My first ginger Belgian turned out so well that my wife demanded that I make another!
Brew Day: 18 Apr 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb golden light DME
8 oz table sugar
~1 oz thinly-sliced ginger added to the last 10 min of the boil (in a hop bag)
Hops: 14 g German Perle (@ 20 min)
Yeast: BE-134
Addendum, 2 May: Transferred to secondary.
Addendum, 30 May: Bottled; got 9 good bottles and one partial re-purposed soda bottle.
Tasting Notes, 25 June: These notes aren't the result of the first taste, but more so the result of repeated statements made by my wife about how much she LOVES this beer! I really enjoy the beer as it's clearly a Belgian and the addition of the ginger really adds a nice flavor to it. I can really get a nice ginger "burn" at the end of the taste. My wife, on the other hand, likens this to the sah'ti that she likes, even though this beer has no juniper. ;-) However, the point is that she really, REALLY enjoys this beer, and that's really all that matters.
Thursday, April 18, 2019
Tuesday, April 2, 2019
African Queen IPA
Not long ago, I ran across African Queen hop pellets, and based on reported aroma/flavor profile, thought that it would not only be a good IPA to try, but also a good addition to my next left-over IPA!
Brew Day: 2 Apr 2019
Partial Mash:
6 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Golden Light DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
7 g African Queen (@ 20 min)
21 g African Queen (flameout)
14 g African Queen (dry hop)
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 16 Apr: Dry hopped
Addendum, 20 Apr: Bottled; got 9 good bottles.
Brew Day: 2 Apr 2019
Partial Mash:
6 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Golden Light DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
7 g African Queen (@ 20 min)
21 g African Queen (flameout)
14 g African Queen (dry hop)
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 16 Apr: Dry hopped
Addendum, 20 Apr: Bottled; got 9 good bottles.
Monday, April 1, 2019
Azacca Pale Ale
My wife recently had an Azacca Pale Ale at Fine Creek Brewing, and she really enjoyed it. I've used Azacca hops before, but in an IPA. It was really good, but I don't want something as hoppy and bitter as an IPA this time around. It turns out that NorthernBrewer has an Azacca Pale Ale kit, and I decided to use that, or at least the hop schedule, as the basis for my pale ale.
This will be the second hopped wort to be included in my next left-over IPA.
Brew Day: 1 Apr 2019
Partial Mash:
6 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Golden Light DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
4 g Azacca hops @ 20 min
12 g Azacca hops @ flameout
12 g Azacca hops, dry hop
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 16 Apr: Dry hopped.
Addendum, 20 Apr: Bottled; got 9 good bottles and 1 re-purposed 8 oz soda bottle.
Addendum, 4 June: It turned out that by the time this one was ready, I think Terri had maybe lost a bit of enthusiasm for the flavor. She describes it as "not one of my favorites". That's okay, I enjoy it just fine.
This will be the second hopped wort to be included in my next left-over IPA.
Brew Day: 1 Apr 2019
Partial Mash:
6 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Golden Light DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
4 g Azacca hops @ 20 min
12 g Azacca hops @ flameout
12 g Azacca hops, dry hop
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 16 Apr: Dry hopped.
Addendum, 20 Apr: Bottled; got 9 good bottles and 1 re-purposed 8 oz soda bottle.
Addendum, 4 June: It turned out that by the time this one was ready, I think Terri had maybe lost a bit of enthusiasm for the flavor. She describes it as "not one of my favorites". That's okay, I enjoy it just fine.
Sunday, March 24, 2019
No Name IPA
I picked up some T-58 yeast recently, and wanted to try it out on an IPA. I've found with BE-134 that letting it set for a month really brings out the flavors, so I'm going to let this one set for a bit to see how it does. I'm thinking that the hops I'm using will overwhelm any spiciness that reportedly would come from the yeast, but we'll see.
I decided to use a combination of experimental and 'regular' hops because the Huell Melon and U1/108 IPA turned out much better than just the U1/108 by itself.
