Yesterday I brewed my 29th batch and first lager-style beer, a California Common which I've dubbed Proposition 29. I won't really count Helmut Kölsch as a lager, since it is kind of a hybrid yeast and it was rather warm-fermented.
The Recipe:
9 lb 2-row pale malt
8 oz crystal 60°L
6 AAU (13g @ 13% AA) Nugget @ 60
8 AAU (28g @ 8% AA) Northern Brewer @ 15
8 AAU (28g @ 8% AA) Northern Brewer @ 5
Whirlfloc tablet @ 15
Wyeast 2112 - California Lager
Mashed at 150° for an hour and a quarter using 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged using 180° water and collected 6.5 gallons for the boil.
O.G.: 1.050
Est. IBU: 44.9
This beer represents my first real attempt at temperature control during the fermenting stage. I would love to keep it in the 62-64° range at high kräusen; to accomplish this, I bought a $10 clear-plastic storage tub and placed my carboy inside it, then filled the tub with ice water. I will have to periodically re-ice the water to keep the temp down; it should be interesting to see how it works. Yesterday when I first filled it the temperature was about 59-60°; this morning it was up to 64°, so I re-iced again before leaving for work. I imagine this will have to be done every 12 hours or so.
Yesterday I also racked Employment Singel, which fermented very quickly and could probably just have been kegged, as most of the yeast had already flocculated out. Unfortunately, I also kegged Cherry Brevity and had no free kegs left for Employment. I guess this week I will have to drink a lot of homebrew to get my keg situation in order. Good lord ... do I already need another keg fridge?
Employment is tasting interesting; quite biscuity and nutty, and not super Belgiany. I shall have to see if a little conditioning helps it along, but I fear that fermentation was too quick to develop all those good flavors characteristic of the style. Cherry Brevity is also interesting; so long in the secondary cleared it right up, so it doesn't look like a cloudy witbier. It is bright red, however, and the cherry added a very subtle, dry fruit character which I think works well.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Is Homebrewing Cost Effective: Redux
Well, it's been a year since my last calculations regarding the cost-effectiveness of homebrewing, so I think I'll re-run the numbers for my experience thus far.
Take Nugget IPA as an example: $26.10 or so in ingredients, which works out to 77¢/pint or about $1.04 for a 22oz bomber (most batches are in the 4.3 gallon neighborhood once all is said and done). This is a bit less than the $1.39 of a year ago, but I've saved money by using tap water and buying hops in bulk for the last year or so. Also, I worked out how much gas and water I use during a brewday -- about 8¢ of water and 25¢ of gas, which adds about a penny a pint to the whole works.
And what about capital goods? Well, because of new equipment (keg system, extra kegs, new mash tun, etc.), I'm up to about $1,000 worth of brewhouse stuff. This works out to about $35.71 per batch over my 28 batches, which is about $1.05 per pint or $1.42 per bomber. My average last year was $2.17/bomber, but I was predicting getting as low as 63¢; clearly, that didn't happen.
Still, that means that a glass of decent IPA is costing me $1.83 per pint or about $2.47 per bomber. A good IPA is at least $3.99 for a bomber, sometimes as high as $5.99 before getting into DIPA territory. That means that Nugget saves me a rough average of $2.52 per bomber, or about $63 per batch. Woot! Still savin' money!
Take Nugget IPA as an example: $26.10 or so in ingredients, which works out to 77¢/pint or about $1.04 for a 22oz bomber (most batches are in the 4.3 gallon neighborhood once all is said and done). This is a bit less than the $1.39 of a year ago, but I've saved money by using tap water and buying hops in bulk for the last year or so. Also, I worked out how much gas and water I use during a brewday -- about 8¢ of water and 25¢ of gas, which adds about a penny a pint to the whole works.
And what about capital goods? Well, because of new equipment (keg system, extra kegs, new mash tun, etc.), I'm up to about $1,000 worth of brewhouse stuff. This works out to about $35.71 per batch over my 28 batches, which is about $1.05 per pint or $1.42 per bomber. My average last year was $2.17/bomber, but I was predicting getting as low as 63¢; clearly, that didn't happen.
