(Pronunciation:
(zI'mûr-jE)
—n.
the branch of applied chemistry dealing with fermentation, as in winemaking,
brewing, the preparation of yeast, etc.)
Table of Contents
Ales
|
Page
|
Happiness
|
3
|
☺
|
|
Presidents
Olde Ale
|
5
|
☺☺☺
|
Mellow
English Malt mb
|
7
|
☺
|
Red
Robin Ale
|
8
|
☺☺
|
Chicago
Pale mb
|
9
|
☺☺
|
Partisan
Pale Ale
|
12
|
☺☺☺
|
Downtown
Brown Ale
|
13
|
☺☺
|
Black-eye
Draft mb
|
14
|
☺
|
Not So
Bitter Ale
|
15
|
☺☺☺☺
|
New
Palatine Ale
|
16
|
☺☺
|
I.P.A.
|
18
|
☺☺☺
|
Chi-Town
Golden Ale
|
19
|
☺☺
|
E.S.B.
|
22
|
☺☺☺
|
|
|
|
|
Stouts/Porters
|
|
|
Forget
About Stout
|
4
|
☺☺
|
McCoffee
Stout
|
10
|
☺☺☺☺
|
Sweet
Summer Porter
|
17
|
☺☺☺
|
Irish
Oatnut Stout
|
20
|
☺☺☺
|
Oatmeal
Stout
|
23
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other
|
|
|
Good
Friday Wheat
|
6
|
☺
|
Cascade
Bock mb
|
11
|
☺☺
|
Early
Winter Kolsch
|
21
|
☺☺☺☺
|
Apparent Attenuation
[(OG-FG)/(OG-1)]
x 100
Ex:
((1.050-1.012)/(1.050-1))
x 100
(.038/.050) x 100 = 76%
My first attempt at beer
was a brown ale kit consisting of all the ingredients to make 5 gallons of
beer. I used the pre-packaged airtight
hops and the powdered yeast that came with the kit. The ingredients were as follows:
3.3 lbs. Brown Ale malt
syrup
3 lbs. light DME
2/3 oz. hops (unknown) AAU
bittering
1 oz. hops (unknown) AAU
flavoring
4 tsp. Burton salts
1 package Munton &
Fison dry yeast
January 2, 1998
OG 1.044
This was supposed to be as
simple as possible for a first attempt.
I boiled 3 gallons of water, then added salts, malt syrup, and DME for a
15 minute boil. I then added 2/3 oz.
bittering hops and boiled for 50 minutes more.
I added the flavoring hops to the wort for a final 15-minutes completing
the boil.
I cooled the wort then
added the dry yeast (without a starter culture) to the fermenter. The airlock
was then fastened on tightly just before I placed the container aside for
fermenting.
January 15, 1998
FG 1.016
The yeast did not get mixed
in well enough to affect the entire contents of the fermenter, creating a
sweet and shallow “near beer”. I was
as disappointed as I was happy to view and taste this beer. It's not contaminated or flat. In fact, it's not much at all. Having a color that is somewhat copper/red,
and much cloudier than expected, this ale tasted very thin with a moderate
head and slightly sour finish.
My second attempt at
brewing was one of my own choice, a stout.
I would love to create a beer such as Rogue’s Shakespeare Stout, but
would likely fall short and be disappointed.
So instead I'm going for a Guinness type stout. This is my first go at brewing with grains.
3.3 lbs. Morgan Dockside
Stout malt syrup (hopped)
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
dark DME
3/4 lbs. crystal malt 60 L
1/3 lbs. roasted barley
1/3 lbs. chocolate malt
1 oz. Northern Brewer
6.7AAU bittering
1 oz. Fuggles hops 3.7AAU
aromatic
4 tsp. gypsum
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
1084 (Irish Ale)
January 26, 1998
OG 1.060
This was a more complex
recipe, yet I made it even more difficult by boiling over the grains during
their 10-15 minute pre-boil. I then
drained the grains and added the malt extract syrup, DME, gypsum, and bittering
hops. The wort boiled for 50 minutes
before I added the aromatic hops for their 10-minute boil. I sparged the wort and cooled to 72° before adding yeast, which I had started the
previous day.
January 31, 1998
WG 1.026
After actively fermenting
during the first 24 hours I had returned from work to find that I really should
have used a blow-off system for the initial fermentation period. I salvaged the batch, made a blow-off
device, and airlocked the next day when things slowed down a bit. On the 5th day I racked the beer
into a bottling container (5 gallon bucket w/spigot) and continued to let
ferment.
February 8, 1998
FG 1.026
I bottled the beer using
24 dark brown 22-ounce bottles. The gravity never came down to where I thought
it should. It was still holding at 1.026 over a week after what I thought was
the entire fermentation period.
February 14, 1998
I tried a bottle today and
was pleased with my efforts. I had
created a bittersweet dark stout that reminder me of an Australian stout that I
once had. The roasted grain presence is
slightly noticeable; a hop bouquet is also present accompanied by a touch of
mouth-feel bitterness. Although still a
little syrupy, this batch is a vast improvement in overall quality, the
improved taste rewards my efforts.
