Dog's Blue Dot) to 18 percent (Dogfish Head's 120 Minute IPA), with most imperial IPAs pushing double digit A.B.V.s. So where does Mike's Hop Madness come in? At about 8 percent. As breweries continue to wage Cold War-like campaigns to make bigger, badder beers (See BrewDog v. Schorschbraeu), Mike is rolling out a double IPA his customers can quaff a couple of without falling off their stools.

During our interview, Mike gave me a sneak peak of the double (yeah, it's a good gig). While the beer is still a couple weeks from finishing, the flavors were all there. The bitter Columbus hops were braced with a dark, caramel malt, and the Simcoe buds gave the beer a beautiful citrus, hoppy nose and taste. It's going to be a good beer.

In addition to the hoppy beers, Mike has brewed a couple Belgian-style ales, Golden Opportunity and Dubbel Vision. If anything, this is the style Mike plans to use to make his name. Golden Opportunity is a 6.5 percent Belgian-style golden ale that's a little sweet and fruity, with the tell-tale clove notes and enough carbonation to give the beer some bite. Dubbel Vision, a Belgian-style dubbel, is richer than the golden ale, with a slightly molasses-like character, but only bit higher in alcohol 6.8 percent A.B.V. Of the five beers Mike has on draught now (there's also a red ale, dry stout and a porter) these two Belgian-style ales are his best. (If you're keeping score, Mike has made a golden ale and a dubbel. So yes, a Belgian-style triple is on the way. One day, that triple might be available by the bottle in Franklin's General Store.)

Mike also plans to tinker with Franklin's standards: the Twisted Turtle Pale Ale, the Bombshell Blonde, the Sierra Madre Pale Ale, and the Private IPA. It's not yet clear how different these beers will be, but Mike says that when he's done, only the names will be the same.

Belgian yeast strains and hoppy Scotch ales aren't the only things Mike brings to Franklin's. He's also started a blog to keep customers informed about the beers on tap and what's coming up. It's part of his plans to interact with his new regulars, so they can stay in the loop on what he's brewing and he can find out what's working for them and what's not.

Mike says he likes feedback and enjoys interacting with his customers. I might chalk this up to a new employee saying the right thing about his customers, but Mike is a gregarious guy. I stopped by Franklin's to do a quick interview, but we ended up talking for two hours, including a good 30 minutes on yeast strains, hops and beer brewing software. When we were done, he waded into the crowd waiting for him at the bar.

During our conversation, we also covered how he got from Boston to Hyattsville. In short, Mike's previous job at the brewpub chain Beer Works wasn't the best situation and Franklin's gave him the opportunity to take over the brewing operation of a thriving business.

He actually cut his teeth at the do-it-yourself brewery, IncrediBREW. By guiding novice brewers through the brewing process, Mike ended up cranking out dozens of beers a week and learning a lot about raw materials, yeast strains and the brewing process.

Now he's in a situation where he can use his 10 years of brewing experience to make a good beer operation great. And as head brewer, it's his vision that will take the brewpub where he and Mike Franklin want it to go.

"The day that I rest on what I did in the past is the day I need to get out of this industry."

Encore for the G.O.P.

2010-03-19T15:46:00.000-07:00

That would be Golden Opportunity of course before your mind starts wandering into places where it shouldn't be...at least not on this blog. What can I say? There was so much positive feedback from you, our loyal customers I gave this beer another go around.I mean one family approached me and told me that their mother never drinks beers, but she loved this and was asking to come back just to have more...talk about encouraging. I thought it would be popular but I under estimated its appeal and well "give them what they want". This of course makes me very hopeful for the warmer weather beers to come, including a Belgian Wit, German Hefeweizen and Belgian Saison. First things first though we'll need to drink our vegetables so help out and have a pint. Look for this beer in early April.

I've hit the BIG TIME!

2010-03-17T12:59:00.000-07:00

The March Edition of the Hyattsville Life & Times...

Hop Madness is almost here!

2010-03-15T06:11:00.000-07:00

Near daily quality assurance tastes straight from the fermenter are telling me to stop hoarding good hop juice, its time to share this with you all. So in honor of our nation's celebrated student athlete peach basket tournament I give you Hop Madness. This week, that's right, just in time to follow your brackets, a Double I.P.A. to sooth your #4 seed losing to a #13...hey it happens, I could have warned you. Hop Madness checks in at 8.0% ABV and a wheel barrel full of IBU's( International Bittering Units, which correlates to....lets just say its bitter). I loaded this DIPA with plenty of Simcoe and Columbus, but just to be sure I added more Simcoe and Columbus. Wash,rinse,repeat, you get the picture by now. There's no telling how long this beer will last on tap, but if the sales of Hop Zen are any indication this probably won't make it much past the deciding game in Indy.

