Luckyeddie's AG #12 - Tripel Tipple

[luckyeddie]

OK, I have successfully harvested the Westmalle yeast and I'm just itching to use it - so tomorrow is BREWDAY (again). I'm amazed that it will already be my twelfth AG in not much more that 4 months.

So here we go... 20 litres planned. Most of the Belgian brews I've done so far have made extensive use of Hersbrucker and Saaz, but this time for a change I'm going to use the Amarillo / EKG combination I used for the 'Hopscotch' ale I did a few months ago.

Grainbill
3.000kg Pilsner Malt
2.000kg Belgian Pale Malt
1.000kg Candi Sugar, Clear
0.300kg Dingemans Belgian Biscuit Malt
0.300kg Oats, Flaked
0.260kg Wheat, Torrified

Hop Schedule
60 mins 25g Amarillo 8.4
30 mins 25g East Kent Goldings 7.2
15 mins 20g East Kent Goldings 7.2

Yeasties
Westmalle Yeast (Harvested)

Anything around 1080 OG, fermenting down to 1012 will give us a rather splendid 9% falling-over water.

 

[battwave]

Don't get me on the subject of belgian beers!

I had six bottles of assorted 2009 Trappist that I'd been bought as a christmas present and was saving for Christmas this year...... until on of our cats (don't know how) managed to knock the carefully packaged box off the shelf.

I now have four bottles!

 

[poguemahone87]

Don't get me on the subject of belgian beers!

I had six bottles of assorted 2009 Trappist that I'd been bought as a christmas present and was saving for Christmas this year...... until on of our cats (don't know how) managed to knock the carefully packaged box off the shelf.

I now have four bottles!

Brings a tear to my eye!

 

[battwave]

Don't get me on the subject of belgian beers!

I had six bottles of assorted 2009 Trappist that I'd been bought as a christmas present and was saving for Christmas this year...... until on of our cats (don't know how) managed to knock the carefully packaged box off the shelf.

I now have four bottles!

Brings a tear to my eye!

Bought a tear to the cat's derrière as well. Mrs Battwave adamant that they know what they do.

 

[luckyeddie]

Don't get me on the subject of belgian beers!

I had six bottles of assorted 2009 Trappist that I'd been bought as a christmas present and was saving for Christmas this year...... until on of our cats (don't know how) managed to knock the carefully packaged box off the shelf.

I now have four bottles!

Brings a tear to my eye!

Mine too. I have a fridge full of Belgian beers at the moment (some bought, some I have brewed), and I look upon them as though they are family.

You must be devastated.

 

[luckyeddie]

All done.

I sparged a bit too long and ended up with 23 litres plus the 2 litres of candi syrup in the boiler and another litre to liquor back if required, so I planned on doing a two hour boil down to volume. Unfortunately it got very black over Bill's Mother's so I ended up slinging the hops in to get it done before it started hissing it down (me no like water + electricity in the same area). I collected 22 litres at 1072 instead of 20 litres at 1080 as planned.

I can't say I'm bothered one way or the other. No piccies, no problems other than the blooming weather.

 

[Wez]

Still sounds like a good brewday :thumb:

Hopeit turns out well :thumb:

 

[battwave]

Don't get me on the subject of belgian beers!

I had six bottles of assorted 2009 Trappist that I'd been bought as a christmas present and was saving for Christmas this year...... until on of our cats (don't know how) managed to knock the carefully packaged box off the shelf.

I now have four bottles!

Brings a tear to my eye!

Mine too. I have a fridge full of Belgian beers at the moment (some bought, some I have brewed), and I look upon them as though they are family.

You must be devastated.

I've been in counselling for most of the weekend. Didn't stop today's brew-day though!

 

[luckyeddie]

Still sounds like a good brewday :thumb:

Hopeit turns out well :thumb:

Cheers, Wez.

Yeasties pitched a little under 6 hours ago - just starting to make their presence felt.

 

[luckyeddie]

The Belgian rocket-fuel which is Westmalle yeast has now reached third-stage separation and is coasting into orbit. The fermentation over the first four days was almost constant - I always add whisky to the airlock (easier to see with my poor eyes) and half of it has actually evaporated with the incessant bubbling.

It has now tailed off somewhat, but is still running along at a gloop every 7 or 8 seconds.

:party:

 

[luckyeddie]

Less than a fortnight, and it's tucked up in bottles already and sitting in the airing cupboard. The Westmalle yeast attenuated brilliantly - it came down to 1006 from the original 1072. Belgian yeasts are just aniimals.

8.7% - I'll drink to that. The taste is so much like Westmalle Tripel too - this one is going to be pretty good in a couple of months.

 

[luckyeddie]

"....pretty good in a couple of months" I said just over a week ago.

I opened one this afternoon whilst the boil was on for LE's AG#14. Remarkable. Conditioned really well already - decent head, nice constant bubbling and the taste - fantastic. It looks like Westmalle Tripel and it tastes very much like it. It was just a little warm - I had only put it in the fridge for half an hour. Clear as a bell too - it remains to be seen if there will be any chill haze at 8-10C.