One Step Closer

A few days ago I finally purchased the beer ingredients. The local store I usually frequent in Livermore had a nice IPA that I wanted to try. When I had visited them a few days beforehand, they were out of some of the hops, so I had to make another trip. Also the recipe kit they had was in extract form, so they were going to convert the recipe to all-grain for me. Unfortunately, when I showed up to make the purchase, the store owner, who I had been working with, was out at the Giants game! Luckily, his "helper" had a solution for me. He had developed his own secret IPA recipe and he was willing to share it with me! He also taught me a few more techniques and terms I wasn't yet familiar with, so it was a win-win-win for me! He told me that it was his "Old Rad Lab Maris Otter IPA", his label named because he was one of the old timers at the Lawrence Liver Lab- he worked in the "old rad lab", as they all called it. He has since retired, but he's working part time at the beer store to share his love of brewing. Just my luck! Hopefully, we'll be brewing on Sunday.