Peace,Love,Beer,

Mike

Championship Week

2010-03-10T05:12:00.000-08:00

Its that time of year again, when the best of conference match ups collide head to head. This week its been Mike vs. Private IPA, Mike vs. Bombshell Blonde and Mike vs. Miami Weiss- all worthy competitors. They were all hard fought battles but I'm happy to say they all went down like the sweet little unfermented worts that they are and are currently under lock and key in the fermentation room. Look for the Miami Weiss to hit the taps sometime around March 25th-ish, I think this is one of the most interesting beers I've made in a while and will no doubt be a perfect accompaniment to the spring weather ahead.Its a Orange Blossom Honey Wheat with orange zest.If you're wondering about Orange Blossom Honey its described as "juicy" honey, sweet with hints of citrus or as I like to refer to it in technical professional brewer terms, "yummy". This past weekend was highlighted by the tapping of our Belgian Dubbel and Dry Stout, which we are serving on nitrogen through a stout faucet as well as straight CO2, so take your pick which version you like,just promise me you'll try both.

A little beer conditioning up date, kind of like the progress report you got at school, the Tripel Bliss (Belgian Tripel) and Double IPA are really starting to take shape. The Tripel finished at 9% ABV and is really started clean up nice, its very smooth on the pallet considering its warmth. The Double IPA is...how do I say...hoppy, there I said it. It finished out at 8% ABV and is slowly dropping yeast which helps bring those hops a little more forward each and every day.

Well I'm off now to a food show at Fed EX Field, I'm hoping to come across some nice specialty glassware that we can serve our high gravity and half pour Belgians in.

Big beers on the way

2010-03-03T10:37:00.000-08:00

Its good to be back at Franklin's after a long weekend up North with family. Last week was a big brewing week here as a Belgian Tripel and a Double IPA made their way into the fermenters. So beware of big beers here in the future on Baltimore Ave, proceed with caution and sip away to your hearts content. I'm thinking the Double IPA should hit the taps in later March and the Tripel in April to help warm those bones from a record winter of snowfall.

Belgium comes to Hyattsville, The Black Stuff and Bee Stings

2010-02-20T12:15:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to announce that we've tapped Golden Opportunity and its pouring quite nicely. It checks in at 6.5%, though unfiltered is clarifying nicely via time and cold temps. Its successor, and soon to be metaphorical big brother the Belgian Dubbel has finished fermenting. At 6.8% its a much richer,fully bodied family member with a toasted malt profile.Its going to need some lagering time rounding out some of its flavors but expect to see it in early March.

The horizon here at the brewery is also showing signs of Irish cheer and warmer spring days to come. In the fermenter this week is an Irish-style dry stout, expect it to be dark with lots of roasted malt goodness and very sessionable. For anyone who has not been around a mash tun with lots of roasted barley in it, its much like a big pot of coffee...yet different. I don't drink coffee, but sipping first runnings from the mash is a similar experience of drinking roasty goodness except I still have $5 in my pocket and I'm not wired on caffeine.

The delivery guy stopped by this week and dropped off a 5 gallon/60 pound pail of Orange Blossom Honey for me. What do I have in store for it you ask? Well I'm going to add it to a beer of course. Some hints, think about Southern Florida,wheat and Crockett & Tubbs.

Thats all for now, more to come soon.

The Winter of My Discontent

2010-02-10T19:19:00.000-08:00

My friend Andrew brought to attention to me tonight that I might have jinxed myself.Upon arriving in Maryland back in January, I sent out this text message via my cell phone, "No snow on the ground,home sweet home." Flash forward a month and we are in the middle of yet another blizzard. Hyattsville is starting resemble Hoth and I think my Tauntaun has frozen.

Thankfully though things are warming up at Franklin's as last night the neighborhood came down to introduce themselves and try our two newest offerings,Hop Zen and Porter.From all accounts everyone seemed to enjoy the beers,myself included. There's a lot of positive energy buzzing around the pub and I'm really digging it. I think its going to offer a really great environment to be creative in and I trust I will get sincere feedback from our people.