Presidents Olde Ale
My third attempt was a
crack at English Bitter Ale. I had an
opportunity to brew because of the holiday that my beer gets its name
from. Made with plenty of hops and
crystal malt, I’m expecting hearty Bass style ale.
3.3 lbs. John Bull light
malt syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
1 lbs. crystal malt 60 L
1/8 lbs. chocolate malt
1 oz. Northern Brewer
6.7AAU bittering
1 oz. Willamette 5.0AAU
bittering
1 oz. Cascade 4.2AAU
aromatic
2 tsp. gypsum
3 tsp. Burton salts
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
1098 (British Ale)
February 15, 1998
OG 1.054
This was an attempt at
creating a drinkable, yet full-bodied and slightly hoppy English ale. I used a light malt extract to ensure that I
crafted a very “drinkable” beer.
Additionally, I added quite a bit of crystal malt and a touch of
chocolate malt to deepen the color without having to use a heavy dark
extract. I used Burton salts and gypsum to make sure that the water
was as hard as the famous Burton-on-Trent water used for so many great
ales.
February 27, 1998
FG 1.014
After twelve days
fermenting had stopped and I removed the beer from the glass carboy and racked
it to preserve flavor and minimize the chance of off-flavors being imparted on
the brew. This also lends itself to
making a clearer beer, such as Whitbread or Bass. Gravity looks good and the beer smells wonderful. I will be taking an additional reading in
two days and then, gravity permitting, bottling it as well.
March 9, 1998
Today was a good day.
I had been hoping for a more drinkable beer and wow, that’s exactly what
I brewed. The beer has a beautiful
bronze color with a hoppy bouquet. The
first sip was a touch bitter, but soon finished smooth and refreshing. This is by far the best beer I have
brewed. I had some friends sample my
handiwork; they were all very surprised that home brew could be so rich and
rewarding.
Good Friday Wheat
This was my first attempt
at brewing wheat beer. I debated on
adding fruit or not, and eventually decided to brew the basic recipe adding a
fruit syrup extract to just a portion of the batch during bottling.
3.3 lbs. Munton &
Fison wheat syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
DME 55% wheat, 45% barley
½ lbs. carapils malt
1 oz. Perle 4.3AAU
bittering
½ oz. Tettnang 5.0AAU
bittering
1 oz. Cascade 4.2AAU
aromatic
½ tsp. Burton salts
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
3056 (Bavarian Wheat)
April 10, 1998
OG 1.043
This batch seems to have
the color and texture of a typical wheat beer, yet the boil left something to
be desired. The aroma from the boil was
not as pleasant as the stout or ale, perhaps just a by-product of wheat-based
extract versus the heavier pure malt. I
backed off the gypsum and the Irish moss a little bit in order to preserve the
slightly softer, cloudier visuals that accompany most wheat beers.
April 26, 1998
FG 1.016
The fermentation period is
long over and the gravity is holding steady.
I probably did not need to let it ferment for so long, but the final
gravity of all my home brews just does not seem drop as much as it should. I bottled the beer without ever racking it –
maybe a mistake. Since I was torn
between adding fruit or not, I added a raspberry fruit syrup to half the
batch. This would allow me to still
taste the pure wheat based finished product and better compare it to my
previous efforts.
May 8, 1998
Upon opening the first
bottle of raspberry wheat, the sweet bouquet of fruit filled the air – almost
overpowering. The pour was nice and the
color was true to wheat beer, unfortunately the taste was not. The beer finished a little sour in spite of
the fruit extract. The plain wheat beer
was only fair as I’m a little disappointed with the finished product.
Mellow
English Malt (Mr. Beer)
After being inspired to
begin brewing again (5 years, a wonderful wife and a beautiful child later), I
opted for the heartiest beer that a “quick and easy” kit would provide. A friend gave me a Mr. Beer kit and encouraged
me to start brewing again. The beer
that he had brewed with the same kit was drinkable, but a little yeasty and
“thin” in body. Note: this method only
brews 2 gallons.
1.2 lbs. Englishman’s Nut
Brown Ale syrup (hopped)
1.2 lbs. Mellow Amber malt
syrup
1 package booster (Mr.
Beer corn sugar)
1/3 oz. Cascade 5.0AAU
bittering
1/3 oz. Cascade 5.0AAU
aromatic
1 ½ tsp. gypsum
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package Mr. Beer dry ale
yeast
May 10, 2003
OG (unknown)
It is not possible to
measure gravity in the Mr. Beer keg since the hygrometer bottoms out on the
keg. I started with 4 cups boiled water
and added the booster, gypsum and bittering hops. I boiled this for about 5 minutes then removed from heat, removed
the hops and slowly poured in both cans of syrup stirring constantly. I brought the wort to a simmer and added the
Irish moss and the aromatic hops. I
slowly brought this to a boil and proceeded to boil for another 10 minutes. I removed from heat again, removed the hops
and cooled the wort.
I added 4 quarts of cool
water to the keg, added the warm wort then filled the keg to the 8 1/2 quart
maximum. Per the instructions I added
the dry yeast and waited 5 minutes before incorporating with a brisk stir. I screwed on the cap a set the keg aside for
two weeks.
