Messages

826

Ingredients / Re: Dry hop-cigaring?

« on: September 06, 2012, 09:57:43 am »

As I think about this, I've read lots of wine reviews that say "flavors of tobacco" along with other things like leather that you would never actually put in the wine.

Perhaps the flavors come from the oak?  There's probably ways to get a similar flavor without actually adding tobacco.

Oak, certain hops, and certain yeasts (saisons and Brett come to mind) can potentially give some of that leathery/tobacco aroma & flavor. I also pick up tobacco notes from many of the best dark chocolates. While none of these will necessarily leave you with a big tobacco flavor, they can all contribute a subtle hint.

827

The Pub / Re: Football Season!!!

« on: September 06, 2012, 07:56:57 am »

Pats vs Titans on Sunday.  I can't watch the game live because my BIL roped us into going to the Red Sox game...I can't believe I'm dreading going to Fenway Park.  I think I'd rather watch the DNC...

Thank God for Tivo!

Yeah, I have Sox tickets myself. That's the problem with buying the 4-packs when they go on sale - when they have seasons like this you still have September tickets and no one wants to buy them off you.

Go Pats!

828

Ingredients / Re: Dry hop-cigaring?

« on: September 06, 2012, 07:49:15 am »

Nicotine is very toxic stuff. While I enjoy the taste and aroma of a fine cigar, I would not recommend ever using tobacco in any sort of food product.

829

Equipment and Software / Re: Pellet packs

« on: September 05, 2012, 06:51:25 pm »

If they seal with heat, I'd be a little worried that they'd unseal as well (i.e., in the boil). It's curious that there's no picture of the actual product on the site...

830

Beer Recipes / Re: porter recipe

« on: September 05, 2012, 04:24:34 pm »

If you're using homegrown hops, I would recommend saving them for the end of the boil. Since there's no real way of knowing what the actual AA% is, you might as well save them for where you get the most flavor/aroma but less of an effect on your IBU's.

FWIW - Otter Creek Stovepipe Porter is one of my favorite beers, and they use Nugget, Cascade and Willamette. Even though the Stovepipe is a lot roastier than what you're going for here, I think your hop selection will be very good in a porter. The Chinook has a fairly aggressive bite when used for bittering, so just be aware of that.

831

The Pub / Re: song title game

« on: September 05, 2012, 03:26:45 pm »

Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 - Bob Dylan

832

Beer Recipes / Re: Hop Bomb IIPA

« on: September 05, 2012, 02:39:37 pm »

Why only 3.3 gallons? Are you kettle limited? If you are going to spend this much money on hops I would brew a full 6 gallon batch and plan on loosing 1 gallon to trub. Plus this recipe is way too much hops for 3.3 gallons to absorb (IBU wise) so you are basically wasting them. Probably the same is true for 5 gallons but at least you will have more beer when you are finished.

I typically do 3 gallon batches. I brew on an electric stovetop in a 5-gallon kettle, and have a 5-gallon mash tun. I usually BIAB/no-sparge in my mash tun, but I'm going to batch sparge this one just to get some extra wort in my kettle. The most wort I can get to a decent boil on my stove is 4 gallons.

As far as IBU's go, I'm getting 60 IBU from a hop shot at 90 minutes. All the "real" hops are there for flavor/aroma contributions. Any additional IBU's I may get from them (and I realize that will be a considerable amount) is just gravy. Thus the beer name - Gratuitous Waste of Hops IIPA. The hops are pricey, but I try to buy in bulk to keep my costs in check. What's the point of having a massive hops hoard if you can't go crazy on an IIPA every once in a while?

833

Beer Recipes / Re: Hop Bomb IIPA

« on: September 05, 2012, 01:39:57 pm »

I like your style...

How are you doing the dryhops? Adding one addition, pulling them, then adding another?

Definitely stealing the "runoff hops" idea. I usually filter with just a strainer and fine-mesh bag, but why not use hops?!