Still, that means that a glass of decent IPA is costing me $1.83 per pint or about $2.47 per bomber. A good IPA is at least $3.99 for a bomber, sometimes as high as $5.99 before getting into DIPA territory. That means that Nugget saves me a rough average of $2.52 per bomber, or about $63 per batch. Woot! Still savin' money!
Employment Singel
So, yesterday I brewed up my 28th batch: a Belgian pale ale/abbey singel that is based on a recipe out of Randy Mosher's Radical Brewing. I named it in honor of my wife's just having got a new job! Yay!
The Recipe:
6 lb European Pilsner malt
3 lb European pale ale malt
8 oz Belgian aromatic malt
6 AAU (13g @ 13% AA) Nugget @ 60
3 AAU (24g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 30
2 AAU (16g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 5
2 AAU (19g @ 3% AA) Hallertauer @ 5
Wyeast 1214 - Belgian Abbey
Mashed at 151° for an hour using 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged (needed 2 batches since I can't quite heat enough water to do it all in one batch after the mash) using 170° water.
O.G.: 1.050
Est. IBU: 36.7
Once again used the 10-gallon tun, although I discovered I had a broken hose clamp connecting the braid to the internal hose barb so I had to temporarily bridge the gap with a piece of plastic tubing. I really must get new hose clamps before brewing again. Other than that, this was an uneventful brewing session; reached 79% mash efficiency which is well within expected parameters.
Yesterday I also made a first pass at cleaning out the chest freezer I got. The vast majority of the nasty mold-or-whatever-it-is is gone, but I still want to bleach the inside to be sure. If I do that tonight, then I might even be able to get some beer carbonated for poker on Thursday! That would be nice.
The Recipe:
6 lb European Pilsner malt
3 lb European pale ale malt
8 oz Belgian aromatic malt
6 AAU (13g @ 13% AA) Nugget @ 60
3 AAU (24g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 30
2 AAU (16g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 5
2 AAU (19g @ 3% AA) Hallertauer @ 5
Wyeast 1214 - Belgian Abbey
Mashed at 151° for an hour using 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged (needed 2 batches since I can't quite heat enough water to do it all in one batch after the mash) using 170° water.
O.G.: 1.050
Est. IBU: 36.7
Once again used the 10-gallon tun, although I discovered I had a broken hose clamp connecting the braid to the internal hose barb so I had to temporarily bridge the gap with a piece of plastic tubing. I really must get new hose clamps before brewing again. Other than that, this was an uneventful brewing session; reached 79% mash efficiency which is well within expected parameters.
Yesterday I also made a first pass at cleaning out the chest freezer I got. The vast majority of the nasty mold-or-whatever-it-is is gone, but I still want to bleach the inside to be sure. If I do that tonight, then I might even be able to get some beer carbonated for poker on Thursday! That would be nice.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
A Freezer Odyssey
Through the generosity of Emily's grandparents, I now have a used chest freezer (generously transported from Tacoma by my mother-in-law) which I will be converting into a kegerator for my homebrew. It is kind of manky inside and will require some cleanup, but I am told it is otherwise functional.
The most important thing about this is that I will soon be able to properly carbonate my kegs of homebrew, which in turn means that I will be able to bottle and growlerize homebrew without it going flat. I look forward to being able to share my brew once again with friends and family. Really, isn't that what this is all about?
Oh, also, a Cherry Brevity update: all the cherries have floated to the top of the carboy and the liquor is starting to develop a rusty red hue. Capital!
The most important thing about this is that I will soon be able to properly carbonate my kegs of homebrew, which in turn means that I will be able to bottle and growlerize homebrew without it going flat. I look forward to being able to share my brew once again with friends and family. Really, isn't that what this is all about?
Oh, also, a Cherry Brevity update: all the cherries have floated to the top of the carboy and the liquor is starting to develop a rusty red hue. Capital!
