The Boy Needed a Hobby

It's not that Lee doesn't have enough stuff to do - in fact, it's the opposite. He works so hard running our company and being a great dad and husband that it's hard to find time for anything extra. For anything that is his and his alone.

A couple of years ago I got Lee a homebrew kit, but life was busy as usual and it collected dust in the garage. But I'm glad Lee finally decided that, busy or not, he needed to make time for a hobby. So he got the kit all shined up, got a fresh set of ingredients, and began to brew.

His mom was in town and pitched in, and together they washed and sterilized and measured and watched. And yes, a watched pot does boil eventually.

The wort (I'm learning all kinds of new vocabulary words) smelled wonderful as it simmered on the stove. Made the whole house smell like freshly baked bread. When the wort was ready, we had to find a spot to store it during the two-week fermentation period. It needed to be kept at a steady temperature someplace "quiet." We went back and forth about where to put it until the "AHA!" moment.

So that's what the little closet under the stairs is for! We've wondered all these years. It's a perfect beer brewing closet. After all, the house was built during prohibition!

Now for the hardest part - waiting. Lee checks on his beer like a doting father and so far it seems to be doing well. The yeast got really bubbly and gross the first few days, just as it should. It was actually kind of interesting to watch it bubbling and growing.

In another week he'll bottle it, then in another two weeks it'll be ready for consumption.

Not only did he find a hobby, but a productive one too! 55 bottles of beer coming right up. Looking forward to toasting his efforts.