Messages

31

Ingredients / Re: Hop to complement Citra?

« on: March 13, 2013, 10:34:24 AM »

I hop-bursted an IPA with 50:50 blend of Citra:Nelson Sauvin.  Wort sample tasted fantastic!! Tropical fruit and dank!  Should be transferring off into a keg today or tomorrow.  Crash cooling at the moment.

32

Beer Recipes / Re: Old Ale

« on: March 09, 2013, 07:44:28 PM »

Wasn't it mainly just Brett clausenii that was the main wild organism in British beers?

33

The Pub / Re: song title game

« on: March 03, 2013, 09:36:06 PM »

Indigo Children-Puscifer

34

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What is your favorite music to listen to while homebrewing?

« on: March 01, 2013, 06:36:53 PM »

All I listen too is the sound of my burners.  Actually they are so loud there's not much point in trying to listen to music.

Time to upgrade to a blichmann!

35

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What is your favorite music to listen to while homebrewing?

« on: March 01, 2013, 02:17:04 PM »

Depends on how I feel/what I am brewing:

For IPAs and big aggressive beers:
Pantera, Pre-Black album Metallica, Alice In Chains, AC/DC, Danzig, etc.

If I am feeling more laid back and enjoying the process:
Jack Johnson, O.A.R, Pink Floyd, Pearl Jam, acoustic albums, Bob Marley

36

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: San Diego Super Yeast

« on: February 27, 2013, 07:12:55 AM »

I did take your suggestion and started a vial of wlp007 Dry English Ale yeast in one quart of starter on the stir plate for 24 hours. Then pitched and after 2 more days not one gravity point.

Does this yeast need more time or am I at terminal gravity now?

1.024 seems sweet for an APA.  I'm not sure what to do at this point.

Well, if an active starter pitch of WLP007 didn't touch the gravity, then I am afraid to say your beer is done

37

Yeast and Fermentation / Re: San Diego Super Yeast

« on: February 23, 2013, 08:09:43 AM »

I'd pitch an active oxygenated starter, approx. 1L of WLP007.  That should do the trick.

This method worked for me on 2 seperate occasions with WLP090 when I had a stuck ferment.  This is part of the reason I don't use this yeast anymore.  Too finicky, inconsistent, and doesn't always do what White Labs says it does.  Plus, it will occasionally throw off some diacetyl. I believe I have seen Neva Parker for White Labs pretty much say the same thing, and that it generally requires twice as much oxygenation as most of their other strains.

I would not use beano or a champagne yeast.

38

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 1/11 Edition

« on: February 19, 2013, 01:42:08 PM »

Thanks!  I'll post the recipe in the wiki when I get a chance.  Don't have it with me at the moment.

39

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: What's Brewing This Weekend - 1/11 Edition

« on: February 19, 2013, 01:11:38 PM »

Wit beer grain bill, fresh lime zest, fresh spearmint, and chico yeast.  Could either be really good, or really bad

that sounds really interesting - I make a mojito mead that is killer, please keep us posted on your results.

Ok, I didn't forget about keep you updated on this beer, Blatz.  I ended up using 3 oz. of lime zest(12 limes!) with 5 minutes left in the boil.  Then I dry-hopped with 11g of fresh wintergreen mint to taste.  It is a P.I.A to find good, fresh spearmint in Nebraska, especially in the dead of winter!

Our local brewery, Empyrean, hosts a local competetion, called BeerQuest, quarterly.  21 entrants, trimmed down to 10 for a public serving/taste-off. The theme this time was fruit/spice "Spring" ales.

Before hand, the 10 remaining brewers get together and vote on their favorite brew.  The Mojito Wheat won Brewer's Choice!

I got edged out in the public balloting by 7pts to a Green Tea Pale ale.  We were both tied with 2 ballots to go!  Surprisingly had a lot of good feedback on the beer.  I was worried about the interplay of the spices, especially the mint, because I had never used either ingredient.  I will definitely be brewing this again! 

40

All Grain Brewing / Re: help classify this beer

« on: February 15, 2013, 10:35:42 AM »

There is a lot of overlap between ambers and APAs

APA
OG 1.045-1.060
SRM 5-14
IBUs 30-45

Amber
OG 1.045-1.060
SRM 10-17
IBUs 25-40

BJCP Comments: Can overlap in color with American pale ales. However, American amber ales differ from American pale ales not only by being usually darker in color, but also by having more caramel flavor, more body, and usually being balanced more evenly between malt and bitterness. Should not have a strong chocolate or roast character that might suggest an American brown ale (although small amounts are OK).

I would think the hop choice of Zythos would knock it out of the ESB/English Pale category.

At any rate, it's beer

41

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Hit me with your best Session IPA

« on: February 14, 2013, 12:40:21 PM »

Kelsey McNair's West Coast Bitter/San Diego County Session ale.  Hands down. Winner, winner, chicken dinner. Edit: added the recipe.

WEST COAST BITTER

A ProMash Recipe Report
Recipe Specifics
----------------
Batch Size (Gal):         7.00    Wort Size (Gal):    7.00
Total Grain (kg):         4.57
Anticipated OG:          1.040    Plato:             10.08
Anticipated SRM:           7.3
Anticipated IBU:          53.2
Brewhouse Efficiency:       75 %
Wort Boil Time:             60    Minutes

Pre-Boil Amounts
----------------
Evaporation Rate:      15.00    Percent Per Hour
Pre-Boil Wort Size:    8.24    Gal
Pre-Boil Gravity:      1.034    SG          8.61  Plato

Formulas Used
-------------
Color Formula Used:   Morey
Hop IBU Formula Used: Rager

 %     Amount     Name                          Origin        Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 86.3     3.94 kg.  Pale Malt(2-row)              Great Britain  1.038      3
  4.9     0.22 kg.  Crystal 75L                   Great Britian  1.034     75
  4.9     0.22 kg.  Caramel Pils Malt             Belgium        1.034      2
  2.0     0.09 kg.  Honey Malt                    Canada         1.030     18
  2.0     0.09 kg.  CaraVienna                    France         1.035     20

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

   Amount     Name                              Form    Alpha  IBU  Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 23.70 g.     Warrior                           Pellet  13.00  38.2  60 min.
  7.70 g.     Columbus                          Pellet  15.00   7.3  30 min.
 13.00 g.     Amarillo Gold                     Pellet  10.00   3.2  10 min.
 18.00 g.     Simcoe                            Pellet  10.00   4.5  10 min.
 28.00 g.     Simcoe                            Pellet  10.00   0.0  0 min.
 28.00 g.     Amarillo Gold                     Pellet  10.00   0.0  0 min.
 28.00 g.     Chinook                           Pellet  13.00   0.0  0 min.
 28.00 g.     Citra                             Pellet  12.00   0.0  0 min.
 28.00 g.     Columbus                          Pellet  15.00   0.0  0 min.
 28.00 g.     Amarillo Gold                     Pellet  10.00   0.0  Dry Hop
 28.00 g.     Chinook                           Pellet  13.00   0.0  Dry Hop
 28.00 g.     Citra                             Pellet  12.00   0.0  Dry Hop
 28.00 g.     Columbus                          Pellet  15.00   0.0  Dry Hop
 28.00 g.     Simcoe                            Pellet  10.00   0.0  Dry Hop


Yeast
-----

White Labs WLP007 Dry English Ale


Water Profile
-------------

Profile:           Stone
Profile known for:

Calcium(Ca):          87.0 ppm
Magnesium(Mg):        15.0 ppm
Sodium(Na):           18.0 ppm
Sulfate(SO4):        141.0 ppm
Chloride(Cl):         58.0 ppm
biCarbonate(HCO3):    95.0 ppm

pH: 7.50


Mash Schedule
-------------
Mash Type: Single Step
Saccharification Rest Temp : 158  Time:   60
All temperature measurements are degrees Fahrenheit.

42

All Grain Brewing / Re: help classify this beer

« on: February 14, 2013, 07:31:04 AM »

This falls squarely into American IPA territory per the BJCP guidelines.  On the other hand, if you were to enter it into competition, it will not score well because judges are expecting something of lighter color and less color.  But they're wrong.  This is a friggin American IPA, no doubt about it.

It also falls into the style guidelines of an APA.

But, hard to say without tasting it.  Taste it and read the BJCP guidelines.  Compare and contrast where you think it will fit best per your tastes, appearance, and aroma.

43

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: making a yeast starter with distilled water

« on: February 13, 2013, 12:41:53 PM »

too many bicarbs and high alkalinity and PH in my well water. im going to try a starter using light DME at 1.040 wort SG, .5gal.

should i be adding calcium chloride (50ppm) and adjusting around 5.0-5.2ph also to make sure its optimal for yeast growth?

The DME will give you all the minerals you need.  Only thing you might want to think about adding is a bit of yeast nutrient.

This^^^^

44

Beer Recipes / Re: basic blonde ale

« on: February 13, 2013, 08:44:41 AM »

Start simple and slowly build from there with one ingredient or process change at a time to achieve the beer you are looking for.  Good luck!

45

Beer Recipes / Re: basic blonde ale

« on: February 12, 2013, 08:37:21 PM »

Seriously, you are over thinking this .  Blonde ales are very simple.  Basically an all malt premium lager with ale yeast and maybe a little more hop character.  Mostly 90+% 2-row, occasionally an adjunct(i.e. wheat), and maybe a light crystal malt, with low hop profile.

Per the BJCP (you may need to scroll down):
http://www.bjcp.org/2008styles/style06.php#1b

Here is Jamil's recipe from the Beer Dujour website.  I like the centennial idea better than williamette:
http://beerdujour.com/Recipes/Jamil/JamilsBlondeAle.htm

Sometimes, the more simple the recipe, the better it tastes!