tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45847246830099866342024-02-20T18:12:05.318-06:00Fresh Beer Every FridayMy journey in life through beer.Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-35810477981534772102014-06-08T09:52:00.001-05:002014-06-08T09:52:27.520-05:00Angel Boots - A Zombie Dust Inspired Beer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7XnmSB5pAf9NvHO2-mNBi8dey_zfyxmmiVUtyKfrwQkMvpFQ93byLMhY3PzVvmpVlUq6JwrBofx9V39v0smB2ZnCBES24VUXAtqPm2zmtUnCjW2j93HSVrfdmLJwpm3jTlqbKyRjSZkpM/s1600/Angel+Boots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7XnmSB5pAf9NvHO2-mNBi8dey_zfyxmmiVUtyKfrwQkMvpFQ93byLMhY3PzVvmpVlUq6JwrBofx9V39v0smB2ZnCBES24VUXAtqPm2zmtUnCjW2j93HSVrfdmLJwpm3jTlqbKyRjSZkpM/s1600/Angel+Boots.jpg" height="160" width="320" /></a></div>
From time to time, a friend will ask me if I can create a certain type of beer, although I've never been asked to clone a particular beer. This was my first foray into such a task.<br />
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You can find tons of clone recipes online by using a search engine, entering the name of the beer followed by "clone recipe".<br />
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Zombie Dust is an "American Pale Ale" made by 3Floyds in Munster, Indiana. Even though this is a 6.2%, 50 IBU beer, according to their <a href="http://www.3floyds.com/beer/zombie-dust/">website</a>, (<a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/three-floyds-zombie-dust/135404/">Ratebeer</a> has this listed at 60 IBU and 6.4% ABV) for all intents and purposes, it could easily be mistaken for an IPA from anywhere else. Hi there. Welcome to northwest Indiana. The beer is tender on the bitterness and big on the nose - lots of dry hops in here. When it first came out, it was known to be made with Citra hops, a very popular hop for IPAs these days, but many people have said that the beer is finished with Amarillo as well.<br />
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I started off with <a href="https://www.brewtoad.com/recipes/3-floyds-zombie-dust-clone">this recipe</a> to base my clone on. The Melanoidin malt shows up here. I remember when searching for Alpha King recipes that this was also used. I've used the malt in one beer, thinking it would make the beer red, but it was still more bronze/gold than red, even though I used a full pound in that beer.<br />
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I had plenty of crystal malts lying around, and so I ended up substituting these for the crystal malts used in this recipe.<br />
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<b>Angel Boots</b><br />
5.5 gallon batch<br />
OG: 1.062<br />
FG: 1.014<br />
SRM: 7.8<br />
IBU: 68<br />
<br />
12 lbs 2-Row malt<br />
1 lb Munich malt<br />
0.5 lb CaraPils malt<br />
0.5 lb Baird's Carastan malt<br />
0.5 lb Belgian Aromatic malt<br />
<br />
0.7 oz Citra First Wort Hop<br />
1.0 oz Citra @15 min.<br />
1.0 oz Citra @10 min.<br />
1.3 oz Citra @5 min.<br />
1.0 oz Citra @0 min.<br />
2.0 oz Citra Dry Hop<br />
4.0 oz Amarillo Dry Hop<br />
<br />
White Labs London Yeast WLP013<br />
<br />
Mashed in the grain at 154*F for 90 minutes. Nailed the 6.25 gallons I wanted. Got somewhere between 5.0 and 5.5 gallons after the boil. Made 45 bottles after transfers. I also drained about a quarter of the wort through my counterflow chiller before I dropped the 0 minute hop addition into the kettle. I made a 2 liter starter with the yeast, decanted, and pitched at 62-64*F for about 11 days. Then I transferred the beer into a conical onto the dry hops, so I could harvest the yeast from the primary fermenter.<br />
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I bottled this, and after 11 days, the carbonation was really good. Should actually wait 3 weeks. Here is what it looks like:<br />
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Taste is not as hoppy as an IPA, but the overall bitterness and flavor is great, and it's well-rounded. The English yeast adds a nice sweetness. Once again, the dry hop aroma is good, but I have never been impressed by the aroma coming off my beers compared to other beers I've drank that are dry-hopped. Not sure if that's because of the old hop bags I'm using, the temperature (64*F for 10 days) or what. I used 6 oz of hops, and that's more than I've ever used. Any suggestions or stories that are similar to mine would be great to hear about in the comments. </div>
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I found this picture of Zombie Dust for color comparison:</div>
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Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-43504703515259991372013-01-20T08:52:00.000-06:002013-01-20T08:52:03.412-06:00Project: The Hold Steady Beers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I’ve opined to several people over the past
few weeks about how this hobby of home brewing beer is a blessing and a
curse. To me, it’s nice to have an end
product to drink, for sure, but the draw for me is making 5 gallons, or 2 cases,
if bottled, of a beer that I can’t get commercially. What is funny is that one
of my favorites (IPA) I can buy in various varieties, but I am getting to the
point where, if I can get the hops that I want, I actually prefer my IPA to the
ones I can buy, even those are very good.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">But no, I am drawn to brew black lagers. Dunkelweizens, and Saisons. Try going to your local grocery store and
buying a case of a dark wheat beer. It
ain’t happening. So I read, and I start
to think, and the thinking becomes 5 gallons of beer that I am glad I made, but
not necessarily something I’m excited about drinking.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">In 2012, I started finding really good deals
on hops. Once I got a grain mill, I
could buy 50 lb bags of grain and then focus orders on crystal malts and other
grains to add character to my beers. All
of the sudden, I felt I needed to start getting various varieties of hops to
have on hand. Once I started harvesting
yeast, it all went to hell. Because you
want to use that yeast up before it goes too long in the Mason jar.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I started memorizing my hop and grain
inventories in my head. Then I would lay
in bed thinking about beers I could make.
I would drive to work and think about the beers I would make. On a drive home, while enjoying a playlist by
the Hold Steady, it came to me…I would make 3 beers and bottle them. I would give half away in six packs to
friends, 2 of each beer. I would design
sixpack holders and make CDs of my favorite Hold Steady tunes to go with each
six pack. I WOULD CONTACT THE BAND AND
SEND THEM A SIXPACK.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I will say that I got a number of the bottles
labeled. At least the ones I would give
away (an operator error – ME- caused there to be more labels for one of the
beers, and not enough paper in inventory).
I decided to forget about the sixpack décor…I have many sixpacks, but if
I mail these, I don’t see the point in adding a cardboard carrier. And the CD?
Well, let me know if you’re interested.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">So, here are the beers I came up with to make
based on 3 Hold Steady memes. I have
posted some rock videos with their songs in here for your listening
entertainment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Charlemagne in Sweatpants<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“</span><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">He asked what happened to Charlemagne. She just
smiled all polite-like and said something vague. She said ‘Charlemagne got
caught up in some complicated things.’ She wiped at her nose and she winked.” –
“Don’t Let Me Explode”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiClzgGzM0Z0mJJevcp7HCapa6Ocp6k32lzCdt6BfD0iZJKdml143K7JlKSdI5gUtRzMlMav8c0Afmiavc0Bx_s4t41qiCeCJ3ZY8P0MInsWb3qHreznA1dfAWdsLDi1Hf1y0JhXRYPgYQF/s1600/Charlemagne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiClzgGzM0Z0mJJevcp7HCapa6Ocp6k32lzCdt6BfD0iZJKdml143K7JlKSdI5gUtRzMlMav8c0Afmiavc0Bx_s4t41qiCeCJ3ZY8P0MInsWb3qHreznA1dfAWdsLDi1Hf1y0JhXRYPgYQF/s320/Charlemagne.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">5.5
gallons<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">OG:
1.052<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">SRM:
10.2<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">IBU:
29.3<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Efficiency:
68%<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">60-minute
boil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">8 lbs
American 2-Row<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">2 lbs
Belgian Pale Ale Malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1 lb
CaraMunich I Malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.19
lb (3 oz) Special B Malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.25
oz Herkules at 60 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1.00
oz Styrian Goldings @ 30 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1.00
oz Crystal @ 15 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Wyeast
3522 Belgian Ardennes (2 L Starter with 200 g light DME)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I had
been jonesing to make a Belgian Pale Ale ever since I read a review about an
Antwerp Belgian Pale Ale made by De Koninck.
Remember what I said about having all these hops and yeasts to make
these beers? Well, I didn’t have ANY of
that stuff to make a Belgian Pale Ale.
Hell, what I REALLY wanted to make was a Belgian Dubbel. But I thought it would be a good idea to make
a smaller beer first, get a HUGE yeast cake, and then make the Dubbel from
that. Enter “Charlemagne”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">This
beer turned out nice. It’s balanced, and
maybe a bit more in-your-face Fat Tire.
Still balanced. Do I find it
exciting? Not really. But it IS well-made, and it’s an easy
drinker. There’s this funk that hits you
with the first drink, then after that, it goes down easy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Ybor City</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Don't
tell my sister about your most recent vision<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Don't
tell my family, they're all wicked-strict Christian<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Don't
tell the hangers-on, don't tell your friends<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Don't
tell them we went down to Ybor City again” – from “Slapped Actress”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1DxzzzCQtI216kdNi80KzlPc5L4FQNL-_9pRm2HeNVn-VWRNECWf2SteT4V344fkMVlEn_7CW8aSGaD1G5DAsbB-ZMNGKF6H9eexxB7oZJQBLovZmBQbCul2XDZ1D30vaC7S7RFnqW6w-/s1600/Ybor+City.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1DxzzzCQtI216kdNi80KzlPc5L4FQNL-_9pRm2HeNVn-VWRNECWf2SteT4V344fkMVlEn_7CW8aSGaD1G5DAsbB-ZMNGKF6H9eexxB7oZJQBLovZmBQbCul2XDZ1D30vaC7S7RFnqW6w-/s320/Ybor+City.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">5.5
gallons<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">OG:
1.055<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">SRM:
4.2<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">IBU:
48.6<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Efficiency:
68%<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">60
Minute Boil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">11
lbs American 2-Row<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.38 lbs
(6 oz) CaraFoam<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.19
lbs (3 oz) Munich Malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.13
lbs (2 oz) Aromatic Malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1.25
oz Ultra @First Wort Hop<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.50
oz Ultra @15 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.50
oz Ultra @10 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.75
oz Ultra @0 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Wyeast
2000 Budvar Lager (4L starter, 400 g light DME)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Never
been to Ybor City, but I was in Tampa for a work thing once in the 90s. Had I known about Ybor City, I would have
checked it out. Hell, I didn’t even have
a computer that early in the 90s.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Thing
about the south is that they’re coming along with the craft beer, but it seemed
so much of it was centered around the heat, and not drinking heavy beers. For a while there, a lot of the beer that
they sold (and still sell) seemed “watered down” to me. So I had some Ultra hops around and saw that
they were a higher alpha acid, but a decent Hallertauer substitute. So I decided to go with my favorite Pilsner
yeast, Budvar, and used the Budvar clone recipe from the book “Clone Recipes”,
except I ended up using 2-row malt instead of Pilsner malt. Because I wanted to see how that worked out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Turns
out, it worked out pretty well. I let
the bottles lager for 3 weeks after letting them carbonate for 3 weeks, and
this is as decent as any pilsner I’ve made.
I can’t find Ultra hops for sale anywhere, but they do strike me similar
to Vanguard or Mt. Hood, just more Alpha Acids.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/X87Grij4f5Q" width="560"></iframe></center>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Your Little Hoodrat Friend</span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“While
she was at the citadel, he was getting high as hell. When she came to in the
matinee, she was asking round for someplace else to stay. While he was down in
Lowertown, she was feeling out the 5:30 folk mass. And the night that she got
born again, he was getting with her little hoodrat friend.” – “A Multitude of
Casualties”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLuZ38uwL7Rsq96KKzRcnVSBAB2R5HTfYXoSQ9t2ECNLNbVQFLv_cw2p-OyMNoIqupSoW0hwqlN0PSqg_ZvWq-q-QINmyBpoF5ailHOzCtw086SRPa5l1FVjb81daWNeuuTkbWQmqUHG21/s1600/YrLittleHoodratFriend.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLuZ38uwL7Rsq96KKzRcnVSBAB2R5HTfYXoSQ9t2ECNLNbVQFLv_cw2p-OyMNoIqupSoW0hwqlN0PSqg_ZvWq-q-QINmyBpoF5ailHOzCtw086SRPa5l1FVjb81daWNeuuTkbWQmqUHG21/s320/YrLittleHoodratFriend.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">5.5
gallons<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">OG:
1.054<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">SRM:
12.7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">IBU:
44.4<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Efficiency:
68%<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">60
minute Boil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">6 lbs
American 2-row<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">3 lbs
American Red Wheat malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">2 lbs
rye malt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.33
lb Carawheat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">0.33
lb Chocolate Rye<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1.00 oz
Sorachi Ace @First Wort Hop<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1.00 oz Sorachi Ace @5 min.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Wyeast 1007 German Ale (2L starter with 200 g
of light DME)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">This
one gave me fits. I had these 2 oz of Sorachi Ace hops that I wanted to
use. I read enough about them to know
that these hops were divisive; either people loved them and discussed the
flavor as “lemon cream” while the opposite stated they imparted onion and garlic
and were overall very harsh. I decided
to stay positive and think about what kind of beer would be good with lemon
cream and remembered Sam Adam’s Coastal Wheat, which used lemon peel in the
brew, and honestly, was a well-made beer (even though I’m not much of a wheat
beer fan). So I actually was leaning
towards making a wheat beer with these for about 1 day. Then somewhere along the way, I decided that
I’d like to make an Alt beer. I bought
the yeast. I thought I would love to
drink an alt beer, and wasn’t sure I wanted to give half of it away. Maybe I’m starting to bore you with the
details here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">In
the end, I decided to make an alt beer with a twist; half of the base malt
would be a mixture of 2-row, red wheat and rye malt. Then I decided to make it red, so I added a
little chocolate rye and carawheat for color.
2 additions of Sorachi Ace hop, and alt beer yeast. Done.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I
think the issue I may have had with the first few beers was that they were only
in the bottle 3 weeks before I tried them, and I was getting a lot of hop
harshness. To top that off, the mocha
imparted by the chocolate rye was at war with the garlic-ness I was perceiving.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Flash
forward 3 more weeks and the beer has balanced out. There’s not really any malt coming forward or
hops. I’d be interested to hear what
other people who try this think. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/UP8xL5dbJio" width="560"></iframe></center>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Why the Hold Steady?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I
love rock music, and I love storytelling.
