In today's episode, I interview Jim of Unicorn Park Home Brewing. Jim is one part in a creative and experienced duo that makes up one of the best home mead brewers I've had yet. Listen in to see how Unicorn Park started this journey by home distilling moonshine and much more!
Thanks for checking out the second episode of Beer and A Half, a podcast made for beer lovers but enjoyed by anyone.
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Reed Daw: The second episode.
Reed Daw: Of what I was calling the beer and a half right now. I know. So, yesterday was the first and today's the second
Reed Daw: Club. So yeah, really what I'm trying to do is just talk to people in the beer community, you know, home brewers brewers brewery owners and just anyone that
Reed Daw: Like collects or sellers, or just drinks a beer and enjoys beer as much as the people I follow and know and so I like to just hear about everyone's story because I got into beer in a unique way. And I know everyone else has their own story too. And so
Reed Daw: Yeah, I want to introduce
Reed Daw: The gym or otherwise known as a unicorn Park home brewing, who is a your co partner in your in your home brewing.
James's iPhone: Efforts, is that right yes yes yes it's it's a collective effort between my in
James's iPhone: My lifetime.
Reed Daw: That's awesome. Um, so I know they specifically are doing needs right now. I know that firsthand. We'll get more into that. But I also know briefly that he has dabbled in quite a few other thing so
Reed Daw: You know, thanks for joining me and testing a new little adventure out in this quarantine world. And yeah, thanks for
Reed Daw: Taking the time. Yeah.
Absolutely.
Reed Daw: So, so yeah, let's just go into that first question. You know, I got lucky to try a couple of your needs, which were awesome but
Reed Daw: And we'll, we'll talk we'll talk about those things. But what had me interested the start is that you said he started brewing started distilling like moonshine. Is that, is that how you started out
James's iPhone: Alright, so, so I'll go back to the beginning. Um, so I think I believe it was a
James's iPhone: And I got a Mr. Beer home brewing kit.
James's iPhone: Yeah I brewed probably three or four batches of that it was all an extract brewing and I was like, ah, I'm kind of into it, but it's not worth it. Yeah. So fast forward to about
James's iPhone: God, I want to say almost, almost six years ago, uh,
James's iPhone: I was I was, you know, I was drinking beer and I was into spirits and i was i was i was really swept up into the moonshine craze.
James's iPhone: Yeah, and and what what really caught me was like I was like, man, I bet you I could do this at home. So between my cousin and I we set up a little system totally safe guard system. It was male champ.
James's iPhone: Grown up the house, but actually figured out how to distill spirits and make moonshine like you can buy in the store right now.
Reed Daw: Oh, shoot.
James's iPhone: Oh,
James's iPhone: Yeah, the issue.
James's iPhone: Are you there.
James's iPhone: You're there now.
Reed Daw: Can you hear me now.
James's iPhone: I can hear you now.
Reed Daw: OK, I can hear you now.
James's iPhone: Okay, good. Alright.
Reed Daw: Alright.
James's iPhone: So yeah, so we we tried it out and and it worked. And we made a couple of good batches and then
James's iPhone: I just I I got involved with at the time my girlfriend who is now my wife.
Reed Daw: And I was, I was, I was like, You know what, maybe
James's iPhone: Maybe I should stop doing this. And so I let it go by the wayside and I let it go for last six or eight months and then I started saying, you know, hey, I want to get into home brewing and so my buddy from the work told me about the PICO brewing system.
James's iPhone: And he's like, look, you can make beer and like a couple of hours. It's no big deal. And I was like, No, it's got to be more than that.
James's iPhone: Yeah, so, so I spent the money and I bought one and I made a couple of batches of beer. And I went, Wow, this really sucks. I'd rather really learn it from the ground up.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: So I did. I went out and I bought I bought I created a three vessel system are actually at that point it was a to vessel system, and I am I figured out how to start brewing and I started with all grain and I haven't
James's iPhone: I'm up to a three green system and and i mean i add junk Stout's and
James's iPhone: I take restarts and I get in there and I just grind away and make whatever I feel like making
Reed Daw: So just because I'm still fixated on this moonshine thing. So give me What's like the rundown of how do you make moonshine, like, you know, I just
Reed Daw: I just stopped vision of
Reed Daw: Like there, you know,
James's iPhone: I can't remember my exact
James's iPhone: How we did it.
James's iPhone: It was it was a whole lot of ground corn water and and and sugar and and a turbo yeast.
