English Mild

This is an attempt at mimicking a really delicious cask-conditioned English mild I had on a trip to the Twin Cities last January.  I'm going to try to keep the carbonation low, rather than truly doing this cask-style.  This is my first brew since my daughter was born, and it really felt good.  I'm going to try to make this a more regular practice.  Surprisingly, this batch wasn't that bad, taking only around 6 hours from dough in to cleanup.

New Centurian

Mild

Type: All Grain	Date: 2/18/2013
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal	Brewer: Cody
Boil Size: 5.18 gal	Asst Brewer:
Boil Time: 60 min	Equipment: CBH Brewhouse
End of Boil Volume 4.68 gal	Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Final Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal	Est Mash Efficiency 78.5 %
Fermentation: Ale, Single Stage	Taste Rating(out of 50): 30.0
Taste Notes:
Ingredients
Ingredients Amt Name Type # %/IBU 6 lbs Maris Otter (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 1 61.5 % 1 lbs 8.0 oz Caramel Malt - 60L (Briess) (60.0 SRM) Grain 2 15.4 % 1 lbs Caramel Malt - 20L (Briess) (20.0 SRM) Grain 3 10.3 % 1 lbs White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM) Grain 4 10.3 % 4.0 oz Chocolate Wheat (Weyermann) (415.0 SRM) Grain 5 2.6 % 0.50 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 40.0 min Hop 6 7.6 IBUs 0.50 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] - Boil 20.0 min Hop 7 3.4 IBUs 0.28 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 8 - 0.28 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Boil 10.0 mins) Other 9 - 1.0 pkg English Ale (White Labs #WLP002) [35.49 ml] Yeast 10 -
Beer Profile
Est Original Gravity: 1.047 SG	Measured Original Gravity: ----
Est Final Gravity: 1.014 SG	Measured Final Gravity: ----
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.3 %	Actual Alcohol by Vol: ----
Bitterness: 11.0 IBUs	Calories: 151.6 kcal/12oz
Est Color: 18.7 SRM
Mash Profile
Mash Name: Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge	Total Grain Weight: 9 lbs 12.0 oz
Sparge Water: 3.30 gal	Grain Temperature: 72.0 F
Sparge Temperature: 168.0 F	Tun Temperature: 72.0 F
Adjust Temp for Equipment: TRUE	Mash PH: 5.20
Mash Steps Name Description Step Temperature Step Time Mash In Add 13.19 qt of water at 167.1 F 152.0 F 60 min
Sparge Step: Batch sparge with 2 steps (Drain mash tun, , 3.30gal) of 168.0 F water
Mash Notes: Simple single infusion mash for use with most modern well modified grains (about 95% of the time).
Carbonation and Storage
Carbonation Type: Keg	Volumes of CO2: 1.8
Pressure/Weight: 3.34 PSI	Carbonation Used: Keg with 3.34 PSI
Keg/Bottling Temperature: 38.0 F	Age for: 14.00 days
Fermentation: Ale, Single Stage Pitch at 58°F, let free rise to 64°F ambient.	Storage Temperature: 70.0 F
Notes
No OG measurement.  Calculated at 1.047 from 3.5 gallons of 1.070 wort post-boil with 2 gallons water top up.
Created with BeerSmith

What's Left

I liked the last batch so much I decided that another was in order. We made this batch to share at a BBQ in early June, when a couple friends are returning to the area for a visit. Since I still have a bunch of the hops left over, I thought that I would make the same basic recipe using whatever hops were left and tweaking the mash a little to raise the FG.

Since I only had a certain amount of hops left, and I was going to use them all, I didn't really pay attention to exactly how much I added during each portion of the boil.  What's below is a guess.