May 25, 2003
WG
(unknown)
Still not able to take a
gravity reading, I am hoping that the dry yeast has finished its work. I bottled the majority of the bottles with
light DME (2 tsp. per 22 oz. Bottle) in order to preserve the typical fine carbonation
characteristics of English ales.
June 5, 2003
FG
(unknown)
Well, I tried a bottle and
was not impressed – too “unfinished” for me with NO head and almost no
carbonation. I won’t be using DME for
bottling again with a Mr. Beer kit. Very
disappointed.
Note: I
did stumble across one leftover bottle more than a month after bottling – much
better, this beer needed to age.
I guess I have the brewers
itch since I am brewing a complete recipe (unlike the Mr. Beer approach), even
before bottling the Mellow English malt.
I wanted to create a light amber ale that is easy to drink and a little
less hoppy than a typical bitter. This
smooth malty ale should compliment barbequed red meat without overpowering the
food.
3.3 lbs. Munton &
Fison light malt syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
Amber DME
1 lbs. crystal malt 60 L
1 oz. Fuggles 4.4AAU
bittering
½ oz. Kent Golding 5.1AAU
aromatic
1/3 oz. Burton Salts
(appx. 3 tsp. Papain, gypsum)
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
1099 (Whitbread Ale)
May 15, 2003
OG 1.055
I started with 2 gallons
of water and simmered the crystal malt in a grain bag at 160° for 15
minutes. I removed the grains and added
the salts, hops, DME and syrup, which then underwent a powerful “simmer” for
nearly 40 minutes. I added the Irish
moss then split the brew pot across two burners, which finally resulted in a
vigorous boil, hopefully not too late.
During the last 5 minutes I added the Kent Golding hops for aromatic
pleasure.
I
actually think I was too effective in cooling my wort since my first temp check
came in at < 60°, the starter culture was at 72° so I did not immediately
pitch the yeast. I waited until the
wort rose to 68° before adding the yeast for fear of shocking the cells and
ruining the beer.
May 29, 2003
FG 1.015
I am a little concerned about the
state of my beer. Although the gravity
looks good, a sip of the uncarbonated wort was less than impressive. I may have splashed the wort too much when
racking – or I just somehow soured the batch due to my “brewers rust”. I will be sure to wait the full two weeks
before sampling my work. It should be
ready for Father’s Day!
June 12, 2003
Maturing nicely at this
point. The overbearing sweetness is
being replaces by a smooth drinkable fruitiness – still more hops next time.
Next Time: Way
more bittering hops (10-15 HBU should do) and at least twice as many aromatic
hops as well. The malty and fruity
sweet yeast flavors dominated this beer.
I have not had a chance to
taste the previous batch of Mellow Amber at its full maturity, but am exited to
try some new equipment that I purchased for my 5-gallon batches. I am now feeding the yeast with pure oxygen
in order to maximize the dry yeasts attenuation. This pale ale should be perfect for the soon to be Chicago
summer. Note: this method only brews 2
gallons.
1.2 lbs. West Coast Pale
Ale malt syrup (hopped)
1.2 lbs. Pale Export malt
syrup
½ oz. Kent Golding 5.1AAU
aromatic (dry hopping)
1/2 tsp. gypsum
1/2 tsp. Irish moss
2 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package Mr. Beer dry ale
yeast
May 28, 2003
OG 1.038
I really deviated from the
Mr. Beer instructions for this batch. I
utilized a full gallon of water (instead of just 4 cups) for the initial
extract boil. I added the gypsum, both
cans of Mr. Beer extract and the Irish moss all within a 20-minute window. I then threw in the Kent Golding hops hoping
to add a “spicy, woodsy” aroma to my pale ale.
I added 4 quarts of cool
water to the keg, added the cooled wort then filled the keg to the 8 1/2 quart
maximum. I then oxygenated the wort for
about a minute, creating a ¼” layer of foam on top of the now 80° wort. I added the dry yeast and waited 5 minutes
before incorporating with a brisk stir and the yeast nutrients. I then infused another dosage of oxygen and
set the keg aside for two weeks.
May 29, 2003
I added another 60 seconds
of pure oxygen about 12 hours after the yeast was pitched – this is what the
folks who manufacture the oxygenator recommend.
June 11, 2003
FG 1.010
I took
a sip of the pale brew and noticed the effects of dry hopping immediately – the
scent of Kent Golding hops rose through the air and filled my palette. At this point there is a less yeasty finish. I bottled just three 22 oz. ales with 2½ tsp
of DME, the rest were bottled with 1¾ tsp of corn sugar.
June
22, 2003
Had a
bottle today, very nice beer - extremely clear and no yeasty aftertaste. Light in color, clear, but full body.
My first good experience
with home brewing came when brewing a stout (Forget About Stout). Knowing a little more than I did then, I’m
hoping to build on that success and add a touch of coffee flavor for
interest. This should yield a roasted,
slightly bitter and dark complex beer.
