Happy Friday beer fans! Stop in and share a cold one with FNBB!
Here's an interesting idea:Ex-Microsoft engineer invents a new machine to help you brew the perfect batch of beer
PicoBrew’s pitch is very appealing to anyone who’s ever tried their hand at making beer before: It wants to help you “make your own great craft beer at home with about the effort you put into pressing the button on your esspresso maker.”
Nothing could be less surprising than it's a Microsoft guy behind it. IMO, this is what in Silicon Valley we call an "engineering-driven product". The technology is cool, the sales potential unimpressive. If you're not actually going to brew it, why not just buy a case? The fact that it requires some effort means that you can be justifiably pleased when you've done it well. Many homebrewers take pride in how little they spend on equipment; most of the ones happy to spend >$1K want more control over their process not less. This is an oversized Mr Beer that's far too expensive for the gift market.
Actually, I've seen this thing before, or at least its brother. A friend of mine worked for a while (in between real jobs) for the company that invented the winemaking equivalent: winepod. I wonder if he's still got the thing in his garage. He said the wine was good but never shared any with me :(
I need to put more dry hops in my pale ale, then it will be ready to bottle next week. And the brown ale I brewed last Saturday is still fermenting. Let's see if I can get in a rhythm again and brew every 2 or 3 weeks like I did for a while. Hefeweizen next.
Who else is brewing? What are you drinking? I'm about to head out and meet a friend for dinner and brews (not a drop of beer in this place except the not-ready-yet homebrew).