Scott Selfridge.

Home Town (City, State): Novato, CA  (That’s about 40 mins North of San Francisco)

Homebrew Club: Lauter Day Brewers

I’ve been a homebrewer since:  September of 2014.  I know, not very long.  I will say I am committed to brewing an excellent batch of brew, though!  So much so that I will subordinate the concerns and ideas of those that surround me.  During times of major crisis, inflation or otherwise. 

Do you have a homebrewing disaster you’d like to share?  No.  Why would I want to do that?

What is your favorite style(s) to brew? I’m not going to lie.  I’m all about the IPA, APA and DIIPA/DBIPA.  HOPS BABY!! @Andrew – please don’t hate me :-/   I do LOVE making Dark Milds and trying to master session ales.  I’ve been meaning to play with producing fusel alcohol, which most avoid, on purpose with low gravity, sweeter and full-bodied beers to make a low point “session” beer that tastes like a double beer.

What style(s) will you never brew? Gose.  Salt water is for surfing…  That beer just needs to “Gose away!”  I brew beers I enjoy drinking.

What was the first beer you ever brewed?  How did it turn out? An extract Double IPA from Amazon and it was a buttery mess.  I learned a ton from it, though.  

What is your favorite beer recipe?   The LDB Gin IPA recipe without the Gin Barreling.  That IPA recipe was amazing, prior to the gin barreling!  Not an easy recipe.  Another one would be the Alpine Brewing “Nelson” IPA clone recipe.  That’s a crazy recipe with a 30% Rye addition.  WAY good, though.

Do you have a favorite homebrew trick or gadget that you’ve found to make your beer better/brewing easier, etc?  Kegging was life changing for me, because I hate waiting.  If I wanted to wait I’d go to Lagoon or vote in the Democratic caucus (which I did).  The “BrewBag” played a major role in making things easy and delectable.  I also have a “Clear Beer Draft System” that pulls the beer from the top of the keg.  It just means you get clearer and carb’ed beer faster, which is a plus in my book.

Describe your brew system.  I use a BIAB method and an induction burner.  I can keep the mash at a constant temp without recirculating the wort. I also use a modified fridge that I can temperature control. I love it, but I’m getting to a place that I want to do 10 gallon batches, instead of 6 gallon. So I need to rethink my system, but I don’t want to use the three-tier system.

How frequently do you brew (times/month or /year)? I try and brew twice a month, but at least once a month.

What is your favorite malt?  Why?  Rahr 2-Row.  There was a time I had a sack of Thomas Faucet Pearl malt and enjoyed the “doughy” flavor it gave beers.  I’d easily move to that if it was as cheap as the Rahr and as fresh.

What is your favorite hop? Why?  Oh man that’s tough!  I’d have to say Columbus or Apollo.  I love Apollo for the kind of beers I brew, which is mainly the ones I like drinking #IPA..  I love what it does when used for dry hopping or late in the boil.  It’s super bold and complex.  Apollo might not be the right thing to use for something like an English or German beer, but it works for what I personally am looking for out of the beers I enjoy drinking and you can get MASSIVE amounts of flavor when used late in the boil and a lower bitterness.  Columbus works in a similar fashion and is slightly milder, which makes it easier to control.

Do you have a favorite or house yeast? What qualities do you like about that yeast?  I don’t. With only a year and a half under my belt, I like experimenting and trying different yeasts.  There are so many good ones out there, I’d think it would be hard to choose.  001 or 1056 seem foolproof, though. I made a Double IPA using a Kolsch yeast during the Fall, just when the Summer started making the basement 58F.  I want to say it was Wyeast 2565.  I was floored by the results!  It was dry and malty with huge amounts of dank form Apollo, Columbus and whatever the hell else I put in there.  I was worried that it would suck and took a gamble, but it surprised the hell out of me.

Do you have a good homebrew club story you’d like to share?  We were at Clay’s house and sharing bottles.  I think it was my second or third meeting and I was just getting to know people.  I remember very little from this night.. mind you.  However, I do remember shaking everyones hand, taking a sip and looking up to find everyone staring at me and the blood dripping down my hand.  Only to find out that I left a few people a little “red handed”.  To this day, I have no idea how that happened and was totally embarrassed.  Thankfully I’m not caring any blood born pathogens and everyone in the club is amazingly cool and awesome and didn’t pay any mind to it.  In fact they made me feel very welcome.

If you could serve your homebrew to someone famous, who would it be and what would you give her/him?  Lemmy Kilmister Motörhead, Jimmi Hendrix, Marilyn Monroe and Bruce Lee, because they are awesome!

Are you an indoor or outdoor brewer? Indoor mainly, because I can’t get the induction cooker outside without a huge 240V extension cord.  Every so often I’ll break out the propane burner and enjoy some fresh air during Spring, Summer, and Fall.

List some of the names you’ve given your beers. Which is your favorite?  Hmmmm… let me pull up my BeerSmith and check.  I’d have to say “Winter Sucks Pale Ale”  That beer was killer!  Dry and balanced with a huge amount of hop character and fruitiness in the nose and mouth and very low bitterness.  I needed to balance out my Utah Winter blues and have a taste of Spring and Summer that knocked the edges off, after a hard day at work. I also needed it to be easy to brew and used Yakima Valley hop oil for the bulk of the battering and flavor.  I thing dropped about 4oz of Equinox in the dry hop to take it up a notch. That keg was tapped in about 2-3 weeks, by me and me alone.

What haven’t we asked that you would really like to answer?  I guess, what brought you to home brewing?  I’ve been a musician and engineer since I was 16 and been driven and compelled by music.  I love it!  Being creative it’s my life.  As a kid I was inspired by my Grandfather or “Papa”.  He was the #2 hand gun marksman, headed and pioneered the Ham Radio engineer club, ran 16 miles a day up Mt. Tamalpais, was the top banjo player in Northern California and brewed his own beer.  I know… quite the achievement, but the dude was absolutely incredible and a renaissance man to say the least.  He could even blowout a candle from 10 feet away!  Any who..  he inspired me to see a connection in all things, but mainly for the respect for “the process” and the details.  When I decided to home brew, I wasn’t playing out as much and was taking a break from music.  What I discovered from home brewing overwhelmed me and I ended up falling in love with it.  You can be just as creative, detailed, obsessed yet respectful of the process.  All while creating joy for yourself and others!  Just as much as playing or recording/producing music.  That’s what I really love about the hobby. It still kept me connected with others and meeting and feeling inspired by meeting new people in my life who were just as enthusiastic about the hobby.  Beer brings people together and it plays a big part in delighting others.  I’ve always really enjoyed being a part of a culture/hobby that loves creating joy for others.  I heart BEER!