When you can tell a story in a song and develop characters into
episodes, then that is truly amazing talent to me. The Hold Steady has found the perfect blend
of all the rock music I’ve grown up with, the sleazy, enjoyable stuff that used
to be frowned upon at highbrow establishments that can now be found on the people
who run these places iPods.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Craig
Finn is a lyrical genius. He mixes great
literary, music and film mythology into his characters and brings the seedy
side to the surface. He references the
bible a lot, but not in a Christian Rock type of way. He twists it and gives it the “Sex, Drugs and
Rock and Roll” treatment. I always
chuckle when people say, “The Hold Steady are Christian Rock.” Yeah, if that’s
the case, then I guess Slayer is sort of Christian Rock in that way as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">My
beers have always been influenced by rock and roll titles, imagery and
art. I thought this would be a fun
project. I will always continue to have
rock and roll titles, such as making Black Sabbath albums the names of my
Imperial Stouts. However, I am not sure
I will ever make these recipes again, so if you were lucky enough to get some,
I hope you enjoy them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“They
did wade in the water into ‘One Tin Soldier’. She started to cry. Youth
Services always find a way to get their bloody cross into your druggy, little,
messed up, teenage life.” – “A Multitude of Casualties”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JKOtgSrrVCM" width="420"></iframe></center>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-69018948604432769322012-07-13T06:00:00.000-05:002012-07-13T06:00:09.737-05:00Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (E.T.I) - Red Honey Strong Lager<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn4JlOE_Am0wZ7IMUMzq1cK5eW94vLHR3JTtzioOtCXf9_witMriYjegyO5sGBhfe2WU2xhZafJCLQE8-ZjMeVYCoiM1WLRfeOIxuxm-QGEitkj8TbqnMQxwF7OXTDaqsGRGU2WinbvVol/s1600/BOCETL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn4JlOE_Am0wZ7IMUMzq1cK5eW94vLHR3JTtzioOtCXf9_witMriYjegyO5sGBhfe2WU2xhZafJCLQE8-ZjMeVYCoiM1WLRfeOIxuxm-QGEitkj8TbqnMQxwF7OXTDaqsGRGU2WinbvVol/s1600/BOCETL.jpg" /></a></div>
As I've stated before, I'm a fan of the Pilsner style. When I first started putting recipes together, I thought it would be cool to make a black pilsner, and a red pilsner. <br />
<br />
In the past year, however, I have learned that when adding malts that give beer a darker color than yellow, most of the time, this results in some sweetness in the beer. While it's true you can get darker beers to finish dry, the idea behind a pilsner is to have it be dry without the excess flavor of any other malt, like roasted malt in a dry stout. Mostly, I wanted to make a pilsner, but have it attain more color.<br />
<br />
It came to a point where I was nearing the end of my 50-lb bag of 2-Row Malt and my 55-lb bag of Franco-Belges Pilsner malt. I also had some extra dark munich left over, some honey malt, and more Carafa III than I could probably use to make several Schwarzbiers. So I started experimenting and came up with the following recipe:<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: ELEGANCE; font-size: 14.0pt;">E.T.I (Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Imperial Red Pilsner</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Batch Size (Gal): 5.5 </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Total Grain (Lbs): 18.38</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anticipated OG: 1.087 (20.85)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anticipated SRM:13.6</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anticipated IBU: 109.8</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Brewhouse Efficiency: 68 %</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
9.00 lbs. Pilsener (Franco-Belges)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
6.00 lbs. Pale Ale Malt </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2.00 lbs. <st1:city w:st="on">Munich</st1:city>
Malt (Dark, Northern Brewer)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.00 lbs. Honey (Orange Blossom)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
0.25 lbs. Honey Malt</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
0.13 lbs. Carafa III (Dehusked)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.00 oz. Warrior
(15.40%AA) First WH</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.25 oz. ETI Hops
(6.83%AA) @45 min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.00 oz. ETI Hops
(6.83%AA) @15 min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.50 oz. ETI Hops
(6.83%AA) @10 min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
5.25 oz. ETI Hops
(6.83%AA) @0 min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
WYeast 2124 Bohemian Lager (cake from Esper Dark Czech
Lager)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I should explain about the ETI Hops. I had some leftover hops that I wanted to use. This ended up being 1.25 oz Czech Saaz, 2.75 oz Mt. Hood, and 3 oz of Tettnang. In addition to this, I added 2 oz of Warrior hops. I mixed all of these up in a bowl and then randomly started pouring the weights for the last 4 additions into the scale bowl and bagging them. I also used a Bohemian Lager yeast cake from the Esper. If you are making this from scratch, I would recommend making a HUGE starter using the Budvar yeast (both Wyeast and White Labs make it).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Note that I started this out as an Imperial Red Pilsner. I was shooting for a dry, hoppy red pilsner at about 9% ABV. Instead, it finished at 1.025 OG. I didn't add the Orange Blossom honey until after 3 days of primary fermentation. I put a half a cup of water in a pan, the honey, and brought it to a boil for 5 minutes and poured it right into the lager. Still, it's 7.0% ABV, which is pretty good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Turns out, I should have called this a honey lager, and I should have let it lager for 3 months. Instead, I let it lager for a month, a keg came open, and I kegged it. The orange blossom honey was overwhelming the first month in the keg. I decided to avoid it for a while, and now the overpowering orange aroma has faded (although there was something nice about that - it was somewhat off-putting).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It actually turned out pretty decent, but I learned that lagering "bigger" beers is important.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As far as the artwork, that's from the Blue Oyster Cult album, "Extra-Terrestrial Live" which was my first BOC album. I still love that album. While the song, "E.T.I." is awesome, whenever I pull a beer from this keg, I think of "Hot Rails to Hell." TWELVE-SEVEN-SEVEN EXPRESS TO HEAVEN!</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-59180810871917328592012-06-29T06:00:00.000-05:002012-07-04T06:06:52.573-05:00Parallel Lines - The Blonde Ale<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv6qdqSM8U6Rylybxt3Bv2lc8-X-f3IW7ddZbMNPJ0trX5q8SI_mRCdxbnuqNp3sDGHFIMGjBe0ReiZZ3W9FsWYhl2RIgBClVkkCDNIlIY4LcdbMZ7idM34UAj-gFcFu1WKWTXkkENM6Od/s1600/Blondie-Parallel+Lines2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv6qdqSM8U6Rylybxt3Bv2lc8-X-f3IW7ddZbMNPJ0trX5q8SI_mRCdxbnuqNp3sDGHFIMGjBe0ReiZZ3W9FsWYhl2RIgBClVkkCDNIlIY4LcdbMZ7idM34UAj-gFcFu1WKWTXkkENM6Od/s320/Blondie-Parallel+Lines2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
When I create a recipe, I start with the beer itself, deciding on what malts, hop and yeast to use. Then I wonder what I should call it. Once I got a brewing software program, I spent my time actually making up recipes more than actually making them. I noticed that I had a lot of themes around rock bands or album titles. As I was organizing all these recipes, I made a folder called "Rock and Roll Series". In this folder resides such recipes as "Rocka Rolla" (the title of a Judas Priest album, inspired by Magic Hat's "Roxy Rolles" amber), and the various Black Sabbath recipes for Imperial Stout.<br />
<br />
It was obvious that I would name a blonde ale after the band, Blondie. It's low-hanging fruit. Yes, I should try harder. I did grow up listening to Blondie. The band was probably not a top five favorite of mine during the grade-school years, but in sixth grade, I did tell people that "Dreaming" was my favorite song. You can read more about my relationship with this band <a href="http://themusicisthemessage.blogspot.com/2012/06/my-life-with-blondie.html">here</a>.<br />
<br />
You could almost lump the blonde ale into a series of beers named by their hue: Blonde, Amber and Brown. Traditionally, all of these beers are English in origin, malty, and have just enough hop character to preserve them for a decent amount of time. Overall, I appreciate well-made beers. While the traditional styles of these beers are drinkable, I would only opt for one if I had limited options. I like a bit more bite when it comes to my beers, unless it's a Belgian-style beer, in which case, I'm mostly interested in the aromas, most of which are produced by the yeast.<br />
<br />
They had a sale on a variety pack of hops over at <a href="http://www.austinhomebrew.com/index.php?cPath=178_21_93_70">Austin Homebrew Supply</a> earlier in the year. I decided that I would also add a few ounces of Amarillo and a new hop, Zythos, to my order. This set me up for brewing all the IPAs and Pale Ales I so enjoy for the 2012 season.<br />
<br />
The original Parallel Lines was made from ingredients I bought from Shoreline Brewery. I was curious about the Sladek hops they had for sale. I used an ounce of Liberty at 60 minutes, and an ounce of Sladek at 20 minutes. Overall, I didn't really think this beer was very good. I thought the hops were more bitter than I would have liked, and weren't as floral. It didn't appear balanced, even though the IBU were within the guidelines for a blonde ale. Even though I put a pound and a half of Carahell (10*L) in the recipe, the Golden Promise was maybe not the best choice for the base malt.<br />
<br />
This time, I decided I would utilize all 3 oz of the Zythos hops plus an ounce of Warrior. It looks as though I didn't use enough crystal malt in this one either, but, for some reason, the beer finished at 1.022, which appears to have given the beer a slight sweetness to balance the hops. The Zythos remind me of Amarillo, but just slightly different.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0yNLEgooCjo6bqkznXVDd3ZY81g_ft42wYDKD30dtPTKXqd4L9bonQZ2kf01Cv55hbg2u1A-KH0JyCmxYbg7Co31F3M70dZ3vTLyeDG3GxNqVrV8c3OKcakjL2x-hR-ZDefreRDa7FoZK/s1600/Parallel+Lines+in+Glass.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0yNLEgooCjo6bqkznXVDd3ZY81g_ft42wYDKD30dtPTKXqd4L9bonQZ2kf01Cv55hbg2u1A-KH0JyCmxYbg7Co31F3M70dZ3vTLyeDG3GxNqVrV8c3OKcakjL2x-hR-ZDefreRDa7FoZK/s320/Parallel+Lines+in+Glass.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Parallel Lines Blonde Ale</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Batch Size (Gal): 5.50</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Total Grain (Lbs): 12.38</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anticipated OG:1.057 (14.15)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anticipated SRM: 6.1</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anticipated IBU: 42.6</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Brewhouse Efficiency: 68 %</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wort Boil Time: 60
Minutes</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
11.00 lbs. 2-Row Malt</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.13 lbs. Carahell Malt </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
0.25 lbs. CaraMalt </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
0.50 oz. Warrior @
60 min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Whirlfloc & Yeast Nutrient @ 15 min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1.00 oz. Zythos @10
min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2.00 oz. Zythos Dry
Hop</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
0.50 oz. Warrior
Dry Hop</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
WYeast 1056 Amercan Ale/Chico</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I don't know what's been up with the 1056 I've been receiving by mail order lately. It shows up and it looks as though it's already been smacked. This one slowly started expanding on me, and instead of brewing a Doppelbock with another yeast, I decided to brew this one. I made a yeast starter, but I am still baffled at how my yeasts are performing lately. I usually get ales to finish around 1.014-1.016. I'm hoping for more of a 1.010-1.012, but I just don't get that. It would upset me if I thought my beers were too sweet, but I even had my friends, Justin and Amy, who are recognized BJCP judges taste one of my beers that finished high and state that it was dry. So, with this beer, I've created a Session beer, which wasn't what I was going for, but, at 4.4%ABV, I've created a florally, hoppy session beer. It's rather quite nice.</div>
</div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0111-199 Westchester Ave, Chesterton, IN 46304, USA41.602286407144575 -87.05171585083007841.599317907144574 -87.05665135083008 41.605254907144577 -87.046780350830076tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-92118472448810020132012-06-22T06:00:00.000-05:002012-06-22T06:00:05.023-05:00Quad City Lager<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvX4zQnnqhxwhrPVshb9Fk5P-S9wVu_kuAVJVUMa3m4wR4J7JiVpqKmcoSQtud2tNiY22FhSooscZ3aUo6GW-CPeXXzYl7aiMYHxQWvrY413798h7I-cGul2Zv0JW0SC4vaBPzuDHC0qRe/s1600/QuadCityLager.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvX4zQnnqhxwhrPVshb9Fk5P-S9wVu_kuAVJVUMa3m4wR4J7JiVpqKmcoSQtud2tNiY22FhSooscZ3aUo6GW-CPeXXzYl7aiMYHxQWvrY413798h7I-cGul2Zv0JW0SC4vaBPzuDHC0qRe/s320/QuadCityLager.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
If you're from the midwest, moreso the Chicago area, and you know your Illinois geography, you might have heard of the Quad Cities. Of course, anyone who has been to the towns of Davenport, Bettendorf (on the Iowa side), Moline, or Rock Island (Illinois) will likely have heard the term "Quad Cities" or "Quad City Area" and understand that this group of cities shares a part of the Mississippi River.<br />
<br />
While I went to school in Davenport from Kindergarten to Fifth Grade, and returned to finish my Junior year at Bettendorf High School and then graduated from Davenport North in 1987, the Quad Cities I'm referring to in this lager are not even in this country. While thinking about the different malts that were named after cities, I came up with the following recipe:<br />
<br />
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<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on"><b>Quad</b></st1:placename><b> <st1:placetype w:st="on">City</st1:placetype></b></st1:place><b> Lager<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Batch Size (Gal): 5.5
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Anticipated OG: 1.055 (13.63)</div>
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Anticipated SRM: 5.9</div>
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Anticipated IBU: 28.1</div>
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Brewhouse Efficiency: 68 %</div>
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Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes</div>
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3.00 lbs. Bohemian (Moravian) Pilsner </div>
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3.00 lbs. Koelsch Malt </div>
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3.00 lbs. Munich Malt(light) </div>
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3.00 lbs. <st1:city w:st="on">Vienna</st1:city>
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1.00 oz. Halletauer @ 60 min.</div>
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0.50 oz Czech Saaz @ 60 min.</div>
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Whirlfloc and Yeast Nutrient @ 15 min.</div>
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1.50 oz. Czech Saaz @ 10 min.</div>
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Wyeast 2487 Hellabock Lager<br />
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See what I did there? I was trying to figure out what kind of style this beer would end up being were I to enter it into a competition, and I decided that it was closest to the "Export" style, or "Dortmunder Export". While the Koelsch, Munich and Vienna malts add a tinge more darkness, as does the 90-minute boil, it still just makes it under the required color style. I've always brewed a pilsner, but truth be told, when just a lad of 15 and 16 years old in Germany, I had not yet gotten used to the hoppy German pilsners, and since most of the choices I had at the places I drank were "export" or "pils", I went with "export". Even though I use Czech Saaz hops (a favorite of mine), this is my quintessential "German" beer.<br />
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"You like that German beer?"<br />
"Yes. I. DO!"<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWKBdfVxmqyaaIi6wzRDA5NX0kn6PgcVkDFZqv2fU4RWG3a6tzp7XSYTO7thvZxc90pbuFl-hHYNO90Zc9P2W9HFLbaOXaYeUGr3bjfVoVIRbopAX1eDDy5ZRa8U83BWw78jwRnglnJ82b/s1600/Quad+City+Lager+in+Glass.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWKBdfVxmqyaaIi6wzRDA5NX0kn6PgcVkDFZqv2fU4RWG3a6tzp7XSYTO7thvZxc90pbuFl-hHYNO90Zc9P2W9HFLbaOXaYeUGr3bjfVoVIRbopAX1eDDy5ZRa8U83BWw78jwRnglnJ82b/s320/Quad+City+Lager+in+Glass.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
