Advice on Mash Temp for this grain bill and yeast

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by ghostinthemachine, Aug 20, 2016.

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  1. ghostinthemachine

    ghostinthemachine Initiate (0) Aug 14, 2015 Louisiana

    I decided spur of the moment to do an imperial amber ale for a comp in december. It is the american strong ale category. I pretty much scaled up my american amber recipe with a few changes to the hops. The amber scored in the 40s.

    Thoughts on the mash temp? For some reason I decided to buy giga yeast vermont ipa yeast for this beer. I was wondering what temp I should mash at with this yeast, I have no idea how it behaves. I like my beers on the dry side.

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6Vud8iMjhhTRGdPOFl1Q3pMOUE/view?usp=sharing
     
    #1 ghostinthemachine, Aug 20, 2016
  2. scurvy311

    scurvy311 Savant (1,135) Dec 3, 2005 Louisiana

    Pils, 2row, and kolsch malt mashed 90 min at 148F. OG 1.056, FG 1.008, calculated attenuation 85.6%
    Pitched a calculated 1.47M/mL/Plato
    Pitched at 62F for 2 days, then ramped to 68F for the remainder.
    I really liked the fruity yeast esters, it did drop clear in the keg after 2 weeks
     
    #2 scurvy311, Aug 20, 2016
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  3. ghostinthemachine

    ghostinthemachine Initiate (0) Aug 14, 2015 Louisiana

    I was originally planning to ferment at 67 for 4 days then slowly ramping to 72. I think I'm going to try your fermentation schedule though.

    I goofed up and didn't think I was going to need to make a starter. I then realized that the gigayeast pack was at 63% viability so I used some canned wort to make a starter. I will be pitching it tonight or tomorrow morning.
     
    #3 ghostinthemachine, Aug 20, 2016
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  4. scurvy311

    scurvy311 Savant (1,135) Dec 3, 2005 Louisiana

    If I were brewing my beer again, I'd start a little higher like yours. It could have used a little more fruitiness to push hops forward. For an amber, I might go my temp of 62. I'm trying to imagine the Vermont Ale being better with more or less yeast contribution.
     
    #4 scurvy311, Aug 20, 2016
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  5. ghostinthemachine

    ghostinthemachine Initiate (0) Aug 14, 2015 Louisiana

    I'll split the difference. I was planning to rack this beer on to a 3rd generation saf 05 yeast cake but I decided to get fun with it. Thanks for the help!
     
    #5 ghostinthemachine, Aug 20, 2016
  6. scurvy311

    scurvy311 Savant (1,135) Dec 3, 2005 Louisiana

    Just rereading my post I should have said imagining an amber ale with more or less Vermont yeast flavor.
     
    #6 scurvy311, Aug 20, 2016
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  7. ghostinthemachine

    ghostinthemachine Initiate (0) Aug 14, 2015 Louisiana

    I brewed this recipe last Saturday (8/20). When I started the mash I realized the gigayeast pack was at 55% viability. I made a 1.5 liter starter and put it on a stir plate. I mashed at 148 and ended up with 5.5 gallons of 1.074 OG wort (hit my numbers perfectly!) I then chilled and put the wort in my fermentation chamber. I waited until Sunday morning to pitch the gigayeast starter. There seemed to be no activity from the starter so I was worried. There was also a smell of marinara sauce coming from the wort. I bought two packs of mangrove jack m44 west coast yeast just in case.

    There was a 2 day lag on airlock activity. It only bubbled for a day. I was worried that the beer would be under attenuated. I took a sample yesterday and it was at 1.017 FG with no off flavors or smells. Super fruity. I'm going to let it sit at 72 degrees for a couple of weeks before bottling. 76% attenuation for a beer that was close to 20% caramel malts. I'll take it. 8% abv.
     
    #7 ghostinthemachine, Aug 29, 2016
    dmtaylor likes this.
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