Charlie Scudder

I started with a basic Mr. Beer kit with an old can of hopped LME. I’d learned to brew with my dad, who had started a bit before me on the same kit. When it was my turn, I kicked things off wit a hefeweizen. Not award-winning, but not the worst beer you’ve ever had!

Probably a tie between a smoked pecan porter I’ve made several years in a row, and my carrot and dried leaves ale. Both use smoke, which I love in beer, and homegrown ingredients. The pecans are from two big trees in the yard, and the leaves are from the same pecan trees. The porter is always robust and great for a cold winter’s night, and the ale is surprisingly balanced and refreshing!

I’ve got two horror stories. - One was after I had a perfect brew day — everything went just the way I wanted to. Hit my OG, mash was perfect, everything was going smoothly. First time I was really happy with the way a brew day had gone. Then, after I’d transferred six gallons to a carboy, I slipped and shattered the whole thing in my garage, sending wort spilling everywhere. - The other horror story comes from a terrible brew day where nothing went right. Stuck mash, low volume, missed a hop addition, yeast didn’t get started right, a total Murphy’s Law of a brew. I ended up calling it SNAFU Brown Ale.

I’ve been digging HopFusion’s Feisty Blonde and Community’s Citra Slice this time of year. Gotta love Duchesse de Bourgogne for a special occasion, though.

Got a Märzen that was brewed back in March and should be coming out of the lagering chamber in a few weeks. I’ve also got a batch of mead from the club’s mead day that’s aging, too.

I love drinking and brewing German lagers, but it’s tough with my temp control setup. Favorite to drink is a good (which is hard to find) Kellerbier or Rauchbier.

I brew on a 10-gallon Blichmann Boilermaker with a SS mash tun. I ferment most things in an SS Chronical. Everything ends up in my four-keg keezer.

I love working to make fresh beers that I can’t get anywhere else. I like experimenting with flavors to create balanced beers with unique, local ingredients. I want the beer I make to taste like it’s made here. I want to find ways to use quality ingredients and processes, combined with some elements of terroir to make a really great pint. (Two major book recs on this philosophy: The Homebrewers’ Almanac and The Shape of Brewing, both available at BrewHound.) A big part of why I brew is also getting to make beer with my dad, a former commercial brewer. We work as a team on most recipes, and get to spend time together making the best beer possible.