nope. I like the 5 gallon at a time game clay
On Oct 4, 2013, at 11:19 AM, Randy Bennell wrote: > Have you considered doing the keezer thing? > > Randy > > On 04/10/2013 2:29 AM, clay wrote: >> I gave the thing a look over online. Seems like a viable solution for the >> beer guy who wants some top level beer. Not meant for the crafty beer >> hobbyist, but the guy who has cash and likes the cachet of making his own >> really good beer. No need to make gallons of the stuff, but a gallon at a >> time of all sorts of interesting beers. >> >> I like to mess around with all the little tasks involved in brewing. Then >> getting to make dozens of bottles to age and drink over time. I get three >> or four batches a year. If I could pop out a fresh beer every week, that >> would be really fun. To drink. Not sure I am ready for a beer appliance >> though >> >> clay >> >> >> On Oct 1, 2013, at 4:56 PM, Greg Fiorentino wrote: >> >>> Sounds very cool, but $1500 seems a far reach. >>> >>> Greg >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: Mercedes [mailto:mercedes-boun...@okiebenz.com] On Behalf Of Gerry >>> Archer >>> Sent: Monday, September 30, 2013 6:01 AM >>> To: Undisclosed-Recipient:; >>> Subject: [MBZ] Microsoft Pair creates home-brewing machine >>> >>> >>> If you were one of the top guys who spent much of the 2000s trying to get >>> Microsoft to develop tablet computers, you might be ready for a drink. >>> Or two. >>> Fortunately, that guy - Bill Mitchell - has figured out how to easily >>> produce a never-ending supply of absolutely top-notch beer, in any style and >>> flavor you can imagine. >>> After leaving Microsoft in 2010, Mitchell started a company called PicoBrew >>> with his food-scientist brother and a gifted hardware hacker he used to work >>> with in Redmond. >>> Together they created a dream machine for small-scale brewing that they're >>> unveiling Monday. >>> Called the PicoBrew Zymatic, it's a device the size of a large microwave >>> oven that almost completely automates the process of producing beer. >>> The idea was to take the drudgery out of brewing, without sacrificing the >>> fun or the gratification that comes from creating your own batches, Mitchell >>> said. >>> "The beauty for us, especially in beer-making, is it's this great fusion of >>> science and cooking, of chemistry and cooking," he said. "We didn't want to >>> lose any of that - in fact we want to enhance that portion of it - and just >>> take out the bad portions." >>> They've also applied modern technologies to the ancient art. >>> Zymatic machines were designed to be Internet appliances. They are >>> controlled by open-source software, connected to the Web and managed through >>> a browser. >>> PicoBrew's software dashboard is used to concoct recipes and adjust brewing >>> cycles. Users can share recipes through the service and monitor the brewing >>> process remotely on their smartphone. >>> Data collected by this online service - from users who opt to share their >>> brewing activity - will be used to continue refining the machines, which are >>> also designed to be hacked and modified as buyers see fit. >>> About 1 million people in the U.S. brew their own beer, from President Obama >>> on down, according to the American Homebrewers Association. But it remains a >>> niche hobby because home-brewing can be a hassle. >>> To make a batch, you may spend most of a day cleaning and sterilizing >>> vessels and implements, then heating, mixing and cooling the ingredients. >>> It's also tricky to precisely repeat the process, which is what finally >>> convinced Mitchell there had to be a better way. >>> While still an executive leading various Microsoft hardware projects, >>> Mitchell, 50, began brewing more and more advanced beers at his Medina home, >>> including Belgian ales, stouts and barley wines. >>> A turning point came after he produced a particularly great stout for a >>> soccer-team party. Others raved and asked for more, but he was unable to get >>> his special recipe to work again. >>> Mitchell didn't have to look far for help. His brother, Jim, is a physicist >>> and home-brewer who designs food-processing facilities. Their late >>> grandfather was a noted General Foods scientist whose inventions led to >>> products such as Cool Whip, Tang, Jell-O and Pop Rocks candy. >>> "We said, 'We should be able to come up with something that automates that >>> process, like a superautomatic espresso maker,'?" Mitchell said. Goals >>> included a system with precise temperature control that could produce repeat >>> batches and that could be cleaned in a dishwasher. >>> At first they tinkered with things like robotic arms and complicated valve >>> systems. Eventually they gave up trying to mechanically add and remove >>> ingredients. Instead they figured out a way to circulate water at different >>> temperatures through the dry ingredients. >>> To make a batch with a Zymatic, you select a recipe in the browser. Then you >>> measure