Brew Day: 24 Mar 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
7 g Medusa, 7 g N1/69 - FWH
12 g Medusa, 15 g N1/69, 10g Citra - flameout, 10 min rest
6 g Medusa, 7 g N1/69, 4 g Citra - dry hop
Yeast: T-58
After filling the fermenter and pitching the yeast, I placed the rest of what was left in the brew kettle (hopped wort) into a sanitized bomber. This will become the first portion of another "left-over" IPA.
Addendum, 5 Apr: Dry hopped. Very hazy beer at this point, likely to be even more so after the dry hop.
Addendum, 8 Apr: Transferred to secondary.
Addendum, 17 Apr: Bottled tonight; got 8 good bottles, and 1 re-purposed 8 oz soda bottle.
Addendum, 4 June: I ended up labeling this one "3IPA", and recently got down to my last full bottle; all I have left at this point is an 8 oz soda bottle. This one turned out really well; it pours to a golden straw color with a pillowy head, and has excellent lacing throughout. I remember looking over at the glass as I neared the end of my last one, and thinking that it looked like I'd had a Bell's Two-Hearted. The flavor was fruit-forward with a bit of citrus sharpness at the end, and it didn't have much in the way of hoppy bitterness. Overall, it was an excellent beer.
I decided to use a combination of experimental and 'regular' hops because the Huell Melon and U1/108 IPA turned out much better than just the U1/108 by itself.
Brew Day: 24 Mar 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
7 g Medusa, 7 g N1/69 - FWH
12 g Medusa, 15 g N1/69, 10g Citra - flameout, 10 min rest
6 g Medusa, 7 g N1/69, 4 g Citra - dry hop
Yeast: T-58
After filling the fermenter and pitching the yeast, I placed the rest of what was left in the brew kettle (hopped wort) into a sanitized bomber. This will become the first portion of another "left-over" IPA.
Addendum, 5 Apr: Dry hopped. Very hazy beer at this point, likely to be even more so after the dry hop.
Addendum, 8 Apr: Transferred to secondary.
Addendum, 17 Apr: Bottled tonight; got 8 good bottles, and 1 re-purposed 8 oz soda bottle.
Addendum, 4 June: I ended up labeling this one "3IPA", and recently got down to my last full bottle; all I have left at this point is an 8 oz soda bottle. This one turned out really well; it pours to a golden straw color with a pillowy head, and has excellent lacing throughout. I remember looking over at the glass as I neared the end of my last one, and thinking that it looked like I'd had a Bell's Two-Hearted. The flavor was fruit-forward with a bit of citrus sharpness at the end, and it didn't have much in the way of hoppy bitterness. Overall, it was an excellent beer.
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
Leftover IPA
This year, I wanted to try something different. I do small, 1 gal batches, and many times, I have a some hopped wort left at the bottom of the brew kettle after I'm done transferring most of it to a fermenter and pitching the yeast. So what I'm doing is saving this hopped wort (depending upon the recipe, it may not be hopped...) in a sanitized growler, and once I have enough saved up, either add it to a beer (rather than doing a partial mash) or, if I save up a full gallon, then use that as the basis for a "leftover" beer.
At this point, I have about a full gallon of hopped wort left over from several brews (here, here, here, and here). All of the previous brews have used some (if not all) experimental hops and were brewed to be NE-style IPAs. I thought that this would be a great way to start, and the great thing is that I don't really need to add anything to this brew; all of the previous brews had been hopped via FWH, as well as having a steep at flameout. The most I need to do with this brew is boil it again, pitch the yeast, and do a dry hop.
The great thing is that I get to be creative about the beers I brew, save the leftovers from the boil, and be creative all over again, all the while being able to drink some great beer that I made. ;-)
Brew Day: 12 Feb 2019
Boil (20 min):
*Nothing added, just boiled for 20 min.
Hops: all of the hops used in the beer to this point are what was used in the original brew for each individual beer; so, a lot of experimental hops. I will likely dry hop the beer once it's had some time to ferment, but at this point, there will be no new additions of hops.