James's iPhone: And basically you ferment it just like everything else you ferment and once it's fermented you strain all the all the stuff off and then basically you have to, you have to get it to a certain boiling point without scorching it
James's iPhone: And then, what it does is it runs along the whole connected tubes until it hits like
James's iPhone: I'm sure some some moonshine purists will be like nobody's talking about but uh, but
James's iPhone: You know there's there's like a whole system to it and then it hits like a condenser and then and then it condenses down and I started learning immediately what the difference between the heads the hearts and the tails were
James's iPhone: Yeah. Only recently I've learned that you can actually take all three and and reprocess them and come up with a better moonshine, but I was able to crank out. I think I think each batch produce maybe about it and I did, I did five gallon batches.
Reed Daw: And so what was, was this actually like, could you sip it or drink it straight from there. Did you have something well
James's iPhone: Okay. A lot of it was basically Open the jar and sip it and past yeah buddies.
James's iPhone: You know, you got it was kind of a social thing so
Reed Daw: Yeah, that sounds like you know just perfect thing to take backpacking or something warms you up a little bit like on a cold.
Reed Daw: Backpacking check. Yeah.
Reed Daw: Yeah, that's a little fire in you on that one.
James's iPhone: Oh yeah, for sure.
Reed Daw: For sure. Yeah.
Reed Daw: All right now. So yeah, you started out with that. And then do you have you been dabbling in brewing beer at the same time, or did you kind of transition
James's iPhone: Know, at that point, I was I was, I was really diving like headfirst into into what the craft beer was community was all about.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I had been. I mean, so, so to rewind a little bit further, when I was living in Nevada, the first the first real craft beer that I had was in Nevada Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.
Reed Daw: Yeah, we could
James's iPhone: Which was, I mean all my buddies are drinking Coors Light or Bud Light.
Reed Daw: On with this. So I started drinking Matt and I got into Mendocino County brewing. They had some good beers.
James's iPhone: Anderson Valley had some good beers moves through
James's iPhone: Those, those standards that you see now that you're like, Oh, that's a shell. Yeah.
Reed Daw: But those are all the things that
James's iPhone: Got them into what I was into and one of the coolest things was living in Nevada was going to great bass and brewing and their craft brewery. And if you ever go there, get the achy you know
James's iPhone: Yeah, I have an icky, it's, it's an igneous ours. L. It's fantastic. I mean, they're
James's iPhone: Still doing it.
Reed Daw: Years, I needed a yeah
James's iPhone: I loved it.
Reed Daw: Yeah. That's awesome. Those are the ones that like take it take you back to like the ones that really got you started because, I mean,
James's iPhone: Yeah.
Reed Daw: We have such endless options right now. They get whatever types of beer we want
James's iPhone: And going, What the hell is this
James's iPhone: Yeah, like, Well, I got six of them. I might as well drink them.
Reed Daw: Let me, let me ask you my was gonna be my last question for you, but I'll make it like one of the first it is Barley Wine life.
James's iPhone: No.
James's iPhone: No no no i i have
James's iPhone: Yet to really get into the whole Barley Wine thing I just recently had a had a barley wine from ruler who
You actually
James's iPhone: And I literally, I was like, wow, this is a really good beer.
James's iPhone: Yeah, like it that it had a lot of Carmel notes like
James's iPhone: Yes. Such a really well rounded beer that I was like, maybe I should rethink barley wine, but I was like, You know what, I'm not gonna go chase barley wine. I'm not going to chase milkshake IPAs. I'm just
James's iPhone: Yeah, certain things come across my path.
James's iPhone: I'll give it a shot and
James's iPhone: You know,
James's iPhone: And just go
James's iPhone: Back.
Reed Daw: Yeah, but not not going to take it on as like a live model or mantra to
Reed Daw: Live By.
James's iPhone: No, no, no, no, I'm
James's iPhone: I'm an IPA guy.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: Yes.
Reed Daw: I know. Yeah, I can. I tried. Like, you know, I was always Double IPAs, all the way and it came summer and I tried to pour when I was like this is like, even though it was one of my favorite doubles was like this terrible right now. It's just too hot.
James's iPhone: Right. Yeah. No, stay inside in the air conditioning and then drink it.
Reed Daw: Yeah, and then that'll make it a little better.
Reed Daw: Oh, yes.
James's iPhone: For sure. In fact, right now I'm looking forward to live up just drop climbing.
Reed Daw: Climbing. Oh, that's right.
James's iPhone: Like supervisor.
James's iPhone: So I'm looking forward to try and that i mean you know a lot of
James's iPhone: Time Out here you'll see me you'll catch me drinking meridian hive there.
Reed Daw: Oh, that's right.
James's iPhone: carbonated meets
James's iPhone: Fantastic for this weather man they're super crushed him alone or super
James's iPhone: Referral i mean i
James's iPhone: I fully support radiant high, but in fact i'm i'm in their meat club so
Reed Daw: Oh, so yeah, I didn't even know they didn't meet a club. That's awesome.
James's iPhone: They just started this year.
