Homebrew 1: Sally Struthaz Saison

As luck would have it, our first batch of home brew was ready for consumption almost a year to the day after our beloved family dog, Sally, passed away.  A friend and former co-worker of mine once offered to let Sally attend one of his training classes.  I am pretty sure he was amazed at just how crazy she was and how few instructions/commands she knew. After just one doggie class (her only class, ever), he gave her the name Sally Struthaz and it stuck with her ever since.

So in honor of her lively and crazy spirit, her loyalty to family, her love of the outdoors and ability to find every cholla plant on the trail, her willingness to make us all laugh and her love of good beer, we named our first home brew in her honor.

Sally Struthaz Saison (~6% ABV)
Suburban Suds Brewery
Chandler, Arizona

This brew originally started off following a recipe for a wit beer.  However because summertime in Arizona (yes, September is still summertime) means that we cannot afford to keep our house at 70 degrees, I decided to tweak the recipe and use a Saison yeast, which is much more forgiving when it comes to higher temperatures during fermentation.  The corriander, orange, lemon and lime flavors are present but not overpowering.  Feedback from our test group of neighbors and friends has been good so far.  It makes for a pretty good fall session beer if you ask me.

Recommendations: pour into a glass and take a few sips.  After a few minutes when the beer has warmed, take a few more.  Kick your feet up and take a minute to appreciate everything you have in life.  Then call us if you want another one.

Score: 4.5 out of 5 pint glasses on the unofficial Suburban Suds pint glass rating system



Cheers to you Sally-Wally Struthaz.  Bawwwwwwwwooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!

She drank both cans (8%) in under 10 minutes.

Sally Struthaz rocks the beat.

First one in the Bronco to go camping.

Playing in the snow with the kids in Pagosa Springs.

Laying around the campsite.

After the vet gave her 24-hours to live.  She stayed with us until after Natalie
 was born and then 6 more months until our new puppy, Gus, arrived.  She
helped to teach him the rules of the house and then passed away a week later.

Sally's tombstone and final resting place.