So, Corrine asked that I make some beers for her sister's baby shower. This keeps costs down and is also likely to mean evereyone gets to drink high-quality fresh beer than they otherwise would. So, I decided to make a girl-friendly witbier and a universally-drinkable red autumn English Bitter (something along the lines of Shepherd Neame's Late Red, which is actually brewed with Kent-grown Cascade hops).
The witbier was brewed with raw soft white wheat berries, domestic 2-row, instant oats, cascade hops, lime peel, coriander, and a little bit of cardamom. I will serve this one with orange or lemon slices. The yeast I used was 3711 French Saison - and I used a pretty big starter for such a low-gravity beer.
October Bitter Recipe
Recipe: October Bitter
Style: 8B-English Pale Ale-Special/Best/Premium Bitter
Recipe Overview
Wort Volume Before Boil: 7.75 US gals
Wort Volume After Boil: 5.50 US gals
Volume Transferred: 5.28 US gals
Water Added: 0.00 US gals
Volume At Pitching: 5.28 US gals
Final Batch Volume: 5.02 US gals
Expected Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.032 SG
Expected OG: 1.045 SG
Expected FG: 1.011 SG
Expected ABV: 4.5 %
Expected ABW: 3.6 %
Expected IBU (using Tinseth): 37.9
Expected Color: 13.1 SRM
Apparent Attenuation: 75.6 %
Mash Efficiency: 78.0 %
Boil Duration: 90.0 mins
Fermentation Temperature: 64 degF
Fermentables
UK Pale Ale Malt (Maris Otter) 7lb 12oz (89.5 %) In Mash/Steeped
UK Medium Crystal (120EBC) 12.00 oz (8.7 %) In Mash/Steeped
German Carafa Special II 2.58 oz (1.9 %) In Mash/Steeped
Hops
US Nugget (9.8 % alpha) 20 g Loose Whole Hops used 60 Min From End
US Citra (9.0 % alpha) 14 g Loose Whole Hops used 20 Min From End
US Crystal (3.0 % alpha) 32 g Loose Whole Hops used 5 Min From End
US Nugget (9.8 % alpha) 8 g Loose Whole Hops used At turn off
US Cascade (5.7 % alpha) 20 g Loose Whole Hops used Dry-Hopped
Yeast: White Labs WLP006-Bedford British Ale
Mash Schedule
Mash Type: Full Mash
Schedule Name:Single Step Infusion (66C/151F) w/Mash Out
Step: Rest at 151 degF for 60 mins
Step: Raise to and Mash out at 168 degF for 10 mins
Both of these will get 2 weeks in primary, followed by a kegging. The difference will be that the bitter will get dry-hopped in the keg, and the witbier will not.
Ooh, and I accidentally put thrice the recommended amount of brewing salts in the mash - so the beer may come out overly minerally and somewhat harsh - time will tell, I suppose.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
West Coast Pale Ale
What's the difference between a west coast pale ale and an ordinary American Pale Ale? About 5-10 IBU. West Coast pale ales tend to be a little hoppier (though not always). In the same way, a Californian Red Ale will almost always be hoppier than a pacific northwestern Amber Ale (though they are both technically American Amber Ales).
This was an "on the fly" brew, so there was no time to make a starter, and I used a single packet of US-05 yeast to ferment this badboy. This was made with recently-arrived Cascades, and an unopened 2 oz pack of Zeus. I hit my temps fine, and everything has gone smoothly with this beer, though my efficiency is still at just 75%, which leads me to believe that the new LHBS crushes a bit less fine than F. H. Steinbart's up in Portland (where there is an adjustable grain mill).
So this recipe is pretty standard, though it has a couple classic, "homebrew" recipe quirks, namely that I used 1 lb of Belgian Aromatic malt, rather than 2 lbs of American Munich malt (which would likely lead to a similar resulting melanoid-driven maltiness), and I used significantly more late-kettle hops than most professional breweries would put into a medium-gravity beer like this one. The final product should be great, if a little "ordinary" (nothing remotely experimental about this recipe). All together, this beer cost me under $20 to brew up 5 gallons, which brings the six-pack price to $2.50, and the pint price to 50¢ - that's less than a candy bar.
Since it is a little amber in color, I am following the norcal tradition of naming the beer, "Red" followed by the name of an animal. In this case, I decided to go for the Red Panda, because they are cute.