For the dryhops, I'm just throwing them in loose every 3 days. I heard about someone doing this on a recent CYBI episode, and figured "why not". Maybe dry hops at 3 days gives a little something different than dry hops at 10+ days. Maybe not. Can't hurt too much either way, I figure. I am going to increase my first dry hop addition to 2oz, just to make sure I max out the dry hop contribution as much as possible.

This is pretty much a "kitchen sink" beer, where I'm trying to put hops everywhere I can think of in the brewing process. I'm even going to chuck a few pellets in my bucket of Star San for good measure.

834

Equipment and Software / Re: New Equipment - What to get?

« on: September 04, 2012, 05:39:04 pm »

If you have the space, what about a fermentation fridge/freezer with temp control? Also, a grain mill, love mine. +1 on kegs though, can never have to many and the way prices are getting....

+1 to the fermentation chamber with temp control. That will be my next big equipment purchase (even before I get into kegging). Also, how is your chilling situation - does it need an upgrade?

835

Ingredients / Re: 2012 Czech hops harvest

« on: September 04, 2012, 04:59:28 pm »

Well, today it's good to hear that supply and prices shouldn't be affected, although I wonder if that only applies to commercial brewers with contracts.

FWIW, if you're pressed for an alternative to Czech Saaz, I highly recommend Ultra. I got some from Freshops this spring and I've been using them in every recipe calling for a noble hop since. They are the closest thing to Saaz I've tried. They smell and taste fantastic, with a touch of that cinnamon note I get from Saaz.

Ultra was bred from hallertau mittlefrueh, but being grown in the USA it might work for a saaz sub.

Try Sterling sometime, that was bred from Saaz.

Ultra is actually 1/6 Saaz (2/3 HMf and 1/6 as well). But I take hop lineage with a grain of salt as Cascade was bred from Fuggles, and Citra was bred from Hallertauer and Tett.

Having said that, Sterling is on my hop wish list and I'll probably snap some up if I see a good deal on them in bulk this season.

836

Ingredients / Re: 2012 Czech hops harvest

« on: September 04, 2012, 03:41:04 pm »

Well, today it's good to hear that supply and prices shouldn't be affected, although I wonder if that only applies to commercial brewers with contracts.

FWIW, if you're pressed for an alternative to Czech Saaz, I highly recommend Ultra. I got some from Freshops this spring and I've been using them in every recipe calling for a noble hop since. They are the closest thing to Saaz I've tried. They smell and taste fantastic, with a touch of that cinnamon note I get from Saaz.

837

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Buffalo Wild Wings and home brew

« on: September 04, 2012, 11:28:50 am »

Since this has turned into a BN pro/con thread, thought I'd chime in.

I've definitely learned a lot from the BN since I started brewing. I have a high threshold for juvenile humor, so I can tolerate that aspect of it to some extent. I just with the ratio of content to commercials & d*ck jokes was a bit higher.

I still listen to CYBI and Brew Strong, but I greatly prefer Basic Brewing Radio/Video for both format and content.

Closer to the original topic - I don't have a BWW near me, but I'd at least like to check them out. I doubt they compare to the local bar and grill places (Wendell's Pub in Norton, MA is my local fave), but I practically live off chain restaurants so I'm hoping they have to at least be decent compared to the standard Chilis/Applebees/etc. fare.

838

Beer Recipes / Hop Bomb IIPA

« on: September 04, 2012, 08:51:23 am »

I've got a massive hop-bomb IIPA up next on the brew docket. I'm basically putting hops everywhere I can in the brewing process, trying to maximize the amount of hop flavor and aroma I can get. I'll gladly accept any recommendations on how to stuff more hoppiness in here.

I haven't finished formulating the hop blend I'm planning on using yet, so the 10 AA% is just a placeholder. My IBU's will likely be maxed out anyways, so the actual value isn't a major concern. It should end up in the 10-12% AA range.

The batch size says 3.3 gallons, but I'm figuring I'll net about a case of bottles in the end after everything gets sucked up by hops.

HOME BREW RECIPE:
Title: Gratuitous Waste of Hops IIPA

Brew Method: All Grain
Style Name: Imperial IPA
Boil Time: 90 min
Batch Size: 3.3 gallons
Boil Size: 4 gallons
Efficiency: 80%

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.086
Final Gravity: 1.017
ABV (standard): 9.01%
IBU (tinseth): 198.38
SRM (morey): 5.65

FERMENTABLES:
7.5 lb - Pale 2-Row (81.5%)
0.5 lb - Flaked Barley (5.4%)
0.8 lb - Cane Sugar (8.7%)
0.2 lb - Caramel / Crystal 40L (2.2%)
0.2 lb - Wheat (2.2%)

HOPS:
1 oz - Amarillo (AA 10.6), Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Mash
1 oz - Amarillo (AA 10.6), Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Mash (Sparge)
1 oz - Citra (AA 12.2), Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Mash
1 oz - Citra (AA 12.2), Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Mash (Sparge)
1 oz - Fruit Bomb Hop Blend (AA 10), Type: Pellet, Use: First Wort
1 oz - Hop Shot (AA 11.74) for 90 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 30 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 15 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 5 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 0 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for -30 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for -60 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for -90 min, Type: Pellet, Use: Boil
1 oz - Amarillo (AA 10.6) for 0 min, Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Aroma
1 oz - Amarillo (AA 10.6) for -1 min, Type: Leaf/Whole, Use: Aroma
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 12 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 9 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 6 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop
1 oz - Fruit Hop Bomb Blend (AA 10) for 3 days, Type: Pellet, Use: Dry Hop

MASH STEPS:
1) Infusion, Temp: 153 F, Time: 60 min, Amount: 12.5 qt, Sacc Rest
2) Sparge, Temp: 170 F, Time: 10 min, Amount: 5.5 qt, Batch Sparge

OTHER INGREDIENTS:
1 each - Whirlfloc, Time: 15 min, Type: Fining, Use: Boil
3 each - Fermcap-S, Time: 90 min, Type: Other, Use: Boil

YEAST:
Fermentis / Safale - Safale - American Ale Yeast US-05

NOTES:
Chillburst -  add first flameout hops and steep 30 min, chill to 170 then add hops and steep 30 min, chill to 110, then add hops and steep/monitor temp. When temp hits 103, add last addition and steep additional 30+ min.

1 oz each of Citra and Amarillo in mash, and 1 oz each in sparge water

"Aroma" addition of Amarillo is a "Hopback" during runoff using a nylon stocking zip-tied to the end of the runoff tube. Second "Aroma" addition is hopback into fermenter.

90 minute addition is 60 IBU from Hop Shot

839

Beer Recipes / Re: need recipe for my garden basil

« on: September 04, 2012, 06:12:09 am »

If you use a light hand, basil might be a nice highlight to a beer with a lot of nutty malt character. I'm thinking something like a Nut Brown Ale or Brown Porter maybe. Something where the main malt character is coming from Brown Malt, Victory, Biscuit, etc. You could probably pull off an English Pale Ale as well.

If I were trying it for the first time, I would steep the basil after primary fermentation is finished. Put them in a hop bag and taste frequently. I think basil could probably get overpowering pretty easily.

Here's a WAG at what I'd do with it:

Basil Pale Ale
85% Marris Otter
10% Victory
5% Crystal-60
Shoot for 1.060ish
30 IBU Magnum at 60 min
10 IBU EKG at 10 min
1 oz EKG @ flameout
English-style ale yeast of choice
Add a small amount of basil in a hop bag after ~10 days in primary and taste daily. Pull basil when it gets the right balance.

840

Beer Recipes / Re: I'd like to make a Stroch Stottish Ale for winter, need some help.

« on: September 04, 2012, 05:20:33 am »

http://www.skotrat.com/skotrat/recipes/ale/scottish/recipes/10.html

This is your friend, read it, follow it, love it.

It has all your answers. No smoked malt. Definitely no peat malt, unless you want to see Tom cry.

Wow. What a beautifully simple recipe. I'll have to brew it some day, even if it's for no other reason than the recipe being so elegant.