Brewing Activities (2024)

It’s a bit cool in Vt so cleaning and getting ready for a RIS brew date, probably Wednesday

 

That’s awesome!! Let us know how she drives. What will you be fermenting in?

 

I want to brew a Vienna style lager with the Bootleg Biology yeast I have coming in the mail. Does anyone have a tried and true recipe they would like to share?

 

I have 4 gallons worth of NE IPA in the fermenter right now. I'm working with some newer equipment that I hoped would make my life easier. I thought my volume was too high, so adjusted mid-stream to a 90min boil and ultimately ended up short. OG was still normal. So I am no good at this.

New equipment here is a boil kettle with fancy features like triple-clad bottom, a thermometer, a valve at the bottom and even a whirlpool/recirc kit. So I also needed a pump and I ended up getting a plate chiller off Marketplace.

 

One thing you can do if you kept the SS mash tun is if you decide to brew a big stout/barleywine is mash in both to get that huge grain bill and be more efficient. I do this with 2 Anvil Foundry units and sparge one with water then use it to sparge the one I will boil in. Gets the gravity up there for me.

 

I can't say if this is tried and true, but I thoroughly enjoy this base for a Vienna lager this year.

91% Vienna
4.5% Caramunich I
4.5% Victory

OG of 1.055

 

Sounds good. What hops did you use?

 

That's where I diverged a bit. I wanted to make a lager with Hibiscus, so I used Mosaic to complement.

1 oz at 60 min
.75 oz at 5 min
.5 at 0 min

The beer turned out well, but it left me wanting to make a traditional version, too. Whenever I get to it I'll probably use this base and sub out to traditional hops to meet style.

 

Still, just extract brewing. Have a Belgian Quad brewed mid-late November and will bottle around March 1. Soon will try brewing a Pseudo-lager using Lutra Kveik yeast. Want to late hop/dry hop it with Mandarina Bavaria hops for a citrus flavor. Debating whether to just add 1 oz. at flame out or whirlpool or dry hop.
Still relatively new to brewing, but have made some solid beers. Probably should make leap to all grain.

 

Been terrible about posting my brewing in here so lets get 2024 off to a better start! I have a Rye Whiskey barrel getting delivered tomorrow that is getting my Surly Darkness clone put into it. Should have a little leftover that I am going to put on some coffee beans and vanilla.

Also planning to bottle my coffee lager this weekend!

 

Kegged a Sierra Nevada Celebration clone last night (More Beer's recipe.)

Hydro sample was great, maybe missing the dank wet hop nuance that Celebration has.

Finished on the money at 6.8%

Looking forward to trying this evening.

 

I'm glad that Celebration is seasonal, because I'd probably get tired of it if it was available year round. That being said, I'm always sad when I can't find it anymore mid-December.

 

Same. There is some still floating around on shelves around here. Might be able to grab some more tomorrow.

 

Here is said Celebration clone.

Still needs a little conditioning. Good flavor but nowhere near as hoppy as the real thing. If I were to brew again, I would double late addition, whirlpool, and dry hops. The recipe only called for 4oz of total hops and I was skeptical.

Usually is will tinker with recipes, but I decided to brew as designed……well except I did a 60 minute boil vs 90 minute (I usually only do 30 minutes, except for stouts and porters.)

 

Went and bought my ingredients today at Ballast Point's Homebrew Mart. I stayed strong and away from the taproom. 10 more days. I also got a new 10 gallon cooler for my mash tun, the project this week is to get that all built up in preparation for my batch first weekend of February.

I also ordered a water test kit so I can see what I can do to build a better water profile. I haven't done much with the water in the past so fingers crossed I can figure out what the hell I'm doing.

This batch is going to be the second beer I ever brewed, a robust porter that came out amazing back in 2014 and I rebrewed it several times since. Feels like the right beer for my first all-grain batch in a long time.