Post by red dog on Jul 3, 2015 16:34:23 GMT -8
Pat's Backcountry Beverages
Backpackers have for decades been waiting for someone to develop dehydrated beer to save weight on the trail. Well, it is getting close. This is not dehydrated, but a concentrate.
I thought this 'system' was pretty exciting, so I gathered up the stuff and did a bench test at home to see if it would solve the age old problem of carrying brews in the backcountry.
Here is what you Need:
Beer concentrate packet - about $2.50 a pop
Carbonator Activator packet - about $0.50 a pop
Carbonator Bottle - $40.00 (ouch)
Currently, there are only 2 flavors of beer concentrate available (pale and dark ales) but the manufacturer has promised to add more in the future. (They do have a fairly extensive line of soft drinks too, but what is the point in that?)
The carbonator bottle is a bit smaller than a 1 liter nalgene, and about twice the weight empty.
You will also need to carry the instructions with you unless you have one of those photogenic memories (I don't). The process of carbonating your brew requires a very specific sequence. If you screw up, you will contaminate your brew with citric acid and potassium bicarbonate... Non toxic, but it tastes awful.
Making a Beer:
Follow the instructions precisely. Actually, the basic concept is pretty simple.
Add some water to the carbonator bottle
Cap and invert the bottle to put a measured amount of water in the cap
Dump the two activator pouches into the Reaction cup (that orange bubble thing)
Attached the orange thingy to the inside of the cap
Fill the bottle to the 16 oz line with water, add the beer concentrate and cap everything up
Release the water stored in the cap into the reaction cup (this generates CO2 gas)
Discharge some CO2 gas from the orange thingy into the main vessel
Shake the whole assembly violently
Repeat the above two steps for 4 minutes (that is longer than it sounds)
Drinking a Beer:
Remove the cap assembly, and enjoy your beer (this is the easy part)
How was it?:
Well,
It looks like beer
It smells like beer
It tastes like beer (in this case, pale ale)
6%
I'll be damned.
It is beer!
Conclusion:
I was surprised. This finished product was very drinkable
Head and shoulders above a Budweiser
A notch below your favorite microbrew
NEED a beer in the middle of no place ? Here ya go
Will this revolutionize beer drinking in the back country ?
Probably not
$3.00 per brew for consumables is not bad, but
The initial cost of the carbonator contraption is a put off
The 'Repeat the above two steps for 4 minutes' is best performed in private(if others are watching you, you will never hear the end of it...Remember that Shake Weight commercial?)
The contraption is a special piece of equipment that will take up space in your pack
Maintenance and good cleaning required after every use
I do plan to get this thing outside on a real trip, but
The temperature of the finished product is going to be a function of the water temp you start with. Good news for those who take their water from icy mountain streams, bad news for a desert rat like me
Yes, I promise to field test it, but expect I will probably carry a Platypus of wine or a flask or tequila on subsequent trips
Backpackers have for decades been waiting for someone to develop dehydrated beer to save weight on the trail. Well, it is getting close. This is not dehydrated, but a concentrate.
I thought this 'system' was pretty exciting, so I gathered up the stuff and did a bench test at home to see if it would solve the age old problem of carrying brews in the backcountry.
Here is what you Need:
Beer concentrate packet - about $2.50 a pop
Carbonator Activator packet - about $0.50 a pop
Carbonator Bottle - $40.00 (ouch)
Currently, there are only 2 flavors of beer concentrate available (pale and dark ales) but the manufacturer has promised to add more in the future. (They do have a fairly extensive line of soft drinks too, but what is the point in that?)
The carbonator bottle is a bit smaller than a 1 liter nalgene, and about twice the weight empty.
You will also need to carry the instructions with you unless you have one of those photogenic memories (I don't). The process of carbonating your brew requires a very specific sequence. If you screw up, you will contaminate your brew with citric acid and potassium bicarbonate... Non toxic, but it tastes awful.
Making a Beer:
Follow the instructions precisely. Actually, the basic concept is pretty simple.
Add some water to the carbonator bottle
Cap and invert the bottle to put a measured amount of water in the cap
Dump the two activator pouches into the Reaction cup (that orange bubble thing)
Attached the orange thingy to the inside of the cap
Fill the bottle to the 16 oz line with water, add the beer concentrate and cap everything up
Release the water stored in the cap into the reaction cup (this generates CO2 gas)
Discharge some CO2 gas from the orange thingy into the main vessel
Shake the whole assembly violently
Repeat the above two steps for 4 minutes (that is longer than it sounds)
Drinking a Beer:
Remove the cap assembly, and enjoy your beer (this is the easy part)
How was it?:
Well,
It looks like beer
It smells like beer
It tastes like beer (in this case, pale ale)
6%
I'll be damned.
It is beer!
Conclusion:
I was surprised. This finished product was very drinkable
Head and shoulders above a Budweiser
A notch below your favorite microbrew
NEED a beer in the middle of no place ? Here ya go
Will this revolutionize beer drinking in the back country ?
Probably not
$3.00 per brew for consumables is not bad, but
The initial cost of the carbonator contraption is a put off
The 'Repeat the above two steps for 4 minutes' is best performed in private(if others are watching you, you will never hear the end of it...Remember that Shake Weight commercial?)
The contraption is a special piece of equipment that will take up space in your pack
Maintenance and good cleaning required after every use
I do plan to get this thing outside on a real trip, but
The temperature of the finished product is going to be a function of the water temp you start with. Good news for those who take their water from icy mountain streams, bad news for a desert rat like me
Yes, I promise to field test it, but expect I will probably carry a Platypus of wine or a flask or tequila on subsequent trips
