What are you brewing?

[nzbrewer]

Since this is the most popular thread on the RealBeer.co.nz forum I thought I would start it here just to see what happens

[Reviled]

Eeeeeek!! Actually getting really excited about this weekends brew - first time in ages, and its cos I get to try a new american hop :oD BOOM!!!

 

So this is dialed in for the weekend, provided my order arrives, if not, will do it after work one day next week.

 

Bitsa American Pale Ale

 

OG - 1046

IBU - 46

 

2.5kg Golden Promise

600g Kolsch

600g Wheat

200g Cara Munich II

80g Cara Amber

80g Cara Aroma

30 - 15g Ahtanum 4.8%, 15g Centennial 9.2%

15 - 15g Ahtanum 4.8%, 15g Centennial 9.2%, 15g Amarillo 8.2%

Dry - 20g Ahtanum, 20g Centennial - maybe some Amarillo as well

US-05

[Richard Jack]

Ooooo new hops. Excited to hear how they are.

[Reviled]

Yeah ill keep you posted mate, have tried cent and amarillo before but looking forward to Ahtanum!! I scored some Warrior as well but that's a little brutal for this beer lol

[denimglen]

I've only used Ahtanum once before.  I found it to give quite a nice lychee fruity kinda flavour, pretty subtle hop overall, I hop your cent and amarillo don't over power it.

 

Stone brewing uses it in their pale ale and says it bridges the gap between and American hop and English, I found it pretty American but may be different harvest, different usage, different results.

 

I've currently got my standard bitter recipe going with some ahtanum in the whirlpool, maybe dry hopped too depending, and 1272.

 

And warrior is a great hop, I bitter almost everything with it.  Just make sure your scales are accurate, at 17%AA plus-minus one gram is a few ibus haha.

[Reviled]

Oooh youve got me thinking now mate, maybe I should brew my Amarillo ordinary, and then do a side by side with ahtanum? Ive always enjoyed Amarillo in English beers, so long as they arent too dark!

And yeh, only 1g scales, and I see what ur saying cos was having a play on beersmith yesterday and 1g was about 5 ibu haha, but thats ok, ive never been one to complain that a beer was too bitter :P

[denimglen]

Yeah it's not too bad, 5 IBU is about the taste threshold for difference anyway, but yeah, obviously you don't wanna be 5g out or something haha.

 

But I'd go all ahtanum, or use ahtanum at like 3:1 or something, it was kinda subtle when I used it last.

[denimglen]

RIStetyt

 

 

1.090ish, 80ish IBU, a shit-ton of SRM

 

43% Golden Promise

40% Weyermann Pale Ale

4.7% Dk Crystal

3.5% Pale Crystal

2.6% Brown Malt

2.6% Choc malt

1.7% Caramalt

1.3% Roast Barley

0.5% Med Crystal

 

67C Mash

 

Northern Brewer @ 60

 

1.5g/L NB + 1.5 g/L Chinook @ Whirlpool

 

1.2g/L of USO5.

[Stu H]

Shit yeah! How do you plan on fermenting/conditioning/packaging this bad boy? I'm just about to start delving into big beers (tomorrow infact is brew day!)

[denimglen]

My plans are to go with the flow haha.

 

But yeah, pencilled in is to pitch at about 19C, slowly raise to about 21 - 22 near end of fermentation.  It will stay in primary at least two weeks.  Secondary for at least a month probably more like two - or until a keg empties.  Then I'll 'sample' every now and then.  When it hits the spot I'll bottle from the keg.  Probably only bottle about half the keg and leave the rest on tap.  I did a barley wine last year that's starting to pick up a little autolysis character in the bottle so I'm going to avoid bottle conditioning this beer.

 

Whatcha got planned mate?

[Stu H]

Ah cool... Do you reckon you just didn't leave the Barleywine in secondary long enough before bottling? I've only just started kegging and am a bit afraid of the the whole keg-bottle thing (for no real reason). I think I'll just secondary this thing in a better bottle unless convinced otherwise.

 

But yeah today I'm planning on brewing this recipe from Brewing TV (a bit naff I know, but they're good for new people like me).

 

Wookie Barleywine

19-C American Barleywine

Size: Approx 20L
OG: 1.091
Ingredients:

9.07 kg Golden Promise Malt
0.45 kg Caramel Malt 60L
70.87 g Summit (17.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
56.7 g Centennial (10.0%) - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
56.7 g Centennial (10.0%) - added during boil, boiled 0.0 min

0.45 kg Honey - added to primary after 48 hours

Single infusion @ 65.

Will still add yeast nutriet/koppafloc etc etc.

Ferment out with 1272.

It looks like mega-low efficiency, but I'll only be using the first runnings, and doing a parti-gyle with the second runnings.

 

One thing is, I know for a fact that I won't be able to find Summit hops at Brewers Coop.... The hop comparison thingy reckons Simcoe is a likely substitute... Agree?

 

[denimglen]

Nah don't think so, it was a good 4 - 5 months in secondary, all the yeast dropped out, was fine going into the bottling bucket, I added some yeast back to carbonate.  I secondary'd mine in a better bottle but it was the smaller 20L ones.

 

Nothing wrong with BrewingTV mate, looks like a solid recipe.

 

Jo might have some Summit?  You're not going to get too much flavour/aroma from a 60m addition.  You just want something with a lowish cohumulone to give a smoother bitterness.  Simcoe would work, personally I'd go warrior, great hop, low cohumulone, high alpha - 17.2%.

 

That looks like about the same efficiency as mine, maybe better.  I'm estimating 59% on this beer haha, could do a partigyle but no room for it in the brew-drink schedule.

[Stu H]

That's stink about the Barleywine. Hmmm I wonder what the issue was? There's plenty of bottle-carbed barleywines out there right?

 

Haha I've got shit tons of room in the brew-drink schedule at the minute, I underestimated how much my bloody mates would drink my beer.

 

Great advice for the Warrior.  I really wanna brew today so I'll go with that.

 

Thanks again DG!