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07-07-2010, 19:00
Visit the Woolpack Dave's Beer and Stuff site (http://hardknott.blogspot.com/2010/07/heath-robinsonness.html)

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[/URL]It's probably because my parents were brought up in the war. Most of you won't remember it, it was a long time ago, even before I was born. But back then there was austerity. No, real austerity. I mean, you think things are tough now because the council won't repair the pot holes and your benefit cheque just doesn't pay for the damage to your low profile wheels. For goodness sake, you can't even afford your mobile phone contract any more. Well, during the war, so I'm told, it was much, much worse. It was really bad then, you had to eat your pet rabbit just to survive.

Today we are in a period of austerity at Hardknott, not because we can't sell our beer, but probably because I've spent too much money on [URL="http://hardknott.blogspot.com/2010/06/brewers-objects-of-beauty-no2-pipe.html"]pipe fittings (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O84sLy2BcMw/TDSUSYlF98I/AAAAAAAAAqg/m__8_qgLb28/s1600/P7075572.JPG). Much as I'd like to get a proper mezzanine floor installed for my grist store, and have my old fermenting vessels fitted with proper cooling jackets, I can't. My fork lift truck is well down the flipping list. Unfortunately we need to sell more beer before we can afford anything else. More over, Ann seems to be selling beer as fast as I can make it, so I need to spend most of my time making it, leaving my spare time to either fix up the brewery, or go to the pub. For some reason the pub seems to win. Development of my in-situ fermentation gravity measuring system will have to stay in the planning stage and replacement of the flexible hoses with a more elegant solution will remain a pipe dream.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O84sLy2BcMw/TDSUlM2BLoI/AAAAAAAAAqo/ejFWaGnWUOs/s320/P7075573.JPG (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O84sLy2BcMw/TDSUlM2BLoI/AAAAAAAAAqo/ejFWaGnWUOs/s1600/P7075573.JPG)Luckily, my meagerly ancestors have taught me to mend and make do. It does have the advantage that I can get stuff working with minimum expense. String and sticky tape is great. The pictures here show most of my brewery in its current state, awaiting further vessels to be delivered so that I can organise the brewery into an efficient quality beer production facility. I might even run the cables neatly then.


Notice the mallet on top of the casks. It used to be my Grandfather's, and he's been dead 15 years. I suspect the mallet is some number of decades older. I doubt it'll last the year out with the number of shives (http://hardknott.blogspot.com/2010/06/brewers-objects-of-beauty-no1-shives.html) I'm having to bash in with it every week.
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