Brewing Activity March 2016

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I like the looks of that tun. Can you explain a little bit how you built it?

 

My 12 gallons of Super Saison is almost to terminal at 3 weeks, just a few more points to go. Getting ready to keg half on the dry hops which will go to the keezer, the other half will go onto Pinot soaked French Oak staves and age for a few months (primary yeast is a blend of 3 Brett strains and a lacto strain). Should be getting my big grain order in this weekend too (I really hope so since I plan to brew the following weekend).

EDIT: Forgot that I also ordered some silicone o rings, lock nut, and SS washers to fix the bulkhead on my 15 gallon cooler MLT that I haven't been able to use due to major leakage. Will be breaking that down and rebuilding it and water testing this weekend. Also have like 3 kegs to clean and get ready.

 

With a big beer such as an RIS, usually you can age the beer on some oak. You could add the bourbon and taste after a week, if the oak is too subtle, then you can add some of the oak chips. And taste every couple days until it reaches perfection. Best of luck!

 

Thanks!

 

It's made of a 7 gallon SS pot (with kettle screen and ball valve). The insulation is made out of one or two (I don't remember) sleeping-bag mats, purchased at Walmart (I think). I also had access to some aluminized mylar (similar to a space blanket), which sits between two layers of the foam. The insulation is easily removable, so that I can put the tun on a burner to do a mashout. I'll post some more detailed pictures later. Cheers!

 

Very nice Fermentor !!!!!!!!!

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Going to start my keezer build this weekend. Was going to wait a while, but the lid doesn't quite close all the way with the lines attached...so I sorta need to get on it. Tonight I'll hopefully get my new projector screen put together and mounted, because I will need the floor space for working with the collar.

I'm ready for this basement renovation to finally be completed, so I can start enjoying the new space. Now I just need to devise a way to keep the kids from screwing with the taps...

 

Think im gonna go for azacca. and name the beer after some voodoo deity. voodoo saison, that is. jokes aside, i usually use european hops (or the like) in saisons, but for once i think i'll try something else.

 

I did a single hop IPA with Azacca... Very orange/juicy. I liked it, but in the future wouldn't use it by itself... Would do great with some other hops (piney or more intense citrus hops).

 

Tomorrow I'll be brewing 15 gallons of Witbier. 5G gets 3944; another 5G gets 585; and the last gets Saccharomyces Eubayanus. So, not looking for Witbier out of the last two, but I think the grain bill will work with each of the yeasts pretty well. Eubayanus, by the way, threw lots of Belgian esters when fermented ~70°. Lower temps and it's much cleaner.

Also, going to retrieve roughly 45 gallons of Flanders Red out of a red wine barrel on Sunday, where it's been sitting for the last 6 months or so. Pretty excited to see how it's is developed.

 

I just read the article in the latest Zymurgy on the Eubayanus yeast. It sounds like it could work well for certain beers. Did you participate in that study? Is it commercially available?

 

Brewing an IPA in the morning with 25# 2row 2# wheat malt and 3# flaked oats. 1 oz Columbus at 60. 2 oz citra and Amarillo and 1 oz Columbus at 0. 6 oz Citra and Amarillo and 2 oz Columbus in a double dryhopping. Should be a tasty 10 gal

 

ISO

 

Lots of bottling this morning. Stockpiling for fall and winter. Spent three hours bottling 5 gallons of Barleywine, 5 gallons of Porter, and 9 gallons of cherry wine. Luckily no more bottling for me for another three months or so. Getting ready to pitch a yeast starter, wlp Abbey ale, for next weekend's Trappist Enkel.

 

Yeah, the author of that article is a member of my club. A bunch of us participated, as well as a number of other people from local clubs, plus I'm sure many others from clubs elsewhere.

My original beer was a golden promise/fuggles smash and it ended up being pretty good. Scored a 32 iirc with pleasant Belgian characteristics. Best of show was a 37.5.) We'll see if a proper Wit grain bill helps it out a little.

ETA: Eubayanus isn't available commercially yet to my knowledge.

 

Testing this photo thing out...

If that worked, the beer is a Smoked Weizenbock and I'm digging it. Definitely a re-brew with minor tweaks.

Ooops. Just realized this is the wrong thread LOL. On topic, I'm in the middle of a cereal mash for that Witbier.

 

Just finishing up a Munich Dunkel. Should be ready and clear for fishing camp.

 

Brewed an IPA this morning. Fermenting with WLP007; bittered with Columbus and used Centennial and Galaxy in the late additions. Plan to dry hop in two rounds. Modeled after a lot of the NE IPA discussions. Smelled great going into the fermenter, but I guess we'll see how things turn out in a few weeks.