I gotta admit - I didn't use the Moravian Pilsner. I had some Franco-Belges left over from a 55-pound bag I bought, so I used that to make this. You know what? It's still good. Smells of clean yeast (I would use the Hellabock yeast for all lagers other than Czech ones if Wyeast made it available year round. I heard it's the Ayinger yeast, although Wyeast won't tell you where they get their strains from; I am told that the year-round White Labs 0833 is also the Ayinger yeast. Might need to change yeast companies...) and malt. No real hop aroma here, although I really wouldn't expect it. At 28.1 IBU, it's hopped nicely, but again, doesn't punch you in the face like a pilsner. <br />
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Quite enjoyable, and tapped just in time for the summer months.<br />
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<br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0Great River Trail, Rock Island, IL 61201, USA41.508577297439352 -90.5932617187539.98368829743935 -93.12011721875 43.033466297439354 -88.06640621875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-42895705676006093682012-06-15T06:34:00.001-05:002012-06-15T06:34:36.520-05:00ESPer Czech Dark Lager<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBdBDEsGHmtJ9qc7UOMTY5sLXomedpGGD9IeSwLkNmTiJAifiLzJu3XVlSNQvtsvrntArc3zF8j0GF5pVttqqqql9aXoalYCyx9cNSs6ZsfRzZTEauQUEyM2pRD2Keo4PALYtv7shLRHNA/s1600/ESPer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBdBDEsGHmtJ9qc7UOMTY5sLXomedpGGD9IeSwLkNmTiJAifiLzJu3XVlSNQvtsvrntArc3zF8j0GF5pVttqqqql9aXoalYCyx9cNSs6ZsfRzZTEauQUEyM2pRD2Keo4PALYtv7shLRHNA/s1600/ESPer.jpg" /></a></div>
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When I grew up in Germany, I knew about the original Budvar and Pilsner Urquell. Those pilsners are still some of my favorite beers; simple malt bill, a clean yeast with some stinky residuals, and the wonderful zesty aroma and bitterness of Czech Saaz hops.</div>
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It wasn't until I started brewing, though, that I stumbled onto the animal known as Czech Dark Lager. Similar in malt bill to a Munich Dunkel, the Czech Dark uses Czech yeast and Czech Saaz hops to provide something just a little different.</div>
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I actually had a couple of versions of this style, one was from Trader Joe's, and I actually had the same one not knowing it was the same brand (only the style was listed on the menu), at a local restaurant. I wasn't too impressed by these - they had the same kind of maltiness akin to a brown ale, not necessarily a bad thing, it's a personal preference, and while I've had some nicely made brown ales, the style itself does not excite me.</div>
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Then, a couple of Januarys ago, I was dropping off some beer to be judged in Aurora, Illinois. The family came with, as we decided to make a day of shopping, and we stopped into a Gordon Biersch Restaurant/Brewery, and the seasonal special was a Tmave Vycepni. I asked the waiter to pronounce it, and he asked me to please not make him say it. The description, though, was obvious - this was a Czech Dark lager. It came in what appeared to be a glass shaped like a Weizenbier glass. It smelled of roasted malts and, surprisingly, citrus. It tasted a bit chocolatey with orange/citrus overtones. I decided right then that I wanted to make one of those beers one day.</div>
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After doing some research, I came up with the following recipe:</div>
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<b>Batch Size (Gal): 6.00
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<b>Total Grain (Lbs): 10.69</b></div>
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<b>Anticipated OG: 1.049 (12.09)</b></div>
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<b>Anticipated SRM: 16.6</b></div>
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<b>Anticipated IBU: 35.0</b></div>
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<b>Brewhouse Efficiency: 75 %</b></div>
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<b>Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes</b></div>
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<b>6.00 lbs. Pilsener (FB) </b></div>
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<b>1.50 lbs. Caramunich II
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<b>3.00 lbs. <st1:city w:st="on">Munich</st1:city>
Malt (NB) </b></div>
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<b>0.19 lbs. Carafa III (Dehusked) </b></div>
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<b>2.00 oz. Czech Saaz (3.5%AA) First WH</b></div>
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<b>1.00 oz. Czech Saaz (3.5%AA) @ 15 min.</b></div>
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<b>Wyeast 2782 Staro Prague Lager</b></div>
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<u>Some notes</u>: First of all, I missed the window on the limited edition Staro Prague yeast. Instead, since I had never used it before, I decided to try the Bohemian Lager yeast. While the yeast made a good beer, I think I would prefer a more stronger aromatic strain, like that of the Budvar yeast or the Staro Prague. I've made great beers with both of those yeast, and I think that I'd like to make the Budvar my Czech Lager yeast of choice. The Staro Prague (which I believe is the Staropramen yeast) imparts a clean aroma with a tiny bit of sulfur. Some people claim that this is a flaw. It doesn't smell like a recently lit match, it's more of a hint, and with the Czech Saaz hops providing a nice, grassy smell, it's truly a fine thing.</div>
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The beer itself, depending on the glass, is a dark brown with some red highlights around the edge of the glass. It smells of roasted malt and the "clean" yeast smell you get from lager yeasts. There's not really any aroma of Czech Saaz in this one - could be it's masked by the malt and yeast smells.</div>
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The taste is similar to other dark beers - a nice roasty graininess with just a perfect hint of astringency - not burnt tasting like in some stouts. The hops add a slight zestiness, and provide a nice amount of bitterness - they don't punch you in the face like a Czech pils.</div>
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I utilized this recipe for <a href="http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/u-fleku-recipe-bohemian-dunkel-216341/">U Fleku</a> for inspiration.</div>
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The name was inspired by a Loudness song from their "Disillusion" LP. I thought Esper was some kind of ghost, but it turns out it might mean a person who has ESP, or "ESPer". I have no idea. The photo I found for the label was sort of cool looking, though.</div>
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<br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-75509665194991099412011-12-16T06:35:00.000-06:002011-12-16T08:19:58.502-06:00Black Sabbath - Paranoid<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The first time I brewed an imperial stout, I learned a lot about brewing a big beer. The original recipe, simply titled "Black Sabbath", was a pretty basic Imperial Stout, really more like a regular stout but amped up. The plan was to make one of these beers every year, and age it to see how it improved. In that recipe, I was able to use the Wyeast limited edition Imperial Ale yeast. I made 5 gallons and was going for a 12% ABV recipe. I also ended up making a 4% ABV stout with the second runnings.<br />
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However, when you're using 24 pounds of grain, your efficiencies tend to go down the toilet. So I got a 10% beer, which really isn't too bad. Considering I was two years into brewing, it turned out pretty good. I "dry-beaned" it with 4 ounces of coffee beans. I won't do that again, as I think the coffee becomes more astringent as time goes on. <br />
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There was also some design involved in the labels, in that each succession would line up with the next Black Sabbath album. I figured this would keep me in label art for some time to come. I also picked up some darker red wax from Shoreline Brewery to dip the top of the capped bottles in, akin to <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/three-floyds-dark-lord-russian-imperial-stout/15917/">Three Floyd's Dark Lord.</a><br />
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In this second iteration, I was learning more about specialty grains, so I wanted to experiment with them. The idea behind the use of these grains was to make a very complex beer. The other issue I had was fermentation. I wanted the fermentation to finish well, so I figured I would make a smaller batch so I didn't have to have such a large (1 gallon) starter. I also didn't have the same Imperial Ale yeast, so I went with the British Ale II (Wyeast 1335) since that was what Northern Brewer was using for the Surly kits, and I like Surly quite a bit. I made a 2000 ml starter for this one. Fermentation began within 2 hours of pitching.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Black Sabbath – Paranoid </span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Batch Size (Gal): 3.00</div>
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Anticipated OG: 1.094 (22.50)</div>
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Anticipated SRM: 54.9</div>
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Anticipated IBU: 124.6</div>
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Brewhouse Efficiency: 75 %</div>
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Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes</div>
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5.00 lbs. American 2-row (Great Western) </div>
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3.00 lbs. Munich Malt(dark)<br />
1.00 lbs. Golden Light Dry Malt Extract </div>
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0.25 lbs. <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Crystal</st1:city></st1:place> 80L </div>
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0.50 lbs. Chocolate Malt </div>
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0.25 lbs. Golden Naked Oats </div>
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0.50 lbs. Flaked Barley </div>
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0.25 lbs. Honey Malt </div>
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1.50 oz. Magnum @ 60 min.</div>
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1 tablet Whirlfloc @ 15 min.</div>
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3 tsp yeast nutrient @ 15 min.</div>
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Wyeast British Ale II 1335</div>
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In the last batch, I used both honey and molasses. I have no doubt that the honey added to the alcohol content, as that ended up being a 10% ABV beer. I went with Honey Malt this time for more honey flavor. The Golden Naked Oats were supposed to also add a fruitiness, and I went with those instead of flaked oats, which I used in the original recipe. Another change to this recipe was the substitution of some Dark Munich malt for the 2-Row, to give it some more evil.<br />
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OG was a little under (I ended up adding the pound of DME for this reason) at 1.088. Fermentation was vigorous for 3 days. I even did a second oxygenation at this time with my aquarium pump for about 30 seconds. I doubt this was enough. The beer ended up finishing at 1.028, which freaked me out, but the beer has been in bottles for over 6 months now. The most recent one had strong carbonation, but others I had were not as carbonated. I didn't want a big carbonation by the style, but I have yet to drink a beer that wasn't helped out by at least 2.5 volumes of carbonation. It's beer for Chrissakes, not wine.<br />
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So I ended up with an 8% ABV beer, which is actually all right. The flavors have gotten more complex over the months, with more dark fruit beginning to show up. 2012's version (Master of Reality) will get an increase of 2-row, and I think I will add back the honey and molasses, but put them into the bucket 3 days after primary fermentation has started. If I can get the Imperial Ale yeast again, I will. I would like to use that to make an Imperial IPA and then use the yeast cake from that to make this beer. Vanilla beans are a possibility. Down the road, I'd like to use a Trappist High Gravity yeast to give it more of a Belgian Strong Dark Ale twist. The possibilities are endless.<br />
<br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-22814837450952778542011-12-06T13:21:00.000-06:002011-12-06T13:21:54.687-06:00An Honorable Mention for 2Wicky<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">So I responded to a question in the LinkedIn Homebrewer's forum about interesting beers you've brewed or somesuch. Unfortunately, I was mistaken for someone else named Thierry in the post. Whatever. Here's the <a href="http://rockwallbrewers.com/2011/12/04/drapeau-noir-siason/">Drapeau Noir Siason</a> (sic), otherwise known as my <a href="http://freshbeereveryfriday.blogspot.com/2011/05/2wicky-black-saison.html">2Wicky</a> Saison Noire. Hopefully, we'll hear back some tasting notes. Might be a chance to brew this one again in 2012, but I really only want to brew a Belgian Dubbel this year. But I will have to brew another beer with the yeast cake from that.</div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-50595159590010833072011-06-03T09:00:00.001-05:002011-06-03T09:01:40.045-05:00A Brew Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsmUO3FdUla9smvzD8t0C4Zd-SkHGw22ZCpcCMw8sxYR0fYbRdx_MG-FKDldJbTET4M9l5rTsL3ZF7lsInJWu_S_VefwFMPWiVzDcz1_pe2ZcIOq3330BRJ_IM0agK97XPW0-36MnTh0GC/s1600/Blue+Sun+Recipe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsmUO3FdUla9smvzD8t0C4Zd-SkHGw22ZCpcCMw8sxYR0fYbRdx_MG-FKDldJbTET4M9l5rTsL3ZF7lsInJWu_S_VefwFMPWiVzDcz1_pe2ZcIOq3330BRJ_IM0agK97XPW0-36MnTh0GC/s320/Blue+Sun+Recipe.JPG" width="240" /></a>This is sort of a photo journal entry of what a good brew day looks like for me. It actually starts about 12-18 hours before the brew day, since I do 2 things before I can get the wheels in motion. "Pre-Brew Day" includes collecting the water for the boil and sparge, making a yeast starter, and possibly crushing the grain the night before. Usually, crushing the grain is the first thing I do in the morning of the Brew Day, but since I had a friend come over to get his grain crushed, he suggested that since I had the 1/2-inch drill and grain mill set up, I go ahead and do mine. It was a pretty good suggestion.</div><br />
<b>The Yeast Starter</b><br />
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Unless I'm using dry yeast, I like to make a yeast starter. You can use the <a href="http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html">Mr. Malty Pitching Calculator</a> to help you out, but I've done enough starters to know what works for me. I use 6 oz of dry malt extract for each 1000 ml of water. So if it's 2000 ml, 12 oz, 3000 ml, 18 oz, etc. If the base malt is 2-row, I'll want to use "Gold" DME, if it's Pilsner malt, I try to use "Pilsner" DME. However, I'm cheap, so I tend to use what I have on hand. I also add a teaspoon of yeast nutrient to each starter. 1 tsp is usually what is called for per gallon, so I guess I could use less, but what does it hurt?<br />
<br />
I have a 5000 ml flask I bought from an online brewing store, so I can put the DME, yeast nutrient and water all in the same thing, bring it to a boil for 5 minutes, chill and pitch the yeast. I am working on building my own stir plate, but I need to get a rheostat for it. Until then, I leave the flask on the kitchen counter and swirl it often. For 1000-2000 ml starters, I will do those 12-24 hours in advance of pitching. For anything bigger, 3 or 4 days seem to yield more yeast. So you have to plan. Below are my guidelines.<br />
<br />
For Ale Yeast (including Belgian strains):<br />
<br />
OG is 1.060 or below: 1000 ml starter<br />
OG is 1.060 - 1.075: 2000 ml starter<br />
OG is 1.075 - 1.090: 3000 ml starter<br />
OG > 1.090: 4000 ml starter<br />
<br />
For Lager Yeast, I don't usually make a lager over 1.066, so I usually make a gallon starter and actually chill the wort and decant into a better bottle, though I suppose using the 5000 ml flask would work. It's just easier to use the brew kettle and run it through the chiller. I have had success using only one packet of fresh Wyeast and a gallon starter, but I think I will start using 2 packs of yeast in the future. Maybe. A 4-day yeast starter for lager at room temperature has yielded at least 4 good lagers for me (that's 4 for 4, in case you were wondering, 100% success, although one of those was actually yeast cake from another...)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkA7-8y5i_y0z1MHX0ZUOZ487QO0mBIA3h0teTPoxFDcV04w9ks1QkEWsSmUiWnyxircb1C-wap70WED1mdz5S0i4vEVJ2vVT3_Qm6wn7aI9it9iM_wd9Fzz7I7TIiOpV4th-O7ljnhAMo/s1600/Yeast+Starter.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkA7-8y5i_y0z1MHX0ZUOZ487QO0mBIA3h0teTPoxFDcV04w9ks1QkEWsSmUiWnyxircb1C-wap70WED1mdz5S0i4vEVJ2vVT3_Qm6wn7aI9it9iM_wd9Fzz7I7TIiOpV4th-O7ljnhAMo/s320/Yeast+Starter.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