Yeast: BE-134 (in keeping with the idea of brewing with what I had left over...)
Addendum, 24 Feb: Dry hopped on 14g of Citra hops
Addendum, 28 Feb: Bottled; got 9 good ones out of it.
At this point, I have about a full gallon of hopped wort left over from several brews (here, here, here, and here). All of the previous brews have used some (if not all) experimental hops and were brewed to be NE-style IPAs. I thought that this would be a great way to start, and the great thing is that I don't really need to add anything to this brew; all of the previous brews had been hopped via FWH, as well as having a steep at flameout. The most I need to do with this brew is boil it again, pitch the yeast, and do a dry hop.
The great thing is that I get to be creative about the beers I brew, save the leftovers from the boil, and be creative all over again, all the while being able to drink some great beer that I made. ;-)
Brew Day: 12 Feb 2019
Boil (20 min):
*Nothing added, just boiled for 20 min.
Hops: all of the hops used in the beer to this point are what was used in the original brew for each individual beer; so, a lot of experimental hops. I will likely dry hop the beer once it's had some time to ferment, but at this point, there will be no new additions of hops.
Yeast: BE-134 (in keeping with the idea of brewing with what I had left over...)
Addendum, 24 Feb: Dry hopped on 14g of Citra hops
Addendum, 28 Feb: Bottled; got 9 good ones out of it.
XJA/436 IPA
I found another experimental hop at NorthernBrewer, this one called XJA/436. As with the other experimental hops, I wanted to try this one in a NE-style IPA first, and then try it in combination with other similar hops. This hop is said to impart berries...blueberries, gooseberries...so I wonder what it would be like with a little Brewer's Gold and Mosaic. We'll have to see how this one turns out, and then maybe continue with the experimentation.Brew Day: 12 Feb 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz 2-row
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
14 g XJA/436 hops (FWH)
1 oz (28 g) XJA/436 hops (10 min steep @ flameout)
14 g XJA/436 hops (dry hop)
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 24 Feb: Dry hopped.
Addendum, 28 Feb: Bottled, got 9 good ones out of it.
Saturday, January 26, 2019
Ginger Belgian
My wife enjoyed the ginger saison, and she enjoys the hopped Belgians, so I thought I'd try a ginger Belgian.
Brew Day: 26 Jan 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
6 oz table sugar
Hops: 14 g Styrian Goldings (@ 0 min)
Addition: 1 oz fresh, thin-sliced ginger, in a hop bag (@ 10 min)
Yeast: BE-134
Addendum, 5 Feb: Moved to secondary.
Addendum, 6 Mar: Bottled; got 9 good bottles out of it.
Addendum, 23 Mar: Tried one of these last night; Terri's reaction was that this is THE BEST one I've done so far! I don't usually pick up banana in hefeweizens; that's something Terri gets, but we both got aroma of banana from this one (yes, I know...it's not a hefe), and I got a little bit of sweetness in the flavor, as well. The sweetness was just a bit more than subtle, strong enough to overwhelm most of what would have come through from the ginger. I did pick up a little of the ginger on the back, but Terri's reaction was the key!
Brew Day: 26 Jan 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz Munich
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
6 oz table sugar
Hops: 14 g Styrian Goldings (@ 0 min)
Addition: 1 oz fresh, thin-sliced ginger, in a hop bag (@ 10 min)
Yeast: BE-134
Addendum, 5 Feb: Moved to secondary.
Addendum, 6 Mar: Bottled; got 9 good bottles out of it.
Addendum, 23 Mar: Tried one of these last night; Terri's reaction was that this is THE BEST one I've done so far! I don't usually pick up banana in hefeweizens; that's something Terri gets, but we both got aroma of banana from this one (yes, I know...it's not a hefe), and I got a little bit of sweetness in the flavor, as well. The sweetness was just a bit more than subtle, strong enough to overwhelm most of what would have come through from the ginger. I did pick up a little of the ginger on the back, but Terri's reaction was the key!
