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

[NVIOUS]

Brewing my red ale for the WBC comp

4.5kg pale malt
.5kg munich
.5kg carared
.25 dark crystal

Caramelisation of 5ltr down to 1ltr

40gm Styrian Goldings 4.4%aa 60 min
10gm Pacific gem 13.8%aa 60 min
35gm Styrian Goldings 4.4%aa 10min
10gm D-Sazz 6.7aa 10min

US-05 @ 18 degrees

Just a novice at this kind of stuff.
So all comments welcome. Good or bad! :-p

[Mike Neilson]

I have this Brew Pluged into do this Friday night but its looking like sundays the go for this one!! Its a new style I understand and have been salavating over it since I heard about it!!!!!!!

Belgian IPA............
Description:
Inspired by the American India Pale Ale (IPA) and Double IPA, more and more Belgian brewers are brewing hoppy pale colored ales for the US market (like Chouffe & Urthel), and there's been an increase of Belgian IPAs being brewed by American brewers. Generally, Belgian IPAs are considered too hoppy by Belgian beer drinkers.

Various malts are used, but the beers of the style are finished with Belgian yeast strains (bottle-conditioned) and the hops employed tend to be American. You'll generally find a cleaner bitterness vs. American styles, and a pronounced dry edge (very Belgian), often akin to an IPA crossed with a Belgian Tripel. Alcohol by volume is on the high side. Many examples are quite cloudy, and feature tight lacing, excellent retention, and fantastic billowy heads that mesmerize (thanks, in part, to the hops).


84% UK Pale Malt
5% Wheat
5% Munich
4% Caramunich II
2% Caramalt

67deg Mash

40 Ibu's of Nugget @ 60

30 of Each Simcoe, Centenial, Coloumbus Cascade @ 15

30 of each Simcoe, Centenial, Coloumbus Cascade @ 0

50g Dryhop of Simcoe, Centenial, Coloubus

1.080
95Ibus

S05 and when the beer has dropped 50-70% then Im going to cold crash it rack to a secondry let it rise slowly back to 18 deg and pitch a large Wyeast 3787 Trappist yeast.!!

What you fellas think?

[JoKing]

I think that this is on the cutting edge of brewing.

And that you should give me some / all of that Colombus.

I reckon it will be difficult to get the belgian yeast to kick into life on that fermentation schedule - there will be so much Chico in there already chomping away that it will out compete the belgian. My suggestion would be to make up a blend of Chico Slurry (so rehydrate the s-05) and the 3787 slurry so 70 / 30 or 60 / 40 weight for weight.

Then make this into a 2 Litre starter on you stirplate... and wait for it to finish before pitching (so that you can smell / taste the result before pitching)

[Stu McKinlay]

I tried a couple of these (check out Mikkeller and Struise) and although they are lauded by the crazy danes and swedes, they just didn't do it for me.

Prove me wrong... please... but something about belgian yeasts and loads of hop flavour is a mystery to almost everyone. I'm not convinced.

[Mike Neilson]

Im Hoping by cold crashing it would drop a large portion of the (SO5, Chicco) yeast out and adding the 2l starter with a extra litre added to it at high krausen so it ready's hungry and starts eating as fast as the S05 or , Hey and if it dosnt? I will still have an IPA? Or I could do what you say and try that? Its food for thought anyway I got abit of time up my sleeve!! like 2 days!!

I hope this turns out drinkable thats all I ask for, Im only trying to get the slightest of Belgian funk through it. As if I get Banana I will be gutted as I dont like oranges on my banana ice scream if you know what I mean!!

[JoKing]

I know that Green Flash Brewery is doing what you suggest for sure, so it obviously works - I'm just a bit mindful that in the homebrew environment it could be reasonably difficult.

What would work well, is if you fermented 15 Litres of the wort with S-05, 5 Litres with 3787 and then combining both worts into the same fermenter around 60 - 70% attenuation. Sort of like a blend.

You would no doubt have some belgian character in the brew.

[Mike Neilson]

that you be a start!! then I can see if I realy like that in IPA!! and if its not the case than I keep the IPA and bottle 5l of Belgian IPA

[Stu McKinlay]

Funny I was just thinking this as I opened up Firefox... it is worth a crack, and you can check out different varieties of the blend that works.

It is also worth looking at which Belgian yeasts may work well with this. I think Achouffe would be a possibility. It doesn't throw any banana at all from what I can tell. Chimay on the other hand... beware!

[Mike Neilson]

Yeah the Westmalle yeast is like the Chimay yeast. Achouffe is as you said probably suited for it but I aint got none!!! And my Starter has Started!! So im brewing something belgian!!

[Stu McKinlay]

Why not go for a tripel? You can still make it nice and bitter, and get in a bit of late/dry hopping with some styrian for that orange and sea spray character...

[Mike Neilson]

Yeah I do Want to brew one!!! but then I have to shopping at Karaka Bay again!! Trust me its not a bad thing!!!!

[Stu McKinlay]

Got hops now too. Will put them up in the next few days. Unfortunately US and English hops are looking like they'd be around the $20/100g mark... I'm waiting for prices. Might be time to start learing more about NZ hops!!!