What's Left Pale Ale

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (G):           5.25
 Total Grain (lb):         5.5*
Total Hops (g):          213
Original Gravity (OG):    1.050
Final Gravity (FG):       1.010
Alcohol by Volume (ABV):  5.5%
Colour (SRM):             8
Bitterness (IBU):         40?   (Rager)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 75%
Boil Time (Minutes):      60

Grain Bill
----------------
4.0 lbs Pale malt
12.0 oz Crystal 40
12.0 oz Munich Malt - 10L
*3.0 lbs Light DME

Hop Bill
----------------
15 g Centennial Leaf (10.8% Alpha) - FWH
14 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ 15 Minutes
14 g Cascade Leaf (9.1% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes
14 g Simcoe Leaf (11.9% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes
14 g Cascade Leaf (9.1% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes
14 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ 5 Minutes
10 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ 0 Minutes
10 g Simcoe Leaf (11.9% Alpha) @ 0 Minutes
20 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ Dry Hop 7 days
20 g Simcoe Leaf (11.9% Alpha) @ Dry Hop 7 days

Mash (in a bag)

----------------
154°F for 60 minutes (temperature dropped to 147°F by end of mash).

Fermentation

----------------
04/28/12
Brewday.  Forgot to add Wyeast yeast nutrient and Irish Moss. Collected 5.25 gallons of wort and pitched 11g packet of rehydrated US-05 ale yeast.  Fermented in better bottle in tupperware bin full of water at ~60°F covered with sanitized foil.  Controlled temperature in low 60s for three days, then removed from water bath and let free rise to room temp of 67°F.  I noticed activity within 8 or 10 hours after pitching, but the yeast never really took off aggressively like I've seen in the past.  I suppose this was because I was fermenting a little on the cooler side.  After three days I replaced the foil with an airlock, and I guess this was too soon, because when I woke up the next morning, the entire airlock was full of krausen.  So I removed and cleaned the S-lock and put the foil back in place until the active fermentation slowed more, which turned out to be after 6 days.

05/06/12
Added dry hops.  Swirled carboy lightly over next few days to attempt to hydrate and immerse the hops.

05/13/12
Moved carboy to fridge to cold crash yeast and hop material.  Everything dropped much better than with the prior batch..

05/17/12
Bottled with 75 g of dextrose and 40 g of sucrose.  Hoping to get around 2.5 volumes of CO2.  Also added 80 g of maltodextrine to boost the body a little, since that was the one thing we wanted to change with the last batch.  Should bump us up a couple points.  Used my new colona capper/corker for this.  It was really nice.

Simtra Pale Ale

For this brew, my goal was simple: I wanted to make something reminiscent of the amazing Hill Farmstead Edward PA.  Since I didn't have a recipe for this, but I did know the hops that they include, I decided to make my own version (and before you say it, I know I didn't use the same hops).  I used a fairly basic grain bill for this, which should serve to underscore the hops with a nice, clean backbone.  A little bit of Crystal and Munich malts for some character should add some interest.

This was my first time doing a first wort hop, and I have to say that I am extremely pleased with the results.  I definitely noticed the smoother, less harsh bitterness that this method imparts.  The blend of citrusy/fruity hops definitely made this beer smell like fruit candy.  While that may not be something I want to drink all the time, it is absolutely tasty.  One thing I would change for next time is to mash a little higher.  I think the body on this beer was a little light.  Maybe by bumping the mash temp up to 154°F, I can get it to finish around 1.014 or so, giving it that little bit extra.


Simtra Pale Ale

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (G):           5.25
Total Grain (lb):         5.5*
Total Hops (g):          213
Original Gravity (OG):    1.052
Final Gravity (FG):       1.010
Alcohol by Volume (ABV):  5.5%
Colour (SRM):             8
Bitterness (IBU):         47   (Rager)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 75%
Boil Time (Minutes):      60

Grain Bill
----------------
4.0 lbs Pale malt
12.0 oz Crystal 40
12.0 oz Munich Malt - 10L
*3.0 lbs Light DME

