We bumped into the nice lady from the Black Isle Brewery and shared with her the heartache of our lager disaster.
Don't worry she said, it doesn't happen all the time but it does happen to the best of us. You are dealing with a living thing and it does go wrong every now and then.
We love Black Isle and nick some of their better ideas (sorry), so its comforting to see even the old established breweries have their own little disasters from time to time.
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A guy phoned up today from the Birmingham German market asking us if we would be sole beer supplier to this years event.
He said he was looking for something completely different with a good marketing angle.
He also said he was anticipating selling up to 2000 pints of draught a day.
Logistics - difficult
Quantity - impossible.
Obviously. So why did it take us five minutes to say NO. It is bonkers. You would love to do it but say you only sold 1000 pints a day for thirty days, that's 30,000 pints in a month with plant that can produce 3,000 roughly every fortnight. One day.
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Checks tonight on the latest Lager and IPA to be brewed reveal - wait for it ------ that all seems well again. They are bubbling away and the sg seems to be falling nicely.
This, we can only presume, is because it rained for several days before the brew no doubt topping up the zinc.
Its a lesson learnt. We are going to invest in yeast food, seriosuly, a brewing product that helps combat low zinc.
Now word is out of the last lager disposal a repeat would result in our drain being diverted to a number of island homes.
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Where on earth can you buy a spittoon.
I suppose:
Or perhaps the wanted ads in the Oban Times.
Why does a brewery need one, I hear no one ask. Well it’s because the boss has signed the pledge. He is the boss of a brewery and has decided to forgo the pleasures of drink. He is the Colonsay and Oransay Temperance Society Chairman, Secretary but not sole member. No Keith has been joined in that loosely constituted but elite body of men by no less and personage the Bob the Brewer. However Bob's membership has had to be adjusted to associate status on account of his falling of the wagon the first time he got within spitting distance of the Colonsay Bar. "Just a diet coke for me," he was heard to say quickly followed by "bugger it I'll have a pint of IPA".
At least we only need to find a little spittoon for the brewery tasting sessions. And if we join eBay we'll be able to get rid of it again at the end of the month when Keith, as planned, rejoins the real world.
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Yes you remember - it’s the salmon that John West Rejects that makes John West the best.
It’s on a par with:
I liked the blade so much I bought the company.
The Man from Del Monte he say YES
Well the boss from the Isle of Colonsay Brewing Company he say no - and he's not even drinking.
Seriously we are talking about our worst setback to date and the saddest thing on this island since Adam was a lad. Our last brew of lager seemed reluctant to ferment at even its usual slow pace. We never rush it but this brew was taking an age and getting no where fast. Eventually when the fermentation appeared to have stopped completely it was put over into the conditioning tank as usual but alarm bells were ringing in the minds of brewers Bob and Chris. The brew was put under intense scrutiny and carbonated as usual and found to be wanting. Not seriously, but not good enough to put out. Keith reckoned it was about 9 out of 10 on our usual, an opinion expressed after spitting out the lager in accordance with the item above.
We took advice from George (remember him) still only a phone call away and eventually concluded it wasn't good enough and wasn't going to get any better. So. Find a handkerchief. The tap was opened and 1400 pints of lager was disposed of - the hard way.
An inquiry was held, records of the brew read and re read and more calls and we concluded the lack of fermentation was down to a shortage of naturally occurring zinc in our water supply.
We learnt the zinc level is likely to drop at times of low rainfall and high usage. You know we've had nothing but sunshine all summer and the island's been hootching - zinc shortage.
Tip toe round the brewery - we're not in a laughing mood.
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