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

[David R]

Brewed this today, based on a recipe I found on here while searching for an 8wired Tall Poppy clone. Looks and smells good, but I missed the target gravity of 1.075 by seven points, 1.068, making my efficiency only around 61%. I'd like to improve the efficiency somehow, but I'm also wondering if I should dry hop it or just leave it as-is. There's a fairly generous one minute addition which should give it a heap of flavour, but...

Amber Ale, 12L batch 1.075 (1.068 actual), 1.023 FG, 56IBU, 15SRM.

3.5kg Pale Ale

290g Munich I

290g Pale Crystal

140g Dark Crystal

140g Caraamber

20g Chocolate

8g Simcoe @ 60min

18g Simcoe 18g Amarillo @ 10min

20g Simcoe, Amarillo and Columbus @ 0min

Did a 15 min protein rest at 55C, them mashed for 60min @ 67C. Cooled it to 18C and pitched a packet of rehydrated US05.

[Scarrfie]

David you can always taste it before you dry hop to see if is worth the extra investment :-) If you don't dry hop but it tastes great you can always brew it again.

Maybe cut your teeth with some smaller beers and iron out your systems before taking on the big ones. Have you done an iodine test to see if you are getting full conversion of starches? If you know that you can can eliminate the mash side and look to your sparge methods. Perhaps deal with those issues over on the newbie thread though.

[Scarrfie]

Brewing my house brown today with hopefully some refinements.

If I haven't forgotten something I have brewed along the way then my next brew will be my 50th 100% all grain. Any suggestions? Still wondering if I stick to my schedule of stout, brown ale, IPA & ESB or step outside to something exotic. Temps are almost down enough to throw down some lagers.

[jt]

I usually screw up when I try something too far outside the box. If it was me I'd do my favourite

[Scarrfie]

Lol, probably sound advice that I will follow. I think I will hold off until July to hit the lagers, so ESB or Brown Ale methinks.

[jt]

Sort of special brew this morning, maybe a celebration of North Welly brew supplies.

Firstly a couple of upgrades to the pots, pans and cobbled together six years ago for my first allgrain.
Upgraded to a 35 litre pot and got some brass123 copper bent up by Banksy.

Bairds Pale and '05 from Aidan up the road at Baylands

94% Bairds Pale
6% Caramalt
Pacific Jade to bitter then a combo of Sauvin, Pacifica and Motueka at 20 10 and 1
1046 and 46 BU with the '05

Pretty much a repeat of the last pale, just the increase in gravity

Everything worked well and tastes good!

[Grant R Baker]

A complete F'up at the moment.

 

I thought I would try out something new... resulting in a grain grinder that would not grind.  1.5 hours of pissing about finally got my grains crushed.

Run over my finger with the grinder... nothing serious.

Leak on my kettle ball valve.

Burn the arm on the kettle trying to fix the leak.

and I forgot to compensate for the 6C temp todays with the Mash. Lots of running from the stove with extra boiling water... what fun.

 

good thing it is nothing too important..... like a competition beer.  Only the sparge and boil to go... what could go wrong.?

BTW I don't normally drink when brewing... F and F again, that.

[Damon Colbert]

Yikes.  Shocker of a day.  Makes my bricked sparge seem like a trivial kerfuffle.  I try to reassure myself those days are a lesson in brewing.  It never makes me feel any better :)

[Chris P]

I had similar the other day. I was doing a 10 minute Zythos IPA and took an extra 7.5 liters of hot water to hit 66 and post sparge I went to ramp up for the boil and ran out of gas... I had ditched some beer to try and get a boil going so topped up with water when I got back and then had to chuck in some dex to get points back! 

At least it seems to be bubbling away with a pack of the US05 and another of the new Mangrove Jacks to try and rip through it...

Also at least I didn't mash too high like I did with the previous brew... Hopefully FAIL Beer makes good beer!

[Grant R Baker]

At least I landed the OG just a couple of points higher than target... not too bad in the end.

.. and the new wort immersion chiller I built worked a treat.. so a couple of positives. All and all the brew took me 3 hours longer than normal....

 

Funny thing is some of my 'cockup' brews end up tasting so damn fine... so here is hoping.

[Chris P]

Yeah I am also hoping for that. I was aiming for 1.057 to start with and then part way through it was only 1.052 so dex got it to 1.062. With all the hops (160g @ 10 mins and 40@ whirlpool) it should taste pretty nice I am hoping!

 

I hope this turns into a pleasant surprise as mine was about 2 hours extra. As they say: At best you make beer and at worst you make beer. Can't really go wrong with that...

[Richard Jack]

Berlinerweiss :)

40L batch, OG 1.03

3.35 kg pils malt
2.4 kg wheat malt

Decoction mash (protein rest & light body saccarification)

15 minute boil with 4 IBU of tettnanger (I know I know but I'm not brave enough to do a no-boil). 

Wyeast Lacto in the fermenter, followed by Nottingham. I'll split into two secondary fermenters, I'll leave one straight and I'm considering fruiting one (a la watermelon warhead).

Should be a quick brew...