Yaktoberfest 2012 Update: Upgraded Beer Equipment (Equals Upgraded Beer?)

After several years of brewing with a mix of grains and malt extracts, I decided to upgrade and make the switch to an all-grain home brewing rig.  All-grain brewing takes a bit longer than extract brewing does, but the ingredients are cheaper.  Plus, the process is more "authentic."  And "authentic" equals "hardcore," which is a virtue, right?

With a few parts from Lowe's and the local home brew store, Austin Homebrew Supply, and a few hours of tinkering, I was ready to experiment.  Yesterday I started up a new batch of a version of the Kolsch that was a hit at last year's Yaktoberfest.  I soaked a mix of cara pils and 2-row malts, plus a bit of wheat, in hot water, then sparged with 5 gallons of hot water.  After cooking the wort with hops for an hour and cooling it, I pitched a tube of White Labs German Ale/Kolsch Yeast.  That was about 8:30 last night.

Early this morning, there wasn't much activity, but by late morning a bit of foam was starting to develop on top.  By noon, a nice kreusen was taking shape.

Not much else to do but wait for now.  In a couple of weeks, we'll be ready to bottle.  And in a month, I'll know whether this recipe's Yaktoberfest-worthy or not.