3.3 lbs. John Bull dark
malt syrup
2 lbs. Munton & Fison
dark DME
1 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
½ lbs. Breiss chocolate
malt
1/4 lbs. roasted barley
1/3 cup Costa Rican coffee
(coarsely ground)
1 oz. Chinook 10.7AAU
bittering
1 oz. Target (UK) 10.6AAU
flavoring
1 oz. Progress (UK) 8.0AAU
aromatic
2 tsp. gypsum
1 tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
1084 (Irish Ale)
June 4, 2003
OG 1.050
I started with 2 gallons
of water and steeped the grains for 15 minutes at 150°; this darkened the water
almost immediately and filled the kitchen with a toasty aroma. I brought the mixture to a boil and added
the bittering hops, liquid and dried malt extract which then boiled for 30
minutes. At the 45 minute mark I added
the Target hops and Irish moss; 15 minutes later I added the aroma hops and the
coffee in a grain bag of it’s own – these two items boiled for just 5 minutes
before moving to an ice bath. I then
infused 60 seconds worth of pure oxygen and set the deep black creation aside. The next morning I had a steady stream of
bubbles flowing through the airlock.
That evening the airlock had blown off the carboy and what looked like
thick mud had taken its place. I added
a blow-off device which churned and bubbled overnight, 36 hours after bottling
I could re-attach the airlock. Racked 6
days later.
June
14, 2003
FG
1.012
Gravity
looks good, but the beer is a little bitter right now. I bottled 2-gallons with ½ cup DME, the
remaining 3-gallons I bottled with 3/8 cup corn sugar. Looking forward to June 28th!
June 28, 2003
I had
to try just one bottle of this unfinished beer, WOW – rich, smooth and already
carbonated (DME) in just 3 days. This
is unbelievable!
Next Time: Forgo
the aromatic and flavoring hops, increase the bittering hops slightly – perhaps
go to ½ cup coffee instead for more pronounced coffee flavor.
Hopefully – third time
lucky! I really want this method of
brewing to work; it would be nice to make small quick batches of beer. Note: this method only brews 2 gallons.
1.2 lbs. Linebacker Bock
malt syrup (hopped)
1.2 lbs. Creamy Brown malt
syrup
¼ lbs. crystal malt 120 L
¼ lbs. black patent malt
½ oz. Cascade 6.3AAU
flavoring
½ oz. Cascade 6.6AAU
aromatic
½ oz. Cascade 6.6AAU dry
hopping
1 tsp. gypsum
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package Mr. Beer dry ale
yeast
June 16, 2003
OG 1.040
I utilized a full two
gallons of water for the initial grain simmer, which lasted for 15 minutes at
150°. I removed from heat, and added
the gypsum, both cans of Mr. Beer extract (although the Linebacker Bock was
“lumpy”) and the flavoring hops for a 20-minute simmer, followed by the Irish
moss and the aromatic hops for a 5-minute simmer.
I
topped off to 8.5 quarts and added the dry yeast for re-hydration, which I
allowed to happen over a 10-minute period of time. At this point I whisked the beer strongly and then oxygenated the
wort for about a minute, creating a ¼” layer of foam on top of the beer. I set the keg aside for 9 days. I added ½ oz. Cascade pellets to the keg for
3 days to intensify the Cascade aroma.
June 25, 2003
WG 1.016
Racked the beer to a
bottling bucket and removed the hops, very pungent Cascade aroma is present,
maybe too much?
June 27, 2003
FG 1.012
Bottled the beer and will
allow a full two weeks of maturation to blend the intense hop bouquet into the
deep dark beer.
July 8, 2003
Cascade
is very present, but not too much. If
there is too much of anything its carbonation, still a decent beer.
Summer is coming and a
more refreshing beer is in order, so I am brewing a pale ale that shout be
light in body, but big on taste. I have
no model for this beer; we’ll see what happens.
4.0 lbs. Alexander’s Pale
malt syrup
1 lbs. Laaglander extra
light DME
½ lbs. crystal malt 10 L
½ lbs. clover honey
1 oz. Perle 7.6AAU bittering
1 oz. Williamette 3.8AAU
aromatic
1 tsp. gypsum
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 vial liquid yeast White
Labs 1004 (California Ale)
June 18, 2003
OG 1.038
To 1.5
gallons of water I added the grains for a 20-minute simmer at 160°. I brought the mixture to a boil and added
the bittering hops, liquid and dried malt extract which then boiled for 40
minutes. I then added the Irish moss
and at the 58-minute mark, I added the aromatic hops (which smelled
significantly better than the Williamette plugs I bought and chose not to use
since they smelled musty and old). I
cooled and sparged the wort. I then
added two tsp. of yeast nutrient, shook the carboy vigorously and added the
yeast, and then oxygenated the beer for 2 minutes. The beer took almost two full days to start fermenting, but
eventually began an intense period of fermentation. Usually the Wyeast yeast will drop to the bottom when
fermentation is done, yet the White Labs yeast never dropped to the bottom, it
left a ¼” layer of marshmallow looking foam on top of the beer even after
fermentation was complete.
June
23, 2003
WG
1.011
Racked
the pale summer brew to a secondary fermenter.
June
29, 2003
FG
1.010
Bottled
with ¾ cup corn sugar, may be a little too much since I only had 4.5 gallons of
beer to bottle. Should be a bit tart
and refreshing.