Yeah, and I just use foil over the top, although I don't think a stopper and ferment lock would hurt. This is more of a "a lot of people use foil, so I decided to use foil" thing.<br />
<br />
<b>Brew Day</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
I like to start my Brew Day early. Like when I get up, I make some coffee, and start setting things up. I use ProMash to figure out the strike temperatures, and so I take my pre-measured water and start warming up the water on the stove. I bought a hard copper pipe, and used a measuring cup to determine what the certain amounts of water looked like in my boil kettle. So I put a gallon of water in, put the pipe in, marked it with a pencil, then used a hack saw to score the mark permanently. I did this in increments of gallons up to 7, since it's a 9-gallon kettle. I batch-sparge, so I have a 4.5-gallon kettle I use to heat up the sparge water. However, I measure this water out first in the 9-gallon boil kettle because I don't have another pipe for the 4.5-gallon pot, and transfer it. Then I measure out water for the initial mash in. I leave both these pots on the stove the night before the boil to let any chlorine evaporate. I have friends who bought a Britta filter that they can put on the end of a hose, and can go to town right away. I do this more out of superstition than actual flavor tastings.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2Xmxo5ofcncjO0hTIm5WKuJKSFWEa4O068zxaaZ8EXC_V4hvIDTNgpfay8IYVNCYuddmPmwA4Nopcg5D7XcIplrQHhtXW87mItnTGKOHQcsU0rmirB3ZkDpOsbBMvNub_gmXHxo9iDlW/s1600/Mash+Tun.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2Xmxo5ofcncjO0hTIm5WKuJKSFWEa4O068zxaaZ8EXC_V4hvIDTNgpfay8IYVNCYuddmPmwA4Nopcg5D7XcIplrQHhtXW87mItnTGKOHQcsU0rmirB3ZkDpOsbBMvNub_gmXHxo9iDlW/s320/Mash+Tun.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
This is my mash tun, a Coleman cooler I've had since 1992 that I put a stainless steel valve on, some washers and o-ring/gaskets, a small amount of copper tubing, and a big stainless steel braid that Jon Duder gave me. I used a worm clamp to fasten the hose to the copper tube, then folded and crimped the loose end. It works well.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZlqDP4CzmLrLg6VOtv_dX9Fjo0gd_Z3NC4HCpvBPiPjQWqH2OlUrpCsBSHlcEwEJdkHTFsGEjGhc705n-epXq1PMhynBe7rOhvexX8ZOBuVv4In1goBDFPh_isgin_WRbhb5npUKFCVTV/s1600/Grain.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZlqDP4CzmLrLg6VOtv_dX9Fjo0gd_Z3NC4HCpvBPiPjQWqH2OlUrpCsBSHlcEwEJdkHTFsGEjGhc705n-epXq1PMhynBe7rOhvexX8ZOBuVv4In1goBDFPh_isgin_WRbhb5npUKFCVTV/s320/Grain.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I have a grain mill that I set on a bucket I bought at the hardware store that I use strictly for grain capture. Grain mills are nice if you're doing all grain, because you can buy grain in bulk (cheaper) and un-crushed, so you can crush it fresh, and don't have to feel pressured to brew if something comes up because your grain is losing freshness (and thus, efficiency).<br />
<br />
Once the temperature of the water is right, I pour it into the mash tun first, then pour my grain into the mash tun and stir it with my big spoon. Check that the temperature is right, close the mash tun, and carry it outside to a table where I've got it set up to be wrapped in two big wool blankets. I usually set the sparge water kettle on top to hold the mash tun down. I let the grain set for 30 minutes, open, stir, check the temperature, and if I need to, I'll boil a gallon and pour it in and stir it up. Usually, it only drops 1 or 2 degrees over 90 minutes. I tend to mash for 75-90 minutes, as this has seemed to improve my efficiency.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRCBVvstVAgpBi3dmQALWToqEsbxp6ka3_QM7OylrIgBU9uq8JQ0xrcayDMNQ70lL3toJ8Hi0sUU5qafNKjqVF8XFM5n-w_3hgWZxqTaMRVy39bIysQxj_u59s2i0_eFh-t5dDk7kydLP/s1600/Stuff.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRCBVvstVAgpBi3dmQALWToqEsbxp6ka3_QM7OylrIgBU9uq8JQ0xrcayDMNQ70lL3toJ8Hi0sUU5qafNKjqVF8XFM5n-w_3hgWZxqTaMRVy39bIysQxj_u59s2i0_eFh-t5dDk7kydLP/s320/Stuff.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I use a 2 quart pan for vorlauf, also pictured above is a scale for measureing hops, a small bowl with yeast starter and whirlfloc tablet for an addition at 15 minutes (you can use Irish Moss in lieu of whirlfloc).<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb2nI1XUUZ5XZLKGWjqp3LUfI0UhvL4GX2n0zOYLGRi32fT2wm_0Oro4p4sWZcYJRxhJi1HdVm_sI9M5Wttam3wt0MNUY8GMPrzZC2HygxXphGWbz1JVb7ycA47haJFXR-etjJEt1aupqU/s1600/Sparge+Water.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb2nI1XUUZ5XZLKGWjqp3LUfI0UhvL4GX2n0zOYLGRi32fT2wm_0Oro4p4sWZcYJRxhJi1HdVm_sI9M5Wttam3wt0MNUY8GMPrzZC2HygxXphGWbz1JVb7ycA47haJFXR-etjJEt1aupqU/s320/Sparge+Water.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">With about 30 minutes left in the mash, I start heating the sparge water. I will bring this to a boil. This will go in after I vorlauf the first runnings</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3AVPo_ot1uOEm5ExHE1qGafRaQHa5bdKaDsn1vyJ4Lm9YfvIY8_Tl79qNgrmO-b_cwoM-B0LXPi2IWp2xTua1JjrfkgZ3MgIVXfxhlx-njFmXouHQPlSQvKq5PDQbQ9ExUvA3WZUygHCl/s1600/Vorlauf2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3AVPo_ot1uOEm5ExHE1qGafRaQHa5bdKaDsn1vyJ4Lm9YfvIY8_Tl79qNgrmO-b_cwoM-B0LXPi2IWp2xTua1JjrfkgZ3MgIVXfxhlx-njFmXouHQPlSQvKq5PDQbQ9ExUvA3WZUygHCl/s320/Vorlauf2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<b>Vorlauf</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
"Vorlauf" is a German word that means to recirculate the beer. I guess I could say "recirculate", but I like German words. Once the mash has reached 75 or 90 minutes, it's time to start filling the boil kettle. I attach a hose to the mash tun and start running liquid into the 2-quart pan. The photo above was shot during the vorlauf after I added the sparge water, so that's why you see wort in the kettle. You want to make sure you don't have any grain (or too much grain) in the boil, which will give you tannin flavors, so you run the wort into the pan until it looks clear. This usually takes me 2 or 3 fills. I fill the pan, then return it to the mash tun. Once it runs clear, I open the valve and let the wort run into the kettle. When it runs dry, I close the mash tun valve, measure the amount in the kettle to let me know if I have enough sparge water, then I adjust the sparge water, and dump it into the mash tun. Stir it in to get even temperatures, and then I go get a drink of water or take care of some minor things to let it set in there for 5 or so minutes (totally unnecessary, but again, some superstition), then vorlauf again. I then run off the wort until I have the pre-boil amount I want (usually 1.5 gallons more than I intend to ferment, so 7.5 for 6 gallons, 7 gallons for 5.5 gallons of wort).<br />
<br />
<b>Boil</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLpTTZ04EpVACp4sd127e0jyryCAJYXiSSbZzdYx_OvxKfVA5vsKCOHL_KjFi9NiN8HV1QJRWj19Ztm34A-xbPZ3gPS09Bg7IhC6W3OILcSFsx20wmTtDPk-BgEyv6dHMLJYjj4zKQWMaE/s1600/Boil.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLpTTZ04EpVACp4sd127e0jyryCAJYXiSSbZzdYx_OvxKfVA5vsKCOHL_KjFi9NiN8HV1QJRWj19Ztm34A-xbPZ3gPS09Bg7IhC6W3OILcSFsx20wmTtDPk-BgEyv6dHMLJYjj4zKQWMaE/s320/Boil.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next comes the boil. If I'm not using Pilsner malt, it's usually a 60-minute boil. For fun this time, I actually did a 70-minute boil. I was shooting for a gravity of 1.050 and hit 1.051. So I probably would've been good with a 60-minute boil. Note that if you have hop additions at the beginning of the boil (for example, 1 oz @ 60 min) do not change that. Still drop it in with 60 minutes left in the boil. This will prevent it from having more bitterness. I add other hop additions as necessary, and then throw my yeast nutrient and whirlfloc in with 15 minutes left in the boil.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Chilling</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br />
</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I didn't take any photos of my counterflow chiller. Chill the wort down to the temperature you want - I usually shoot below 70, around 65*F, if possible. This was a Koelsch, and at the time, my root cellar floor was 58*F, so it was perfect. Fermentation temps are becoming more important to me. I think a lot of mine have been too low, and my finishing gravities end up higher than I'd like. For ale yeasts, I think 68*F is a good temp. For Belgians, I like to start at 62*F, and once fermentation takes off, I want to start increasing the temps about 2*F per day, and end up around 70*F if possible.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL0lU4WJvf3zScAHB9zlmgJ1tXs4VDU5WKAVbwjPkCLyhT1p3OSoZWzkC7RFmlsvEBPq-WvoEdoOC6HcRSOu-NbwKHHBdJuSZwKpDxrASloswfVClc8N64OiUjxLpDzpcwlgUUcJktaoh1/s1600/Daybrew.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL0lU4WJvf3zScAHB9zlmgJ1tXs4VDU5WKAVbwjPkCLyhT1p3OSoZWzkC7RFmlsvEBPq-WvoEdoOC6HcRSOu-NbwKHHBdJuSZwKpDxrASloswfVClc8N64OiUjxLpDzpcwlgUUcJktaoh1/s320/Daybrew.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Leave a message if you have any questions. And don't forget to enjoy the brew day. Hopefully they will all be awesome days.</div><b><br />
</b></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-48951882175713576412011-05-20T06:00:00.002-05:002011-05-20T06:00:12.923-05:002Wicky Black Saison<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4ppG_fBxyxz8JMea5HxMw0qzW14_kmJbYmdgDXyA479E7_lKeh6Amzd2Npkbw4kfHj7RiTQxogFAAaZMHSnoEELlaPZTkUR0Ojr9-FaQoO3nxk5to0mS4At-LKrexX0dyu-bke7M2JXP/s1600/2Wicky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4ppG_fBxyxz8JMea5HxMw0qzW14_kmJbYmdgDXyA479E7_lKeh6Amzd2Npkbw4kfHj7RiTQxogFAAaZMHSnoEELlaPZTkUR0Ojr9-FaQoO3nxk5to0mS4At-LKrexX0dyu-bke7M2JXP/s320/2Wicky.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Sometimes I am in awe of the wonderful things that run through my head when I think of beer ingredients. The creative side of homebrewing is the funnest part for me. Building something different used to be my primary motivation, but then this year I decided I'd rather get some recipes down that were solid recipes I could repeat, mostly because I'd make all these weird things and find myself longing to have a simple pale ale or pils.<br />
<br />
That's how 2Wicky started. Only it wasn't black. I was pumping out all sorts of crazy Belgian-style beers but putting a twist on them. I had just brewed the #9 clone, and I liked it, but I realized that the amount of apricot extract in one bottle (4 oz) wasn't enough for a 5-gallon batch. I needed another 4 oz bottle, but what was I going to do with the remainder of the second bottle?<br />
<br />
Knowing that 4 ounces of extract let you know the flavor was there, but wasn't strong got me to thinking what if you could use 3 ounces and put some other things in the beer, or use a beers attributes to make someone wonder what that flavor was? 2Wicky was born, and sat in my recipe file until I decided I needed to brew some kind of wacky Belgian beer one day ("2Wicky" is a song by Hooverphonic, a Belgian band). I looked at the recipe, but I thought of making a Saison Noire (black saison) instead. Plus, I didn't have the apricot flavoring.<br />
<br />
I also had been wanting to use star anise (I would go into the local ingredient store and open the whole star anise bin and inhale) and I wanted it peppery, and had just read about grains of paradise. So I fashioned this recipe.<br />
<br />
<b>2Wicky</b><br />
<br />
Batch Size (Gal): 6.00<br />
OG: 1.072 (17.53)<br />
SRM: 21.2<br />
IBU: 44.8<br />
75 % Efficiency<br />
90 Minute boil<br />
<br />
8.00 lbs. Marris Otter Malt <br />
3.00 lbs. Pilsener <br />
0.50 lbs. Carafa II (dehusked) <br />
0.50 lbs. Crystal 40L <br />
0.38 lbs. Molasses <br />
2.00 lbs. Demerara Sugar<br />
<br />
1.50 oz. Perle (8.25%AA) @ 60 min.<br />
2.00 oz. Strisselspalt (2.60%AA) @ 5 min.<br />
1.00 Anise (whole star) @ 5 min.<br />
2.00 gm Grains of Paradise @ 5 min.<br />
<br />
Wyeast 3711 French Saison<br />
<br />
There are some tricks to this beer. When I brewed it, I threw the molasses and the sugar in with 10 minutes left in the boil. When I make this beer this year, I will only add the molasses at this time, and not the Demerara. I have a feeling that adding that much sugar to the boil tends to leave me with beers that don't finish below 1.016. Therefore, what I have done before, and what I intend to do the next time, is open ferment for 2 days, rouse the yeast both days, then cover and wait for fermentation to slow. I will then add the 2 lbs of sugar to maybe a quart or quart and a half of water, bring to a boil, and then add it to the wort, to give the yeast some dessert, and dry out the beer. (Make sure to rouse the yeast prior to adding the sugar water to kick start it) The beer was very carbonated after I bottled. It also got a 36 at the Urban Knaves of Grain homebrew contest this year (2011) and was entered in a mini Best of Show. I entered this as a Belgian Specialty Ale (16E). Some of the notes were:<br />
<br />
"High molasses aroma with star anise notes, moderate malt aroma, medium-low hop aroma, low esters. Brown with garnet highlights, high, light tan head, good retention. Very light malt flavor, moderate molasses, light grains of paradise malt flavor. Very low star anise flavor, moderate hop bitterness and aroma, some peppery phenolic notes. Creamy explosive carbonation, medium light body, finishes prickly, somewhat dry."<br />
<br />
This is a good beer to make as a Christmas beer. Using the warmer temperatures in the summer to ferment, you can bottle it, and then around late November/Thanksgiving, you can start cracking them open. Mmmmm...smells like Monk Basement. </div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-48988809029243803902011-04-22T06:00:00.001-05:002011-04-22T06:00:12.079-05:00Roosevelt Franklin Rye Stout<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">I am not a big fan of stouts. While I think the style is good, for the most part, I don’t really care for that burnt or roasted flavor in my beer, or at the level the stouts I encountered earlier in my life. I always felt challenged in a way that I did not want to be challenged from beverages I drank. Having said that, I would have to say that I’ve had many stouts in recent years that are not as roasty, but more balanced, or even have a nice chocolate overtone to them.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">About a year ago, one of my friends brought me a <a href="http://www.bellsbeer.com/brands/34-Rye%20Stout"><st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bell</st1:place></st1:city>’s Rye Stout</a>. It sounded interesting enough. I was completely blown away when I smelled the beer. It smelled like toasted dark bread. It was only the second beer in my life that I wanted to walk around smelling all day, rather than lose that aroma by drinking the beer. The beer had a nice, dry finish, and more of a chocolate flavor rather than a roasted flavor.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I decided that I wanted to brew something like this. I contacted <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bell</st1:place></st1:city>’s, but only asked if they actually toasted any of the malts in the beer. They replied, saying that they did not toast any of the malts, only the combination of the malts resulted in the toastiness of the beer.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I went to the <a href="http://forum.northernbrewer.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=94480">Northern Brewer forum</a> to inquire if anyone had any ideas on how to modify a recipe that I had fashioned. I was given a nice recipe to try, that was similar to what I had, and rolled with it. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjakrPyhj4639j_ZBWkZYA7d3jP73tIWX-lqiU-rLgu2iiUG-DyKEIAyUMQn0B5ghcv5IvRkkVBLlUjKRo2intymq9f4HM3ZJSDjv2qenHgWwcvmf4dWtIDFiAFFCsaWJsTAN2LNDPBoC8A/s1600/Roosevelt+Franklin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjakrPyhj4639j_ZBWkZYA7d3jP73tIWX-lqiU-rLgu2iiUG-DyKEIAyUMQn0B5ghcv5IvRkkVBLlUjKRo2intymq9f4HM3ZJSDjv2qenHgWwcvmf4dWtIDFiAFFCsaWJsTAN2LNDPBoC8A/s320/Roosevelt+Franklin.jpg" width="320" /></a>The beer has turned out well. It is a good stout, balanced with roastiness and chocolate flavors. It doesn’t have quite the toasted aroma I want though.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">As luck would have it, I was listening to an old <a href="http://thebrewingnetwork.com/shows/The-Jamil-Show/California-Common-The-Jamil-Show-07-31-06">Jamil Show podcast about California Common</a>. Jamil uses a small amount of pale chocolate malt in his California Common recipe to give it a “toastiness”. He was asked by his co-host on the show if there were any other malts he knew of that would impart a similar flavor. He stated that for the style of toastiness he was going for, that pale chocolate malt was the only one he was aware of. Therefore, I have modified my recipe to cut back half the amount of chocolate rye, and in it’s place, use a quarter pound of pale chocolate malt.