posted by Jon
So, what's on tap?
The cider was bottled today. I'm absolutely thrilled with the flavor. After bottling them (with corn sugar) I almost regret putting the corn sugar in, because even without carbonation it's fantastic. Almost a low alcohol apple wine. The apple flavor is coming out a ton more than the last time I made cider.
The Gourdon Lightfoot Imperial Pumpkin Ale (aka "Pumpkin Trucker") was bottled a little over a week ago. Also seemed to have some great flavor. I'm quite excited about this one.
Both the cider and the pumpkin will be delivered by the first weekend in December, two weeks from now. I'm assuming all of you will want a sixer for $6. If not, I'd gladly pay for, and enjoy, the leftovers.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Quad post, part 3: Deliveries
posted by Jon
Time for the fruits of our labor, and your money, to finally pay off. The first of the Sinister Black IPAs are being delivered. All of them should be in your hands by the end of this weekend. Just a warning: It's wicked hoppy, but not too bitter.
Time for the fruits of our labor, and your money, to finally pay off. The first of the Sinister Black IPAs are being delivered. All of them should be in your hands by the end of this weekend. Just a warning: It's wicked hoppy, but not too bitter.
Quad post, part 2: Von Bora
posted by Jon
Monday evening was our chance for a side batch, partially financed by Ryan Beld. This was Ryan's first foray into the homebrewing world and he decided to make the most of that chance by showing up late. Really late. Like, about to pitch the yeast late.
We had decided on a Belgian strong ale, in the style of a Rochefort 10. You will notice the use of Belgian candi sugar in this recipe. Belgian candi sugar is an invert sugar. Regular old white sugar is made of two types of simple sugars, Glucose and Fructose.When a yeast is attempting to ferment white sugar, it spends quite a lot of time breaking the sugar down into a more fermentable form. Inverting the sugar breaks it down to that form, making it less work for the yeast. Now, Belgian candi sugar costs about $6 per lb. We needed 3 lbs for this recipe. That's $18. How is Belgian candi sugar made? Take regular old white sugar, add water and a pinch of citric acid and heat to 160°. After 15 minutes or so the sugar turns from clear to pale yellow. Another half hour or so it is a deep amber. Heat to 300° (hard crack), pour out, cool and crack. 3 lbs of Belgian candi sugar. For about $2.
Why do Belgian-style beers often contain Belgian candi sugar, you ask? Belgian candi sugar raises the gravity, and thus the alcohol, of the beer without adding a lot of body. If you take a Belgian strong and an Imperial Stout, they might have the same ABV%, but the stout will be much thicker.
On to the beer geek stuff:
Von Bora Belgian Strong Ale (my lord Katie)
6:48 Water heated
7:05 Water @ 155°. 1 lb Belgian biscuit malt, 1/2 lb British chocolate malt and 1 lb CaraMunich malt steeped.
7:35 Grains sparged with 1/2 gallon hot water
8:00 12 lbs Pilsen LME and 3 lb Belgian candi sugar added
8:36 Boil started, 1 oz Northern Brewer hops added
Somewhere in here Ryan B shows up
9:06 1 oz Hallertauer and 1 oz Styrian Golding hops added
9:21 1 tsp irish moss and 1 tsp yeast nutrient added
9:31 1 tsp Ground coriander seed added
9:36 flameout
At this point we would normally use the wort chiller to cool the wort down to a pitching temperature, however, since this is a side batch, we are using our new plastic fermenter tub. Which is skinnier. As in it is skinny enough that the wort chiller won't fit into it. So, we take the bucket and place it in the sink surrounded by cold water and a bag of ice. An hour and a half later we're still not close to a pitchable temperature, so I leave the bucket (covered) in the sink and pitch the yeast the next morning.
6:20 Yeast pitched @ 72 °
O.G. = 1.130. That's right, this baby's gonna be around 13%.
Monday evening was our chance for a side batch, partially financed by Ryan Beld. This was Ryan's first foray into the homebrewing world and he decided to make the most of that chance by showing up late. Really late. Like, about to pitch the yeast late.