Reed Daw: Thing. Awesome. Well, yeah, that was something else. I was curious about is like you know my and we'll talk more about your maid brewing but you know my transition into meat is like the super sweet. Like I'm expecting you know a bottle of honey to be poured out
Reed Daw: But I've seen you know I've now started to have more like session level needs. And I'm like, God is
Reed Daw: So good. So what's like does it just go across the spectrum or what's your kind of take on me.
James's iPhone: Okay, so I'll give you a little background on that.
James's iPhone: Yeah y'all, you obviously know RB
Yeah.
James's iPhone: So RB came over to my house for like a two man bottle share. We just wanted to hang out and Bs and have some beers and I kind of made a joke. We had been in a share at at the journeys house.
James's iPhone: And I scored I scored a Brillo handmade just off of, you know, enter and win.
James's iPhone: And I want one. And when when I got it there. I didn't know that RB was so into
James's iPhone: For those of you who don't know, it's Gamba to say TX.
Yeah.
James's iPhone: I didn't know he was super into me and I wasn't super familiar with it, and he was like man this is one of the best means this is right up there with like shreds, and all these other things he starts dropping names. I'm going. Are you serious, this is like a thing.
James's iPhone: And he's like, Oh, man.
James's iPhone: Some of these mentors sought after. And I was like, oh, okay. And so I made a joke to my wife. I said, well, it's getting close to summer, you know, we might as well stay inside make need. And she's like,
James's iPhone: She's like, look, I don't do these festivals. I'm not doing me, you know, I'm just not into it, I was like, All right, well, you know, let me figure it out. So I got a real simple mean book on Amazon and
James's iPhone: covered a couple things. And we got like some stuff together and
James's iPhone: You know, we were kind of hanging out and drinking and I made I made my first original blueberry me
James's iPhone: Yeah, so I made that me and my wife was like, wow, this is actually really good. Yeah, she's, she's a wine drinker. So she likes things like
James's iPhone: She doesn't like it super fruity or sweet she likes things that are dry, but you can taste the fruit and I was like okay well
James's iPhone: So our first blueberry meet. I was like, wow, we kind of, I don't want to say we knocked it out of the park. But we actually get a pretty good job for I've gone back to me yeah and and so ever since that it's been like it's kind of been like the summer hobby.
James's iPhone: Like oh let's let's make me oh it's summertime. Nobody wants to prove. Let's stay inside. Let's make me. Well, that took on such a life of its own that. I mean, at this point, everything that's coming out of the meat department is all my wife's
Reed Daw: Idea.
James's iPhone: That's awesome. No. So this last one we did. We did a blueberry, as you know, a mixed berry. We did a tangerine and cranberry we did. We did two offshoots of those. We did a strip waffle mixed berry.
James's iPhone: Blueberries strip off longer very
Reed Daw: So that was
James's iPhone: That that's got to be bottled and then cherry. Oh, she she did. She did.
James's iPhone: She did allow laughter. We did a we did it together. Lemon Lavender is fantastic. We were just about to bottle a cherry, which is a higher ABV
James's iPhone: And I did a little bit more of what the
James's iPhone: Industry Standard of sweet meets are
James's iPhone: We had another ad jumped in on in there. She did. She did the cranberry
James's iPhone: Mandarin and she did, she added, cinnamon, and something else. It called it festive us
Reed Daw: So awesome. There's a few bottles of that will break that out around the holiday time
Reed Daw: Yeah, so I'm like lavender is one of my most favorite smells do and like when you're like, how much lavender do actually have to use to bring out the flavor is that a lot or
James's iPhone: Oh man, I'd have to I'd have to bring her in because she
James's iPhone: Was so that was her recipe we
James's iPhone: We decided
James's iPhone: We were going to do a couple of offshoots I wanted to do a peach jalapeno made
James's iPhone: Which ended up, which ended up turning out funky.
James's iPhone: But it works really great as, like, I'm like a brisket spray. Nice.
James's iPhone: Smoked Meat. So we spray
James's iPhone: That it's pretty fun. And we're down to our last few bottles with them kind of bummed about because
Reed Daw: Yeah, it was.
James's iPhone: It was about a three gallon batch and if I'd known I was using it for that I would have kept more of it.
Reed Daw: I kept
James's iPhone: I kept a few bottles, just for sensory and because it tasted a lot like apple cider vinegar.
Reed Daw: Yeah yeah
James's iPhone: And I was, I was like oh my god you spray that on like on me when you're
James's iPhone: When you're grilling and she
James's iPhone: Was like, Oh, well then let's keep so
So,
Reed Daw: And that's now you guys have a world famous meat.
Reed Daw: Meat married right
Reed Daw: Right, yeah.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I just have to mess up a meet and then we're good. Right.
Reed Daw: Yeah, well, I mean if if one thing doesn't work out this
Reed Daw: Name at somebody else and
James's iPhone: Right now on
Reed Daw: What's, uh, what would you say is your favorite brewery in Austin. Right now our favorite brewery right now.
