Im going to be a Dad! Help me come up with some recipes to age!

So this week we found out that my wife is pregnant! This will be our first one, we have been trying for ~6 months. Were so excited, and already she is harping on me about making a big beer that we can pop open once she is able to drink again (I got a good SWMBO let me tell you!)

My ideal plan would be to come up with a recipe that I would brew each year around the boy/girl’s birthday, and then we would have a nice vertical tasting going each year to celebrate the special day. I have a nice cubby/closet in the basement that I would age/cellar the beers in. I figure I could bulk age in a carboy/corny for 10 months, then bottle to be ready for the B-day. So each year I would bottle the last years batch, then brew the current years batch.

We were thinking either a RIS or Barleywine, both of which she really enjoys, since the baby is due in early January. Thing is I’ve never brewed either, closest I came was a DIPA that ended up being to malty, so I pretended it was a Barleywine.

Does anyone have any good recipe or ideas, I have a bunch of bulk grains and hops on hand so I’d like to stay with what I have. Heres what I have on hand:

Grains- US 2 Row, German Pilsner, Maris Otter, Vienna, Munich, c10, c20, c60, Chocolate, Black patent, Carapils
Hops-Cascade, Magnum, Citra, Centennial, Simcoe, Crystal, Columbus, Sterling

Additionally we are thinking we might make some Mead to lay down for a longgg time, maybe crack it open only on our little one's special occasions.

Any help would be appreciated (with the beer or being a parent!)

I made a Belgium triple..... Aged it 8 months, wax one quart bottle to age 21 more years!

Pilsner (2 Row) Bel 14.000 lb
Cara-Pils/Dextrine 0.500 lb
Munich Malt 2.000 lb
Sugar, Table (Sucrose) 2.000 lb


Hallertau 2oz 60min
Styrian Goldings 1oz 30min
Saaz (Czech ) 1oz 3min


Wyeast - Trappist High Gravity

Dan

Congrats! Being a dad is the coolest thing in the whole world. Seriously.

You can make quite a variety of stuff with what you've listed - maybe browse through the recipe database to see if something piques your interest.

I did a "he barely whines" barley wine for my last child's birth. Mostly 2-Row and Maris Otter in the grain bill with some Vienna and Munich and CaraRed, too. Homegrown Chinook hops mostly on CA Ale yeast. Came out really good, although I doubt much will be left after he turns one, so then I'll have to call it the "barely one" barley wine...

Hows this look for a Barleywine... I'll have to plug into Beersmith later tonight to get gravity/color/IBUs/etc:

5.5 gallon batch

GRIST:
12 lbs 2 Row
4 lbs Munich
1 lb C60
.5 lbs Carapils

HOPS:
1.5 oz Columbus - 60 minute (or FWH)
1 oz Crystal - 15 minutes
1 oz Crystal - 5 minutes
1 oz Centennial - 5 minutes
1 oz Crystal -Dry Hop

Yeast - Have the option of US-05 slurry, US-04 slurry, Bell's slurry, or I'd have to buy something else. Im leaning towards US-04....

Okay, made a couple edits.... upped the gravity, color, and IBUs:

Tell me what ya think:

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: 00003 - Baby Day Barleywine
Brewer: Kevin
Asst Brewer:
Style: American Barleywine
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 6.92 gal
Estimated OG: 1.099 SG
Estimated Color: 18.6 SRM
Estimated IBU: 80.0 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
14.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 69.14 %
4.00 lb Munich Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 19.75 %
1.00 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) Grain 4.94 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 4.94 %
0.25 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 1.23 %
2.00 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.00 %] (60 min) (FHops 70.0 IBU
1.00 oz Crystal [3.50 %] (Dry Hop 3 days) Hops -
1.00 oz Crystal [3.50 %] (15 min) Hops 3.9 IBU
1.00 oz Crystal [3.50 %] (5 min) Hops 1.6 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] (5 min) Hops 4.5 IBU


Mash Schedule: KPR Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 20.25 lb
----------------------------
KPR Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Step Time Name Description Step Temp
60 min Mash In Add 25.31 qt of water at 172.4 F 154.0 F

