Daril Brothers Homebrewery

at Hope Valley Farms

Durham, North Carolina

Brewers of
Heatherwood House
Beer, Cyser & Mead

Since 1997

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C'mon in and set a spell ... let me pour you a beer.  I'll have one with you ... ahhh!

Summer or Winter - We're brewin', drinkin', or BOTH!

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Daril Brothers History

No "Larrys", just "Darils" in this pursuit ... all equal brothers in brewing.

I'm Bill Mendyka (a.k.a. "Daril-Bill"), the instigator in the formation of this neighborhood brew group.  I'd brewed two batches of beer back in 1980 from extract kits I bought at a Boots drugstore before leaving the U.K.  I'd been stationed there with the USAF for the previous three and a half years, and had really developed a taste for good English Ales. Of course I wanted to give homebrewing a try when I got back to the States in hopes that I could make something even remotely like the flavorful beers I'd enjoyed all over England, Scotland & Wales (not to mention Germany & Austria during previous side-trips to Oktoberfest & such ... but that's another story ... I digress.)

Homebrewing had only become "legal" somewhere around 1979, so there weren't many supply houses around, nor many brewing books available in New Jersey.  I just trusted the instructions on the cans of liquid malt extract, and hoped for the best.  The resulting brews were unremarkable at best (OK ... bad), but I drank 'em anyway.  Still, the interest was there, but the opportunities for further experimentation didn't arise.  I got busy with family life in general and just didn't get a chance to pursue it again until a job move brought me to North Carolina.

Our new neighborhood was (and still is) populated with lots of friendly folks.  We often had (and still have) neighborhood get-togethers, many of which formed out in the cul-de-sac in front of my house (nice flat location - so the beer won't tip over).  Discussions often turned towards beer, and we concluded more than once that, "we ought to brew our own". General agreement ensued, but nothing much happened.

The Raleigh, Durham & Chapel Hill area (a.k.a., the "Triangle") hosts at least two major beer festivals each year.  One is  the World Beer Festival, sponsored by All About Beer Magazine; and the other is the Southeastern Microbrewer's Invitational, sponsored by the Southeastern Microbrewers' Association.  At the 2nd Annual SEMB Invitational (1995), which took place at the Durham Omni Hotel, several of us from the 'hood piled in the mini-van (graciously driven to & from by my wife) and went to the evening "beer-tasting" session.  Needless to say, a grand time was had by all, and we concluded once again with the "ought to brew" sentiment.  It was at that point that the "Daril Brothers" came into being ... an inside joke between us derived of course, from the backwoods brothers with identical names on the old Bob Newhart Show.  From that point onward, we've addressed each other as "Daril".  (There are lots of ways to spell the name, but that's the way one brother chose to spell it for our logo ... so be it.   It goes better with "Daril-Licked" anyway ...

Still though, we didn't actually get around to brewing our first batch until February '97! We finally decided to just go for it. We shared the expense of all the necessary start-up equipment and the ingredients for batch #1; participated in a brew-in sponsored by an experienced brew-friend of ours (see the "Notes" section below); and we've been brewing as much as possible since then.

So there we were ... "Daril-Bill" (me), "Daril-Bob" (Bob Tremalgia), "Daril-Dick" (Dick Mentock), and "Daril-Randy" (Randy Ellis) - the Daril Brothers.  As of December '97, using the basic equipment we started with, we produced (and/or participated in the production of) 14 five-gallon batches of various brews - ALL of which were incredibly better than my first two attempts back in 1980 - no comparison.

Until about February '98, we made "extract & specialty grain" brews only.  Then, the "all-grain brewing" bug bit ... hard.   We invested in two 15.5 gallon stainless-steel converted kegs for mashing & boiling over a "Cajun-cooker" style propane burner.  Eventually, we got another propane burner; then a 64-quart Coleman cooler to use as a mash tun; and we created a myriad of brewing gadgets to complement our brewing rig.  We've been brewing regularly ever since, and are always looking for better gadgets and improvements to our process. 

In mid-summer 1999, we welcomed a new "Daril" into our brotherhood ... "Daril-Brian" (Brian Benfield). Daril-Brian was duly initiated by almost single-handedly brewing an all-grain batch of Kolsch under my direction.  I was physically unable to do more than direct his efforts at the time because of an injury I sustained in April '99 while erecting hop trellises in Daril-Bob's back yard .  I fell off a ladder and broke my heel bone, requiring re-constructive surgery.  At any rate ... having finally recuperated enough to get back to brewing again, but unable to do so without assistance, Daril-Brian demonstrated all the necessary interest, attitude, and good humor required for Daril Brothers membership.  We were now a brotherhood of five.

A sixth Daril joined our merry band of neighborhood brewers in early June 2000 -"Daril-Mike" (Michael Burnette). Daril-Mike had been a long-time fan of the Darils' brew and finally caught the brewing bug himself. For his inaugural batch, he chose to make a Belgian-style Witbier - his wife's favorite. With Daril-Bill's guidance, Daril-Mike accomplished his task, demonstrating all the best qualities expected of a Daril. We became a "Six-Pack".