James's iPhone: Oh yeah I'm god there's so many
James's iPhone: Yeah, I'm
James's iPhone: I'm really digging tripping animals in Florida. But as far as Austin goes, I, I have a total soft spot for live. Okay.
Reed Daw: Yeah, I mean, yeah, me too. Yeah.
James's iPhone: I mean, traditional beers are really are making a comeback.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: Not, not that they ever went out, but everybody got all. Oh my god. If it's not hazy. I'm not drink.
Yeah.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: I mean, after a while, you just go it's okay if it's not hazy. I like that. I can go out and mow the yard and come back in and have a beer be refreshed.
Reed Daw: I can
Reed Daw: Go back out and keep doing something
James's iPhone: Yeah, I'm really stoked at the beer scene. It seems to be improving in Austin.
Reed Daw: Yeah, I don't know if it's
Reed Daw: I think it's a you think it's like quarantine that's been doing it or they're just no I
James's iPhone: Think it was on the rise.
James's iPhone: Yeah, before this happened.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
Reed Daw: You know, so have, have you ever considered going in, like brewing at an actual brewery, or is this all just something you like to do for fun outside of your
James's iPhone: Well I when I started this I was like I was like, Oh, well, when we moved to Texas. I basically took a month off.
James's iPhone: And I'm a carpenter by trade.
James's iPhone: And I had been so saturated with brewing beer at home that I was like oh my god I really, I really want to get into this industry.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I came here and my main focus was let me see if I can get
James's iPhone: Into a brewery and be like,
James's iPhone: The guy to carry bags grain, who cares.
Reed Daw: Yeah yeah
James's iPhone: Yeah.
James's iPhone: And I applied for a couple of seller man positions and stuff like that.
Reed Daw: So,
James's iPhone: You know, it didn't, it didn't ever pan out, you know,
Reed Daw: Yeah, yeah. But yeah, but now I mean, now you're busting some out of your, your own your garage. Wow.
James's iPhone: Yeah, yeah. And we're about to move, which means I week we bought a house that has a third car garage. And that is my dedicated breweries.
James's iPhone: So once a month that's up and running all I'll let you know and I'll let you know.
James's iPhone: What will we got coming out of that.
Reed Daw: We can do MTV Cribs but except MTV.
Reed Daw: Very yeah
Reed Daw: Very set up.
Reed Daw: Right, yeah. You also mentioned to me. You and I met you met up with you at your house that you do either meet that meet competitions that you guys are doing to
James's iPhone: We just started need competitions and it's it's sheerly for feedback.
James's iPhone: I need, I need to know what
James's iPhone: What is is right and wrong about my need from guys who are professionals.
Reed Daw: Okay, so that you're sending like samples around to people who also
James's iPhone: Yeah, exactly right. I can
James's iPhone: I can show you here, we have
James's iPhone: I mean here.
James's iPhone: My hand. I mean, it's really not that big.
James's iPhone: Yeah.
James's iPhone: That's awesome. It's a really small bottle. But yeah, so we send these to competitions, they, they have specifics. You know, it has to be at least this much amount, but no more than this much amount and
James's iPhone: When we make a five gallon batch of mean I usually tend to
James's iPhone: Keep a lot for myself.
James's iPhone: Yeah, so
James's iPhone: Give it to friends, whatever. So we got little competition bottles and that's
Reed Daw: Nice. That's awesome. That's really cool. Um, and is this. Are these all look pretty local to you or are you sending these out pretty much everyone everywhere and you need
James's iPhone: A well so far. Everything's been local it's been it's been a lot of family. It's been a lot of friends. I do have a couple of people on the internet that I have promised bottles to
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: I just, you know, say, hey, are you in to meet you know
James's iPhone: Anybody that, you know, I'll chat up for a while.
James's iPhone: That you know I've talked to through DNS or whatever we have so that established relationship I had a guy hit me up last year. And he was like, oh my god, I'm a meat kind of sewer can
James's iPhone: Can I cook your meat and I was like, uh, I guess.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: And he was he was, he was like oh my god all will pay for it. And I was like, I don't want any money. I just want
James's iPhone: It turns out he went to a Moscow brewing beer release and took
James's iPhone: With him and he shared like six or seven people in line.
Reed Daw: And it was like oh my
James's iPhone: God, I got a bunch of feedback and I got like four or five follows out of it and a couple of people via me
Reed Daw: And they're like,
James's iPhone: Really hey you know I really loved your meeting a couple of them. I still talk to you. And I'm like, Hey, I just made it back to this. I'll send you a ball and they're like, sweet.
Reed Daw: Yeah, that's
Reed Daw: That's awesome. That's crazy how things just end up circulating and coming back around you.
