Lagunitas: The Hairy Eyeball Ale

Good friends of mine gave me a beer once. It was a bottle of Three Philosophers. The moment it touched my lips, I fell in love. It is my official favorite beer in the world. It is pretty pricey so I don't get to drink it often but that is okay because that makes it special. It has a high ABV and it is lovingly balanced and yummy. It tastes like satan's ass if you drink it warm. Do Not Drink it Warm. It almost lost it's place in my heart.

Now I found something that will not take it's place but pleasantly remind me of my favorite. It tastes so much like Three Philosophers but way cheaper. I am dancing the happy dance with every taste. It is called The Hairy Eyeball. This brewery has been hit and miss with me but this brew has it it out of the park. If you can find it, try it. I found one bottle of it at my local Save Mart here in Visalia, Ca.

Downby Cider

We named our first cider, Downby Cider: A Hard Apple Cider by Avila Brewery. I like it. It is sweet with a kick. I estimated the ABV% at 6%. I do not have a hydrometer to tell for sure. This is on my "I need" list. I can only go by my unscientific; I feel silly like a beer with this amount of alcohol meter. That feeling is about 6% give or take. I can say with certainty that it is not more due to the kind of yeast I used. I would not produce a high alcohol level naturally. I wanted a low ABV% because I wanted it sweet and not dry. Downby Cider is sweet and tasty. We need to come up with a label.
This gave me the confidence to experiment. i went to Bencomo brew supplies in Fresno. I need a #7 bung. My other bung was too small or too big. I hate it when that happens. My wife asked what a bung was for. I told her it was for orifices. I put my bung in holes. She didn't think that was funny. I showed her one and I think she got it. I also need an auto-fill siphon and tubing. I am slowly moving past the simple brewing into more complex brewing. A goal for Avila Brewing this year is to compete in the Tulare County Fair. Last year, a guy from Fresno took home everything. I hope to keep some of those ribbons here local.
I am fermenting a Pomegranate Limeade Cider. It is unnamed so far. When it is done, I will take it to the board of directors and decide what to name it. Also I made a few purchases from

Welcome to The Brewery

It's the 1st of January and we're already off to a great start. I just bottled my first Hard Cider. It is tasty, if I may say so myself. I have some ideas for future ciders. Something like mango or a berry with apple. Thanks for dropping by, I hope you stop by and read about my misadventures in brewing.
My first world brewing problem of the day is I bought the wrong size bung for my carboy. It was too big for one and too small for the other. Maybe I need to take the carboy to the store for sizing. I also learned that I do need a bottle drying rack and a storage box for unused bottles. So far, this is what I noticed for my immediate needs. I know there is a ton more.