We had decided on a Belgian strong ale, in the style of a Rochefort 10. You will notice the use of Belgian candi sugar in this recipe. Belgian candi sugar is an invert sugar. Regular old white sugar is made of two types of simple sugars, Glucose and Fructose.When a yeast is attempting to ferment white sugar, it spends quite a lot of time breaking the sugar down into a more fermentable form. Inverting the sugar breaks it down to that form, making it less work for the yeast. Now, Belgian candi sugar costs about $6 per lb. We needed 3 lbs for this recipe. That's $18. How is Belgian candi sugar made? Take regular old white sugar, add water and a pinch of citric acid and heat to 160°. After 15 minutes or so the sugar turns from clear to pale yellow. Another half hour or so it is a deep amber. Heat to 300° (hard crack), pour out, cool and crack. 3 lbs of Belgian candi sugar. For about $2.
Why do Belgian-style beers often contain Belgian candi sugar, you ask? Belgian candi sugar raises the gravity, and thus the alcohol, of the beer without adding a lot of body. If you take a Belgian strong and an Imperial Stout, they might have the same ABV%, but the stout will be much thicker.
On to the beer geek stuff:
Von Bora Belgian Strong Ale (my lord Katie)
6:48 Water heated
7:05 Water @ 155°. 1 lb Belgian biscuit malt, 1/2 lb British chocolate malt and 1 lb CaraMunich malt steeped.
7:35 Grains sparged with 1/2 gallon hot water
8:00 12 lbs Pilsen LME and 3 lb Belgian candi sugar added
8:36 Boil started, 1 oz Northern Brewer hops added
Somewhere in here Ryan B shows up
9:06 1 oz Hallertauer and 1 oz Styrian Golding hops added
9:21 1 tsp irish moss and 1 tsp yeast nutrient added
9:31 1 tsp Ground coriander seed added
9:36 flameout
At this point we would normally use the wort chiller to cool the wort down to a pitching temperature, however, since this is a side batch, we are using our new plastic fermenter tub. Which is skinnier. As in it is skinny enough that the wort chiller won't fit into it. So, we take the bucket and place it in the sink surrounded by cold water and a bag of ice. An hour and a half later we're still not close to a pitchable temperature, so I leave the bucket (covered) in the sink and pitch the yeast the next morning.
6:20 Yeast pitched @ 72 °
O.G. = 1.130. That's right, this baby's gonna be around 13%.
Quad post, part 1: Intruder
posted by Jon
Last week Friday Ryan and Amy dropped in for some brewing. Our November beer is the Intruder Imperial Stout. It will probably end up being aged with vanilla in the secondary, so technically it would be Vanilla Intruder. We had a fine selection of beer to go along with the brewing process. We enjoyed a couple of homebrews, Bell's Hell Hath No Fury, Third Coast Old Ale and Expedition Stout as well as Founder's Backwoods Bastard. Due to the fact that all of these are over 10% ABV we don't have a ton of pictures. Also, my memory is a bit fuzzy.
For the beer geeks:
7:00 Water heated
7:55 Water at 155°. 1/2 lb black patent malt, 1 lb British chocolate malt, 1/2 lb crystal 120L° malt, 1 lb roasted barley and 2 lb flaked oats steeped.
8:25 1/2 gallon sparge
9:00 9.3 lb light LME added
9:12 boil started, 1 oz Nugget hops added
9:26 3 oz Willamette hops added
9:42 2 oz Willamette hops added
9:57 4 oz coffee, 2 squares baker's chocolate, 1 tsp irish moss and 1 tsp yeast nutrient added
10:12 heat off, 2 oz Willamette added
10:43 yeast (WL001 2nd gen starter) pitched @ 80°
O.G. was about 1.078
By the next morning the airlock was already bubbling like crazy, which made me happy since this yeast had been in the fridge for about 6 months.