Reed Daw: Yeah, so
Reed Daw: I think I mentioned at the beginning, but really emphasize again Jim is also known as unicorn Park homebrew or just unicorn part brewing.
James's iPhone: It either way.
James's iPhone: It goes either way.
Reed Daw: And so what a. I love the name. But where did unicorn Park come from.
James's iPhone: Okay, so, um, it's really funny the first time we went to AJ, which is American home Brewers Association. They have like a they have like a
James's iPhone: Basically like oh god I'm drawing a blank.
James's iPhone: Was what was the big beer fest again.
Reed Daw: What the Colorado great American beer festival
James's iPhone: Yeah, yeah, GA BF so they have one for home brewing. Okay.
James's iPhone: And we went to Minnesota
James's iPhone: And it was our first home brewed coffee and she called me one day while I was at work. And she said, hey, what's the name of our brewing like what look really close. And I was like, I don't know. And she's like, Well, I had to make up a name. And I said, Okay.
James's iPhone: He said, Well, I
James's iPhone: I called us home. I call this unicorn Park home brewing and I said, Okay, why
Reed Daw: And she goes, because
James's iPhone: You're my unicorn and we met at a park, and I said,
James's iPhone: All right.
Reed Daw: So,
James's iPhone: That's
James's iPhone: How the name started she she coined the name. And she was like, this is, this is what it's called. I was like, you know, I'm, I'm okay with that. So,
Reed Daw: One of my questions. If you had a brewery. What would you name it. And I think that covers
James's iPhone: It would stay unicorn Park.
Reed Daw: It's easy to say it's either a member, it's unique and
James's iPhone: I love it yeah and and the model would be embrace your inner unicorn that's
Reed Daw: That's why I know you've been mentioning tripping animals. I'm keeping my eyes on them. I haven't yet gotten after him, but I'm really liking just what what they showcase on Instagram. Do they do a specific style or they kind of all over the place.
James's iPhone: Majority of their sours are
James's iPhone: Fruits hours with vanilla and lactose, and I mean
James's iPhone: It's, it's tough man for me certain sours if it's too acidic. I just can't.
Reed Daw: Drink yes they are absolute
James's iPhone: crushers
Reed Daw: Oh really,
James's iPhone: I mean, I applied for their I poured their orange one. It was like a cream sickle. It looked like orange juice.
Reed Daw: Thing that's
Yeah.
James's iPhone: Another
James's iPhone: Oh yeah, yeah, that's easy. Man, I can hook you up with that guy.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: Just reach out to him, he'll be like, Yeah, bro, I'm in
James's iPhone: Yeah, sure. Yeah.
James's iPhone: Cool. Is that nice of a guy.
Reed Daw: So awesome. Yeah, that's great. I'm some kind of random questions. What's your go to show here at the store.
James's iPhone: My go to shelf beer.
Is
James's iPhone: A I'm obsessed with talks DDA series.
James's iPhone: Yeah, and half the time they suck.
James's iPhone: And I just get it. It's like, it's like Boucher. It's like, you know, if you touch this, you're going to get shot. I'm going to touch it.
James's iPhone: Yeah, God
James's iPhone: I'm just gonna, I'm just know it's either going to work out, or it's not. Yeah, so a lot of times if I'm craving a hazy, I'll get those
James's iPhone: Um, the other absolute go to for a selfie. Is anything live. Oh.
Reed Daw: Yeah, for sure.
James's iPhone: So those two um
James's iPhone: The other one is a spindle tap is finally can
Reed Daw: Yeah, have you
James's iPhone: Yes.
Reed Daw: That one. So that's one of my favorites and
James's iPhone: You know what, it's one of mine too. And I noticed your girlfriend posted about it and I
Reed Daw: Think I'd be under. And I was like, she she mentioned getting it and I was like oh my god it's at my he beat every week.
Reed Daw: Yeah, like
James's iPhone: It's like nobody buys it and I'm like, What's wrong with you people. Yeah.
Reed Daw: I know I'm like that like once they start knowing I feel like it's gonna go quick because
Reed Daw: Right, you don't have that type of hazy double shot like this shelf. He said in there.
James's iPhone: Yeah, exactly.
Reed Daw: Exactly, yeah. She I know she went first one on shelves, she you know she sent me over to a TV or, you know, I wanted to go as well. But she sent me a text series of texts and she's like, hey, you get like four
Reed Daw: Six Packs and it was like maybe five, and she's like, just get as many as allow you to get. And so I think I wanted back home with like eight six packs, you know,
James's iPhone: Nice.
Reed Daw: And she cries that beer. Most game that's that's a great beer. That's a great
Reed Daw: Really good beer. So what's your, what's your favorite. I guess like some bars calling trashcan beers, or just cheap beer is what's your favorite like cheap, cheap beer like that.
