What's Brewing? (February Edition)

Tell me about it. I brewed on Saturday (1.069 OG) and as of right now, the beer is at 1.020 already within 48hrs. I will already add DH #2 tonight before FG is hit (~1.014)... Let sit one or two days and then get into a keg with some priming sugar to carbonate. I may have it on as soon as Sunday, depending how quickly the yeast munches through the priming sugar, but my tentative plan is the Wednesday following... Just to allow some maturing

I have not had any issues with harshness/burn or anything like that with quick turnarounds, either. But they do improve over the next few weeks IMO, with hop flavors/aroma becoming more well rounded and everything.

 

Splurged on yet more hops from YVH... This will def be my last order for this year... I should be all set until the 2018 crop! Now I just need to brew some big IPA's to start purging my current inventory! (around 12lbs)...

1lb Galaxy (can never have enough!)
8oz Hallertau Blanc
8oz Hallertau Mittelfruh
8oz Exp. Tangerine
2oz Willamette
2oz US Goldings
2oz Crystal
8oz Comet (had to buy more, batch I bought few weeks ago are unreal in aroma!)
8oz NZ Rakau
8oz AU Ella

 

What year comet did you buy? I have 2016 and wasn't impressed. Maybe I'll try a smash with them.

 

I tried this once with a “stainless” scrubby. Come to find out those are for scrubbing stainless and not actually stainless. Metallic drainpour. Use a plastic scrubby if you go that route

 

2017 from Yakima Valley Hops... I actually bought a half pound a few weeks ago that I used in my IPL and given the aroma and flavors in that beer, I had to buy more. I expected more earthy/dank aroma, but damn... It put the Amarillo and Medusa I also used in that IPL to shame! Had to buy more.

I remember having a Comet hopped IPA at Troegs (one of their scratch beers) a year ago or so and I absolutely loved it. I just really enjoy that hop, I suppose!

 

I’ve had a few batches that I should have conditioned longer but fermentation wise I think you have to package quickly to have it taste like an neipa. A 3 week fermentation ends up clear and west coast to me. I kegged a neapa 3 weeks ago with kolsch yeast and azacca and it’s still cloudy af

 

Nice! I’ve been meaning to try a NEIPA with a Kolsch yeast. Seems like it would work nicely.

 

Had a rough kegging yesterday with my NE IPA... Usually, I cold crash to drop out all the hops prior to transfer, but I decided to try it without this time (to try and prevent oxygen and all that fun stuff). I had a paint strainer bag on the end of my transfer tube into the keg and had sugar primed about an hour or so prior to transfer as I will be naturally carbonating this one.

Well I put 1-2psi into the headspace of and opened the ball valve. Basically the bag almost immediately loaded up with hop debris and the flow eventually stopped. Had to jam that bad boy out of the keg, which was a mess. Then I replaced the bag and started it over again, which thankfully went better until the end of the transfer when the bag loaded up and caused all types of issues. Wasted a lot of finished beer. Only ended up with like 4.5-4.75 gallon into the keg. The bummer was that when pulling those bags out finished beer was dripping and likely oxygenating the batch a bit. On the plus side, the yeast should have been active to help reduce any negative effects and also with the keg hopping inside the keg, aroma should still be potent when complete.

Was trying something new but it just didn't work out as expected! Typically, even with 6-8oz of dry hop and a day or two cold crash, I can transfer with minimal hop debris even without the paint strainer bag which I never use. Also my first time using my Brewtech Bucket, so I thought the pickup tube being rotated upward would have reduced the hop pickup more than it did. So less learned, always cold crash them hops out! Always a learning curve with new equipment though.

I will admit though on a side note, that beer is looking mighty fine and the aroma/flavor is incredible. Def closer than my previous Congress Street clone, can't wait to see how this is complete! Hopefully my kegging snafu didn't cause only issues with oxidation, but I will be hopeful... Nailed the FG right at 1.014 for the 7.2% ABV I targeted.

 

Got a few days off next week watching the boys. Have a recipe for second iteration of my Spiced Belgian Blonde with my Nectarine Blossom yeast. Also have an ESB recipe, just waiting on the MO to come in.

 

My mother-in-law passed away Sunday after a short furious fight with cancer. The family is doing a big celebration of her life get together in a couple weeks. My wife and her sister both asked if I would brew beer for the event. So now I have three batches to brew this weekend and get them grain to glass in two weeks. On the menu is a hefeweizen a pils and my toasted ale. Going to be a busy weekend.
This is also my excuse to build a trash can kegerator.

 

Sorry for your loss, good idea on the trash can.

 

Just brewed a hoppy mixed fermentation saison (though, theoretically it's is supposed to be 100% brett) with a loads of Hallertau Blanc hopps on Monday. Including dry hops it will clock in at 1oz/gal of hops at 30-ish IBU. Sort of a cross between saison/sour/IPA. Woke up this morning to the carboy oozing foam and had to set up a quick blow off tube before work... at least I know my house culture is alive and well!

 

Why "theoretically"?

 

Currently brewing the chocolate coffee oatmeal stout.

 

I took a gravity reading on the Burton Ale tonight - it looks like I've managed to coax about 75% AA out of Windsor yeast, which feels like an achievement. Hydrometer sample tasted nice, too.

 

The culture was made from a collection of dregs from my favorite commercial 100% brett beers that I gathered a while back. Though, due to the nature of dreg propagation and the fact the the culture has consistently produced a noticeable tartness, I highly suspect some bacterial contamination (lacto most likely, and probably yeast). The mystery is how such high hopping rates (and theoretical IBUs) wouldn't hinder the lacto that may be present. I know brett can produce tartness is some circumstances, but I'd doubt it would account for it in this culture. I suppose I'll never know since I don't have the equipment or knowledge to do the micro-bio work to figure exactly what the culture contains... all I know is that it makes a delicious beer -- especially in the presence of fruity hops!

I sort of embrace the "farmhouse" mentality when it comes to my sour production. A little bit of guessing and mystery makes it fun.

 

How high are you IBUs? What are your hop additions like?

It does, indeed.

 

This specific recipe was for a 3 gallon batch:
OG: 1.062
Hops: Hallertau Blanc (8.8 AA)
.25oz @15mins; 10.5 IBU
1.25oz @ 5mins; 21 IBU
1oz @ 0mins; (? IBU)
1.5oz dry hop for 5 days

All in all just over 30 IBUs

The recipe for my Nelson Sauvin version is similar in total IBUs, but less total mounts to account for the higher AA. Comes out like a tart white-wine-ish saison.

 

Today I bottled a Peach Sour from a keg that was rarely poured from and was taking up space in the keezer, then I filled that keg with my house brett session that I fermented with a different mixed culture than usual. Finally, I brewed a Rye Brett NE DIPA with Mosaic and Amarillo that I added back onto the yeast/bug cake. Possibly brewing in the morning, but must likely not...I'm trying to push a Kolsch to keg for a party next Sunday and I want to rack my next brew onto the yeast, but I just don't think the Kolsch has finished yet.

Cheers and happy weekend yall!!!

 

Anyone ever use Conan for anything other than an IPA/pale. I want to keep this slurry fresh but am burned out on the style. Opinions if I can do a blonde ale or cream ale? What temp would be best to restrain the fruitiness?