Friday, January 25, 2019
Melon and U1/108
I wanted to try something a little different, and get it fermenting. I had a bit of the U1/108 experimental hops left over, and decided to try it alongside Huell Melon hops, which I've used in the past and really like. The Melon hops can reveal flavors of melon and strawberries, so we'll how that does alongside the experimental hops.
Brew Day: 25 Jan 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz 2 row
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
7 g Huell Melon + 7 g U1/108 - FWH
14 g Huell Melon + 14 g U1/108 - flame-out, 10 min steep
7 g Huell Melon + 7 g U1/108 - dry hop
Yeast: US-05
After filling the fermenter and pitching the yeast, the hopped wort left in the brew kettle was poured into the growler that I'd used to store what was left over from a previous brew. That one was all U1/108 hops, so we'll see what comes of the final product when I collect enough leftovers to do boil a beer.
Addendum, 5 Feb: Dry-hopped.
Addenum, 10 Feb: Bottled today on 1 oz table sugar dissolved in 1/2 c boiling water. Got 9 good bottles out of it.
Brew Day: 25 Jan 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz 2 row
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
7 g Huell Melon + 7 g U1/108 - FWH
14 g Huell Melon + 14 g U1/108 - flame-out, 10 min steep
7 g Huell Melon + 7 g U1/108 - dry hop
Yeast: US-05
After filling the fermenter and pitching the yeast, the hopped wort left in the brew kettle was poured into the growler that I'd used to store what was left over from a previous brew. That one was all U1/108 hops, so we'll see what comes of the final product when I collect enough leftovers to do boil a beer.
Addendum, 5 Feb: Dry-hopped.
Addenum, 10 Feb: Bottled today on 1 oz table sugar dissolved in 1/2 c boiling water. Got 9 good bottles out of it.
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Something Else New
While researching new and experimental hops a while back, I ran across one called U1/108, which seemed quite interesting. This dual-purpose hop from South Africa is described as imparting aromas of "lychee, mango, guava, citrus, lemongrass, stone fruit, coconut". Okay, good enough for me! Being a huge fan of fruit-forward NE style IPAs, I had to try this one.
One note of caution, however. I ordered three 1 oz bags of this hops from the supplier, and two of the bags had opened in transit, so the shipping envelope arrived with a lot of loose hop pellets and debris inside the bag. To their credit, the supplier immediately comp'd me two new bags, but once those arrived, one of them was similarly opened. What I mean is that the seal at the lower part of the bag had separated; the bag hadn't ruptured, but it appeared that it had separated along where the two sides of the bag were heat-sealed together. This was an entirely new type of packaging, something that I hadn't seen before. I opted to not get a second reshipment, and the supplier comp'd me a gift card that was multiples of the value of the hops.
Brew Day: 13 Jan 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz 2-row
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
14 g U1/108 (FWH)
1 oz U1/108 (flameout)
14 g U1/108 (dry hop)
Yeast: US-05
After transferring the wort to a fermenter and pitching the yeast, I had about two cups of hopped wort left over, a good bit of hop sludge. I put that into a sanitized growler, and I'll keep collecting this as I brew various beers, until I get enough together to boil and pitch yeast into.
Addendum, 22 Jan: Dry hopped tonight.
Addendum, 27 Jan: Bottled today on 1 oz of table sugar dissolved in 1/2 c boiling water. Got 9 good bottles and one re-purposed 8.5 oz bottle out of it.
One note of caution, however. I ordered three 1 oz bags of this hops from the supplier, and two of the bags had opened in transit, so the shipping envelope arrived with a lot of loose hop pellets and debris inside the bag. To their credit, the supplier immediately comp'd me two new bags, but once those arrived, one of them was similarly opened. What I mean is that the seal at the lower part of the bag had separated; the bag hadn't ruptured, but it appeared that it had separated along where the two sides of the bag were heat-sealed together. This was an entirely new type of packaging, something that I hadn't seen before. I opted to not get a second reshipment, and the supplier comp'd me a gift card that was multiples of the value of the hops.
