Disaster Brewing

Hi All,

I bet I hooked you in with the headline.
Did you ever notice that the bad news sells best.
No major headlines saying, "300 Smiling People March On Parliament"

Yesterday I had a brewing disaster. I was letting the latest layer on a painting dry while I bottled my second batch of home brew. I the newbie-brewmeister had made a batch of Irish dark beer - Guinness style. Bottling beer seems to be mostly about washing the bottles, disinfecting them and then rinsing. Lots of water is involved. To have an assistant is wise. Assistantless on this fateful day all was going wet and well until something slipped.

Note to self; keep more dry cloths handy during bottling process.

I had washed and racked the bottles and lay them out carefully for filling. My friendly brew store had informed me that I need not feel neurotic about sucking on the tube to get the syphoning started. I thought it might contaminate the beer. No problem. Brewing is forgiving if you clean things well. At the bottling stage the alcohol content helps to kill germs - so I was told. All was smooth until I began to lift the big 23 litre bottle onto my kitchen counter to commence syphoning delight into the bottles. Disaster struck when the bottle slipped out of my hands and began its direct descent to the unforgiving floor.

Babies may bounce but glass bottles break.

I watched in dismay as 60 unbottled bottles of beer made their downward way in ever so slow motion. It is amazing how many thoughts the brain can produce in an instant. Fate was only toying with me. The bottle did not smash when it hit the floor. This baby bounced and slid. The beer SPLASHED and my latest crop of Irish brew began to gurgle and gush out. OH NO!!!! Newbie-brewmeister disaster daze.

No tears over spilt beer. Accidents will happen. I grabbed the bottle as Noah's favourite flood of stout flowed over my kitchen floor. Uprighting the bottle I turned to grab my floor mop imaging a beer soaked floor forever sticky and fragrant as happy yeast. The beer froth in the fermentation bottle was now two big beer bottles high.

Mopping completed I did not mope over my fate. I began bottling and once that was completed I took stock of my losses. Perhaps fifteen bottles of beer had been stripped of their joyful potential and had gone down with the flush.

Oh well brew and learn.
It is an art.

I have posted a miniature abtract painting today. It is 5' x 3'' x 1/2 on stretched canvas. I love making small paintings. The miniature paintings is a tiny little world. I used both black and white undercoating on this canvas. Although small the textured surface of paint is quite thick.
This one is for sale now on eBay. Scroll down to froggy below and click to hop to my online store which links directly to eBay. If you would like to view an enlargement of this painting click on a photo and the supersized photo will appear.

ciao

john redmond in Ottawa, Canada