Last week Friday Ryan and Amy dropped in for some brewing. Our November beer is the Intruder Imperial Stout. It will probably end up being aged with vanilla in the secondary, so technically it would be Vanilla Intruder. We had a fine selection of beer to go along with the brewing process. We enjoyed a couple of homebrews, Bell's Hell Hath No Fury, Third Coast Old Ale and Expedition Stout as well as Founder's Backwoods Bastard. Due to the fact that all of these are over 10% ABV we don't have a ton of pictures. Also, my memory is a bit fuzzy.
For the beer geeks:
7:00 Water heated
7:55 Water at 155°. 1/2 lb black patent malt, 1 lb British chocolate malt, 1/2 lb crystal 120L° malt, 1 lb roasted barley and 2 lb flaked oats steeped.
8:25 1/2 gallon sparge
9:00 9.3 lb light LME added
9:12 boil started, 1 oz Nugget hops added
9:26 3 oz Willamette hops added
9:42 2 oz Willamette hops added
9:57 4 oz coffee, 2 squares baker's chocolate, 1 tsp irish moss and 1 tsp yeast nutrient added
10:12 heat off, 2 oz Willamette added
10:43 yeast (WL001 2nd gen starter) pitched @ 80°
O.G. was about 1.078
By the next morning the airlock was already bubbling like crazy, which made me happy since this yeast had been in the fridge for about 6 months.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Early November Update
posted by Jon
Well, at this point in the month I was expecting to update you all to tell you that the cider is bottled and the Imperial Pumpkin was ready to transfer to the secondary. Instead I'm telling you that the cider is still bubbling away in the primary and the Imperial Pumpkin is going to be bottled today. Apparently the yeast that we used for the Pumpkin (White Labs English Ale WLP002) is a vigorous little bugger that finishes off a beer in a matter of days. The latest gravity reading on the Pumpkin was 1.022, so we're almost at 7% ABV.
Sinister (our Black IPA) should be ready for drinking in the next week or so. You will all be getting your first sixer then. Also, the cider will be bottled in the next week, so look forward to that as well. A reminder that the cider is $6 for a six-pack for those who want it.
The next brewing day is also this upcoming week. The Aukeman family will be joining us this time as we will be brewing Intruder Imperial Stout.
Well, at this point in the month I was expecting to update you all to tell you that the cider is bottled and the Imperial Pumpkin was ready to transfer to the secondary. Instead I'm telling you that the cider is still bubbling away in the primary and the Imperial Pumpkin is going to be bottled today. Apparently the yeast that we used for the Pumpkin (White Labs English Ale WLP002) is a vigorous little bugger that finishes off a beer in a matter of days. The latest gravity reading on the Pumpkin was 1.022, so we're almost at 7% ABV.
Sinister (our Black IPA) should be ready for drinking in the next week or so. You will all be getting your first sixer then. Also, the cider will be bottled in the next week, so look forward to that as well. A reminder that the cider is $6 for a six-pack for those who want it.
The next brewing day is also this upcoming week. The Aukeman family will be joining us this time as we will be brewing Intruder Imperial Stout.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Imperial Pumpkin Ale
posted by Jon
Despite the worst storm in Great Lakes history (based on air pressure) we decided to forge ahead and continue with our scheduled brewing night.
The brewing of the October batch was attended by Jon, Ryan, Jeff and Kevin.
On Monday afternoon I did a starter and pitched our yeast (WhiteLabs English Ale Yeast WLP002) and had some good bubbling by Tuesday. Tuesday afternoon I roasted a couple of pumpkins for 2 1/2 hours at 275°. I then scooped out the meat. I figure we had about 4 lbs of pumpkin to work with.