Red Panda Beer (American Pale Ale)
9 lbs Great Western 2-row
1 lb Dingemans Aromatic Malt
1 lb Hugh Baird Crystal 75L
.5 oz CTZ (15% AA) 90 min
1 oz Cascade (5.7 % AA) 15 min
1 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) 5 min
1.5 oz CTZ (15% AA) 0 min
1.5 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) 0 min
1 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) Dry-hop
.5 oz CTZ (13.2% AA) Dry-hop
Mash at 151F for 60 min
US-05 yeast
OG 1.055
Expected FG (I will change this if it comes out different) 1.011
IBU ~44
SRM ~12
ABV ~5.9%
This was an "on the fly" brew, so there was no time to make a starter, and I used a single packet of US-05 yeast to ferment this badboy. This was made with recently-arrived Cascades, and an unopened 2 oz pack of Zeus. I hit my temps fine, and everything has gone smoothly with this beer, though my efficiency is still at just 75%, which leads me to believe that the new LHBS crushes a bit less fine than F. H. Steinbart's up in Portland (where there is an adjustable grain mill).
So this recipe is pretty standard, though it has a couple classic, "homebrew" recipe quirks, namely that I used 1 lb of Belgian Aromatic malt, rather than 2 lbs of American Munich malt (which would likely lead to a similar resulting melanoid-driven maltiness), and I used significantly more late-kettle hops than most professional breweries would put into a medium-gravity beer like this one. The final product should be great, if a little "ordinary" (nothing remotely experimental about this recipe). All together, this beer cost me under $20 to brew up 5 gallons, which brings the six-pack price to $2.50, and the pint price to 50¢ - that's less than a candy bar.
Since it is a little amber in color, I am following the norcal tradition of naming the beer, "Red" followed by the name of an animal. In this case, I decided to go for the Red Panda, because they are cute.
Red Panda Beer (American Pale Ale)
9 lbs Great Western 2-row
1 lb Dingemans Aromatic Malt
1 lb Hugh Baird Crystal 75L
.5 oz CTZ (15% AA) 90 min
1 oz Cascade (5.7 % AA) 15 min
1 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) 5 min
1.5 oz CTZ (15% AA) 0 min
1.5 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) 0 min
1 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) Dry-hop
.5 oz CTZ (13.2% AA) Dry-hop
Mash at 151F for 60 min
US-05 yeast
OG 1.055
Expected FG (I will change this if it comes out different) 1.011
IBU ~44
SRM ~12
ABV ~5.9%
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Brewing Black Beers
Ok, so it has been way too long since I updated this. I have brewed 2 or 3 witbiers, a hopbursted American Pale Ale, 2 Black IPA's, and I am currently brewing a Chocolate Stout.
The witbiers all came out ok (not great), and the hopbursted APA came out pretty good, but the Black IPA that I tapped was amazing (the other one is currently fermenting, so I won't know how it tastes for a few weeks.
Anyway, I will list the IPA recipes here, in order of then they were brewed (oldest first):
Rose City Black IPA:
This is one of the last beers I brewed in Portland, and one of the best. The flavor was outstanding - with a smooth roastiness beneath a rich hoppy aroma and flavor and a silky-smooth mouthfeel. I was eminently proud of this beer, and hope my future Black IPA's live up to the quality of this one.
10 lb Great Western 2-row
1 lb Briess Munich 10L
1 lb Briess Crystal 60L
1.5 lb Weyermann Carafa Special II (dehusked)
US Summit 18.5 % 0.50 oz Loose Pellet Hops 60 Min
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min
US Cascade 5.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min
US Summit 18.5 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Summit 18.5 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Cascade 5.7 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops Dry-Hopped
Mashed at 150 for 60 min, then the carafa was added just before the sparge water went in, and I sparged with cooler-than-usual sparge water (150F).
Pacman Yeast
OG 1.061, FG 1.012, 68 IBU, 39.5 SRM (midnight black)
Bar Exam Black IPA
This one was brewed a few weeks ago, and just got racked into a secondary fermenter. I will dry hop this in a couple weeks, and tap it shortly after that.
10 lbs Great Western 2-row
2 lbs Briess Munich 10L
1 lb Carastan Malt (Crystal 35L)
1.5 lbs Weyermann Carafa Special II (dehusked)
US Sorachi Ace 11.0 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops 45 Min From End
US Cascade 4.0 % 2.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 20 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min From End
US Sorachi Ace 11.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min From End
US Citra 10.8 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Citra 10.8 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Sorachi Ace 11.0 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Pellet Hops Dry Hop
US Cascade 6.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Pellet Hops Dry Hop
Wyeast 1028 London Ale
Mash 100 min @ 150F
The witbiers all came out ok (not great), and the hopbursted APA came out pretty good, but the Black IPA that I tapped was amazing (the other one is currently fermenting, so I won't know how it tastes for a few weeks.
Anyway, I will list the IPA recipes here, in order of then they were brewed (oldest first):
Rose City Black IPA:
This is one of the last beers I brewed in Portland, and one of the best. The flavor was outstanding - with a smooth roastiness beneath a rich hoppy aroma and flavor and a silky-smooth mouthfeel. I was eminently proud of this beer, and hope my future Black IPA's live up to the quality of this one.
10 lb Great Western 2-row
1 lb Briess Munich 10L
1 lb Briess Crystal 60L
1.5 lb Weyermann Carafa Special II (dehusked)
US Summit 18.5 % 0.50 oz Loose Pellet Hops 60 Min
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min
US Cascade 5.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min
US Summit 18.5 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Summit 18.5 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Cascade 5.7 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Simcoe 12.7 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops Dry-Hopped
Mashed at 150 for 60 min, then the carafa was added just before the sparge water went in, and I sparged with cooler-than-usual sparge water (150F).
Pacman Yeast
OG 1.061, FG 1.012, 68 IBU, 39.5 SRM (midnight black)
Bar Exam Black IPA
This one was brewed a few weeks ago, and just got racked into a secondary fermenter. I will dry hop this in a couple weeks, and tap it shortly after that.
10 lbs Great Western 2-row
2 lbs Briess Munich 10L
1 lb Carastan Malt (Crystal 35L)
1.5 lbs Weyermann Carafa Special II (dehusked)
US Sorachi Ace 11.0 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops 45 Min From End
US Cascade 4.0 % 2.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 20 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min From End
US Sorachi Ace 11.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 10 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min From End
US Citra 10.8 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops 5 Min From End
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Citra 10.8 % 1.00 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Sorachi Ace 11.0 % 0.50 oz Loose Whole Hops At turn off
US Simcoe 12.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Pellet Hops Dry Hop
US Cascade 6.0 % 1.00 oz Loose Pellet Hops Dry Hop
Wyeast 1028 London Ale
Mash 100 min @ 150F
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Monsignor d'Houblon Hoppy Belgian & Morningstar Golden Ale
Monsignor d'Houblon was inspired directly by Gouden Carolus Hopsinjoor. The idea was to make a hoppy (but not bracingly so) Belgian Blonde Ale on the lighter end of the style. I basically attempted to make an American Pale Ale with European and European-style hops (Tettnanger, Mt. Hood, and Willamette). The beer is in the IBU and gravity territory of a strong APA or a milder IPA.... in keeping with what Hopsinjoor and a whole new generation of Belgian beers are all about - balanced hoppiness and restrained bitterness along with the unique character imparted by a Trappist yeast strain.
12 lbs Best Malz Pilsner
.5 lbs Briess Crystal 20L
1 oz Willmamette (5.6% AA) 60 min
1 oz Willmamette (5.6% AA) Dry Hop
WLP830 Abbey (Westmalle Strain)
Ferment at 150 for 60 min, followed by fermentation temp 72F
Now a pic of it (super delicious)
Morningstar was meant to be a Duvel-style Belgian Golden Strong Ale, but my efficiency was shockingly low, for some reason, so it ended up a Belgian Blonde Ale, instead. It is currently in secondary, and I plan on kegging it soon, and priming for a higher amount of carbonation than is typical for me (along with adding some polyclar so the sediment produced by the priming doesn't end up making for a cloundy blonde).
The recipe is as follows:
Morningstar Golden Ale
10 lbs German Pilsner Malt
1 lb German Vienna Malt
2 lb Cane Sugar
1.5 oz Mt. Hood (4.6% AA) 60 min
.5 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 30 min
.75 oz Tettnanger (3.2% AA) 10 min
I pitched a weak starter of White Labs WLP530 (Westmalle Strain) into Msgr. d'Houblon, but it hadn't started after one day, so I went to the LHBS and picked up a smack pack of Wyeast 1762 Abbey II (Rochefort Strain). When I got ready to pitch the 1762, I could see that fermentation had already begun, but I pitched it, anyway. The resulting yeast cake was used to produce the golden ale. I suspect the Westmalle yeast dominated the flavor profile, but can't say for sure.
12 lbs Best Malz Pilsner
.5 lbs Briess Crystal 20L
1 oz Willmamette (5.6% AA) 60 min
1 oz Willmamette (5.6% AA) 10 min
1 oz Mt. Hood (4.6% AA) 10 min
1 oz Tettnanger (3.2% AA) 10 min
1 oz Willmamette (5.6% AA) 0 min
1 oz Mt. Hood (4.6% AA) 0 min
1 oz Tettnanger (3.2% AA) 0 min
1 oz Willmamette (5.6% AA) Dry Hop
WLP830 Abbey (Westmalle Strain)
Ferment at 150 for 60 min, followed by fermentation temp 72F
Now a pic of it (super delicious)
Morningstar was meant to be a Duvel-style Belgian Golden Strong Ale, but my efficiency was shockingly low, for some reason, so it ended up a Belgian Blonde Ale, instead. It is currently in secondary, and I plan on kegging it soon, and priming for a higher amount of carbonation than is typical for me (along with adding some polyclar so the sediment produced by the priming doesn't end up making for a cloundy blonde).