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf2nMSn9vW8">Roosevelt Franklin</a></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Batch Size (Gal): 5.50</div><div class="MsoNormal">Anticipated OG:1.069</div><div class="MsoNormal">Anticipated SRM: 30.0</div><div class="MsoNormal">Anticipated IBU: 51.0</div><div class="MsoNormal">Brewhouse Efficiency: 75 %</div><div class="MsoNormal">Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">10.00 lbs. Pale Malt(2-row) </div><div class="MsoNormal">2.00 lbs. <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Rye</st1:city></st1:place> Malt </div><div class="MsoNormal">1.00 lbs. Flaked <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Rye</st1:city></st1:place> </div><div class="MsoNormal">0.50 lbs. Roasted Barley</div><div class="MsoNormal">0.25 lbs. Chocolate <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Rye</st1:city></st1:place></div><div class="MsoNormal">0.25 lbs. Pale Chocolate Malt</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">0.50 oz. Magnum @ 60 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal">0.50 oz. Nugget @ 60 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">WYeast 1028 <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">London</st1:city></st1:place> Ale</div></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-80829409270578697832011-04-15T06:34:00.000-05:002011-04-15T06:34:49.411-05:00Re-Using Yeast Cake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You may have heard of the process of moving your beer off of the yeast either to bottle or keg, or put into secondary fermentation and then using the yeast at the bottom of that fermenter to ferment another beer. I have done this 3 times and have had successful results.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkdl3pharR9LZKxsUdpL91NHtQXsRf3e1ngzsFYyy7QMpaewOGcdraz0x5YxebUi6EBwiYuxJBJtksFAgsJP1PMs6WNiTD6vO9ALK-1fCodzDrhyphenhyphendFgwH3aTi096B_PC1v18oEGABkzy2b/s1600/reusing-yeast-cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkdl3pharR9LZKxsUdpL91NHtQXsRf3e1ngzsFYyy7QMpaewOGcdraz0x5YxebUi6EBwiYuxJBJtksFAgsJP1PMs6WNiTD6vO9ALK-1fCodzDrhyphenhyphendFgwH3aTi096B_PC1v18oEGABkzy2b/s320/reusing-yeast-cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mind you, my methods might be a little unorthodox. Here are the steps that I take:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .25in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><!--[endif]-->Plan the brew day for the second beer based on when the yeast is done.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The second time I did this, I brewed a <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Vienna</st1:place></st1:city> lager and figured in two weeks, it would be done fermenting. I began brewing the second beer, a Maerzen, exactly 2 weeks after the first. Unfortunately, while the second beer was boiling, I took a gravity sample and found that the first beer was far from done (gravity reading was 1.030). Luckily, I had enough vessels that I was able to move that beer to a secondary fermenter, use half the yeast cake for the new beer, and then return the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Vienna</st1:place></st1:city> into the original fermenter. Both beers turned out great.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .25in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><!--[endif]-->Sanitize two vessels</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One vessel will be for your fresh beer, the second vessel will either be your bottling bucket, keg, or secondary fermenter for your first beer.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .25in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><!--[endif]-->Sanitize the path</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I use a fresh rag and sanitized water and gently clean the top of one side of the first fermenter to get rid of any chunks of kreuzen or gunk left behind during the fermentation. This is probably very unorthodox, so get some other opinions. This is how I’ve done it, and it works well for me.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .25in; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><!--[endif]-->Put the yeast cake into the second beer</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Go through your normal methods of infusing oxygen into the new beer (shake the fermenter, use an oxygen stone and tank or aquarium pump, etc.) and pitch the yeast.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You should see fermentation rather quickly with this method. And you just saved some money on yeast.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good luck!</span></div></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-56379792007289695472011-04-08T08:14:00.000-05:002011-04-08T08:14:32.709-05:00Magic Hat #9 Revisited<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipqNhal6XBMezTz7AYt2Y-a_o2Tj-Bh1DSBtUCrpKxi61pqm771qswoB5nzh57Hcub2mLzwCk3kvfJjSh8JRInNm4QXEGY9yW6nTLvZMciOqkMgn43qIjXagNSDy8WL2X-o-6xJS7iz_32/s1600/Magic_Hat_Logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipqNhal6XBMezTz7AYt2Y-a_o2Tj-Bh1DSBtUCrpKxi61pqm771qswoB5nzh57Hcub2mLzwCk3kvfJjSh8JRInNm4QXEGY9yW6nTLvZMciOqkMgn43qIjXagNSDy8WL2X-o-6xJS7iz_32/s320/Magic_Hat_Logo.png" width="320" /></a></div>I've been thinking a little bit more than I should about Magic Hat's #9 lately. I don't plan on brewing this beer anytime soon, although I wouldn't mind having 5 gallons of this in my house. I've brewed <a href="http://freshbeereveryfriday.blogspot.com/2009/03/apricot-ale-9-and-half-weeks.html">a clone of Magic Hat #9</a> before with some success.<br />
<br />
Two things have brought me back to thinking of this beer. The first was an email that I get from Magic Hat (in fact, I signed up on BOTH of my email addresses to get this newsletter/email) that suggested making a drink called Black Magic, a Black and Tan style drink with Magic Hat #9 and "your favorite stout". I have just brewed a Rye Stout that I call "Roosevelt Franklin" that I should have a post about next week. I just had one of these beers last night, and it is finally ready.<br />
<br />
In case you were wondering, the Magic Hat #9 would go in first. You don't need the special spoon, you can just bend one, but here's a nice video courtesy of the <a href="http://brooklynbrewshop.com/">Brooklyn Brew Shop</a>, who have some pretty interesting sounding recipe kits you can buy:</div><br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/xOSXflFWnrU" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></div><br />
I also found an old Can You Brew It podcast where they cloned the Magic Hat #9. I based my original recipe on a recipe from the book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/CloneBrews-2nd-Recipes-Brand-Name-Beers/dp/160342539X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1302268411&sr=8-1">Clone Brews</a>. My recipe used Marris Otter, and a half pound of Crystal 60L, Cascade and Columbus hop additions exactly opposite of what was suggested by the head brewer of Magic Hat on the podcast. Still, I thought the beer was very close to the original, and I enjoyed it. The recipe they came up with on the show was something like:<br />
<br />
<b>Magic Hat #9</b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"></span></b><br />
<div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6 gallons</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">OG: 1.045</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">FG:1.011</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">IBU: ~20</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">SRM: 6</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br />
</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">9.92 lbs pale malt (Marris Otter)</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">0.20 lbs Crystal 80</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br />
</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">¼ oz Columbus @ 60 min</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">½ oz Cascade @</span> <span style="font-family: Calibri;">30 min</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br />
</span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">White Labs WLP002 Yeast or Wyeast 1098 British Ale </span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri;"><br />
</span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-weight: normal;"></span></b></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="display: inline !important; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Mash temp 152*F</span></span></b></b></div><br />
<div dir="LTR" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-weight: normal;"></span></b></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="display: inline !important; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ferment @ 68*F</span></span></b></b></div><br />
<div dir="LTR" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri;"><br />
</span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">On the podcast, they used </span>5 oz of Apricot flavoring in 5 gallons of beer<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">, or the keg. If you're bottling, you can't just add more to each bottle once the caps are on. However, you buy the Brewer's Best Apricot extract in 4 oz bottles, and having made 5 gallons of the beer and adding 4 oz of the Apricot extract to the bottling bucket, I can verify that it was not enough. Brewer's Best suggests 5 oz in 5 gallons, the guys at Can You Brew It also suggested this, so I think that this should be the correct amount.</span></span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">I should also note that on Magic Hat's web site, they are now using Cascade and Apollo hops in the #9. At around 20 IBU, this probably won't matter, although Jamil says in another podcast that you can taste the difference between 1 IBU. (I'm rolling my eyes at that. This is as bad as the stereo-philes in the 80s saying they could tell the difference between a clean record and a CD. Maybe you can, Jamil, but the average beer drinker, I assure you, can NOT).</span></span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></span></span></b></div><div dir="LTR" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">In my recipe, I'm upping the malts to 10 lbs Marris Otter and .25 lbs of Crystal 80, because of my efficiency. I'm showing an OG of 1.053 in Promash, so if I hit anything between 1.045 and 1.053, I'll be happy.</span></span></span></b></div></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-59801089347830092152011-04-01T06:00:00.000-05:002011-04-01T06:00:10.835-05:00Samhain - Version 4<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq-uzEtFDoaIchZJUFPgukQdb8Xj6U2RAhpUl2KydgrQvKqjsvNae0DaNgtb_N3z8ARGYRNMPjGPVVpDp8HlQBXSQ71SF6FKZSVnIsWjMTgmwokuvL24s-_FpE7iOHFxBZ3f0rrA_2aI7v/s1600/Samhain.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq-uzEtFDoaIchZJUFPgukQdb8Xj6U2RAhpUl2KydgrQvKqjsvNae0DaNgtb_N3z8ARGYRNMPjGPVVpDp8HlQBXSQ71SF6FKZSVnIsWjMTgmwokuvL24s-_FpE7iOHFxBZ3f0rrA_2aI7v/s320/Samhain.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589677197958777298" /></a>Just as there are many kinds of beer, there are also many kinds of home brewers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>When I got into this, I never made the same recipe twice.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Then, while visiting in-laws in <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Syracuse</st1:city>, <st1:state st="on">New York</st1:state></st1:place>, I discovered Magic Hat beers for the first time.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>From what I’ve observed, Magic Hat tends to be a polarizing brewery for home brewers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It seems like people either love them or hate them, and I think a lot of it has to do with their flagship beer, #9, a not-quite-so pale ale with a hint of apricot.<p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Personally, I like #9.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I don’t go out of my way to load up on it, but I enjoy having one or two every now or then.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>My wife also likes #9, which is also helpful.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">However, while on the trip I mentioned above (and also <a href="http://freshbeereveryfriday.blogspot.com/2007/10/magic-hat.html">here</a> before), I also discovered Magic Hat’s Jinx.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I really liked this beer.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>So much that <a href="http://freshbeereveryfriday.blogspot.com/2008/09/im-jinx-bedlam-follows-everywhere.html">I went on a quest to clone it</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>That beer turned out to be a lot bigger than it needed to be.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Again, I liked the aroma of this beer, and I even enjoyed what a malt bomb it was, much to the chagrin of just about everyone else who drank it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I mean, Magic Hat made it with only 20 IBUs.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>So, yeah, it’s going to be malty.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>But earlier versions were much too sweet, I’ll admit.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">So as I traveled down the path of learning about Scottish ales, which I discovered was sort of the base recipe of the Jinx in a far-reaching manner, I heard that you’re not supposed to put peated malt in Scottish ales, but rather derive that taste from longer boils and darker crystal malts.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The other thing I liked about this recipe is that I grow Zeus hops in my backyard, and I could use them for this beer.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>However, this year, I just put all 18 oz of my hops in my chest freezer/kegerator instead of freezing them (I didn’t really have the room in my basement beer fridge/freezer due to there being food in there; you gotta eat, you know).<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After a couple of months, all the hops had turned brown.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>And I dried them for 16 hours.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Perhaps I didn’t bag them well enough.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Next year, I’ll try and use a vacuum sealer.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I had to use what I had on hand, since I didn’t plan on the hops being bad, and wasn’t paying attention.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>So I had half an ounce of Perle, and a whole bunch of Nugget and <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Summit</st1:place></st1:city> hops (of which a little of the latter goes a looooong way), so I decided to make a different version.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’ve been dickering with the malt bill every brew, the last time I used a pound each of Crystal 40 and Crystal 120, which kept me up at night.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Again, that might have been a better beer had I hopped it heavier.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Still, like I said, I enjoyed it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>While the color of the current year’s (I believe I’ve brewed this beer 4 times now in my 3 years of brewing) beer a lot, it still doesn’t have that “purplish” hue (actually, when I poured the beer for the photo tonight, I think the color is spot on) but I think if I increased the boil 30 minutes, I could achieve this.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>That would be okay, anyway, since I ended up with 6 gallons this year instead of 5.5, so my OG was 1.060.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I should also note that this year, I added the pound of brown sugar after 3 days of fermentation to dry it out.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It still ended up finishing at 1.013, but for this kind of beer, that is okay with me.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It finishes dry and there is a tart hop punch.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I think the malt bill is good.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The hop schedule will change to 3 additions of Zeus hops, likely a third of an ounce at 60, a whole ounce at 10 minutes, and another ounce at 0 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>While, it won’t exactly be the malt bomb it was intended to be, it will be a more balanced beer, and one I will enjoy.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Perhaps in version 6, I’ll tone those down a bit, because I don’t know what the alpha acid is on my Zeus hops.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I am assuming 11% AA, while Fresh Hops, where I got the rhizome, are selling Zeus hops are 14.2% AA.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It’s a great journey, and I’ve enjoyed each version.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd_G_3RwjLNcR5_p_MzLNWFmDEU_epBH82h_MZy82fCSL52oVtBnrsR2zx_63e4yZdnF_BIxitjSCy29OnxaH4vPC7I14miohfWf8d8fl8hjaSw9nVAhL8dJUX8OMeileKrfrqZuJ-6b1Y/s1600/Samhain2011.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd_G_3RwjLNcR5_p_MzLNWFmDEU_epBH82h_MZy82fCSL52oVtBnrsR2zx_63e4yZdnF_BIxitjSCy29OnxaH4vPC7I14miohfWf8d8fl8hjaSw9nVAhL8dJUX8OMeileKrfrqZuJ-6b1Y/s320/Samhain2011.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589676062853366274" /></a><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Samhain<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Batch Size (Gal): 5.50<br />Anticipated OG: 1.067<br />Anticipated SRM: 19.0<br />Anticipated IBU: 25.3<br />Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">9.00 lbs. Golden Promise<br />1.50 lbs. Munich Malt(dark)<br />1.00 lbs. Brown Sugar (dark)<br />1.00 lbs. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Crystal</st1:place></st1:city> 40L<br />0.25 lbs. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Crystal</st1:place></st1:city> 120L<br />0.13 lbs. Chocolate Malt</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">0.5 oz. Perle (Pellet - 7.8% AA) @ 60 min.<br />1.0 oz. Nugget (Pellet - 11.2% AA) @ 10 min.<br />1.0 oz. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Summit</st1:place></st1:city> (Pellet - 18.5% AA) @ 0 min.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">WYeast 1028 London Ale – 2 quart starter<o:p></o:p></p>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-65709850575288392452011-03-04T06:00:00.000-06:002011-03-04T06:00:13.438-06:00Novices and Bigger Beers<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsA7KQJ1t7GVGtJXljwrIBft5hxY4VSnrHL06IwkaeCtcnqchoGPS4H1JU1eyUuz3rN8T6mE5drliglK41dtz6_dKNzWoRGzabuMBdtVwx36tQKhBKLOvXO-LCzbMNRwY9M8fEPpJApoKE/s1600/GaryWyattIanMax.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsA7KQJ1t7GVGtJXljwrIBft5hxY4VSnrHL06IwkaeCtcnqchoGPS4H1JU1eyUuz3rN8T6mE5drliglK41dtz6_dKNzWoRGzabuMBdtVwx36tQKhBKLOvXO-LCzbMNRwY9M8fEPpJApoKE/s320/GaryWyattIanMax.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5578386238545756050" /></a><p class="MsoNormal">When I started out brewing, I was still relatively unfamiliar with the different styles of beer that existed.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I knew I liked pale ales, IPAs, and even had a special place in my heart for Belgian-style Wit (or White) beers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>While I was known among my friends for a very long time for liking beer, the depth of my knowledge of the various styles was not that deep. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">As I began developing recipes, I was also going to forums on home brewing and rating beer at places like ratebeer.com.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I started learning about other beers and commercial styles of these beers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Eventually, after having a conversation via private message on ratebeer with a guy from <st1:state st="on">Wisconsin</st1:state>, he pointed out that since I live in northwest <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Indiana</st1:place></st1:state>, I must get to drink a lot of <a href="http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/26/7520">Three Floyd’s Dark Lord Russian Imperial Stout</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I had not known about this beer, or the events surrounding <a href="http://www.darklordday.com/">Dark Lord Day</a>, but I became intrigued. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">After buying and trying the Dark Lord in 2007, I began on a quest to clone this beer.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Searching for recipes on the internet proved to be easy.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>However, the technique on brewing a beer that was around 13%ABV did not also come with these recipes. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">While the first version of this beer turned out to be pretty good, I learned a couple of things about brewing bigger beers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>One thing being your efficiency completely drops when you use greater than about 17 pounds of grain.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I’m sure if I was wiser about mashing techniques, I could have gotten closer, but I doubt I would ever be able to achieve the 75% efficiency I was looking for.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Longer mash times than 60 minutes might have helped achieve this.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>There is also an interesting method in Randy Mosher’s book, <i><a href="http://www.radicalbrewing.com/">Radical Brewing</a></i>, about taking half the grain of a big beer, mashing it, then using the wort collected from the first half and mashing the second half of the grain with that wort instead of using fresh water.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I haven’t tried this. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I didn’t come here to discuss how to brew bigger beers, though.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I’d rather each person learns this process by their own means. <span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I would be happy to discuss this at another time.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>What I wanted to discuss was how new home brewers tend to get into the hobby, and right away they want to make a 10% ABV beer. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">You can be successful doing this, and I’m not against it, but I think there’s something to be said for easing yourself into the hobby and not attempting to make boozy beers right away.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I’m not sure you can get a complete understanding of what is going on with big beers. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Of course, this is just my opinion, and recently, I had a friend make a double IPA and he used just one packet of <st1:place st="on">Nottingham</st1:place> yeast.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Suprisingly, to me, the gravity started out at 1.090 and within just a week, was down to 1.015.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>He said it tasted great just after a week.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Shows you what I know. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">It just reminds me of the scene in the movie, <i>Weird Science</i> where Gary and Wyatt are trying to impress the other two male “cool guys” in the movie, Max and Ian, by making a second girl.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>When they get to the discussion about breast size, Max and Ian say, “Bigger tits”.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Gary</st1:city></st1:place> disagrees but in the end, frustratingly says, “Give ‘em the knee shooters.” </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Of course, it is a hobby, and you should make what you enjoy.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I just enjoy the journey a little more.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Give 'em the knee shooters...</p>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-34740899880251960372011-02-25T06:00:00.000-06:002011-02-25T06:00:13.142-06:00Maison<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIeQ38_fLI0BnmCR0TZJRbSBBVNt5Oc4Y9l64wJCVYhIOOAgO3zQoBZ3AnJCqTAADe81GyL-JpsZc2mDJ29gS17ML28tIf_fq1cU4y9jd-kWuPPnmyr7YVJ2uX1fjCjyltG4d3Ff77pjsi/s1600/Maison.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 241px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIeQ38_fLI0BnmCR0TZJRbSBBVNt5Oc4Y9l64wJCVYhIOOAgO3zQoBZ3AnJCqTAADe81GyL-JpsZc2mDJ29gS17ML28tIf_fq1cU4y9jd-kWuPPnmyr7YVJ2uX1fjCjyltG4d3Ff77pjsi/s320/Maison.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574837435185702914" /></a>In the past, when deciding what to brew, I fought against an urge to brew what I really wanted (IPA! DRY-HOPPED PALE ALE! PILSNER! PILSNER! IPA!) to try other styles. For example, the beer that became 2Wicky (a French-style Black Saison with Star Anise, Grains of Paradise and molasses) started out as a standard Saison with just 2 oz of Apricot flavoring so you'd think "Huh? What was that?" The grains weren't very traditional. Only 21% Pilsner malt was used, and instead I went with Marris Otter as the primary base malt (at 55%).<div><br /></div><div>In an enclosed hotel rooftop swimming pool in downtown Indianapolis, I started thinking about the base recipe of the 2Wicky as a simpler Saison. There were posters around the swimming pool that appeared to be some kind of old-timey vacation ads for places in France. I noticed how "Maison", meaning "house" or probably "home" was one letter away from "Saison". I thought that if I made a Saison beer, I would call it "Saison de Maison". As I decided what beers to make this year, the names were made simpler, into one or two-word titles, and "Maison" was born.</div><div><br /></div><div>I brewed this beer on my birthday in 2010, opting to try another open-fermented, late-sugar addition beer. My buddy, John Hayes, bought me the ingredients for this one.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Maison</b></div><div>5.5 gallon batch</div><div>OG: 1.069</div><div>SRM: 4.9</div><div>IBU: 49.6</div><div><br /></div><div>90 minute boil</div><div><br /></div><div>5.0 lbs 2-Row Malt</div><div>5.0 lbs Pilsner Malt</div><div>0.5 lbs CaraVienne Malt</div><div>2.0 lbs Demerara sugar</div><div><br /></div><div>1.5 oz Perle (8.25%AA) @ 60 min.</div><div>2.0 oz Strisselspalt (2.6%AA) @ 5 min.</div><div>2.0 oz Mt. Hood (4.6%AA) Dry Hop</div><div><br /></div><div>Wyeast 3711 French Saison</div><div><br /></div><div>I do a 75 minute infusion mash at 149-150 degrees Fahrenheit. Batch sparge. I made a 2-quart starter for the yeast. This beer spent 2 weeks in primary fermentation, and then 3 weeks in secondary because I went to Florida over the Thanksgiving holiday, and didn't bottle it until the very first week of December. The sugar was added after 48 hours of fermentation via 1 quart of water and all 2 pounds added to that, boiled, chilled and added with the lid placed on the fermenter. The beer finished with an OG of 1.006.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpSUM2Irvlb9x5kMD8gvgkAQ-M8Ca69WEuMlAknglMbAhlWRJpXbVeD76DsmBAi4x7rvYmbl922aVn6MX0Ajx-h2MzzQrrt3y4yN2bwhT2IJeDMIEJ1aB5mGOOIWh2g-5fiXjvER8aAd2f/s1600/Maison.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpSUM2Irvlb9x5kMD8gvgkAQ-M8Ca69WEuMlAknglMbAhlWRJpXbVeD76DsmBAi4x7rvYmbl922aVn6MX0Ajx-h2MzzQrrt3y4yN2bwhT2IJeDMIEJ1aB5mGOOIWh2g-5fiXjvER8aAd2f/s320/Maison.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574844083281352162" /></a></div><div>As of February, I think the beer is good. It might improve over the next few months, but I figured about an 8.3% ABV for this one, so it's very likely it will become more estery. It's definitely free of fusel alcohols, though, and ended up a bit darker (I think due to the Demerara sugar) than calculated by promash.</div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-19448665129945124362011-02-18T06:00:00.002-06:002011-02-18T06:00:05.798-06:00Belgian Strong Dark - The 8-Ball<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4XSS47K69r4S64f77tBLuxVHK9-71-PgsowfB1lv6NhGEeACJNn72YgaUBFD7rEjmH_fmrmYDppANDfYmOOy6iIAC-awOZ4Er_au101H6RFhuoC9-FvAIXis-KHT8fv6ui06YON0lNkCH/s1600/8-ball.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 288px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4XSS47K69r4S64f77tBLuxVHK9-71-PgsowfB1lv6NhGEeACJNn72YgaUBFD7rEjmH_fmrmYDppANDfYmOOy6iIAC-awOZ4Er_au101H6RFhuoC9-FvAIXis-KHT8fv6ui06YON0lNkCH/s320/8-ball.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573882927652466802" /></a>The last time I posted, I talked about adding sugar later in the fermentation, as opposed to at the end of the boil so as to allow for the yeast to eat all of the simpler sugars (matlose?) before they got to their dessert of the sucrose. You know how lazy you get after eating dessert. Yeast are even simpler creatures.<div><br /></div><div>As I also stated in that article, I performed open fermentation on this beer, another technique that I had yet to try. This is where you leave the lid off the bucket after you add the yeast. Keep animals and small children away, and you should be all right.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here's the recipe:</div><div><br /></div><div><b>8-Ball</b></div><div>6 gallon batch</div><div>OG: 1.078</div><div>SRM: 15.8</div><div>IBU: 26.1</div><div>12.0 lbs Pilsner Malt</div><div>2.0 lbs CaraMunich Malt</div><div>2.0 lbs Demerara sugar (I got mine at a local grocery)</div><div>0.5 lbs Corn sugar</div><div><br /></div><div><b></b>1.0 oz Tradition (6.2%AA) @ 60 min.</div><div>0.5 oz Hersbrucker (3.3% AA) @ 30 min.</div><div>0.5 oz Hersbrucher (3.3% AA) @ 5 min.</div><div><br /></div><div>Wyeast 1762 - Belgian Abbey II - 2 quart yeast starter</div><div><br /></div><div>When I got the ingredients, I didn't look closely at the hops. I had the ounce of Hersbrucker, but instead of Tradition hops, Midwest Supplies sent me Tettnanger. These had a lower alpha acid %, and probably would've been all right, but I had a lot of Perle hops left over, and I thought their alpha acid % (8.2%) would've served this better, so I adjusted it to 0.75 oz of Perle instead. It turned out well.</div><div><br /></div><div>Since I was using Pilsner malt, I also opted for a 90 minute boil. In case you haven't seen it a million times already, this is supposed to reduce the dimethyl sulfide (which can impart a "corny" taste to your beer). I haven't been brave enough to experiment with this.</div><div><br /></div><div>The OG without the sugar was 1.058. A 2-quart yeast starter was therefore a good size starter for this beer.</div><div><br /></div><div>After 2 days of open fermentation, I put 2 quarts of water in a pan, added all the sugar, brought it to a boil for 5 minutes, chilled it to about 70 degrees F, and added it to the fermentation bucket, and put the lid on. In about half an hour, the ferment lock was popping like a machine gun.</div><div><br /></div><div>After 5 days of fermentation, the lock showed no signs of fermentation. Usually, you can watch the lock for 2 minutes and see a bubble, but this was DEAD. I still let it stay in the primary bucket for 2 weeks. I checked the gravity (1.008) and then transferred it to secondary. Then I lagered it for 2 weeks and bottled with 5 oz of corn sugar.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCbCGNLhyvqBarPrB-ipPRnWz41cE8e5qMMFLq76yviEOnlZn-fESuMI-nAamHggUmjRaLWoz3VsfRXkFvG_EFGO1x8Y9OO8KyS3qElYyNQxHD0DpwE295kjYrU8Y72Tkbk0iSuTbSWw-r/s1600/8-Ball.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCbCGNLhyvqBarPrB-ipPRnWz41cE8e5qMMFLq76yviEOnlZn-fESuMI-nAamHggUmjRaLWoz3VsfRXkFvG_EFGO1x8Y9OO8KyS3qElYyNQxHD0DpwE295kjYrU8Y72Tkbk0iSuTbSWw-r/s320/8-Ball.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574248429812585746" /></a></div><div>The beer has been in the bottle almost 6 months now. It has finally become very good. When I tried it during the first few months, there wasn't much of a scent on it. Now, you can smell the esters. At 25 IBU, there isn't a lot of hop bite, what shines through is a raisiny malt profile with a caramel backbone.</div><div><br /></div><div>At 9.2% ABV, this one should've been aged at a minimum this long before opening. That's my opinion. Bigger beers need to age so they can actually become good. </div><div><br /></div><div>I will likely make this again, but I think I will leave it sit in the bottles for a good 8 months before trying it.</div><div><br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-32176375583414636092011-01-28T06:00:00.000-06:002011-01-28T06:00:00.552-06:00A New Trick to Adding Sugar<p class="MsoNormal">This summer I was listening to a Jamil Zainasheff podcast about making Tripel beers, and he was asked if he’d ever had a really good, homebrewed Tripel.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>He stated that he hadn’t, saying that many of them were too sweet, and even cloying.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>He suggested that since Tripels usually have a large amount of sugar as part of the recipe bill, that brewers who wanted the beer to finish dry should add the sugar later in the fermentation process, rather than during the boil.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This would require the yeast to get all the maltose provided by the malt BEFORE the yeast would convert the easier sucrose.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Given the choice of the two, the yeast would spend all of their energy working on the sucrose first and THEN go after the maltose.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I have only made one Tripel, and I found that my beer did not finish as low as I wanted it to.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>While 1.014 was decent finishing gravity, or so I thought, I still found the beer to be a little more sweet than other Tripels I liked (not to mention the fact that I used a half pound of Crystal 20<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">º</span> L, which I thought would be cool, but was totally unnecessary).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">A friend and I wanted to brew a beer together, and he suggested looking at Northern Brewer’s kit called The Number 8.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I’m not sure if this kit was patterned after a particular commercial beer (maybe the Rochefort 8?), but it appears to be a Belgian dark strong.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I made some small changes to the recipe and named this beer “Magic Eightball” and then later just “8*Ball”.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I will cover this beer in another post.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I decided to try two new techniques with this beer.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The first was to open ferment it for 48 hours.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I was inspired by a Brewing TV episode on this subject.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>While I think that <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Dawson</st1:place></st1:city> let his wheat beer go for more like 72 hours, I was nervous about it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I roused the yeast after about 12 hours, and it had a nice kreuzen going (big clouds of yeasty foam on top), and I did this about every 12 hours, until I was freaked out enough to boil the two and a half pounds of sugar in 2 quarts of water, chill it, and then dump it into the fermenter and pop the lid on it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Within a half hour, the 3-piece ferment lock was popping like a machine gun.