Springtime for Hitler - Maibock

2/13/11

Have we gone too far?

NEIN!

stats-

OG 1.069/ 1.062
FG 1.015/ 1.013
SRM 11
IBU 23

Malz

7.25# Pilsner
5# munich
.25# melanoidin

Hopfen

1.25oz hallertau 4.5% @ 60

Hefe

Wyeast 2206, Munich Lager - 1L starter, 1 cup ex LME, 24hr @ 58, swirling

H2O

stock

Protocol -

1. heat strike 4 gal to 175
2. to tun, allow thermal mass equlibration, settle to 165
3. add grain and mix - settle at 155
4. single infusion @ 155 60 min
5. heat sparge to 185, 4 gal.
6. recirculate 2 L till clear, take 1st runnings, 2.5 gal
7. batch sparge 4.5 gal @ 185, 5 min set for post-mashout and re-mix
8 recirculate 2L, collect 2nd runnings - 6 gal total
9. boil 60
@ 60 - 1.25oz hallertau
@10 - 1tbs irish moss
10. Chill TO 60, 20 min, strain to aerate, pitch 1L starter. settled @ 75, cooled to 60 outside.
11. OG1 - 1.062, 8points below the mark, poor efficiency.
12. 1 day @ 58 to start

2/14/11 - moved to 50 for 8 days
2/20/11 - grav - 1.020, still bubbling vigorously,
2/22/11 - 80% attenuated - move to 65 for diacyl rest 48 hr
2/24/11 - rack to secondary lager x 6 wk @ 40.

4/8/11 - bottled w/ 4.6oz dextrose. aiming for 2.7 vol. we shall see.

results pending....

Washington's Wooden Teeth - Oatmeal Molasses Stout

1/2/2011

Colonial brew, collaboration of nanertak and the baron.

DT got wise and changed the malt bill on me, so....

stats:

OG 1.065/ 1.070
FG 1.025/ 1.020
SRM 30/ 35
IBU 35/ 30

Malz -

10# 2 row pale (US)
2# flaked oats
1# marris otter pale (wary noice)
8oz flaked barley
8oz black malt
8oz chocolate malt
6oz dark molasses

Hopfen -

1oz chinook 11% @ 60/ 5
0.5oz cascade 6% @ 5

Hefe

WLP 002 english ale yeast - super floccu, did it work. second repitching with generic dry ale yeast.

H2O

stock

Adjuncts -

6oz dark molasses, 1oz toasted oak chips medium for secondary


proto

1. heat strike to 182
2. add to tun, allow thermal mass absorption 5 min
3. add grains, hit 157/ 156
4. mash single infusion @ 156 for 60
5. heat sparge to 190, cool 180.
6. add 1 gal or mashout. 10 min
7. recirculate 2 qt till clear, collect first runings - 3gal
8. batch sparge remaining 3 gal. sit 10 min
9. reciculate 2 qt, collect second runnings 3 gal.
10. boil 60
@60 - .75 chinook + 6oz molasses
@5 .25 oz chinook + 0.5oz cascade. no moss.
11. 4.5 gal left. chill, strain, pitch, no starter. OG 1.070
12. ferment 1 week @ 65-70
1/6/11 - no fermentation apparent, re-pitch generic dry ale yeast
1/9/11 - still nothing, let sit.
1/16/11 - grav reading - 1.020. something happened.
12. rack to secondary with 1oz oak chips. 2wk. 4 gal left.
1/30/11 - bottle with 2.1oz dextrose, 1.9oz light DME - aim 2.2 vol CO2

2/21/11 cracked on Washington's Birthday. was nice. oatiness, hearty, dryish finish, could be a bit drier. molasses hangs heavy in the air. light chocolate/ coffee, could use more. not bad. mouthfeel is pretty dead on, need more head retention.

Weizenschaaft ist Cool - Weizenbock

Sorry, would have got to this sooner but got distracted watching old MUSE videos. Fuck, man.

smoked weizenbock the ended up more like a overly smoked, overly dark doppel. meh.



stats, est/ actual

OG - 1.075/ 1.072
FG - 1.020/ 1.019
SRM - 23/ 35
IBU - 17/40 (from smoked malt)

Malts -

5# - Breiss wheat LME (ACTUALLY ONLY 50% wheat by vol, fuckers)
3.3# - breiss munich LME
1# german pilsner
3/4# cherrywood smoked malt
1/2# chocolate wheat
1/2# belgian special B

Hops -

1.5oz tetatanager 4.7% @ 60min

Yeast -

WLP 380 - Hefeweizen IV (more clove, less nanner) No starter (poor choice)

H2O -

1tsp CaCO3 to harden slightly

no adjuncts


protocol -

1. Steep @ 154 40min
2. sparge 1/2 gal @ 170
3. boil 60
@45 add 3.3# wheat LME
@ 30 add 3.3# munich malt
@ 15 add irish moss
@ 5 add 2# wheat LME
4. cool, strain, pitch direct
5. primary 1 week @ 75-80. was warm week
6. secondary 2 weeks @ 70
7. prime, .75 cup dextrose in 1/2# steeped uncracked smoked malt

-lack of wheat and heavy smoking regimen turned this doppelbock side up. stinging freak. still quite tasty though, rich and malty, deep and clove with banana. should re-do the style proper.

