I am progressing but to where?

[fizz head1982]

Hi, In the run up to crimbo, (the official word is still banned till the 1st of dec: see Callum Scotts campaign) I have been brewing like a mad man.

I have made:

Previously a faux-lager
An ESB
A lager
A slightly different ESB
An IPA
Some cocked up mead that ended up being 20 litres instead of 8 litres... :cry: :party:

All since I become a member of this forum. :


Now apart from being at a unique point (that I have brew more that is ready than probably ever will happen again) I am at a good point to address my tastes and and my beers, ingredients and my procedures. To fine tune and fix some methods with a greater understanding of what i am doing what is the effect.

So I will be asking for some pretty specific advice here and I hope, once again, you can help! :ugeek:


I dont know if I can word this thread properly so please bare with me. I suppose you need to see the ingredients for all of these.


The faux-lager:

Recipe taken from Aleman in Black pool

Try for 25 Litres

4000g British Lager Malt
1000g flaked rice or 1kg white sugar

Mash for 90 minutes at 65C using low alkalinity water

The boil for 90 minutes with

25g Northern Brewer (7.6% alpha for 90 minutes) Exchanging for Challeger Hops
15g Tettnang 4.5% for the last 15 minutes Exchanging for goldings 12g plugs
15g Mittlefruh at switch off just not bothering

The real key here is to pitch lots of yeast (2 or 3 packets) adn ferment cool If you go with W34/70 or S23 try to keep the temperature below 15C. another alternative is to use Nottingham and ferment at 17-18C (A good neutral ale yeast fermented at its cool end will be much cleaner than a lager yeast fermented at the same temperature) .. .but you need to minimise any flavour contribution from te yeast so even when pitching Nottingham pitch 2 or 3 packets.

Anther alternative, is to not use flaked rice just the 4Kg of lager malt, and use 1Kg of white sugar in the boiler (add it half way through the boil)

Next time use 500g not 1000!

=====

Began lagering at 8 degree C 30/09/2013

Tasting notes, very plesant. No strong tastes. Better in the keg than the bottle although the bottle aint bad.

The first ESB

Dream Ale

For 23 litres:

5kg pale malt
200g Caramalt
200g Wheat

66 degrees C for 90 mins and fly sparged.

Boil for 60 mins

Goldings:

40g - 60 min boil
20g - 30 min boil
20g - 20 min boil
20g - 10 min boil


So a 60 minute boil total adding the hops at the specified times from the end of the boil (eg 15 min boil = 15 mins from the end)

Goldings fresh plugs tea bag in FV.

Yeast M07 "British Ale" Craft Series. Which failed and I used wilco's ale yeast instead.


Started 12oct2013

Start gravity
Final gravity 1012

Lager:

Lager BATCH2

23 Litres

4000g British Lager Malt
500g white sugar

Mash for 90 minutes at 66C using low alkalinity water

The boil for 90 minutes with

90 mins Challeger Hops 40g
60 minutes Exchanging for 20g challenger hopps
12g saaz plugs at switch off

The real key here is to pitch lots of yeast (2 or 3 packets) adn ferment cool If you go with W34/70 or S23 try to keep the temperature below 15C. another alternative is to use Nottingham and ferment at 17-18C (A good neutral ale yeast fermented at its cool end will be much cleaner than a lager yeast fermented at the same temperature) .. .but you need to minimise any flavour contribution from te yeast so even when pitching Nottingham pitch 2 or 3 packets.

Anther alternative, is to not use flaked rice just the 4Kg of lager malt, and use 1Kg of white sugar in the boiler (add it half way through the boil)

LAGERING

Using Nottingham yeast . . . Ok it's a neutral ale yeast and fermented cool at 16-18C it will make a lager like beer.

Process FOR LAGERS should be

Ferment at normal ferment temp 9-12C for lager yeast (16-18C for 'lager like' beers) for 10-14 days

Raise temp to 18C (lager yeasts) or 20C ale yeasts for 2 days.

Crash cool. Rack into lager vessel and lager at 0-2C for lagering period (2 weeks to 3 months depending on yeast and process . . . oh and patience Very Happy)

Keg . . . carbonate and drink


FERMENT - REST - LAGER - CRASHCOOL!

Started 18oct2013

SG 1055 - temp calculated.

FG1 1008 4/11/2013
FG2 1008 05/11/2013

2nd ESB

Dream Ale 2

For 23 litres:

5kg pale malt
400g white sugar
300g caramalt
300g wheat

66 degrees C for 90 mins and fly sparged.

Boil for 60 mins

Goldings:

40g - 60 min boil
20g - 30 min boil
20g - 20 min boil
20g - 10 min boil


So a 60 minute boil total adding the hops at the specified times from the end of the boil (eg 15 min boil = 15 mins from the end)

Goldings fresh plugs tea bag in FV.

Yeast M79 "Burton Union" Craft Series.
Started 26oct2013???

Start gravity
1022 05/11/2013 - might be stuck, added wilco ale yeast.
Final gravity

IPA

IPA

Started 1 Nov 2013

5kg Pale malt
400g white sugar
90mins 100g challenger
30mins 17g fuggles
20mins 17g fuggles
0mins 17g fuggles

Mash 90 at 66 but was more like 68
Boil 90 mins...

SG 1044
07/11/2013 1018
09/11/2013 1016
11/11/2013 1016

Yeast Workhorse M10

What I noticed with the faux-lager was this almost acid taste that built up over time in the the glass i presume. I am assuming this was the hop oil. It was a good lagerish pint.

The ESB, the dream ale, I am not a big bitter drinker however it was ok for a change. I have had quite a few of these now and I am starting to nail down the taste. Its quite strange and is felt on the front tip of the toungue the most. To me I think its some remnant of the golden syrup. I gave 2 to my old man and his bird and he thought it was fine (but he is anosmic (cant smell well) in his words, 2All I can smell is sh1t, petrol and creosote.) and the lady said it tasted "metalic". I agree something is strange.

My true lager. I have kegged this so it is ready first. Its really nice. I screwed up a bit syphoning it to the keg and got some trub in it. but there is merely the odd particle in there. Tastes great. However like my other lager the hop oil (?) builds up fast in the glass. The head is good but it collapses unlike usual commercial beer. It knda falls down like a big circus tent. Some here and some there. It really has some weird strength to it. Some of the foam sticks like **** to the glass and a rinse is required after 2 or 3.

My IPA to be fair aint ready yet but I did have the other day without realising just how green it is. I could really taste the potential. However i noticed this taste again much like the ESB. Although I thought it was quite dark in flavour like 1698 at the same time. I really only had one and it wasnt ready but I think its gonna be ok.

The other ESB should tell me somethings but it aint ready yet.

Could sparging too hard be the result in a strange taste? :hmm:

Sorry there is so much info and thanks to anyone who chips in. :thumb:

 

[jonewer]

Too much sparging washes out the tanins into the wort giving it an astringency. Not sure if thats what you're describing here though.

 

[jonnymorris]

Have you read John Palmer... http://www.howtobrew.com/section4/chapter21-2.html?

 

[fizz head1982]

No but I will have soon. :thumb: