Recipe Type: All Grain Yeast: SafLager 2-23 Yeast Starter: no Batch Size (Gallons): 5.5 Original Gravity: 1.056 Final Gravity: 1.013 IBU: 42.6 Boiling Time (Minutes): 90 Color: 4.0 (beersmith) Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 14 @ 50F Additional Fermentation: lager 4 weeks @ 32F in keg Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 7 @ 62F Tasting Notes: a tad hoppier than I think the style normally would have, but it's good
scored 43.5
my grains, hops, and yeast came from AustinHomeBrew
Recipe started a while back based on the brewing classic styles
My water is 2:1 distilled to well water (I live in the country) which creates close to the pilsen profile.
11# german 2-row pilsner
about 12 ounces of dextrine malt (or whatever you like for head retention, cara-foam, cara-pils, etc.)
I did a double decoction:
infuse 4.41 gal at 157.2 to get first step of 148F for 60 minutes
with 30 minutes left, pull decoction 1, heat decoction 1 to 158F, let it rest for 10 minutes, then heat to a boil for remaining 15 minutes of Mash rest.
return decoction 1 slowly to main mash, until you get to 158F in main mash. Any remainder should be cooled to 158 then added in.
Immediately pull decoction 2 and bring it to boil during this 30 minute 158F mash rest.
return decoction 2, whole thing. You want 168F or higher ideally.
chill, whirlpool, siphon to carboy, aerate with aquarium pump through hepa filter off and on until reached 30 minutes of pumping time (letting foam subside as necessary and counting time to a total). Pitch dry yeast directly into fermenter, fermenter at about 68F by this time, and in lager freezer set to 50F with 1 degree differential, so it quickly is taken to 50F.
after 2 weeks or so, ramp up 1 degree every 12 hours to 62F and finish out a week.
Rack to keg, chill to 32F, store for 1 month, then enjoy.
I used the BierMuncher Bottle Filler to fill bottles from keg to send to competition.
43.5 is fantastic, great job. Would you decrease the hopping next time or leave it as is? Was that a comment on your score sheets?
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Up Next: Some sort of big stout
Fermenting: Turbid Mash Spelt pLambic, Kriek, Sacchless Pale Ale, Sour Belgian Dark Strong
Drinking: Trois Levure Saison, Black IPA, 2011 Hop Harvest IPA, Munich Dunkel, Sour Blonde, American Barleywine, Dopplebock
30 gallons YTD
wierd thing was that one judge asked for MORE hops... which is definitely out of style by comparison to commercial examples. I think I might like to do it again with a little less of the late hop addition and try to get it and one done like this again into some same competitions and compare scoring.
It might be just the american tendency to prefer hops, so it depends then if my goal is higher scores or closer to traditional style...
Hey Nathan. I'm gonna try this recipe, or close to it, for my Abominable Snow Pilz. I use locally harvested snow from my front yard for naturally soft water. last year it turned out tasty, this year, with this recipe I think it'll be a bit more hoppy which is what I was gonna go for this year! I'll let you know how it turns out.
So, I brewed this with a decoction almost exactly as you did. I hit my numbers perfect. Now, I'm going to brew the exact same recipe with a Single infusion mash at 149-154 degrees. I'm wondering, what would be the best temperature to brew this to try and replicate it exactly. I want to be able to taste them side by side, and in the end decide whether the decoction is worth it. It's not that difficult for me to do...but I just like experimenting. Here are my options....
1. Do a Single infusion at 149-or-150 to get a highly fermentable wort.
2. Do a step infusion at 148 and another at 158 just like the decoction. This will also get my a highly fermentable wort and may be the best option for a true experiment with the only variable being, decoction vs. infusion.
Please let me know your opinions as I'm gonna brew this in two days.
All-Grain - Bohemian Pilsner (Silver Medalist)
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