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">That beer finished at 1.008.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Way better than I could have hoped.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">For my birthday, my brewing buddy, John, bought me the ingredients for Maison, my Saison recipe.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Again, this beer included a pound of Demerara sugar, so I boiled it in a quart of water and added it to the beer after 48 hours of open fermentation.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Again, it finished lower than any other beer I brewed, this time at 1.006.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">There may be other things at play here with me adding the sugar late.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>All I know is that both of these beers taste great, and I’ll be discussing them soon in further detail.</p>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-10650642300862678512010-12-31T06:00:00.001-06:002010-12-31T06:00:07.041-06:00Bulldog ESB<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsesw1k6zl_YMUa4txqGuTW7wu4U7r1ZYavdtAMWX0yTPquT8yUZMlz7Wi-rmx4dhCK3ZAmHZQCRRpsrQWWNi0rcxMFdwDDpcGt-pdqdhcWRmU6EddWgZd-0KOcYrxmtfAunInqrv5mfS3/s1600/Bulldog+ESB.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 284px; height: 296px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsesw1k6zl_YMUa4txqGuTW7wu4U7r1ZYavdtAMWX0yTPquT8yUZMlz7Wi-rmx4dhCK3ZAmHZQCRRpsrQWWNi0rcxMFdwDDpcGt-pdqdhcWRmU6EddWgZd-0KOcYrxmtfAunInqrv5mfS3/s320/Bulldog+ESB.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5555191370701420850" /></a>When I made the Red Rooster for a second time, I had 3 ounces of hops left over from a half pound of Willamette pellets that I bought from <a href="http://www.midwestsupplies.com/">Midwest Supplies</a>. I think it was for $6, which is a great deal!<div><br /></div><div>I thought about what kind of style of beer I could make with 3 ounces of Willamette, since the Rooster was going to take up 5 ounces. For some reason, I was wanting to have a <a href="http://www.gooseisland.com/pages/honker_s_ale/17.php">Goose Island Honker's Ale</a>. I like using <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Brewing+Classic+Styles&x=0&y=0">Jamil Zainasheff and John Palmer's <i>Brewing Classic Styles</i></a> as a place to start, so I looked up the chapter on Extra Special Bitters. I believe I used the malt bill for the most part to make up what would become the Bulldog ESB. </div><div><br /></div><div>I've seen that Willamette are good substitute hops for English Fuggle hops. However, the recipe did not call for Fuggles, but for Goldings. I just decided to wing it because I had Willamette. </div><div><br /></div><div>I was also wanting to have a beer with a big biscuity-malt taste, so I opted to use all Marris Otter as the base malt. In the end, I had also just harvested my backyard hops. The trellis fell in June, so I had to rebuild it, but I didn't take the time to sort through the bines to divide the hops into respective bags. They all went in the same bag; The Magnum, the Zeus, and the Cascade. I christened them <i>131 Westchester</i> hops and used 2 ounces to dry-hop the beer as an afterthought.</div><div><br /></div><div><b><u>Bulldog ESB</u></b></div><div>OG: 1.061</div><div>SRM: 10.9</div><div>IBU: 40.7</div><div>5.4% ABV</div><div><br /></div><div>10.0 lb Marris Otter</div><div>1.0 lb Victory Malt</div><div>0.25 lb Crystal 120*L</div><div>0.50 lb Crystal 20*L</div><div><br /></div><div>2.0 oz Willamette @ 60 min</div><div>1.0 oz Willamette @ 0 min</div><div>2.0 oz 131 Westchester hops (55% Zeus, 44% Magnum, 1% Cascade) Dry Hop</div><div><br /></div><div>Wyeast London ESB 1968 </div><div>Danstar Llallemand Nottingham dry yeast 11 gram</div><div><br /></div><div>A note on the yeast: I had planned to make a starter, but didn't. I figured the gravity was low enough that I could just pitch from the package, and the Wyeast smack pack blew up big, and it did it quickly. However, after 36 hours, I opened the bucket and there was no Kreuzen. I ended up pitching a pack of Nottingham I had ordered extra.</div><div><br /></div><div>The beer turned out great - it has cleared, and has an orange hue. The nose is of the Zeus hops, and has a nice Willamette bite. As an "afterthought" beer, it has turned out to be quite a nice ale. I have added it to my list of annual beers to make.</div><div><br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-2534032846274167152010-12-26T20:31:00.004-06:002010-12-26T20:57:29.420-06:00Red Rooster Ale - This Time with Rye<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_u8G4sdEtf5TdmP_X3zj1M5FNCcSC2NENiZyhfY12cz0HQC0xXrFuzoyUrB0k0WfbelZd3L7iPV9fj9VlzZEqslHBYiiVr98R4tK2sHap9-Y04K4NcJr_WxP1EcH0I5VzgDpahiOevug/s1600/Red+Rooster+Tap.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 288px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_u8G4sdEtf5TdmP_X3zj1M5FNCcSC2NENiZyhfY12cz0HQC0xXrFuzoyUrB0k0WfbelZd3L7iPV9fj9VlzZEqslHBYiiVr98R4tK2sHap9-Y04K4NcJr_WxP1EcH0I5VzgDpahiOevug/s320/Red+Rooster+Tap.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5555184603944084290" /></a>I made the <a href="http://freshbeereveryfriday.blogspot.com/2010_01_01_archive.html">Red Rooster</a> ale the first time back in November of 2009 and wrote about it here in January. I enjoyed it so much that I brewed it again in early October. <div><br /></div><div>In early March, I got to be part of a surprise party in Kentucky for a friend I had not seen since I lived in Germany in the 80s. I also got to hang out with a few of my friends from that time in my life that I had not seen since. It had been 24 years since I'd seen most of them. I took a few of my beers down there, including the original Red Rooster.</div><div><br /></div><div>I was surprised how my friends enjoyed this simple beer. The chocolate rye imparts a slight mocha aroma and flavor in conjunction with the Willamette hops. I get a similar result when I taste Sierra Nevada's Porter, but the rooster is only red, not dark like a Porter.</div><div><br /></div><div>I don't know when the last of these was drank, but since that time, I was thinking about how I could improve upon this recipe. I decided to substitute 2 lbs of rye malt in place of 2 lbs of 2-row malt, and dry hop with an extra ounce of Willamette. The recipe looks like this:</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; color: rgb(13, 6, 0); line-height: 20px; "><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline; "><b>Red Rooster Ale</b></span></div><div>5.5-gallon batch</div><div>OG: 1.063</div><div>28.8 IBU</div><div>SRM: 13.8</div><div><br /></div><div>10.0 lb 2-Row Pale Malt</div><div>2.0 lb Rye Malt</div><div>0.5 lb Caramunich II</div><div>0.33 lb CaraWheat</div><div>0.33 lb Chocolate Rye</div><div><br /></div><div>1.50 oz Willamette (4.5%AA) @ 60 min.</div><div>1.00 oz Willamette (4.5%AA) @ 30 min.</div><div>1.00 oz Willamette (4.5%AA) @ 0 min.</div><div>1.50 oz Willamette (4.5%AA) Dry Hop 5 days prior to bottling</div><div><br /></div><div>Danstar-Lallemand Nottingham dry yeast, 11 grams</div><div><br /></div><div>While I bottled the last batch, I had a kegging system set up this time around. I wasn't able to do a side-by-side comparisson, but from memory, I know that 1) I made this one stronger, since the original had a target OG of 1.046, but it ended up 1.041. In that regard, this one ended up at 1.055, so it went from 3.8%ABV to 5.93% ABV (I was hoping for around 6%). The rye gives it a bit more of a spicy taste. Unfortunately, the beer is kind of cloudy. It tastes great. It's got the same kind of mouthfeel, like it's begging for a nitrogen tap, it's creamy, and feels like a thin film of foam is left on the roof of your mouth. The aroma is kind of woody and smells of malt. It doesn't have a big hop nose like American IPAs.</div><div><br /></div><div>Once again, I have to thank Dawson over at Northern Brewer for his <a href="http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/dawsons-multigrain-red-all-grain-kit.html">Dawson's Multi-Grain Red</a> ale. It was the inspiration for me to brew this red ale, which is more like a reddish-brown.</div></span></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-67144130397980844392010-07-16T06:00:00.000-05:002010-07-16T06:00:00.271-05:00Bad Moon Weizenbock<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo_hSrgmyV802ZRqQ-2Hq9f4e_5JDSo5hjWVwDhJ3zFh7QvHifKqfENL_KboUB0_y-JgSAOOXXruzRTDSeHNCKCWtKn8sMnQ-IYQUe-k-2qfUYttTvPO56jWbmDU8mcvxT6wuoRt5y_cn_/s1600/BadMoonWeizenbock.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo_hSrgmyV802ZRqQ-2Hq9f4e_5JDSo5hjWVwDhJ3zFh7QvHifKqfENL_KboUB0_y-JgSAOOXXruzRTDSeHNCKCWtKn8sMnQ-IYQUe-k-2qfUYttTvPO56jWbmDU8mcvxT6wuoRt5y_cn_/s320/BadMoonWeizenbock.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492404086801877266" /></a>I can't remember where I first read about the style of Weizenbock. I do know that I was intrigued enough that in 2007, my first year of brewing, I threw together a recipe. After some modifications this year, I brewed one.<div><br /></div><div>Weizenbock is actually a style of bock beer you can make without lagering. Bocks are usually brewed with lager yeast. A wheat beer yeast (preferably one of the German varieties for brewing weizen beers) is all that is needed for this style.</div><div><br /></div><div>As far as I know, the best example of this style comes from the Schneider brewery in Germany; the <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/schneider-aventinus/2224/">Aventinus</a> weizenbock. I've had this a couple times. I liked it, but my favorite one was probably <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/heavy-seas-mutiny-fleet-hang-ten/74480/">Heavy Seas Hang Ten</a>. Clocking in at 10%, it's probably a bit bigger than your standard style, but I remembered that being a really good beer, and quite possibly, that's what caused me to research the style and take a stab at the recipe I mentioned above.</div><div><br /></div><div>As a consolation prize for entering a brewing contest earlier this year, I ended up getting back, along with my results, a combined 3 packs of the <a href="http://www.midwestsupplies.com/danstar-munich-german-wheat-beer-yeast.html">Munich Dry Yeast</a>. At first, I thought, "Awesome! A new kind of dry lager yeast!" Upon further research, I discovered that it was actually a dry weizen-style kind of yeast.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm not a big fan of weizen or "wheat" beers. I don't mind a couple here or there, but to brew 5 gallons of wheat beer isn't very likely for me. They're good, and in fact, I thought it might have been nice to have some wheat beer this summer, but for the most part, they don't fall into my top 10 lists of beers I want to make, unless, of course, you're talking about cloning <a href="http://www.brew365.com/beer_three_floyds_gumballhead.php">Gumballhead</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>I then remembered the Bad Moon Weizenbock recipe I had crafted. Was that a lager or could I ferment that with the dry yeast I had?</div><div><br /></div><div>I checked the <a href="http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/advantageous-weizenbock-all-grain-kit.html">Advantageous Weizenbock</a> kit that Northern Brewer sells, and right there it was as the dry yeast option: Munich dry yeast.</div><div><br /></div><div>So I decided that I would use two of the packs of yeast for this beer, and then use the third to brew some kind of Dunkelweizen later. Then I found my dad wanted to make a hefeweizen, so I figure I'll just give the yeast to him.</div><div><br /></div><div>Another reference I check is Jamil Zainasheff's and John Palmer's <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brewing-Classic-Styles-Winning-Recipes/dp/0937381926/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278801197&sr=8-1">Brewing Classic Styles</a></i> book. In their description of making weizenbock, they state that you can't brew this beer using only Munich and Wheat Malts. Unfortunately, when I read this, I already had my ingredients ready to go the next day. So I decided to not worry about it. Weeks later, I'm enjoying this beer. It tastes great, very much like a bock beer, without all the details involved with making a lager yeast starter or going through the long lagering process.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Bad Moon Weizenbock</b></div><div><br /></div><div>6 gallons</div><div>OG: 1.086 (20.64)</div><div>SRM: 15.4</div><div>IBU: 28.3</div><div><br /></div><div>Boil time: 60 minutes</div><div><br /></div><div>9.0 lbs Red Wheat</div><div>5.0 lbs Light Munich Malt (10*L)</div><div>4.0 lbs Dark Munich Malt (12*L)</div><div>0.5 lbs Special B Malt</div><div><br /></div><div>Hops</div><div><br /></div><div>1.0 oz Perle (7.5%AA) First Wort</div><div>2.0 oz Crystal (4.1%AA) 15 min.</div><div>1.0 oz Crystal (4.1%AA) Dry Hop</div><div><br /></div><div>Danstar Munich yeast (2 packs sprinkled onto wort)</div><div>Fermented at 68*F</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b><u><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></u></b></div><div><b><u><br /></u></b></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-60318013676063995922010-06-18T06:00:00.003-05:002010-06-18T06:34:34.273-05:00DFK Pils<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwty52YU2rJ-tD0EixkIOG8rOEC69PKWqLOEjryaaMPHwIjOEJMzpUEwYSYZdig5Fz27lElyeE6M4d69KnkOVqVe8PHjD1aB5PiBBaVt4BhplDbnk0UiEezSwCtHQDr9gafxLaia0drym/s1600/DFK+Czech+Pils.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwty52YU2rJ-tD0EixkIOG8rOEC69PKWqLOEjryaaMPHwIjOEJMzpUEwYSYZdig5Fz27lElyeE6M4d69KnkOVqVe8PHjD1aB5PiBBaVt4BhplDbnk0UiEezSwCtHQDr9gafxLaia0drym/s320/DFK+Czech+Pils.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482456813070448898" /></a>There is knowledge in the homebrew community, mind you have to search for it or stumble onto it, but it exists, that if you want to make a <i>true</i> Czech Pilsener beer, that you have to brew it using a decoction mash.<div><br /></div><div>It's really a simple recipe; Pilsener malt, Czech Saaz hops, and your choice of Czech lager yeast. I know of three right off the top of my head, and I'm pretty sure that both Wyeast and White Labs make versions of the Budvar (original Budweiser), Pilsen (used for Pilsener Urquell) and Bohemian lager yeasts.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the last quarter of 2009, Wyeast released the Staro-Prague (Wyeast 2782-PC) yeast. Northern Brewer also made a simple kit available for use of this yeast. If I'm not mistaken, it was called Farley's Svetle-Pivo (which translates from Slavic to "Farley's Light Beer") and for a 5-gallon recipe, was calling for 10 pounds of Pilsener malt, 5 ounces of Czech Saaz hops, and the aforementioned yeast. Also, it suggested a triple-decoction mash.</div><div><br /></div><div>For the most part, when you do an all-grain homebrew, you get your grain. It's crushed. Then you get your water hot so that you can put your grain in it, and the grain sits at a temperature between 149*F and 156*F for at least an hour. Then you sparge the grain with hot water (around 180*F) until you get enough to boil down so that when all is said and done, you have 5 gallons of beer (the usual amount, especially if you're serving from 5-gallon kegs).</div><div><br /></div><div>However, a decoction mash is its own animal. For this beer in particular, I started with 100*F water, put it and the grain into my mash tun for 20 minutes, and then the real fun began: It was early January when I did this, so it was like 19*F in my garage. I had the side door open and the big garage door cracked about a foot and a half to get decent air flow. So I took 2/3rds of the mash (water and grain, mostly grain) and started heating it up on the burner. You have to stir so you don't burn the mash or make the color too dark. I brought the mash to 150*F and then took it off the burner, wrapped it in a wool blanket, and let it set on a crate for 20 minutes. Then I returned the kettle to the burner, and slowly brought it to a boil, let it boil for five minutes, then returned it to the mash tun, bringing the temperature to 126*F in the mash tun, stirring it in so the temperature was uniform. I let it rest 30 minutes. I did this again, to bring the temperature of the mash to 148*F, and then again to 158*F (I didn't let it sit for 20 minutes either time after this, since it was so close or beyond 150*F anyway, just straight to boil). Finally, I drained about 4 gallons of mostly liquid wort and brought this to a boil to raise the temperature of the mash to 170*F for mash out, where you're looking to get all your "sugar water" to make the beer.</div><div><br /></div><div>This makes for a long day. Especially in January. But I was hoping for an awesome beer. The great thing about mashing this way is that a lot of the proteins that you get from the boil kettle when you're moving the wort into the fermenter actually <i>stay in the mash tun</i>. The result is a clearer, cleaner beer. For more information on decoction mashing, I suggest you check out Kai's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/BrauKaiser#p/a/u/2/_V1zt0mW084">decoction</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/BrauKaiser#p/a/u/0/I5u_nJhMD4w">mash</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/BrauKaiser#p/a/u/1/6VcZRVw2k_o">videos</a>. A three-part series that you can take seriously because of Kai's accent.