Brew Day: 13 Jan 2019
Partial Mash:
8 oz 2-row
2 oz flaked wheat
Boil (20 min):
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
14 g U1/108 (FWH)
1 oz U1/108 (flameout)
14 g U1/108 (dry hop)
Yeast: US-05
After transferring the wort to a fermenter and pitching the yeast, I had about two cups of hopped wort left over, a good bit of hop sludge. I put that into a sanitized growler, and I'll keep collecting this as I brew various beers, until I get enough together to boil and pitch yeast into.
Addendum, 22 Jan: Dry hopped tonight.
Addendum, 27 Jan: Bottled today on 1 oz of table sugar dissolved in 1/2 c boiling water. Got 9 good bottles and one re-purposed 8.5 oz bottle out of it.
Sunday, January 6, 2019
Fun IPA
I had about a quart of hopped wort left over from the N1/69 IPA that I brewed, and I didn't want it to go to waste. I had put it into a sanitized bomber and it's been in the fridge, just waiting to be used. I have some Mosaic, Medusa, and Citra hops still available, and I thought it would be a good opportunity to use up some ingredients and make a "fun" IPA. This is like making a left-over casserole for dinner, using up what you've got sitting around to make room for new stuff.
This may end up being a new "thing" for 2019...saving what's left in the brew kettle after the fermenter if full and the yeast has been pitched. I do end up with different amounts left; if I'm brewing a NE-style IPA, I tend to add a little more water initially because some tends to boil off, as well as be absorbed by the hopping that occurs at flameout.
When I brew a sour, I usually have at least one (maybe two) Gatorade bottle of wort left over after I rack the wort on to the StraightShots. I save that wort, and add it back to the brew kettle for the second boil; again, some boils off, some gets absorbed by the hops if I'm brewing an IPA, etc. Even then, I may still have a small amount of wort left over. What I will be doing in 2019 is collect these left-overs until I get to a point where I have enough left-overs to make an interesting brew.
Brew Day: 6 Jan 2019
Boil (20 min):
4 c. previously hopped wort
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
*whatever N1/69 hops is in the previously-hopped wort
7 g German Huell Melon + 7 g Brewer's Gold - FWH
14 g German Huell Melon + 14 g Brewer's Gold - 10 min steep, flameout
7 g German Huell Melon + 7 g Brewer's Gold - dry hop
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 20 Jan: Dry hopped beer this morning.
Addendum, 22 Jan: Bottled tonight, on 1 oz of table sugar dissolved in 1/2 c boiling water. Got 8 good bottles and one full re-purposed Mountain Dew bottle.
This may end up being a new "thing" for 2019...saving what's left in the brew kettle after the fermenter if full and the yeast has been pitched. I do end up with different amounts left; if I'm brewing a NE-style IPA, I tend to add a little more water initially because some tends to boil off, as well as be absorbed by the hopping that occurs at flameout.
When I brew a sour, I usually have at least one (maybe two) Gatorade bottle of wort left over after I rack the wort on to the StraightShots. I save that wort, and add it back to the brew kettle for the second boil; again, some boils off, some gets absorbed by the hops if I'm brewing an IPA, etc. Even then, I may still have a small amount of wort left over. What I will be doing in 2019 is collect these left-overs until I get to a point where I have enough left-overs to make an interesting brew.
Brew Day: 6 Jan 2019
Boil (20 min):
4 c. previously hopped wort
1 lb Pilsen DME
4 oz table sugar
Hops:
*whatever N1/69 hops is in the previously-hopped wort
7 g German Huell Melon + 7 g Brewer's Gold - FWH
14 g German Huell Melon + 14 g Brewer's Gold - 10 min steep, flameout
7 g German Huell Melon + 7 g Brewer's Gold - dry hop
Yeast: US-05
Addendum, 20 Jan: Dry hopped beer this morning.
Addendum, 22 Jan: Bottled tonight, on 1 oz of table sugar dissolved in 1/2 c boiling water. Got 8 good bottles and one full re-purposed Mountain Dew bottle.
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