and pour grain into a plastic tray and the hops into specially >>> designed filter baskets. You then slide them into the machine. A small >>> "Cornelius" keg is filled with water and attached to the machine, which >>> circulates the water back and forth. >>> About 3 ½ hours later the batch is done. You add yeast to the keg, >>> refrigerate it for a week or so and the beer is ready. >>> The machines are developed and assembled by a team of eight working in a >>> funky building near Gas Works Park where ZymoGenetics started out. It >>> includes a production shop filled with tools, including surplus Boeing >>> equipment. >>> The heart of the building is a former lab area where the machines are >>> tested, churning out batch after batch of beer. Refrigerators around the >>> room are stuffed with kegs, and Mitchell encourages visitors to bring home >>> samples. So far they've brewed more than 300 batches while tuning and >>> testing the system to be sure it can produce all sorts of beers with premium >>> results. >>> PicoBrew's third co-founder is former Microsoft hardware designer Avi >>> Geiger, who worked with Mitchell at the dawn of the smartphone era when >>> Microsoft was pioneering the category in the late 1990s. >>> Later they worked on the ultra-mobile PC efforts in the mid 2000s that >>> presaged the rise of tablet computing. They also worked with Xbox co-founder >>> Otto Berkes to secretly build a prototype Windows tablet before the iPad >>> appeared, but they couldn't persuade Microsoft's senior leaders to release >>> the product. >>> Before that, Mitchell managed Microsoft's early forays into smart watches >>> and in-car computers. >>> It remains to be seen whether he's at the leading edge of another breakout >>> consumer phenomenon with brewing gear. >>> But the rise of home espresso machines suggests there is a significant >>> market for equipment that simplifies in-home beverage production for >>> enthusiasts. >>> For now, though, they're trying to reach hard-core home-brewers and pros who >>> can use the equipment to experiment and produce small test batches. >>> Several breweries have been testing the system, including Fremont Brewing. >>> It used a Zymatic to test and tweak the winter beer it's releasing in >>> November, a dark wheat ale with smoked and caramel malt flavors and a little >>> spice. >>> "We were quite honestly very skeptical at first - it's kind of tilting at >>> windmills to do this - but they pulled it off," said founder Matt Lincecum. >>> He's particularly impressed by the compact size and precision. >>> "We found that the beer it makes also fits all the specifications that you >>> program in, which is a pretty hard thing to do. That's an impressive >>> achievement," he said. >>> In addition to using the machine for test batches, Lincecum wants to place >>> it in the company's beer garden/tasting room to encourage customer >>> participation. >>> "Customers select or participate and select aroma variety or grains or >>> whatever, then you put a beer together, brew it and put it on tap," he said. >>> >>> "It's a really neat concept. It brings the idea of brewing to a larger >>> audience." >>> PicoBrew will gauge demand and help fund production by selling its initial >>> runs of Zymatic machines on the Kickstarter project-funding site. Early >>> machines will sell for around $1,300 and should be delivered in January. >>> Later models, arriving in February and beyond, will cost about $1,500. >>> Mitchell isn't saying much about future directions, but there are several >>> options to broaden the appeal and reach of the company's products. >>> For instance, Jim Mitchell uses them for sous-vide cooking, a vacuum-cooking >>> technique in which ingredients are placed in a sealed bag and cooked in >>> water held at a precise temperature. >>> Especially tasty was a sous-vide tri-tip steak marinated in a mega stout, >>> cooked in a brewing machine and shared in the PicoBrew conference room - >>> proving that you actually can have your beer and eat it, too. >>> >>> http://seattletimes.com/text/2021921820.html >>> >>> Microsofters designed and built this machine? Hmmm! I wonder if you push >>> start when you want to stop it? >>> Gerry >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________ >>> http://www.okiebenz.com >>> >>> To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ >>> >>> To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: >>> http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________ >>> http://www.okiebenz.com >>> >>> To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ >>> >>> To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: >>> http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com >> >> _______________________________________ >> http://www.okiebenz.com >> >> To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ >> >> To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: >> http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