</div><div><br /></div><div>As for how the beer looks, here are a few photos:</div><div><br />This is the beer about 30 seconds after it's been poured. Burnished gold.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wftoDW7jJEbMK8p6MeUMYvowFMghNSUcEapnfOqggvv0tFChbVrplYqBNlsXr4WoyxRwwf58GJblv8Na5tamAFeGAsVWxzW3-w2d-HXPRAU9VbJmfACVZWwHO3NJBgcsBMBcRN5jT1Ll/s1600/DFKPils01.JPG"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wftoDW7jJEbMK8p6MeUMYvowFMghNSUcEapnfOqggvv0tFChbVrplYqBNlsXr4WoyxRwwf58GJblv8Na5tamAFeGAsVWxzW3-w2d-HXPRAU9VbJmfACVZWwHO3NJBgcsBMBcRN5jT1Ll/s320/DFKPils01.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482464143947787010" /></a><br />As the beer is drank, a swirl of foam remains. Smells of sulfur, fresh-mown grass.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitfQbXbtsHDyBrXJSdG1TiBuKgXl8WEaKY5OVvv5ZYulESetdsBPuzPd9COo4agdLNUS1KdOj5gA90UmJTnf5XwwLPygEmlYTgvPMOr1NqRzg-X8OQdnZN18UrqfBzK8McB50YcnORZgM1/s1600/DFKPils02.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitfQbXbtsHDyBrXJSdG1TiBuKgXl8WEaKY5OVvv5ZYulESetdsBPuzPd9COo4agdLNUS1KdOj5gA90UmJTnf5XwwLPygEmlYTgvPMOr1NqRzg-X8OQdnZN18UrqfBzK8McB50YcnORZgM1/s320/DFKPils02.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482464261154321890" /></a><br /><br />It's unfiltered, so while some beers are clearer, this one is not as clear.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihrda4hRyWa92sHgJhB7s7zhAAvAQCjTR2OjN5liEIaCucqaapRc2s5rrBNi6CjDSjZgg4sWkrAkg6NAtUf0FfHJr_u26AARHSaJceF95jB105ob3N1JC64JF3JbpiVY2PVhFEz2cNOKTl/s1600/DFKPils03.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihrda4hRyWa92sHgJhB7s7zhAAvAQCjTR2OjN5liEIaCucqaapRc2s5rrBNi6CjDSjZgg4sWkrAkg6NAtUf0FfHJr_u26AARHSaJceF95jB105ob3N1JC64JF3JbpiVY2PVhFEz2cNOKTl/s320/DFKPils03.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482464332611591330" /></a>Of course, there is a story behind the name. Even though it's Farley's recipe, I upped it to 12 lbs of Pilsener malt and 6 oz of Czech Saaz hops because I was shooting for 6 gallons. I did the work, I get to name it.</div><div><br /></div><div>Like I stated above, the beer pours with a decent head. Once the head is gone, lacing continues and the foam swirls on the top. It smells of sulfur and freshly-mown grass. The taste is like biting into a handful of Czech Saaz hops. It's quite wonderful. The Pilsener malt is a great vehicle for the yeast and hops.</div><div><br /></div><div>While I lived in Germany, I had a good friend named Dan Kendall (DFK). I left during the middle of our Junior year. During the summer, Danny was to leave to go back to the states, where his dad, who was a colonel, was getting a promotion. Danny decided to impress his dad's associates by getting a mohawk. Lately, I've seen mohawks being worn as a fashion statement. But in 1986, I guarantee you, mohawks were considered pretty "1981." Hell, I don't even remember too many people wearing them in 1981. But then, I lived in Oklahoma that year.</div><div><br /></div><div>The point is, you can take the easy way out on anything if you're smart. But to live, sometimes you need to go through all the steps just to see what it's all about. It's easy to get a mohawk when all the cool kids are doing it.</div><div><br /></div><div>Danny did this, he cut his hair, and he knew he was causing trouble. He knew he'd take suome lumps. Why did he do it? Because fuck them.<br /><br /></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-57782784918361548072010-05-07T06:50:00.000-05:002010-05-07T06:50:00.379-05:00Pitching Rate Experiment<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7xFauQ12GXB_Nx6D6-iA1USy7xzkoUfbE3mR6Eha4FzyNsFhY_dpPtmXWRACLwfh-OabJUzWkL62NM6bMgznwgwdBYLTHI5O6fCUX4Agoho4V452hcE8Wg_QrAmOyE21Cmo4I__6oK-L1/s1600/yeasttest.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459413751741459010" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7xFauQ12GXB_Nx6D6-iA1USy7xzkoUfbE3mR6Eha4FzyNsFhY_dpPtmXWRACLwfh-OabJUzWkL62NM6bMgznwgwdBYLTHI5O6fCUX4Agoho4V452hcE8Wg_QrAmOyE21Cmo4I__6oK-L1/s320/yeasttest.JPG" border="0" /></a>One of the neat things about homebrewing is that you have so many people with different degrees of experience and all kinds of systems. One of the forums I frequent, over at <a href="http://forum.northernbrewer.com/index.php">Northern Brewer</a>, will often have someone new to brewing asking a question. A lot of people chime in. The funny thing is, there are usually two camps that end up breaking out on any topic. Glass fermenters versus plastic fermenters is common. One that recently came up involved pitching rates. <div><br /></div><div>As you can see by the introductory question, the starter of <a href="http://forum.northernbrewer.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=85313">this particular thread</a> wants to know that when it comes to pitching liquid yeast into a batch of beer, should he pitch one Activator pack, or two.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let the shitstorm begin.</div><div><br /></div><div>Where I stand on this opinion depends on the strength of the beer you are making. My general rule is that anything at a specific gravity of 1.055 or less I would feel comfortable throwing a Wyeast Activator into, preferably fully puffed out after you've smacked it, but still okay if puffed out just a little. Case in point: I made a Patersbier at my dad's place. The Activator pack was 3 months old. I didn't feel real good about the age of the pack, but I trusted the Trappist High Gravity yeast to be a strong one. The gravity of the beer was 1.048, so I wasn't too worried about it. Fermented it for a week at around 63 degrees, finished at 1.011. Done.</div><div><br /></div><div>At about 1.060, I begin to make yeast starters. So I do believe in starters. In fact, I really wanted the Koelsch I just made to do really well, so I made a quart starter for it, even though the gravity was only 1.050. I moved it to secondary after 13 days. The gravity was at 1.016 at the time, which was kind of surprising; I thought it would finish lower. That starter grew for about 28 hours.</div><div><br /></div><div>Of course, the most frustrating thing to me about homebrewer opinions, is that at times, people think that their opinion is the only way to do things. That's fine. Believe what you want. But just don't tell me it's the <b><i>only</i></b> way to do things. Or tell me I <b><i>can't</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal"> do something, especially if I've done it, or if I think it will work. See the Koelsch above as an example. Made with 95% Koelsch malt. Some dude said on the NB forum that I </span>couldn't</b> make a Koelsch with that malt. Guess what? Did it. Guess what else? It tastes <i>fucking great</i>. As my wife put it, "Reminds me of the beers I used to drink in high school." Well, maybe. It <i>is</i> a Koelsch.</div><div><br /></div><div>So this guy, <a href="http://seanterrill.com/2010/02/18/yeast-pitching-rate-experiment/">Sean</a>, decided to do an <a href="http://forum.northernbrewer.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=85604">experiment</a>. As you can see, for the cost of shipping, he sent us 3 beers to try. I got my brewing friend, John, to share the tasting with me. I told him, "YOU CAN'T TALK ABOUT THE BEER UNTIL WE'RE DONE!" He looked at me funny.</div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1D4O-J9crdarCsJP0VX9D25P1ZXfNRzLLfSCNtE3aSeKNOkIdZ_kNY_Vwa00_bFzzMvXzRi0c89bf5hwneBdgXDy6I7WpfMql9OQL7J5RwMWhkOzjzdKe4DhYvkacc2S1VPquw6tbsyO/s1600/jhayes4-10.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459414047961654050" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1D4O-J9crdarCsJP0VX9D25P1ZXfNRzLLfSCNtE3aSeKNOkIdZ_kNY_Vwa00_bFzzMvXzRi0c89bf5hwneBdgXDy6I7WpfMql9OQL7J5RwMWhkOzjzdKe4DhYvkacc2S1VPquw6tbsyO/s320/jhayes4-10.JPG" border="0" /></a>Here were our comments:<br /><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>John (A): </b>Cloudy. Not really amber. Hazy. Smells of alcohol. Tastes somewhat fruity, mildly hoppy, tastes of alcohol. Over-attenuated? Slightly astringent. Low mod. body, good carbonation.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Jez (A): </b>Decent foam. Kinda light in color for an amber. Decent lacing. Hazy, smells fruity, apple-juicy, caramel, alcohol. Flavor is a bit appley, hops are nice. Very dry, not much of a malt backbone. Mouthfeel: Back bit of hops. Smooth feel. Appropriate carbonation. Seems like it's underpitched. I seem to have gotten better attenuation from a smack pack. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>John (B):</b> Thicker head than A. Same amount of haze as A. Smells slightly estery, flavor is estery as well. Less astringent than A. Is this under-pitched?</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Jez (B):</b> Bigger head on this one. A bit stronger lacing. Same haze as A. No fruity aroma, maybe some caramel nose. Very dry, nice hops for an amber ale. Same mouthfeel, nice carbonation. Guessing this one used a starter.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>John (C):</b> Same as A.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Jesse (C):</b> Same as A.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjV9TsQFlN6OoihZq1ZeqSOHJBH0tRSJeS8udiQ6o-AcYMHYywMhbWqDeNBLf_OKIHqJYK3ZD2-nABSC8wZEsW6vXkw2MCP5nbvq3gssFb0aoP2mOOYmTosLQ1SgRcWMOZFo1r1fA29TIb/s1600/jez4-10.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459414457868809634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjV9TsQFlN6OoihZq1ZeqSOHJBH0tRSJeS8udiQ6o-AcYMHYywMhbWqDeNBLf_OKIHqJYK3ZD2-nABSC8wZEsW6vXkw2MCP5nbvq3gssFb0aoP2mOOYmTosLQ1SgRcWMOZFo1r1fA29TIb/s320/jez4-10.JPG" border="0" /></a>So as you can see, I thought A&C were underpitched, John thought B was underpitched. </div><div><br /></div><div>Overall, I think that there really wasn't that much difference in the beer. One was not really better than the other. I think that if you told me that these came from the same batch, I couldn't really tell a difference.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'd like to thank Sean for the beer. It's always so nice to share someone else's beer. I'll be in Indianapolis in May. Perhaps I could bring you some of mine?</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, this confirms my indifference to "amber" ales. I think I like more of an Amarillo-Zeus-Simcoe combo of hops in mine.</div></div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-57947456970175316682010-04-29T06:00:00.004-05:002010-04-30T15:12:40.365-05:00Quit Crying for Session Beers<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUNdL4sJezehKa7L5ODDyKNffv56mdLqZF5ygOIJtDkAaUalMZ8D4w4u06V-1ACRwQ8JmQchrivIFjUBv9x-SYE06I1dWt8lU0tnlpv-2CttVn_3Mo894REFQZ5oPpB1xffybam1v_8dZW/s1600/BA39.jpg"><span style="color:#3333ff;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465513105668648674" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUNdL4sJezehKa7L5ODDyKNffv56mdLqZF5ygOIJtDkAaUalMZ8D4w4u06V-1ACRwQ8JmQchrivIFjUBv9x-SYE06I1dWt8lU0tnlpv-2CttVn_3Mo894REFQZ5oPpB1xffybam1v_8dZW/s320/BA39.jpg" border="0" /></span></a><em><span style="color:#3333ff;">(Edit: I posted this article the morning of April 30. I was notified by Mr. Chris Lohring with some information I either misconstrued or did not see on his website. The edited portions are in blue)</span> </em><br /><br />I get Beer Advocate magazine. A friend of mine got it for me as a gift. It's actually a pretty good magazine that has food recipes, an occasional homebrew recipe, news about craft beer, and reviews of beer. It's decent. In the back of each issue, there's an column written usually by a guest writer called <i>LAST CALL</i>. In this issue (#39), Chris Lohring writes "It's Time for Session Beer".<br /><br /><br />In case you're unfamiliar with the term, "session" beer is beer that is usually lower than 4.5% alcohol by volume (ABV%). The idea being with less alcohol, you can drink more of that kind of beer, thus having a "session" with the beer. I guess.<br /><br /><br />It's a decent article - stating that craft beer would be more appealing to people if the alcohol by volume (ABV%) were less, then people could stick around longer without having to stagger out of the bar and keep their wits. Mr. Lohring eventually goes on to discuss his new brew, <a href="http://www.notchsession.com/">Notch Session Ale</a>.<br /><br /><br />There are always these "back and forth" discussions in Beer Advocate. One month, the two brothers that run it were saying that we should all support our local beer cultures by drinking in our local brewpubs and buying from local brewers; stop buying imports. A few months later, in the same <i>Beer Smack</i> column, they're saying we should support overseas markets by buying imports. I'm sure this allows for people on either side of the table to raise a glass to the Brothers Alstrom.<br /><br /><br />When I try to look up "Notch Session Ale" on <a href="http://www.ratebeer.com/">ratebeer</a> or <a href="http://www.beeradvocate.com/">beer advocate</a>, I don't find it. I went to the website. Yeah. There doesn't seem to be any description of the beer here, either, but there is a shitload of "marketing" on the <a href="http://www.notchsession.com/2010/04/notch-posters/">Notch website</a>. Reminds me of the <a href="http://www.edisonbeer.com/home/">Edison Light</a> campaign. That ended up being another light lager in a clear (thanks for skunking it!) bottle.<br /><br /><br />It's unfortunate that this is how Mr. Lohring and Company want to promote their beer. The footnote at the end of the article states, "<i>Chris Lohring is the founder of Notch American Session Ales, and co-founded Boston's Tremont Brewery. He spent his time out of the beer industry in the world of <b>product design and development</b>."</i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><span style="color:#3366ff;">(edit: Mr. Lohring contacted me, and he was in fact, in Engineering, not Marketing. So I misconstrued what this was, thinking it was "marketing") </span><br /><span style="color:#3366ff;"><br /></span><span style="color:#3366ff;"></span>The other thing that gripes me also sort of lends itself to the marketing front: "It's Time for Sesson Beer". Really? I think that's been going on a while. In fact, when I searched for "Notch Session Ale" on Beer Advocate, I found a whole list of session beers. I would say <a href="http://www.eastendbrewing.com/?q=node/21">East End Brewing</a> in Pittsburgh is kicking your ass on this front.<br /><br /><br />You also might have heard of Stone Brewing Company in southern California? Yeah, they've been making <a href="http://www.stonebrew.com/levitation/">Levitation</a> since 2002. It's wonderful.<br /><br /><br />I guess it all comes down to this for me: Beer is beer. Some of it has more hops than others, some of it has funny ingredients, some of it's lower in alcohol, some are higher in alcohol. I like certain ones more at different times of the year. But the one thing that always remains is that I like a variety of beers. It doesn't matter to me if you have a fancy marketing campaign or not. If your beer tastes good, I will buy it.<br /><br /><br /><span style="color:#3366ff;">In my opinion</span>, session beer has always been an option. It's not anything new. <span style="color:#3366ff;">Making it a "niche" market is totally unnecessary.</span>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4584724683009986634.post-29365247404096010862010-02-17T08:40:00.002-06:002010-04-10T07:08:04.934-05:00The Display Shelf: When to Drink the Good Stuff<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcXSbXfdvP5tg31fVV4OblvdfjB1ukXRx2t_E8A_c8FgKt0L0v9LKqRBoxIoQpUfktl0THSjWJN7EXm3DiIgriLSNo4CPvYOZPhibcMeWYickoyP1MlysiBCl9dj-gBokvXsT7_Xh5Vxlf/s1600/session_logo_all_text_300.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 263px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcXSbXfdvP5tg31fVV4OblvdfjB1ukXRx2t_E8A_c8FgKt0L0v9LKqRBoxIoQpUfktl0THSjWJN7EXm3DiIgriLSNo4CPvYOZPhibcMeWYickoyP1MlysiBCl9dj-gBokvXsT7_Xh5Vxlf/s320/session_logo_all_text_300.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458477553724050850" /></a><br /><div>So in this month's "The Session", the topic is <b><a href="http://www.theferm.org/2010/02/session-37-announcement-display-shelf.html">When to Drink the Good Stuff</a></b>. </div><div><br /></div><div>To me, I enjoy the good stuff more when I can share it. But giving good beer to people who haven't developed their palate can be somewhat disappointing. While those who have never tasted a rare Russian Imperial Stout can respect what it is from what you tell them, unless they've had several, pulling out that 2-year old bottle of Dark Lord might disappoint you. They might say, "Yeah, that's pretty good," but not really understand <i>why </i>it is good. I'll admit there is some beer douchebaggery going on when I sit there and look at the beer, smell it, and then describe all the flavors I'm taking from the beer. But then, I <i>really</i> like beer.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, personally, I tend to save these for occasions when 1) I know the people will appreciate the beer, and 2) Where I can share it with a lot of people. Could be a holiday party, could be one of our family's <i>Margarita Fridays</i>. Just depend when the mood strikes.</div><div><br /></div><div>Oh, and a tip I heard from a pretty great homebrewer the other day: If you're aging stuff, try to keep the temperature steady, and store it cool.</div>Jezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02130897549926261047noreply@blogger.com0