July
13, 2003
Very
clear and refreshing, yet there is a presence of unfermented malt – probably
the Laaglander malt, which I found out is notorious for being less than fully
fermentable.
Next Time: Use 3.3 lbs. Breiss extract and 2 lbs. extra light Munton
& Fison DME. Hops were good, maybe
scratch the grains altogether.
Keeping
in line with summer beers, I thought it would be nice to create a beer that
consists of all liquid malt extract and just a little grain for coloration –
keeping body to a minimum. Adhering to
a hop schedule that should impart equal amounts of bittering, flavor and
aromatics - this brown ale should prove interesting.
6.0 lbs. Breiss Golden
malt syrup
¼ lbs. black patent malt
2 oz. crystal malt 120 L
1 oz. Centennial 9.1AAU
bittering
½ oz. Liberty 5.0AAU
bittering
½ oz. Liberty 5.0AAU
flavoring
1 oz. Liberty 5.0AAU
aromatic
2 tsp. gypsum
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
1056 (American Ale)
June
26, 2003
OG
1.036
To 2-gallons
of water I added the grains for a 20-minute simmer, although the temperature
did shot up to 190° from covering the brew pot, I hope the grains did not
impart any harsh tannins into the wort.
I removed the grain bag and brought the mixture to a boil. I then added the gypsum, 6 pounds of liquid
malt extract and bittering hops (in a hop bag), and let boil for twenty
minutes. I then added ½ oz. of
bittering hops then boiled for twenty more minutes adding the Irish moss and
another ½ oz. of hops for flavoring at the 40-minute mark. During the final two minutes I added the
last ounce of hops for aromatic pleasure.
I cooled and sparged the wort, added two tsp. of yeast nutrient, shook
the carboy vigorously and then added the yeast when the wort was at 75°. I oxygenated the beer for 2 minutes and set
aside the carboy.
July
2, 2003
WG
1.008
The
beer tasted quite good, a little more “roasted” than I expected since I used
just ¼ black patent. As an all-liquid
extract beer, the gravity is quite low – should be an interesting beer.
July
7, 2003
FG
1.008
Left
very little headroom in the bottles when filling this time.
July
18, 2003
The
beer has a nice flavor – really nice, but still too roasted and darker than I
expected.
Next Time: Don’t burn the grains!
Maybe substitute for Liberty hops and cut back on the black patent malt
(or use chocolate malt) to just 2 oz.
My daughter decided to
pull a can of the extract off the counter, she succeeded but bounced the can
off her eye leaving a nice shiner – hence the name of the beer. This pale ale should be a bit “hoppier” than
my previous pale ale, yet still refreshing and very drinkable. Note: this method only brews 2 gallons.
1.2 lbs. High Country
Canadian Draft malt syrup (hopped)
1.2 lbs. Pale Export
Extract malt syrup
1/2 oz. Styrian 4.4AAU
aromatic
1/2 oz. Styrian 4.4AAU
aromatic (dry hopping)
1 tsp. gypsum
1/2 tsp. Irish moss
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package Mr. Beer dry ale
yeast (starter)
July 8, 2003
OG 1.043
One advantage to making
just 2-gallons of beer is that it is possible for me to perform a full wort
boil. I added the gypsum; both cans of
Mr. Beer extract and brought to a boil for 5 minutes. I then added the Irish moss and boiled the wort for 20 minutes
more. During the last few minutes of
the boil I added the Styrian Goldings for additional hop presence.
I did not use the Mr. Beer
keg; I opted to use my 5-gallon bucket for fermentation because of the ability
to airlock the container. The Mr. Beer
keg has vents in the cap, but I fear that oxygen still gets into the keg. I oxygenated the wort for about a minute
then pitched the starter culture while the wort was being oxygenated. I forgot to add the yeast nutrient prior to
pitching the yeast – so I added it afterwards and stirred it in with a
sanitized spoon.
July 12, 2003
WG 1.016
Racked beer to secondary
fermenter and added ½ oz. of Styrian Goldings.
I am a little surprised at the gravity; I expected it to come down more
than it has.
July 25, 2003
Although
just a week of bottle conditioning has passed, I am surprised by how clear the
beer has become. The taste is OK,
perhaps a little green still – should improve with age.
August
6,2003
Regardless of how I make
the Mr. Beer kits, they all taste about the same. I think I will reserve my brewing time to concentrate on beers
from scratch. Still a little
unfermented malt is present.
Since brewing Red Robin
Ale I have been pondering my mistakes, making a beer too fruity and sweet
without the hop-kick that I like. I
have opted to come back with a Bitter Ale using pure dry malt extract (DME) for
body and strength. Although I am
bittering with Fuggles – the two ounces of 4.4 AAU hops should satisfy and
provide the required bitterness.
5 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
1/4 lbs. crystal malt 120
L
2 oz. Fuggles 4.4AAU
bittering
½ oz. Kent Golding 6.6AAU
aromatic
½ oz. Kent Golding 6.6AAU
aromatic (dry hopping)
2 tsp. gypsum
1 Whirlfloc tablet
1 package liquid Wyeast
1275 (Thames Valley)
July 15, 2003
OG 1.030(?)
