I've got a really big....

...kettle, I just need to decide what to do with it, haha. Seriously though, I just bought a new 15 gallon kettle from Spike Brewing. It's a very nice kettle for the price, but I need to decide what to use it for. It's going to become either a new mash tun, or a new electric kettle. As a mash tun, it would replace my beat up 48qt cooler. As a kettle it would replace my beat up 32qt aluminum pot. I do plan on replacing both at some point, but I'm not sure which to do first. For now, enjoy the stainless bling pictures.

Bertus Pale Ale (aka East Valley Pale Ale)

With my last couple beers being high gravity/high alcohol IPAs, and the next few beers planned are high alcohol IPAs, I need to squeeze in a beer that's a little more drinkable. It's been almost a year since I last brewed my Pale Ale, so I figured I would knock out a batch before my Fiance and I run back to California again this weekend. It just so happened that August (Owner of our Crossfit gym) picked up a Kegerator for the gym a few days ago. So I made this a 12 gallon batch, rather than the 6 gallons planned, so that we have beer on tap at the gym in a few weeks.

IPA Clone Series: Pliny the Younger

 **Update** I brewed an updated clone here. It's dead on. Use that one.

It's been awhile since my last post, but I've got a good one for today. Ahh, Pliny the Younger... This beer is like the mystical unicorn to me. I would still love to try it some day, but I've yet to talk myself into making the trek to Santa Rosa in February. So, I decided to brew a clone. The only unfortunate part is, I won't know how close the clone is, since I've never had the real thing. I've had the Elder so I do have something to go off of, but we're still shooting in the dark here. Maybe I'll build up the guts to send a bottle to Vinnie. Anyway, on to the recipe formulation.