Hop Bill
----------------
14.2 g Centennial Leaf (10.8% Alpha) - FWH
14.2 g Cascade Leaf (9.1% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes
14.2 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ 10 Minutes
14.2 g Simcoe Leaf (11.9% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes
14.2 g Cascade Leaf (9.1% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes
14.2 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ 5 Minutes
14.2 g Cascade Leaf (9.1% Alpha) @ 0 Minutes
14.2 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ 0 Minutes
14.2 g Simcoe Leaf (11.9% Alpha) @ 0 Minutes
28.3 g Cascade Leaf (9.1% Alpha) @ Dry Hop 5 days
28.3 g Citra Leaf (13.7% Alpha)     @ Dry Hop 5 days
28.3 g Simcoe Leaf (11.9% Alpha) @ Dry Hop 5 days

Mash (in a bag)

----------------
152°F for 60 minutes.

Fermentation

----------------
02/20/12
Brewday.  Collected 5.25 gallons of wort and pitched 11g packet of rehydrated US-05 ale yeast.  Better bottle in tupperware bin full of water at ~67°F.  Added 1/2 tsp Wyeast yeast nutrient and a pinch of Irish Moss with 10 minutes left in the boil.

02/29/12
Added dry hops.  Swirled carboy frequently and fairly vigorously over next few days to attempt to hydrate and immerse this immense mound of hops!

03/05/12
Moved carboy to fridge to cold crash yeast and hop material.  Swirled every so often to help with settling.

03/07/12
Bottled with 116.9 g of corn sugar for ~2.5 vols of CO2.

Wild Brown

The motivation for this brew is simple: there is a friendly, Best of Show-style, homebrew competition at work.  I intend to win.  So rather than play it safe and make plain stout, or a pale ale, I'm going to risk it all and attempt to make a funky brown using brettanomyces claussenii in 4 months.  I based my recipe off of the Mad Fermentationist's Bourbon Barrel Oud Bruin.  I couldn't find Crystal 90, so I improvised, which should serve to add complexity to the flavor.  And I'm an idiot, and ordered Caramunich, instead of Dark Munich.

Oaked Wild Brown

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (G):           5.0
Total Grain (lb):         9.625
Total Hops (oz):          1.00
Original Gravity (OG):    1.076
Final Gravity (FG):       1.005
Alcohol by Volume (ABV):  9.3%
Colour (SRM):             20.3
Bitterness (IBU):         26.5   (Rager)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 95?
Boil Time (Minutes):      40

Grain Bill
----------------
4.000 lb Maris Otter Malt (43.82%)
3.500 lb Liquid Malt Extract - Amber (32.87%)
1 lb 5 oz Caramunich III (14.38%)
5 oz Melanoidin (3.43%)
3 oz Chocolate (2.06%)
3 oz Caramel 80 (2.06%)
1 oz Crystal 120 (0.69%)

Note the nice, rich brown krausen.

1 oz Crystal 77 (0.69%)

Hop Bill
----------------
1.00 oz Amarillo Leaf (8.2% Alpha) @ 40 Minutes (Boil) (0.2 oz/Gal)

Multi-Step Mash (in a bag)
----------------
108°F for 15 minutes.
130°F for 30 minutes.
148°F for 30 minutes.

Notes
----------------
Primary fermentation with Wyeast 3789PC - Trappist Blend
Pitched 1.8L starter of White Labs WLP645 Brettanomyces claussenii after 17 days.

Fermentation

----------------
11/05/11
Made 1.5L starter with ~1/3 cup LME and vial of White Labs WLP645 Brettanomyces claussenii.  Set on counter at ~60°F room temp.  Shook flask to aerate every time I walked by/thought about it.

11/09/11

Brew day.  Everything went really smoothly.  Hit pretty close to my temps.  Planned for 134/150°F.  Got the wort cooled down in an ice bath with intermittent stirring and transferred to carboy.  This was my first time using whole leaf hops; I have to say, I like them a lot better than pellets.  They are way easier to control.

Around midnight pitched Wyeast 3789PC - Trappist Blend at 64°F and placed in tupperware bin of water controlled at 75°F.  Covered mouth of carboy with sanitized aluminum foil.  Moved Brett. c. starter to water bath.

