Batch #104 - American Strong Ale

Okay, perhaps I'm over-simplifying things a bit, by brewing with simple grains, just half a 50# sack of two-row malted barley, with a pile of Sterling leaf hops, and a strong American Ale Yeast, for a 10-gallon batch of beer.  Sort of like making Big Music with a three piece band.  My starting gravity came in at 1.078 for this ale, and the finish gravity at bottling time was 1.010, which resulted in an alcohol by volume of over 10%.

Well, here's a toast to my hero, Lance Armstrong, inspiration to athletes and cancer patients all over the world, as he rides in the Tour de France this July.  Ride safely, and we'll all look forward to seeing you on the podium in Paris.  Go Lance!

84 bottles, 1 mini-keg minted Saturday, June 26.

Postscript, Sunday July 11: Lance Armstrong had a very bad day riding Stage 8, suffering three crashes and falling back to 13 minutes behind the leader.  Lance told the press today that this tour is finished for him, but that he will continue to ride for his team.  My admiration for the man gets stronger still.