The Sweet Smell of Porter

I walked in this afternoon and the glorious smell of a Porter-in-the-making was wafting through the air. Sweet, malty and heavy on the ginger.... It was quickly followed by the distinctive 'bloop' of another air bubble escaping the airlock. Those who brew out there know what I am talking about.

That is always a very welcomed sound but today it was even more welcoming since we seem to be off to a slow start! I wonder if it has anything to do with the chocolate. I read chocolate causes a slow start to fermentation. Not that that was the case for the Chocolate Mead I just made. I probably could have launched a rocket with that one!!

Anyways, last night I got the crazy desire to brew, so off to the home brew store I went and picked up supplies for a wild and crazy Porter.

The transfer to the fermenter went quite well except for about a dozen small splatters. What is truly amazing is how pervasive a dozen small splatters of syrupy wort can be. After wiping down the floor with a cloth and then mopping the floor is STILL sticky!!! I will probably get it all cleaned up about the time I brew again. When I design my own kitchen I am installing a central drain in the floor so I can just hose everything down!!