the waiting is the hardest part ....

Headed over to Knoxville today to get the rest of what I needed for my first attempt at brewing. I didn't need much, but had no bottles, no ingredients, nor sanitizer. Yes, you can use bleach, but the sanitizer is tasteless and isn't toxic and you needn't worry as much about rinsing the equipment.

Dad is trying to sell his Mustang and is interested in trading it off for another old classic. While perusing Craigslist the other day I noticed a 66 Galaxie convertible. He was interested and it was just a half hour further, so we included that on the agenda as well as a trip to Sam's Club to further justify the trip over and back.

Well, the Galaxie wasn't what Dad was looking for, so we loaded back up and headed over to the homebrew supply store to pick up the last of what I needed to brew with. Upon pulling into the parking lot, Melissa and I spied an International specialty store. What caught my attention (and Dad's) was the word "sausages" painted on the window.

We went in and were pleasantly surprised at the selection of meats and cheeses, jams, and other condiments available. We left with some Polish cheese (cannot remember the name nor will I attempt to pronounce it), Knockwurst, Kielbasa, and Bratwurst, as well as some mustard, a couple of teas, and jam.

From there we went into the brew supply store. We got the stuff needed to get me up and brewing. The brewkit we got was a European brown ale. Sweet! I am soo stoked. I cannot wait to get home and get started.

The last stop was Sam's and we headed that way, but were again sidetracked when Dad noticed this store that sells those "as seen on TV" items. He had seen a couple things he wanted to pick up as Christmas gifts so  we stopped there. He got everything he was wanting and to be further sidetracked in the same plaza/strip mall, was an "Oak Factory" furniture store.

He wanted to check that out, too. It was on the opposite end of the strip mall, and as we were headed there, there was a neon sign that said "Fat Tire" so I curiously checked in the window and saw quite the selection of beers. We wheel in there and were able to make a variety six for me and one for him as well. I got quite a few beers I have never tried and cannot wait until tomorrow to try them (as they were not cold).

Oddly, when we got to the Oak Factory, it had since closed. Alright, load up get to Sam's and get on home. Upon arriving home, I asked Isaac if we got a package delivered today. When I ordered my brewkit last week, I ordered a  5 gallon brewpot at the same time. For whatever reason it still hadn't arrived.

So now that I have everything (else) that I need, i asked Isaac if we had that delivery ... "Nope, no one came by today" GAAAAHHHHH!!!!   sooo aggravated! I was psyched to start brewing, but now have to wait.

I so wanted to be sippin' on some homebrew for New Year's Eve, but it isn't looking likely.