Brewskie

With my renewed focus on mindfulness, I recognized that I am not the only one in my household who has let personal interests and endeavors slide.  

My husband used to brew beer.  It was a hobby he enjoyed but which fell by the wayside as our lives became "busier." There just never seemed to be time.

But making time for personal interests is vital to contentment.  Once I'd rediscovered this for myself it was time to grant the gift of time to my husband.

He works crazy long hours with loads of travel.  His weekends have always been filled with "chores" - stacking wood, making repairs, working in the yard, etc.  Those little tasks that seemed so important would suck up whatever non-work time he had.

Well no more.

As they say, all work and no play makes Mike a worn-out, unfulfilled, guy.

Or something like that.

So for Christmas this year I got him a gift certificate to a local brewing supply store. In the past he always made-do with barely adequate equipment. This gift allowed him to upgrade a little and purchase the raw ingredients necessary to brew a batch.

It was fun to watch him get back into his hobby.  I picked up a couple of basic brewing books from the library and about a month ago he brewed his first batch. He was concerned about fermentation, so the primary fermenter (I think it's called a carboy) was brought upstairs where it was a little warmer.

The girls and I, enjoying how much he was babying his batch, wrapped the carboy in a heating pad and hat one day.  I was upstairs when he came home and heard his somewhat frantic reaction.  Of course we didn't have the heating pad on!

It sat upstairs in the dining room for a week, protected from the light as you see above.

 It was ready to bottle the day before he left for a two-week trip to Chile.

 The brew is awaiting his return tomorrow, under wraps in the basement.

I can't wait for him to taste his inaugural brew.  It looks a little dark for my tastes, though I definitely will sample some.  After he makes a second batch, I think we'll brew some root beer for everyone to enjoy.