I started with 2 gallons
of water, added the gypsum and simmered the crystal malt in a grain bag at 160°
for 30 minutes. I removed the grains
and added DME, brought it to a boil and added the hops in a hop bag, which then
boiled for 40 minutes. I added the
Whirfloc tablet and continued to boil the wort for 15 more minutes, adding the
Kent Golding hops for aromatic pleasure during the last 5 minutes.
July 20, 2003
WG 1.008
I
racked the brew after 4 days of very vigorous fermentation, adding in ½ oz. of
Kent Golding hops to the secondary fermenter for additional hop flavor. I expected the beer to be much more clear,
apparently the yeast strain I chose is not as flocculent as other similar
Wyeast strains.
July 26, 2003
FG 1.006
The gravity is holding
solid and the beer seems to have lightened a little bit since fermentation
began, yet is still cloudy by typical ale standards. Should be an interesting beer as it was made with all DME and
underwent a violent fermentation period.
August 5, 2003
Wow,
the beer has cleared nicely and tastes outstanding. This is the first beer that really turned out exactly as I
intended it; lighter in body and maltier than previous ales, yet still full
flavored and presents a perfect match between bittering and aroma hops. The color is a little light, but still very
satisfying!
Next Time:
Perhaps go to 6 lbs. DME and up the bittering hops and aroma hops – all in all
a very good beer.
Time to brew a really big
hoppy pale ale. This should be a
monster of flavor and refreshment containing a good amount of alcohol, hop
flavor and thirst-quenching bitterness too.
The name comes from using a new high-alpha hop throughout; this beer
should profile the bittering, flavor and aroma qualities nicely.
4 lbs. Alexander’s Pale
malt syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
extra light DME
½ lbs. organic Carapils
1 oz. Columbus 14.5AAU
bittering
½ oz. Columbus 14.5AAU
bittering
½ oz. Columbus 14.5AAU
flavoring
1 oz. Columbus 14.5AAU
aromatic
1 tsp. gypsum
1 Whirlfloc tablet
½ tsp. Irish moss
1 package liquid Wyeast
1272 (American Ale II)
July 30, 2003
OG 1.047
I began by adding ½ lbs.
of organic Carapils to 2-gallons of 160° water. I steeped the grains for 30 minutes then remove the grain bag and
mixed in the gypsum, DME and the liquid extract. I brought this to a boil and added the first 1 oz. of hops. After 20 minutes I added another ½ oz. of
hops and continued to boil. After 40
minutes I added a Whirlfloc tablet and yet another ½ oz. of hops. I removed the grains and added DME, brought
it to a boil and added the hops in a hop bag, which then boiled for 40
minutes. I added the Whirfloc tablet
and continued to boil the wort for 15 more minutes, adding hops for aromatic
pleasure during the last 5 minutes.
August 3, 2003
WG 1.011
Racked
beer to secondary fermenter after the intense period of primary fermentation
had completed. I did use a blow-off
tube and avoided a carboy overflow – I had a feeling the 7 lbs. of malt and
starter culture may combine into a vigorous fermentation. I may have racked to soon as there was still
½” of foam on top of the beer, which happened last time I used Alexander’s malt
(hmmm). The beer tasted very bitter at
this time.
August 11, 2003
FG
1.011
At this
time it tastes like I may have created alcoholic grapefruit juice! Too many bittering hops, I don’t know what I
was thinking here.
Next time: Use less bittering hops, maybe more like 11AAU, then move
to a full ounce of flavoring hops.
The last dark beer I brewed was quite a success, but a little too
hop heavy to stay true to the style.
This time I am going to brew a less assertive dark beer lacking roasted
barley and crystal malt, hence the porter style. As most porter’s historically were home brewed with “whatever”
was available for flavoring – I chose light molasses and a little corn sugar to
keep the brew light in body, but big on taste.
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
dark DME
½ lbs. black patent malt
¼ lbs. chocolate malt
1 ½ oz. Horizon 11AAU
bittering
½ oz. Horizon 11AAU
aromatic
½ cup molasses
2 oz. corn sugar
2 tsp. gypsum
1 Whirlfloc tablet
2 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
1084 (Irish Ale)
August16, 2003
OG 1.051
I began by adding the
grains to 2-gallons of warm and raised the temperature to 160° for 30
minutes. I then added the gypsum and
dry malt extract which I then brought to a boil and added the bittering hops. After 30 minutes of boiling I added the
molasses and then in another ten minutes, added the Whirfloc tablet. During the last 3 minutes I introduced just
½ oz. of aroma hops for a slight hop presence.
August 20, 2003
WG 1.012
Here I
racked the beer to a secondary fermenter.
The initial tasting was quite satisfying, and contained quite a punch!
August 27, 2003
FG 1.010
I
actually bottled 24-22 oz. bottled and an additional pint from this batch. I started with about 5.5-gallons of beer in
the primary fermenter since I knew there would be some blow-off reducing the
size of the batch.
September
15, 2003
The
molasses taste was evident and hopefully becomes a little more subdued with
age. My bowling buddies thought it was
a bit too much; they are your typical mass-market beer drinkers though.
Next time: Use
less bittering hops, maybe more like 11AAU.
I was going to use 1 full cup of molasses but am glad I did not. The ½ cup was more than enough to lend the
desired flavor.
Having brewed a really
refreshing light ale recently, I am left wanting a more
full-bodied ale. So here goes my first
attempt at an IPA using a significant amount of hops and malt. This recipe might be closer to an Olde Ale
than an IPA.
3.3 lbs. Munton &
Fison light malt syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
amber DME
2 lbs. Munton & Fison
dark DME
1 lbs. crystal malt 50/60
L
1 oz. Challenger 7AAU
bittering
1 oz. Kent Golding 6.1AAU
bittering
2 oz. Kent Golding 6.1AAU
flavoring
1 oz. Kent Golding 6.1AAU
aromatic (dry hopping)
4 tsp. gypsum
1 Whirlfloc tablet
2 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
1028 (London Ale)
September 7, 2003
OG 1.041(?)
I began by adding the
grains to 2-gallons of warm and raised the temperature to 150° for 20
minutes. I then added the gypsum;
liquid and dry malt extracts which I brought to a boil and added the bittering
hops. After 40 minutes of vigorous
boiling I added the Whirfloc tablet and the generous two ounces of flavoring
hops.
September 13, 2003
WG 1.012
I
racked the beer today and noted the heavy smell and rich taste of the raw
beer. I also added in another 10z. of
Kent Golding hops to further intensify the hop presence. This should be an interesting brew. I added isinglass as a clarifying agent on
September 16th, which needed to sit in the carboy for a full two
weeks to work.
September 30, 2003
FG 1.010
Bottled
and did note that the beer was quite clear, still heavy and rich smelling with
a mineral taste to it.
October
13, 2003
The
beer tastes a little more like a scotch ale (wee heavy) than what I anticipated
it would (also much darker than I wanted).
Not a bad brew, but definitely not the I.P.A. that I thought I was
brewing.
Next time: Forgo the dark malt altogether. Eight pounds of malt is good; just use a 5/3 mix of light/amber
next time. Move up to 20 AAU bittering
hops and back off to just 1 oz. flavoring, keep the 1 oz. aroma but don’t dry
hop.
Here I
took a more minimalist approach to brewing.
I wanted to brew the simplest American beer I could and still create a
very drinkable beer.
3.3 lbs. Breiss Golden
light malt syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
1 oz. Centennial 9.1AAU
bittering
1 oz. Cascade 6.6AAU
flavoring
1 oz. Cascade 6.6AAU
aromatic
2 tsp. gypsum
1 tsp. Irish moss
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
1056 (American Ale)
October 7, 2003
OG 1.040
I used no grains this
time, just the absolute basics. To the
1 1/2 –gallons of water I added the malt and brought to a boil. I then added the boiling hops, at the
40-minute mark I added the flavoring hops and Irish moss, then at the 55-minute
mark, the aroma hops.
October 13, 2003
WG 1.006
Upon
racking the beer I tasted a slightly more bitter brew than expected, which
could be more of the yeast profile than anything, which is why I chose Wyeast
1056. I added isinglass which will push
back the bottling date to at least October 26th.
October 26, 2003
FG 1.005
Bottled today and notice more isinglass floating in
the finished beer than last time. When
the clarifying agent itself remains an eyesore, how valuable is it? I will probably return to Irish moss as it
always provided excellent results.
November 9, 2003
I will need to let this brew mature a little more
before passing judgment. Right now it
seems a little thin for 6+ lbs. of malt, this may change in a week or two. This beer is not too far removed from a Mr.
Beer kit brew at this time.
Next time: After
the initial tasting I am a little disappointed by the brew. Too generic for me, lacking any real
character or signature. Next time may
add crystal malt 20L and forgo the flavoring hops. Also not sure if the match of 1056 yeast and anything citrus
based is good, maybe more spicy hops next time.
It’s
getting colder and more towards dark beer season, hence the arrival of Irish
Oatnut Stout. Brewed with flaked oats
and Mountmellick extract, this brew should satisfy the dark beer drinkers
discerning palette.
4 lbs. Mountmellick dark
malt syrup
2 lbs. Munton & Fison
dark DME
¼ lbs. corn sugar
1/3 lbs. roasted barley
¼ lbs. chocolate malt
¼ lbs. crystal malt 50/60
L
½ lbs. flaked oats
2 oz. Fuggles 4.0AAU
bittering
2 tsp. gypsum
¼ tsp. Irish moss
1 Whirlfloc tablet
2 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
1084 (Irish Ale)
November 3, 2003
OG 1.044
I steeped the grains and
flaked oats at 170º for 30 minutes, then added the gypsum and malt. This came to a boil rather quickly just
preceding the single hop addition.
Twenty minutes before end of boil I added both the Irish moss and
Whirlfloc tablet. The initial
fermentation lacked a little as my oxygen tank ran out prior to pitching.