Lucky Daril number seven entered our brotherhood in early July 2000 -"Daril-John" (John Andrus). Daril-John "married-into" the neighborhood barely a year before. He'd already had some previous extract-brewing experience, and an Oatmeal Stout was the choice for his inaugural brew ... and a good one it was! This was his first all-grain attempt, and things went off without a hitch. Having performed admirably and demonstrated all the best attributes of a true "Daril", we welcomed him as our newest Daril Brother. A "Magnificent Seven"!!!

On September 14th, 2002 - "Daril-Rich" (Rich Vena) officially became our eighth "Daril".   Daril-Rich has been a long-time supporter and participant in our Beer-Quest, and has really been a Daril at heart all along ... in all but name. Therefore, official recognition of his "Daril-Licked" behavior was long overdue.  A beautifully executed Nut Brown Ale was his inaugural offering.  He favors dark, malty brews, so this was an excellent choice ... just in time for the upcoming Annual Neighborhood Oktoberfest.  So ... "Eight Is Enough" ... not quite!

Another Brother Daril - On November 10th, 2002, "Daril-Dave" (Dave Sotolongo)  became our ninth Brother Daril. Daril-Dave has lived in the neighborhood for several years, and has partaken of "a pint or two" of our product, but has only recently been able to free up some time for the pursuit of brewing himself.  His inaugural brew was a nicely-done "Red Ale", subtly spiced with Light Brown Sugar and Sweet Orange Peel - our 2002 Holiday Ale.  It was a great winter warmer for those long, cold nights ahead.  Here we were at last - a formidable "9-Man Team", in a league of our own.

After once again distinguishing himself during our 5th Annual Neighborhood Oktoberfest, our talented "Barbecue-Meister" was officially nominated for Daril-hood.  So, on December 7th, 2003, "Daril-Don" (Don Taylor) became our tenth Brother Daril.  Daril-Don lives in the one of the adjacent cul-de-sacs, but has been an active participant in our neighborhood gatherings for a long while.  He selected a "Boddington's-style" ESB as his inaugural brew - an absolutely FINE choice for the holiday. We also brewed a Nut Brown Ale on the same day - lots of work!  So then - we were a Brotherhood of Ten.

In April, 2006 "Daril-Chad" (Chad Mariska) - in anticipation of his imminent graduation from Business School (and subsequent PARTY) - chose a Kolsch-style beer as his inaugural brew, and became our eleventh Brother Daril. 

In October 2006 we welcomed our twelfth Brother - Daril-Garry (Garry Mauldin). Garry's choice for his first brew was a Red Ale.  Garry and I had been talking about a Red Ale reminiscent of one of his favorite Canadian ales - Rickard's Red.   We did the research to see how close a "clone" we could make - and ended up creating one that he liked even better!   We're now a full Dozen Darils.

We're learning new things all the time by brewing; by subscribing to and reading The Homebrew Digest that comes daily via E-mail; by reading homebrew books from well-known beer experts (e.g., Papazian, Miller, Noonan & Jackson), & beer-related magazines (e.g., "All About Beer" and "Zymurgy"); and by associating with other experienced local homebrewers, most of whom are members of one or both of two large local brew clubs: TRUB (TRiangle's Unabashed homeBrewers); and CARBOY (Cary-Apex Raleigh Brewers Of Yore).   We're members of the TRUB club - it's closest to Durham, but we frequently co-sponsor events with CARBOY.  Both clubs are GREAT resources!  Check out their websites.

I'll try to faithfully chronicle the continuing brew-ventures of the Daril Brothers as conscientiously as possible, including posting the recipes for our creations.  I've kept fairly good notes & recipes along the way, but intend to transcribe them all for online viewing ... as time permits.   For the most part, I'll try not to edit the original comments too much so you'll see how we've progressed from our earlier days.  Perhaps they'll help to keep you from making some of the mistakes we made.

Enjoy!

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The Daril Brothers
Bill	Bob	Dick		Randy	Brian	Mike
John	Rich	Dave		Don	Garry	Chad

Give a man a beer, he'll waste an hour. Teach a man to brew, he'll waste a lifetime.

See PHOTOS in the "Daril Brothers Gallery"

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Where In The World IS The Daril Brothers Homebrewery?

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  Beer Recipe Archive 

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Announcements 

Daril-John has an "alter-ego".  He's also known as "Chef John".
Click the logo below to see what a Personal Chef can do for you!
http://www.timetodine.net 

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Upcoming Events

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Cool Beer Links

• Beer & Other Potent Potables (Bill's Beer Page) - Bill Mendyka
  
  

• Beer Festival Calendar - Paul Ruschmann
  
  

• Oktoberfest-TV.com - Live Video and Images from the Oktoberfest in Munich
  

• HomeBrewTalk.com - Discussion community for promoting home brewing of beer, wine, mead and cider. Also pub talk and other discussions about commercial beer/wine/mead & cider.

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Commercial Links

The BrewMaster Store 2212 South Miami Blvd. Durham, NC 27703 (919) 430-0662

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Daril-Bill - 04/26/07 - (daril@darilbrothers.com)