Gravity sample reads...1.077?!?!  Planned OG was 1.055.  Mash regime plus batch sparging clearly blew my efficiency way up.  Oh well.  The more I brew, the better things go.  Sample tasted amazing.  Nice subtle chocolate behind a full, thick biscuit/toasty backbone.  I am really excited for this one.

11/10/11
Added packet of foam control to carboy, for obvious reasons.  Fermentation not started.

11/11/11
0430 hrs: Left for vacation.  Noticed one finger of rich, thick brownish krausen on the surface of the wort.

11/16/11
1530 hrs: Returned from vacation.  Fermentation has slowed.  Success!  No explosions or foam-overs!  B. claussenii starter has a nice pellicle on the surface.

11/20/11
Added 2/3 cup of DME in 300mL water to starter to feed B. claussenii.  Replaced foil cover on carboy with 3 piece airlock (still has positive pressure).

11/24/11
Put starter in fridge to settle yeast out of solution in anticipation of pitching into carboy.

11/26/11
Removed starter from fridge and poured off liquid.  Swirled yeast into suspension and poured directly into carboy with beer.  Used sanitized wine thief to stir beer so that the B. claussenii would be thoroughly distributed, and withdrew a sample for gravity/taste testing.  Sample weighed in at 1.010, which is a little low for B. claussenii, as this is a lesser-attenuating strain.  Added ~1 cup of DME boiled in water to provide a little sustenance for these guys to have something to eat.

Starter sample tasted awesome!  (Surprisingly)  It was really light with fruity aromas and a very pleasant tartness that reminded me of fresh citrus fruits (kind of a combination of pineapple and lemon).  The sample of the brown that I pulled was pretty good.  It had a nice subdued ester profile from the Trappist yeast, with a light biscuit and chocolate flavor from the malts.  Unfortunately, there was a presence of something that wasn't quite right.  I believe it was probably due to the high efficiency of the mash.  I tasted just the slightest bitterness.  There was also a tartness present with the bitterness, but it's possible this was due to the various Brettanomyces spp. present in the yeast pitch.

01/11/12
Took gravity reading: 1.005. Sample tasted really nice.  What I may have been picking up as a slight tannic bitterness before seems to have subsided for the most part, and now I'm getting a nice clean flavor with a little bit of lactic tang.  I have to assume this is from the B. claussenii that I added, because there is also a hint of pineapple.  I'm also picking up on a nice barnyardy/earthy aroma from the other brettanomyces spp. in the Trappist blend.  However, the flavor is missing just a little bit of something to be amazing.  I'm thinking I want to add a bit of oak, and maybe a tiny bit of fruit, probably cherry.  Since I don't have much time before the contest, I think it's going to have to be a flavoring from a bottle, rather than real fruit, but I'll pull a sample to taste it and make sure that's the right way to go.

01/18/12
Added some heavy toast American Oak chips to the carboy.  I'm not quite sure how much it was, but if I had to guess, I'd say somewhere close to1.5 oz inside a nylon mesh hopping bag.  Checked gravity; stable at 1.005.

01/23/12
Pulled a sample to check the flavor addition from the oak.  Oh man, this was what it needed.  This is looking like the best beer I have ever made, seriously.  I picked up the cherry flavoring from the LHBS and as soon as I got it home, I knew that this wasn't going to work.  Ick.  It smells like fake cherry syrup for your snow cone.  Definitely not the way to go.  I think I am not going to add anything else.  I have a brand new keg coming today, and I am going to fill it up and have it ready to serve for next Friday's competition.  Results to follow.

01/26/12
Kegged using "closed" transfer under CO2 pressure in the carboy.  Hooked racking cane to tubing which connected to liquid out port of keg, while venting the gas in.  Set aside and put under 12 psi to carbonate, which should give me ~2.5 volumes of CO2 at 38°F.