Warrior Mouse - Belgian Dark Strong

45 min steep, 160F
3 oz CaraAroma 125L
2 oz Belgian Debittered Black Malt 500L

60 min boil
3# Briess sparkling amber DME
3# Briess golden light DME
1# Bavarian wheat blend DME (65% wheat, 35% barley)
1# clear candi sugar
7 oz dark candi sugar

1.3 oz Tettnanger 5.1% 60 min
sachet* + irish moss 15 min (sachet removed before yeast pitched)
.7 oz Saaz 4% 5 min

WLP 565 Saison 1 (3 days)
WLP 530 Abbey Ale pitched 48 hours after pitching first yeast.

Fermentation temp - 68F
Two weeks fermentation.
Harvested krausen, re-pitched more yeast into secondary after transfer.
One week secondary at 68F.

*Sachet information is classified for the moment. Let's just say... there's some stuff in it.

Target CO2 - 3 volumes
Primed 5 oz dark candi sugar

OG - 1.086
FG - 1.023
IBU - 30.5
est SRM - 23.3
ABV - shade under 9% - (8.4% plus 5 oz priming sucrose)

Learn From Our Mistakes

Homebrewing is about learning as you go. That means mistakes. Learn from the long list of ours.

Don't ever assume fermentation is complete.
Measure it with a hydrometer. Always. Bottling too early can lead to some serious problems with over carbonation, since it essentially rouses the yeast back into activity if it had gone dormant before fermentation was complete.

Don't airlock a closed system fermentation until it's clearly done frothing.
It can explode. If the glass doesn't shatter (and it can), the airlock may shoot off and hit you in the face, spraying wort, yeast, and hops all over your kitchen and giving you a fruit fly problem for weeks. There's still hops stuck on my ceiling.

Don't dry hop without a sachet or muslin bag.
The broken up hop pellets will end up in your beer unless you filter them out, which can be difficult. You don't really want to chew on a hop while drinking your IPA... or do you...?

If you're going to leave beer to condition for an extended period of time, make sure it's completely airtight and in a dark, stable environment.
Vinegar is great, but not to drink straight.

Make sure you know the spices you're using.
Some spices are very, very potent. Dill is one of them. Star anise is another. They pack a whallop. Do your research on recipes beforehand, and read what other people use before trying them yourself. Don't substitute one spice for another because they seem similar, they often have very different characteristics.

Trois Feuille D'or - Belgian Tripel

6# Pilsen DME
2# Light Candi Sugar
8 oz Breiss Bavarian Wheat Blend

1# US 2-row pale
1# Belgian 2-row
8 oz Honey malt

90 min boil.

1.6 oz Styrian Golding (60 min) 4.5%

Sachet containing
1/2 oz dry ginger (15)
1/2 oz fresh grated ginger (15)
zest of 2 oranges (15)
1/2 oz corriander (15)
8 rosemary leaves (15)
2 mint leaves (15)

.5 oz Saaz (2) 4%

WLP 550

Notes - Lot of banana and ginger. Sweet, but not cloying. Combination of fresh and dried ginger adds some depth. Make sure to rouse the yeast daily to make sure fermentation finishes. Yeast tends to go dormant easily.

OG and FG unknown, hydrometer was broken at the time.

Smoke and Citrus - Black IPA

4# Golden Light DME
2# Sparkling Amber DME

8 oz Crystal 60
6 oz Carafe-III Special
3 oz Belgian Debittered Black Malt

30 min steep - 160 degrees

Boil 60 min.

2 oz Warrior (60 min) 17.2%
1 oz Simcoe (15) 12.2%

Sachet containing
8 Juniper berries (15m)
1 TBSP Medium Toast oak chips

1 oz Amarillo (0) 7.2%
.5 oz Centennial (0) 9.7%
.5 oz Simcoe (0)

WLP 001 California Ale Yeast

Dry hop 2 weeks
.5 oz Centennial
.5 oz Simcoe

OG - 1.072
FG - 1.021
6.7% ABV
Attenuation - 71%

Notes - Heavy grapefruit notes. Mild sweet smoke smell.