Next up: a California Common with a twist

I know I reference the Simpsons probably once every two posts on this blog, but right now my favorite show on television--by far--is It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. A couple of years ago they had an episode in which their bar, Paddy's, was threatened by a new Korean restaurant called Mr. Kim's, which was producing a top-secret microbrew. Not only was is delicious, but it was also powerful. The secret? It's enriched.

Anyway, this episode inspired me to come up with a recipe for Mr. Kim's Secret Microbrew. Assuming plans haven't changed, we'll be brewing with our good friends Marlowe and Mark (proud proprietors of Zoo Brew) who are also big fans of Sunny. Mark had expressed interest in brewing a California Common (a/k/a steam beer) so I started with a Common-ish grain bill (12 lb. Pils, 12 lb. Munich and 1 lb. crystal 30°L--like I said, Common-ish) and decided we'll enrich it with a pound of flaked oats and three pounds of wildflower honey (added to the secondary). Not sure what I'll use for the finishing hops, though I guess Northern Brewer is traditional.

For tonight, I'll be making 4-liter starter using WLP 810 San Francisco lager yeast. Then Saturday it's showtime!