Getting ready for another brew, plus garden progress

Spring has sprung, and with it my urge for Saisons and other pale Belgian ales. But, my ability to produce one has been hampered by the fact that it is spring planting season, and the garden is in need of much labor.

I'm about to brew tonight, when I get back from the gym after work. This simple saison will take 3.5 gallons of water, 5 gallons of Belgian Pilsner Malt, 2 pounds of Rahr Red wheat, one ounce of Crystal Hops, about 8 ounces of Piloncillo sugar inverted with fresh lemon juice, and some Wyeast French Saison (a beastly beast of a yeast that will tear through the wort in a day or two and taste great with lots of natural pepper and coriander and flavorful esters!) and I'll make me a brew.

I have some herbs I could toss in there, fresh from the garden. Rue, for instance, is a likely candidate. I've got some excellent Rue. Borage is alive out back, and thriving. Sage and rosemary are well-established from a prior home-owner. I've got a little bit of parsley and cilantro, too. Heck, my nasturtiums are thriving and if I get an edible flower open I'm very likely to toss that into the brew kettle. Saison, to me, does mean getting a little adventurous with the herbs. It also means a little adventurous, only, to provide herbal notes and hints in the back of the brew, not an overpowering, overwhelming chorus of green. I'll take only a little, and drop it in at flameout. That's all I'll do with the herbs. A pinch here, a pinch there. I can always add more to the secondary if it needs it.

Hey, speaking of gardening, let's take a look at progress:

Tonight, we brew Saison!