The recipe is as follows:
Morningstar Golden Ale
10 lbs German Pilsner Malt
1 lb German Vienna Malt
2 lb Cane Sugar
1.5 oz Mt. Hood (4.6% AA) 60 min
.5 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 30 min
.75 oz Tettnanger (3.2% AA) 10 min
I pitched a weak starter of White Labs WLP530 (Westmalle Strain) into Msgr. d'Houblon, but it hadn't started after one day, so I went to the LHBS and picked up a smack pack of Wyeast 1762 Abbey II (Rochefort Strain). When I got ready to pitch the 1762, I could see that fermentation had already begun, but I pitched it, anyway. The resulting yeast cake was used to produce the golden ale. I suspect the Westmalle yeast dominated the flavor profile, but can't say for sure.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Unspeakable Pale Ale
This one was inspired by SPeakeasy Brewery's Untouchable Pale Ale - though I am sure it will be somewhat hoppier.
7 lbs 12 oz Halcyon
1 lb German Munich Malt
1 lb German Wheat Malt
4 oz German Caramunich II
.4 oz Summit 18.5% AA 60 min
1 oz Cascade 5.7% AA 10 min
1 oz Willamette 5.6% AA 10 min
7 lbs 12 oz Halcyon
1 lb German Munich Malt
1 lb German Wheat Malt
4 oz German Caramunich II
.4 oz Summit 18.5% AA 60 min
1 oz Cascade 5.7% AA 10 min
1 oz Willamette 5.6% AA 10 min
1 oz Cascade 5.7% AA 10 min
1 oz Cascade 5.7% AA 5 min
1 oz Mt. Hood 4.6% AA 5 min
2 oz Cascade 5.7% AA 0 min
1 oz Mt. Hood 4.6% AA 0 min
.75 oz Zeus 16% AA 0 min
US-05
Mash at 150 for 75 min
OG 1.051, SRM 6.2, ~42 IBU, ~5.3% abv
Now a pic (it's delicious)
Now a pic (it's delicious)
Grey Skies Porter (again)
Made the porter again, albeit with a tweaked recipe and a bit of a bigger gravity/hop situation.
8 lb Optic
12 oz Chocolate Malt (UK)
8 oz Belgian Aromatic
8 oz caramalt
8 oz Kiln Coffee Malt
4 oz Pale Chocolate Malt (UK)
4 oz Crystal 160L (UK)
40 IBU worth Northern Brewer HopShot at 60 min
the remaining fifth of a syringe at 10 min
.5 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 10 min
Wyeast 1275 Thames Valley Ale
Here's what it looks like poured from a bottle-conditioned bottle (Tastes better on tap, though)
8 lb Optic
12 oz Chocolate Malt (UK)
8 oz Belgian Aromatic
8 oz caramalt
8 oz Kiln Coffee Malt
4 oz Pale Chocolate Malt (UK)
4 oz Crystal 160L (UK)
40 IBU worth Northern Brewer HopShot at 60 min
the remaining fifth of a syringe at 10 min
.5 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 10 min
Wyeast 1275 Thames Valley Ale
Here's what it looks like poured from a bottle-conditioned bottle (Tastes better on tap, though)
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Hella Bitter
Hella Bitter was meant to be an English Best Bitter (4-4.6% abv) with west coast American hops.
My efficiency was way too high, so I ended up with something more approximating an ESB (still basically within the realm of what i was trying to do, as far as I'm concerned). I have heard that low-gravity beers tend to get higher efficiency, so maybe it isn't that surprising. My beer's OG was supposed to be 1.044 to 1.046, but I got 1.048.
Here's the recipe:
7lb 12 oz Halcyon
4 oz Caramalt
4 oz British Crystal 55L
2 oz British Extra Dark Crystal 160L
1 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) FWH
1 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 60 min
.5 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 5 min
.5 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) 5 min
WLP037 Yorkshire Squares Ale
1.048 OG, ~35 IBU, 8 SRM
My efficiency was way too high, so I ended up with something more approximating an ESB (still basically within the realm of what i was trying to do, as far as I'm concerned). I have heard that low-gravity beers tend to get higher efficiency, so maybe it isn't that surprising. My beer's OG was supposed to be 1.044 to 1.046, but I got 1.048.
Here's the recipe:
7lb 12 oz Halcyon
4 oz Caramalt
4 oz British Crystal 55L
2 oz British Extra Dark Crystal 160L
1 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) FWH
1 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 60 min
.5 oz Willamette (5.6% AA) 5 min
.5 oz Cascade (5.7% AA) 5 min
WLP037 Yorkshire Squares Ale
1.048 OG, ~35 IBU, 8 SRM
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