Time line:
7:20 2 gal water started
7:40 Water at 155, started steeping grains (4 lb Crystal 10°L) and pumpkin (in a grain bag)
8:10 Grains sparged with 1/2 gal hot water
8:20 9.3 lbs light LME added
8:50 Rolling boil. Pumpkin removed and 1 oz Magnum hops added
9:20 1/2 lb lactose added
9:35 1 oz Sterling hops, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp cloves, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 vanilla bean (sliced and cut into eighths), 2 tsp irish moss and 1 tsp yeast nutrient added
9:50 Flameout
10:00 Chilling wort
10:35 Yeast pitched @ 77°
The gravity was 1.070. We were hoping for around 1.080. This should end up at around 7% ABV.
This is the first batch of beer that we've ever added lactose. Those of you who remember your high school science no doubt remember that lactose is a type of sugar, commonly found in milk. The difference between lactose and other sugars is that lactose will not ferment. Any other sugars, whether is is regular old table sugar or the sugars we get from the malted barley will ferment when yeast is added. The lactose stays as lactose, which means that once the beer is finished, it will provide sweetness, rather than alcohol.
As usual, there were some tasty beverages consumed.
Some of us also consumed some not so tasty foods, such as pumpkin that has been simmering for an hour.
Next up is November's brew, Breakfast stout. We will be brewing in a few weeks. More details later.
Despite the worst storm in Great Lakes history (based on air pressure) we decided to forge ahead and continue with our scheduled brewing night.
The brewing of the October batch was attended by Jon, Ryan, Jeff and Kevin.
On Monday afternoon I did a starter and pitched our yeast (WhiteLabs English Ale Yeast WLP002) and had some good bubbling by Tuesday. Tuesday afternoon I roasted a couple of pumpkins for 2 1/2 hours at 275°. I then scooped out the meat. I figure we had about 4 lbs of pumpkin to work with.
Time line:
7:20 2 gal water started
7:40 Water at 155, started steeping grains (4 lb Crystal 10°L) and pumpkin (in a grain bag)
8:10 Grains sparged with 1/2 gal hot water
8:20 9.3 lbs light LME added
8:50 Rolling boil. Pumpkin removed and 1 oz Magnum hops added
9:20 1/2 lb lactose added
9:35 1 oz Sterling hops, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp cloves, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 vanilla bean (sliced and cut into eighths), 2 tsp irish moss and 1 tsp yeast nutrient added
9:50 Flameout
10:00 Chilling wort
10:35 Yeast pitched @ 77°
The gravity was 1.070. We were hoping for around 1.080. This should end up at around 7% ABV.
This is the first batch of beer that we've ever added lactose. Those of you who remember your high school science no doubt remember that lactose is a type of sugar, commonly found in milk. The difference between lactose and other sugars is that lactose will not ferment. Any other sugars, whether is is regular old table sugar or the sugars we get from the malted barley will ferment when yeast is added. The lactose stays as lactose, which means that once the beer is finished, it will provide sweetness, rather than alcohol.
As usual, there were some tasty beverages consumed.
Some of us also consumed some not so tasty foods, such as pumpkin that has been simmering for an hour.
Next up is November's brew, Breakfast stout. We will be brewing in a few weeks. More details later.
Friday, October 22, 2010
The House Cider Rules!
posted by Jon
We've decided that in honor of autumn in Michigan, we will be doing a hard cider.
"Now wait," you say, "I'm not paying $10.00 a month for some wussy drink like hard cider. I'm paying for BEER!"
You're right. You're not paying for $10.00 a month for hard cider. This will be done in addition to our normal monthly beer. Once the cider is done we will be selling 6-packs for $6.00 each (limit one). It should be drinkable around Christmas. You may choose whether or not to buy any at that point.
And yes, my apologies to John Irving.
We've decided that in honor of autumn in Michigan, we will be doing a hard cider.
"Now wait," you say, "I'm not paying $10.00 a month for some wussy drink like hard cider. I'm paying for BEER!"
You're right. You're not paying for $10.00 a month for hard cider. This will be done in addition to our normal monthly beer. Once the cider is done we will be selling 6-packs for $6.00 each (limit one). It should be drinkable around Christmas. You may choose whether or not to buy any at that point.
And yes, my apologies to John Irving.
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