Prior to the meet and greet last night I was able to fill a fermenter with "Please name me soon" Belgian Dubbel. It was fun to brew, so many nice toasted Belgian malts and its fun dumping sugar into 300+ gallons of boiling liquid.I tasted it today(Wednesday), and even though its only 24 hours old, its beginning to take shape quite nicely.

Stay warm and keep you beer cold.

Thanks for Noah Giebel for emailing the photo above,as its a great way to conserve energy by turning off your beer fridge and allowing nature to be your walk-in cooler.

Snow,liter flip tops and Rubber Chickens

2010-02-05T21:21:00.000-08:00

I'm not quite sure how long I've been fond of Rubber Chickens, and frankly some things are best left a mystery. That said I've always found them to be timeless,humorous and one of life's great constants. If its possible to be an animated inanimate object then the RC is it. Apparently 30 foot tall RC's are hard to come by, thus why Franklin's has a beer called Rubber Chicken Red and not a giant RC perched on its rooftop overlooking Baltimore Avenue. This week I got to brew again(life is good) and the RC Red was my task. While transferring the wort(unfermented beer) from the kettle to fermenter I saw it, the beautiful fried egg of a beer or as I like to call it, the "trub cookie". Now don't let your digestive juices start flowing just yet,the trub cookie isn't really a cookie, besides what the heck is "trub" anyway? Well simply put its the material leftover in the kettle when the wort is transferred out. When it first starts to appear in the kettle as the wort volume lowers it makes its birth looking like cookie dough(hey its steamy in there and my imagination not to mention low blood sugar can get the best of me), hence where the term "cookie" derived.So check out the pic and take a look at a Rubber Chicken Fried Egg or trub cookie as I like to call it.

Well a little fun update to report,on Friday while the area was being threatened with a down comforter layer of snow, we received a drop shipment courtesy of the fine people up at Duclaw Brewing.We were able to get our hands on their former single head bottle filler and just under 2000 liter flip top bottles. So be on the lookout for some small specialty bottles available in our general store.

Golden Opportunity

2010-01-28T15:25:00.000-08:00

Belgian season has begun. Our first Belgian-style of the year is in the fermenter as of this afternoon, Golden Opportunity should come in at about 6.5% and hit the taps in three weeks time. This beer has many distinctive firsts for me here at Franklin's, but the most interesting one is that it was the first beer that I got to use my new grain hopper on. Previously mashing in required two people, one in the cellar pouring no more than one 55 pound bag at a time of malted barley into the hopper which dropped into the mill and was then sent two stories up to the brew house and one at the mash tun controlling temperature and water flow. Now thanks to Papa Franklin and the boys over at Metal Fab Inc. who built us a stainless hopper that holds 1000+ pounds of grain,I can pour the malt in the night before and be ready to mill in the morning without the need for additional help. Here are some pictures of what she looked like on arrival and after being set up in place.

Another Wort Bites The Dust

2010-01-26T21:09:00.000-08:00

Another day, another batch knocked into a fermenter. Today it was our Sierra Madre,which will not be ready in time for when our current batch runs out, but sometimes that's just how the barley kernel crumbles. On a happier note our Belgian yeast shipment arrives tomorrow (Wednesday) and I'm excited to say I'll be brewing a string of Belgian styles in the upcoming month or so. Tentative names include Golden Opportunity(6.5%),Dubbel(7%),Tripel Bliss (8-9%) and an unnamed Belgian Strong Dark Ale (10-11%).Maybe you have an idea for a name,email it to me and if we use it you'll win....something.

Genesis

2010-01-23T10:23:00.000-08:00

Out of the dark and into the light with tears of joy. That was what I was feeling a few weeks ago when it finally sank in that I was moving south to Maryland to take on the new challenge of brewing at Franklin's Restaurant, Brewery and General Store. I'm happy to say now on January 23 2010( three weeks into the job)that the 16+ hour car ride without a radio,dining at rest stops on the Jersey Pike and a six hour interview with Mike "Papa" Franklin have been all been worth it and that feeling still resonates.

So with that said, onto the beer. The brewery itself despite its quirks is in good working order. There's a few odds and ends that need some touch up but overall its a setup that will produce good beer. Speaking of beer,I'm happy to announce that my first two batches, an American Strong Ale and a Porter are in the fermenter as we speak. Franklin's is planning a "Meet the Brewer Night" on February 9th at 6:30p.m. where we will debut these two new beers. I'm looking forward to meeting all the regulars and newbies.

Peace,Love,Beer-Mike Roy