Brewing fun making our Mauhler 12 Clone!

So for a while now my sister and I have been the “ususal suspects” at our local Ale House drinking one of favorite beers, the Mauhler 12. So we decided that after making our mead we would look into making our very own Mauhler 12. But with life, school and work it seemed almost impossible. Until we met Mr.Naylor who happens to be one of the best brewers in San Diego and also happens to live down the street from us!

Suddenly our dream to replicate and brew our own Mauhler 12 had become a reality! We are actually going to be calling it our very own “Arrizon 12″ for a bottle share and opening this month.

Things always happen in funny ways it seems that way lately. We hanging out at the Ale House then meeting our own neighbor that was also a regular there at the same time and hitting it off talking about brewing and stuff. Small world . . . .

Kinda liking this new app Runkeeper! ;)

Since I started this app I have gone from 10k to now 140k!  Wow it keeps track of everything from distance to time, from calories burned to actual elevations, your pace and your speed report! It even shows how you have improved and even maps out your run or walk.

I believe I became a member last year in Dec. 2011 and it has been super fun. I totally recommend this app to anyone out there trying to get in shape or just running for fun. Plus its free!

http://runkeeper.com/user/Loppuu/profile

Champion League Weekend Wooo-Hooo!!

So my friend the other day reminded me of the big soccer game this weekend and since not only do I play but love soccer so much, I’m gonna make sure I’ll be watching for sure!
I’ll probably be at my local pub in Encinitas where they always have an awesome tap list and really good food as well! Plus their soccer fans themselves!
The match will be the final game of the European Champions League between Germany’s Bayern Munich and UK’s Chelsea FC. Bayern will have home advantage since this game is in Munich but Chelsea isn’t to be taken lightly. Chelsea FC is an EPL powerhouse with good experience both in domestic and international games so this will be an interesting match to watch.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Rooney, and many soccer players who are sponsored by Nike going forward including this summers Euro 2012 as well as the summer Olympics.

Exciting soccer times ahead.

Soccer + Beer = Happiness ;P

So what does Valentine’s Day really mean?

As I was sipping on my coffee this morning, I realized it was Valentine’s day today!! Wow my days are so off lately . . . . So I started thinking about it and besides the typical chocolate, teddy bears, roses, e-cards and champagne, I asked myself what does Valentine’s day really mean?

As I started searching I found a wonderful story behind what we call Valentine’s Day.  I had no idea it actually originated from something so meaningful.

The celebration of the day began with the life and death of a man which makes it kinda ironic.   A bishop by the name of Valentine stood against an Emperor’s decree that Roman soldiers could not marry. He married them in secrecy because he thought the Emperor’s edict was wrong and went against the glory of young love. Valentine’s acts were discovery. Label treason, he was martyred. In memory of Valentine’s deeds, Pope Gelasius declared him a saint and the day of his execution, February 14th, became known as Valentine’s Day.

In ancient times, Valentine’s Day originally marked the remembrance of the man. The meaning over time years after his death, young men offering notes of affection to young ladies they admired. By the Middle Ages, the Day was recognized as the holiday of courtship and love.

 

Chapter 5:
…seeds are invisible. They sleep deep in the heart of the earth’s darkness, until some one among them is seized with the desire to awaken. Then this little seed will stretch itself and begin–timidly at first–to push a charming little sprig inoffensively upward toward the sun.

It is only with the heart that one can see clearly

Sunsets in December.

It’s said that Pisces are dogmatic by Nature . . . . .

I once read this when I was young and It made sense then as it makes sense now.

The simple things in life is what makes one happy . . . like  the sound of  my dog drinking water from her bowl and how she likes listening to me humming myself to sleep.

Life’s funny. When one is young time always drags and it seems like forever . . . .  Suddenly you’re 30 then 40 and all that’s left of your childhood are the distant memories.

A Time to Thank and Give . . . . .

This years Thanksgiving was a good one, besides getting a new job things are now falling into place.  I also got to indulge myself to a couple of cooking apparatus.  I have always wanted to make an awesome turkey dinner but I just never got the time nor the right cooking sets.  So I decided to go all out this year.  I searched for turkey cookers, turkey oven trays,  non-stick cookers for turkeys . . . . you name it I searched and searched.  Stores would tell me that they were completely out or that they had no idea what I was looking for. Ugh!  One would think that most retail stores would carry them in stock around the Holidays . . .but I was soooo wrong.  So I finally went online and found myself  a Calphalon Cookware Set, Yay!!

This is similar to what I bought myself, it’s called the Calphalon Turkey Cookware Set.
I have been wanting a set from Calphalon for quite a while now, and I really liked the 5 piece it was a great deal.

My recipe this year was given to me by Bryan, a total genius!  Learned that when you mix pineapple juice, vodka and some very special spices the turkey becomes incredibly delicious.  I would have never thought of that creation because I was so stuck on the conventional way of cooking a turkey.  Thanks Bryan and hope you continue to inspire me. It opened the doors to so many other variations to using this mixture of spices and juices.

Like I mentioned earlier this Thanksgiving was a very special one for me.  Besides the food, the pies and all the great beer of course,  we had to opportunity to help out in cooking and distributing about 100 turkey dinners.  I have always thought that if you can help just a little bit the world and its human race will change for the better!  It brings happiness to your heart and hope for others . .  .  What else can one ask for? If anyone else feels the magic within we can all make a huge difference.

Once again I take this special little moment to thank all the good people around me and my cute little animals that are truly a blessing to me. We (Martha, Bubba, Kristy and I) wish you all a very good Holiday this year and the many, many to come. We pray for peace and joy and hope that we all can grow to see a better tomorrow.  Please send me a message if you would like to join (fill a belly) for Christmas,  I will admit we do need Volunteers.

Small Beer Glass for Better Beer Taste

I love brewing all kinds of mead’s, cider and just recently beer as you probably know by now. Something about taste of home brewed beer that makes it a lot more enjoyable than ordinary beers. And it even tastes better if I taste it in a smaller beer glass.

Since I have my friends coming over often to taste my beer, I decided that it would be a good idea to purchase a set of a small set of beer glasses. One of my friends gave me an a $25 gift certificate from an online cookware specialty store that also sells bar ware and drink ware  where I bought my  beer glass set of 12 made by Anchor Hocking. My purchase arrived today which I am very excited about. They are very delicate and cute,  and I am looking forward a better beer tasting experience and serving my friends my home brewed beer in these beer glasses.