James's iPhone: Oh god, I really, unfortunately, I really don't a cheap beer. I mean, if I'm, if I'm tired of live oak, I go it awesome beer works. Yeah.
James's iPhone: I'll usually go there pills nurse or loggers.
James's iPhone: Yeah, so
Reed Daw: My vote for the Krispies. And then you can follow it up.
Reed Daw: With awesome beer works as well.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I mean, and and they're just on the same level.
Reed Daw: Yeah, for sure. I agree. I agree with you there. Yeah.
James's iPhone: I really try not to drink it trash beer every once in a while I'll get Mr allergenic and get like a six or a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: You know, something like that. And I'm like, oh, hey, that was a good beer. I like that beer. So
Reed Daw: Yeah, it does still have some good flavor. It's not just like a watery watery carbonated beverage.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I
James's iPhone: Don't have like a what you would consider a trash beer. I just, I just don't if I, if that if that's not happening. I'm drinking water. I'm drinking juice.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
Reed Daw: It's about, about the same about the same thing to
Reed Daw: Write what I'm so you said you've been brewing some stout to have you brutes doubts before you said like some drinks out some presets.
James's iPhone: Yeah, so, um, my that was my first foray into into Stout's was
So, okay.
James's iPhone: So I'll give you a little bit of background, I met I met a professional Brewer while I was on vacation in Costa Rica and he happened to be and he happened to be a professional Brewer up in Dallas.
James's iPhone: And he we've since become like really good friends.
James's iPhone: And I was kind of talking to him. One night I was like, man, I was thinking about making a stout and putting girl scout cookies in it. I go, what do you think he goes, he goes, there's a place for everything, or you just do it. See if you like it.
James's iPhone: And I went okay so started with girl scout cookies and then it went on to. I gotta, I had that year. I had my wife said, can you make a stout, I need it for a cake. I'm making. And I said, okay, so I made a stout she put the stout in the cake. I got this decadent chocolate cake.
James's iPhone: To two weeks later I took a quarter of the cake and throw it in a stout and made another style.
James's iPhone: And I was like, he's like,
James's iPhone: Oh my god, you're crazy. So every year she makes me a birthday cake.
James's iPhone: And it goes into a stout I make
James's iPhone: And it's the browser every year. So I've been able to do it so
Reed Daw: I love that. That's, that's awesome.
Reed Daw: What and how do you get to New five gallon batches or well as well as less
James's iPhone: Now, no I it's by the time it's fermenting, it's probably about maybe six six and a half. But once you get it off of everything you're getting almost about five gallons.
Reed Daw: Yeah, but what do you, how much do you start with you start with about six and a half.
James's iPhone: I start with probably around seven to seven and a half, depending on the size, boy. Like how long the boil is
James's iPhone: That's a lot of the keys for for some of the stickers Stout's is the longer than boil liquid. The stout. That's how you can get real happy mouth feel like you get this
James's iPhone: clings to everything.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I mean I talked to guys are like, yeah, I got a five hour boil. I'm like, What are you doing for five hours in a garage do
James's iPhone: Why
James's iPhone: Your spouse. And I'm like, Now I know why.
Reed Daw: Yeah, it's like the like frothy chocolate, like those Florida pastry stout, so it's
James's iPhone: Yeah.
Reed Daw: Oh yeah, those are awesome. Yeah.
Reed Daw: So would you say like, I mean, you know, like RB or gangrenous you know he really goes and seeks out certain bottles himself. Do you do the same thing. Are you seeking out specific bottles or booze.
James's iPhone: I I have done it.
James's iPhone: I've now kind of backed off of it.
James's iPhone: I'm a member of a couple of mead clubs like like Lost Cause mystery in
James's iPhone: California
James's iPhone: And they ship here which is fantastic.
Reed Daw: Oh, awesome.
James's iPhone: So I've got, I've got a bunch of their stuff. I just this year became a member of the brewery in
Reed Daw: California
James's iPhone: Yeah, and, and the reason why I did that is because I'm a big fan of so happens, it's Tuesday.
James's iPhone: Yeah, and basically all of their stout, so I
James's iPhone: Looked at an opportunity of
James's iPhone: Hey I fly to California, at least two or three times a year. Yeah.
James's iPhone: I could go pick up bottles and I want you to join our club. They give you an allotment and then once you get your allotment they allow you to buy more than her allotment if you want to buy more.
James's iPhone: So I think I'm probably sitting on a really
James's iPhone: obscene amount of fruit.
James's iPhone: downs and sours and and just really cool stuff. And I'm like, Man, these are all big bottles and I gotta, I gotta basically data bottle share to use these things.
