I've never actually bothered to Blog about things befroe, but given the hard work that went into the design of this new web site, I 

feel obligated to give it a try. 

Last evening, I began what I refer to as my lager ritual, that is, the start of my yeast starter for a lager.  Those of you familier with my brewing philosophy know

that I firmly subscribe to the notion of pitching large quantities of yeast, particularly in my lagers.  This approach was given a challenge this year as I finally upgraded my boil kettle to

Just got done judging the LA County Fair Best of Show a few hours back. Bruce Brode did his usual superb job keeping an eye on the motley crew. With me were Steve Cook, Paul Sedwhick and Jim Wilson. Sitting down we were faced with 23 or so entries. Irene quickly pulled each of the bottles and we each poured a small sample. The routine:  sniff, swirl, taste and notes. After running through all the contenders, we start nominating beers we don't think will win or have a flaw. In the blink of an eye, 23 becomes 12, becomes 9 and finally becomes 6.

Wow! Great party up there in the mountains. The early birds got hit with that all too rare Southern California phenom - rain. Reports had everyone huddling under a couple of popups, cooking breakfast and enjoying each other's company. Turnout was a little smaller, thanks mostly to the homebody element's fear of a little rain. Too bad guys, cause this fest was awesome - cool, pine scented and with an amazing view from atop the mountain. And all of it a short 70 minute-ish drive from the Valley.

I just got back from Sunfest up there on the mountain (Mt.

It's going to take some getting used to, no complants so far.

 Welcome to Day 1 of the new MaltoseFalcons.com. Personally I blame everything about this site on Jonny Lieberman. About 2 years ago, he hit me up with the idea of creating a new site that would allow the Falcons to come in and modify the bejezzus out of their world. Post stories, pictures and recipes, talk with their fellow club members, etc.

I can feel the anticipation growing. Hopefully by week's end, everyone will be able to see this site! Lots of work left to do though!