November 8, 2003
WG 1.012
Even
though this was not the most robust fermentation, the gravity still came down
to an acceptable level. However, after
being in the secondary carboy for 4 days my daughter pulled off the airlock
which I did not know of until 8-10 hours later. Not so good. I
re-attached the airlock and will hope for the best.
November 18, 2003
FG 1.010
Bottled
after 10 days of secondary fermentation.
December 10, 2003
Tasting revealed that this is quite a good
beer. Less roasted than some of the
other stouts I have made, yet still smooth and very rewarding. There is some hint of creaminess from the
oats, which stands out due to the lack of flavoring/aroma hops.
Next time: I will probably not change a thing. A little sweeter than McCoffee Stout makes
this unique.
There
are a limited number of different styles of beer available to be brewed by the
casual home brewer. Without a sub 60°
temperature controlled environment, the prospect of brewing a true Lager or
Pilsner is somewhat diminished. One
beer that is available is the German Kolsch style beer, utilizing a hybrid
lager/ale yeast. So here goes…
6 lbs. Northern Brewer
(Alexander’s) pale malt syrup
1 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
¼ lbs. cara pils
1 ½ oz. Hallertauer
5.00AAU bittering
½
oz. Hallertauer 5.00AAU aroma
¼ tsp. Irish moss
1 Whirlfloc tablet
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
2565 (Kolsch)
November 16, 2003
OG 1.045
I steeped the cara pils
for 30 minutes at 160º in 3-gallons of pre-boiled water. I added the bittering hops and then twenty
minutes before end of boil, I added both the Irish moss and Whirlfloc
tablet. I added the aroma hops in a
muslin bag to keep the beer free from extra sediment.
November 22, 2003
WG 1.014
The beer is cloudy and smells a little different than all
the ales I have done recently, maybe a little more “spicy” than sweet. Initial tasting also revealed a more dry
impression than your typical ale.
Fermentation has been ocurring at near 65° which is a little cooler than
usual as recommended by Wyeast for this strain.
December 3, 2003
FG 1.013
Tasting
tonight revealed a very refreshing brew with a noticable back of the mouth
tarness accompanied by almost a champagne like fruity overtone.
December
16, 2003
Ah…this
is the best light colored beer I have made.
Very refreshing and flavorful.
Maybe a bit to tart for the genre, will make adjustment next time. Very clean and pale with interesting
mouthfeel and flavorful finish.
Next time: Reduce bittering hops to 5.0 HBU since the 2656 yeast
creates a delicate beer. Perhaps go
with 6 lbs. extra-light DME instead of the Alexander’s malt syrup for a drier
more lager-like malt base.
Back to
the old faithful, a Bitter ale. What
makes this ale a little different than the other ales is the higher bittering
hop rate and the lack of flavoring hops.
3.3 lbs. Munton &
Fison light malt syrup
3 lbs. Munton & Fison
light DME
3/4 lbs. crystal malt 60L
1 oz. Challenger 7.8AAU bittering
1 oz. Fuggles 4.4AAU
bittering
1 oz. Fuggles 4.4AAU aroma
2 tsp. gypsum
1 tsp. Irish moss
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
1335 (British Ale II)
November 30, 2003
OG 1.046
I steeped the grains for
20 minutes at 160º in just 2-gallons of water.
I added the bittering hops and then twenty minutes before end of boil, I
added the Irish moss. I added the aroma
hops in a muslin bag 5 minutes prior to end of boil. I did pitch the yeast at 63º so fermentation was slow to start,
but after 36 hours the magic had begun.
December 6, 2003
WG 1.012
Racked
beer to secondary fermenter, very cloudy and fairly bitter at this time.
December 17, 2003
FG 1.011
Beer is still a little
tart and cloudy, yet shows promise as a bottle conditioned ale such as this
should clear nicely.
December 28, 2003
Initial tasting was quite
satisfying and refreshing, not too fruity and sweet. The fuggles lend a really nice aroma without overpowering the yeast.
All in all a very nice beer – should continue to condition nicely.
I
really don’t think I maximized the flaked oats in my last stout attempt, so I
am finishing some ingredients and incorporating an ale yeast into this
stout. This should be a lighter more
drinkable stout.
3.3 lbs. John Bull dark
malt syrup
2 lbs. Munton & Fison
dark DME
6 oz. flaked oats
½ lbs. chocolate malt
¼ lbs. crystal malt 60L
¼ lbs. roasted barley
1 oz. Northdown 6.7AAU
bittering
2 tsp. gypsum
1 tsp. Irish moss
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 package liquid Wyeast
1275 (Thames Valley)
December 30, 2003
OG 1.042
I steeped the flaked oats
for 20 minutes at 160º in one gallon of water, I then sparged the oats into the
boiling kettle (removing the oats with a strainer), added another gallon of
water, then began steeping the entire pound of grains into the milky oat laden
wort. I added the bittering hops upon
boiling and then fifteen minutes before end of boil, I added the Irish
moss. I pitched the yeast at 65º so
fermentation may be slow to start.
January 7, 2004
WG 1.012
I racked the dark smooth
beer today, tasting revealed a surprising departure from any other stout I have
brewed. This was much more dry and
Guiness like than my previous attempts.
January 18, 2004
FG 1.012