Monday, September 13, 2010
Slow Month
September has been pretty slow, brewing-wise. I was able to eke out some time yesterday, however, to handle a few brewhouse tasks.
First, I kegged Pyatiletka Stout and Nugget IPA. I ended up leaving Nugget in the secondary on its dry hops for two weeks, and it has come out pretty interesting. Although the sample I had was flat, it shows some promise: hop aroma is funky and citrusy, and it's got a big hit of bitterness backing it up. It finished at 5.8%, and Pyatiletka clocks in at 8.1%, which, although lower than I had planned, still ain't bad.
Second, I racked Cherry Brevity onto its cherries. I ended up with 4lb 2oz of de-stemmed but not de-pitted cherries which I threw into the secondary before racking. The cherries are sweet red cherries which I bought in season and then froze for a couple of months. As of this morning, most of the cherries are still at the bottom of the carboy but some have floated to the top. Should be interesting!
First, I kegged Pyatiletka Stout and Nugget IPA. I ended up leaving Nugget in the secondary on its dry hops for two weeks, and it has come out pretty interesting. Although the sample I had was flat, it shows some promise: hop aroma is funky and citrusy, and it's got a big hit of bitterness backing it up. It finished at 5.8%, and Pyatiletka clocks in at 8.1%, which, although lower than I had planned, still ain't bad.
Second, I racked Cherry Brevity onto its cherries. I ended up with 4lb 2oz of de-stemmed but not de-pitted cherries which I threw into the secondary before racking. The cherries are sweet red cherries which I bought in season and then froze for a couple of months. As of this morning, most of the cherries are still at the bottom of the carboy but some have floated to the top. Should be interesting!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Cherry Brevity
On Saturday evening I brewed up Brevity Wit again; this time, however, I plan on racking it onto cherries in the secondary. I've got the cherries all ready, though I still haven't decided quite how much to use. I have a little more than two pounds; not sure if I'll use all of 'em.
The Recipe:
4 lb 2-row pale malt
4 lb wheat malt
1 lb flaked wheat
5 AAU (28g @ 5% AA) East Kent Goldings @ 60 min
1 oz ground coriander @ 2 min
Zest from 2 oranges (16g) @ 2 min
Rack onto cherries in secondary.
Wyeast 3944 - Belgian Witbier
Mashed at 152° for an hour using just shy of 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged (needed 2 batches since I can't quite heat enough water to do it all in one batch after the mash) using 170°-190° water.
O.G.: 1.048
Est. IBU: 16.8
I used the newly rebuilt 10-gallon mash tun and it worked like a champ. I'm glad to finally have that thing all sorted out. I rocked 80% efficiency this time, and I'm pretty happy with that. Pitched the yeast in the mid-to-high 60s. When I checked the temperature 24 hours after pitching (a pretty good kräusen was going), it was at 68°, so it's keeping a pretty good temperature.
Pretty much everything went uneventfully, though I got distracted and didn't aerate the wort quite as much as I normally do. The result of this appears to be a less vigorous fermentation; I should also mention, however, that even three or so hours after smacking, my Wyeast Activator packet was not anywhere near fully bloated. So, I might have had not-perfectly-viable yeast. I guess I'll just have to see how it turns out; it's fermenting now, so I don't think the effects will be too bad.
I also racked Nugget into the secondary on Saturday and introduced the dry hops. I think I'll leave them in there for a week and then keg. SG read 1.008 at racking, which makes it 5.8% ABV -- a pretty sweet spot for IPAs. It is just about as bitter as you can imagine.
The Recipe:
4 lb 2-row pale malt
4 lb wheat malt
1 lb flaked wheat
5 AAU (28g @ 5% AA) East Kent Goldings @ 60 min
1 oz ground coriander @ 2 min
Zest from 2 oranges (16g) @ 2 min
Rack onto cherries in secondary.
Wyeast 3944 - Belgian Witbier
Mashed at 152° for an hour using just shy of 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged (needed 2 batches since I can't quite heat enough water to do it all in one batch after the mash) using 170°-190° water.
O.G.: 1.048
Est. IBU: 16.8
I used the newly rebuilt 10-gallon mash tun and it worked like a champ. I'm glad to finally have that thing all sorted out. I rocked 80% efficiency this time, and I'm pretty happy with that. Pitched the yeast in the mid-to-high 60s. When I checked the temperature 24 hours after pitching (a pretty good kräusen was going), it was at 68°, so it's keeping a pretty good temperature.
Pretty much everything went uneventfully, though I got distracted and didn't aerate the wort quite as much as I normally do. The result of this appears to be a less vigorous fermentation; I should also mention, however, that even three or so hours after smacking, my Wyeast Activator packet was not anywhere near fully bloated. So, I might have had not-perfectly-viable yeast. I guess I'll just have to see how it turns out; it's fermenting now, so I don't think the effects will be too bad.
I also racked Nugget into the secondary on Saturday and introduced the dry hops. I think I'll leave them in there for a week and then keg. SG read 1.008 at racking, which makes it 5.8% ABV -- a pretty sweet spot for IPAs. It is just about as bitter as you can imagine.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Another Mash Tun Odyssey
Well, I was so proud of my new 10-gallon mash tun when I finished it up in May. Then, I was so disappointed when it got destroyed while making my first Russian Imperial Stout. Now, I think I have my problem solved.
I decided to go back to my big collection of brass and stainless valves, fittings, washers and whatnot to see whether I could cobble something together after all. I also went online and got a big ribbon of thin heat-resistant neoprene, which is water-impermeable and compresses to form a tight seal when squeezed.
So, there is a 5/8" OD pipe nipple that connects the inside and outside of the tun. This is run through the O-ring which came with the cooler, but that is not enough to actually prevent water getting through (because of some overzealous dremeling on my part). I cut small holes in the center of some 1.5" squares of the neoprene and stretched a few over the interior end of the pipe nipple, put a few washers up against them, attached my hose barb to the end of the nipple and then tightened the hell out of the whole assembly.
To test it, I filled the tun up with water and just let it sit there dripping into a measuring cup. After almost 6 hours, it had lost about 1/4 cup of liquid. 2 ounces in six hours is an acceptable loss rate for me, and the new assembly is much more robust than the old plastic-valve-and-stopper bit. Perhaps my next batch will be something big so I can use the new tun -- an imperial IPA maybe? That would also let me re-use the yeast from batch #26.
You know what? That's it! I will harvest the yeast from Nugget IPA (1332 - Northwest Ale) and then make a real Northwest Imperial IPA with a similar hopping schedule to #19 (though probably with added dry hopping).
I decided to go back to my big collection of brass and stainless valves, fittings, washers and whatnot to see whether I could cobble something together after all. I also went online and got a big ribbon of thin heat-resistant neoprene, which is water-impermeable and compresses to form a tight seal when squeezed.
So, there is a 5/8" OD pipe nipple that connects the inside and outside of the tun. This is run through the O-ring which came with the cooler, but that is not enough to actually prevent water getting through (because of some overzealous dremeling on my part). I cut small holes in the center of some 1.5" squares of the neoprene and stretched a few over the interior end of the pipe nipple, put a few washers up against them, attached my hose barb to the end of the nipple and then tightened the hell out of the whole assembly.
To test it, I filled the tun up with water and just let it sit there dripping into a measuring cup. After almost 6 hours, it had lost about 1/4 cup of liquid. 2 ounces in six hours is an acceptable loss rate for me, and the new assembly is much more robust than the old plastic-valve-and-stopper bit. Perhaps my next batch will be something big so I can use the new tun -- an imperial IPA maybe? That would also let me re-use the yeast from batch #26.
You know what? That's it! I will harvest the yeast from Nugget IPA (1332 - Northwest Ale) and then make a real Northwest Imperial IPA with a similar hopping schedule to #19 (though probably with added dry hopping).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)