James's iPhone: I'm sure so there
Reed Daw: Oh man, which which
James's iPhone: Which would every everybody says, and so I could, I took it to my first bottle share when I moved here, which is that lifetime Britain with with Dallas beer Dallas beer. What do they call if I could use my phone. I would tell you
Reed Daw: Yeah, oh, I'll play Florida.
James's iPhone: So I went to one of their shares and brought that and they were like, they're like, oh wow you know they were like kind of blown away that I had it.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I was like,
James's iPhone: I was like, it's just the beer. And they're like, No, no. You have no idea. And I was like, oh, I have another one of my friends. It's not like you have another one that was like yeah
James's iPhone: And I was saying just it's just what BUT SO I'M SITTING ON THAT I HAVE FOR FREE year I was, I was a club member at McKellar San Diego.
James's iPhone: Yeah so. So I have a couple of bottles of their of their Viking release.
Reed Daw: Those are my bottles can get
James's iPhone: So,
James's iPhone: Yeah, I'm praying and I'm looking at a couple of them while I've been here, but I've got two more. And I'm just sit on them.
Reed Daw: Yeah. Amen.
Reed Daw: There's some big bottles.
James's iPhone: Yeah, yeah. I mean, you open them and you go, okay, the shares over now everybody and we're all done.
Reed Daw: Yeah yeah
James's iPhone: They're also known as the share killer.
Reed Daw: Oh, is that right, I haven't heard that.
Reed Daw: One guy in our group will or on Instagram. He's a Canadian ghetto. If I don't know if you've met him before, but he is, remember to and he always
Reed Daw: He's known for one of the guys I share more often with known for bringing out a brewery bottle is like the last one, you know, and we're like, well, like, how can we, you know, how can we try this right now.
James's iPhone: I don't think my liver can take it. This is a bad idea. Okay. I ran the profit.
Reed Daw: Yeah, let's do it then.
Reed Daw: Like I'm never gonna say no to it.
Reed Daw: Right, what. So what's one of your like bucket list of breweries that you want to visit next
James's iPhone: Okay, so here's the unfortunate part
James's iPhone: My wife travels for work.
James's iPhone: Yeah, not only not only locally internationally.
Reed Daw: Oh, wow.
James's iPhone: Though, so she has been my beer mule for the last few
James's iPhone: Years, and she has gone to such places as Trillium and Lister man. And like any city. She's and she's like, what's the brewery that I should go to. I mean, she's gone to beer.
Iris
James's iPhone: She's gone everywhere that I want to go. She's already been there and either been to their tap room or picked up, dear. From there, and I'm like, I don't know where to go at this point.
Reed Daw: Yeah, like
James's iPhone: I really don't have a bucket list. Although, although earlier this year. My, my, I think my favorite thing that that's ever happened to me. So we went to. We went to New York, a while ago last summer, and I got a chance to go to other half in New York.
James's iPhone: Yeah, which was fantastic.
James's iPhone: I loved it, great experience.
James's iPhone: Awesome beer love the place love the people
James's iPhone: We recently. And when I say recently. I mean, like the very beginning of February, we went. I took my family to Iceland.
James's iPhone: Well, our connecting flight was out of so we flew into
James's iPhone: We flew into LaGuardia
James's iPhone: And then, and then we had to fly out of Jersey.
James's iPhone: To take the flight. Well, when we, when we landed. We went straight to other half.
James's iPhone: Yeah, I picked up a ton of beer.
James's iPhone: And literally went straight to the shipping store and shift it all home.
James's iPhone: I got home from Iceland my beer was there.
Reed Daw: But I like such a way as well. Yeah, like what a well planned by gift upon return to
James's iPhone: Yes. Yeah, so I mean that that was one of the fun things. I mean, other half is one of my go tues I mean I'll absolutely go to New York and hit upon breweries in New York. I love it. Yeah, so
Reed Daw: Yeah, it's a it's a great place
Reed Daw: Very cool. Maybe a couple more questions, because I'm
Reed Daw: Fine. Yeah, I
James's iPhone: I don't know. So I've only had a few things that there's there's a mystery out here.
James's iPhone: There's marine hi there's elegant mystery.
James's iPhone: I've had some superstition mystery. I've had some ashrams,
James's iPhone: I don't really have a go to meet hurry.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: I mean every everybody's different. I just, I like styles and I like to
James's iPhone: See what everybody else is doing.
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: You know i mean brulee, hands, hands down, one of my favorites.
Reed Daw: Yeah, I absolutely love that guy.
Reed Daw: Absolutely, yeah.
James's iPhone: Really nice guy really good guy.
James's iPhone: Yeah.
Reed Daw: That's, that's awesome. And what about
Reed Daw: Have you gotten. Have you guys gotten to go to a lot of beer festivals, or just the past few for like home.
James's iPhone: We've done GA BF. We did. We did the homebrew con. We were supposed to go to homebrew con last year.
James's iPhone: Didn't happen we do an impromptu GA BF
James's iPhone: Which man we got in, for we landed went to a couple of breweries went to GA BF stayed in a hotel room next morning we were first flight out
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: That was that last year but um
James's iPhone: Yeah, as far as brew fest. I mean, I, I've gotten
James's iPhone: I've gotten an opportunity to to be invited to Firestone Walker's Invitational
James's iPhone: Um, because only because my wife and her family all know the fire stones and the walkers.
Reed Daw: Yeah yeah
James's iPhone: So, so we got we had tickets for that.
James's iPhone: But yeah, I mean also during this pandemic. Nobody's going anywhere, but
Reed Daw: Yeah, but
James's iPhone: There's so many festivals that I want to go to. Yeah but logistically, it's a nightmare is so
James's iPhone: I like we're going to festivals with my wife.
James's iPhone: Because she may not drink a ton of beer.
James's iPhone: But at least, at least, she'll kind of keep me heading in the right direction, like, hey,
James's iPhone: You didn't say you wanted to do this. Did you say you wanted to do that. Oh, yeah. Okay, let me let me focus a little bit
Reed Daw: Yeah, cuz they can get, like, it's like sensory overload and I'll get away for sure. Yeah.
James's iPhone: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, I regret not going to a lot of them in in California, when I was living out there. I mean,
James's iPhone: I mean, there's, I mean there's just so many brew festivals, you know, I mean,
James's iPhone: Yeah, there's stuff like I'd like to go to like wake fest or
James's iPhone: Or pastry town. I mean, just this big ones, and I mean it and it's it's so self serving because it's one of those things where I talked to enough of these people online where I'm like, I want to be standing next to you and drinking a beer with you and just bullshitting with you.
Reed Daw: Yeah, and they're
James's iPhone: going and going, Wow, did you have like all these crazy followers and I'm like no bloody and we're hanging out.
Yeah.
James's iPhone: That's always how I look at it I mean I can
James's iPhone: thousand followers and I'd still be like this I'd still be like wow, I get to hang out with you.
James's iPhone: Directly from this right now.
Reed Daw: Yeah. Not so fun. Like I just second person in and I'm learning more than I've ever learned about beer and I thought I knew
Reed Daw: Something about it. Right.
Reed Daw: It's a lot of fun. I'm saying, Okay, well, this has been awesome for me, Jim. I'm gonna ask
Reed Daw: One more question. It's a pretty silly one. But you could either shotgun or chug a beer right now, which would your beer of choice be
James's iPhone: Oh man, okay, um, the answer is yes, like, Well, I'm not, I'm not really good at shot gumming but
James's iPhone: I've done several times, um,
Reed Daw: Yeah.
James's iPhone: I would say my go to God would be
James's iPhone: Man, I think, I think a brewery West hazy.
James's iPhone: Would be like like go to
James's iPhone: Those are good or our man and an IPA from other half.
Reed Daw: Yeah, they. There are some of the best
James's iPhone: Yeah, I mean, just something that goes down easy. I mean,
Reed Daw: Yeah, those are the most perfect ones.
James's iPhone: Okay, good.
Reed Daw: Yeah. Next time I'll have a just like a like creep up ally. Other half IPA can and pass it on to you.
Oh,
James's iPhone: Yeah, dude. Oh man, I, I love their stuff their stuff is great. I mean there's so there's so many good breweries out there that like get overlooked by big names, you know,
James's iPhone: Yeah, so that's that's why I'm kind of stoked on the whole tripping animals thing because they're just as far as I can tell, they're not that big man.
James's iPhone: They are yeah thanks to Miami, they are taking a flip old
James's iPhone: Yeah, let's go out on which is
James's iPhone: Which is great, you know,
James's iPhone: Yeah. Fantastic.
Reed Daw: Yeah, they're on my next my next like get list right now. And I think I'll finding someone to take
James's iPhone: Place you gotta let me know I gotta like I told RB. The other night I got a refrigerator, full of them.
James's iPhone: Together, I trust me I can't sit here and drink sours all day so
Reed Daw: Yeah, for sure. Yes. And so, okay, Jim, thank you so much for joining me and you know kind of help helping me get this thing Kickstarter that I'm definitely I'll be reaching out to you again and maybe
James's iPhone: I'll go
Reed Daw: Get one so we can do some things in person maybe do a little like learn more about when you're doing something or just
Reed Daw: Yeah, yeah. You need information on like local brewers so you can get like
James's iPhone: More information on the homebrew side I will be happy to give you a list of guys
Reed Daw: Yeah, that'd be awesome. I will definitely take you up on that.
James's iPhone: Okay, cool.
Reed Daw: Awesome. Thank you so much.
James's iPhone: All right. Thank you.
James's iPhone: See you later.
Reed Daw: All right. Bye bye.