Okay, reading up on other American Barleywine recipes it seems like Crystal may not be the best hop to use for late additions. I also realized that I have some additional hops – 1 lb of Nugget, ½ lb of Amarillo, and about 6 oz of Willamette (how could I forget about such great strains!). So I plan to change the hop schedule as follows:

2.00 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) (60 min-FWH)
.5 oz Centennial 20 min
.5 oz Nugget 20 min
1 oz Nugget 10 min
.5 oz Amarillo Flame out
.5 oz Cascade Flame out
.5 oz Nugget Flame out
1 oz Amarillo Dry Hop
1 oz Cascade Dry Hop

I’ll have to check the IBUs in Beersmith but a lot of the other recipes I’ve read said that after a year or so they wish they would have upped the bitterness.

I also think I am going to partigyle off the second runnings and make somewhat of a Kentucky Mild (after all I need something to help me get through the pregnancy too right?) I’ve read a little about partigyle and I have plenty of DME (plus a new refractometer) so I should be able to hit my gravities one way or the other. After I hit preboil volumes for the BW I may need to add more base malt and some additional chocolate, or maybe even a touch of black patent to get a nice dark color on the second runnings beer. I'll compensate with DME if needed. Trying to get an OG of 1.045 or so, with IBUs around 30.

Want to keep the hop schedule simple, probably go with something like this:

1 oz Magnum, (60 min-FWH)
1 oz Willamette (15 min)
1 oz Willamette (Flame Out)

I have some Imperial Stout that is 2.5 years old. The number one insight I have gained is that the bitterness absolutely drops out after a couple years. If you plan to age it a really long time I would max out the IBUs and try to get it to finish out fairly dry. It will be harsh all the way through the first year but taste heavenly after 2-3.

Thanks bbrim I am going to take that into consideration. I imagine I will be giving this out to friends and family to celebrate for the first year but I would like this to become somewhat of an annual tradition so yes I plan to age some of it for yearly vertical tastings.

kpr121 said:

Okay, reading up on other American Barleywine recipes it seems like Crystal may not be the best hop to use for late additions. I also realized that I have some additional hops – 1 lb of Nugget, ½ lb of Amarillo, and about 6 oz of Willamette (how could I forget about such great strains!). So I plan to change the hop schedule as follows:

2.00 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) (60 min-FWH)
.5 oz Centennial 20 min
.5 oz Nugget 20 min
1 oz Nugget 10 min
.5 oz Amarillo Flame out
.5 oz Cascade Flame out
.5 oz Nugget Flame out
1 oz Amarillo Dry Hop
1 oz Cascade Dry Hop

I’ll have to check the IBUs in Beersmith but a lot of the other recipes I’ve read said that after a year or so they wish they would have upped the bitterness.

Click to expand...

I use Willamette as late additions in my barleywine, it really came out nice.

Good point about the fade in hop character. That is something to consider. The one I brewed in November already tastes like a different beer. Also, I checked my notes and found that I used primarily Maris Otter for the base malt but nearly identical hop schedule and total grain weight as your recipe. I also added 2 oz in at FWH and then no more additions until 20 minutes left in the boil, where I started to dump them heavy handed. I did a 90 minute boil to concentrate the wort a bit, and used Chinook and Cascade only but that's because they're the only homegrown ones I had left. Good luck!

I'd say at least one barley wine and at least one sour the rest is up to you.

H-ost said:

I'd say at least one barley wine and at least one sour the rest is up to you.

Click to expand...

Ha haven't delved into sours yet. But barley wine is definitely on the list. Mead is second.

danorocks17 said:

I use Willamette as late additions in my barleywine, it really came out nice.

Click to expand...

Yea I've been on a Willamette kick lately.... my last mild, I call it the brown trout stout , was all Willamette and was awesome.

Brewing this up today... 45 minutes into mash of barleywine as I type.

Decided Im going to use some combination of the same hops for the second runnings beer... this is a 10 gallon recipe.

2 oz columbus 60 min
1 oz each cascade, amarillo, and nugget 10 min
1 oz each cascade, amarillo, and nugget 0 min

I am going on the fly with gravities and have plenty of DME to supplement.