A Fun Experiment w/ brewing friend...

Well, the guy that introduced me to brewing has been telling me that spending money on a therminator is a costly investment when he already brews good beer... I see a lot of room for improvement on both our brewing fronts and figure we could use all the help we can get...

Fair enough?

This discussion led to the following experiment:

Midwest Brewing:

Hop Head Double IPA Extract Kit X 2 w/ Dry Yeast ( US-05; military in italy)

Challenge:

Who's process makes a tastier beer? Our hopes is that a little competition and sharing our notes post brew will lead to a little insight on what "REALLY" makes a good extract brew.

PRIZE:

The loser buys the therminator, but the winner can borrow it as needed...


Obviously, this all changes with full-grain--but we'll keep it simple for now. We have the exact same set-ups...


Stay tuned for NOTES and a process breakdown-- :fro:
Any notes would be greatly appreciated!!!

J

Fun. Subscribed

Gotta get a few knowledgeable tasters though.

I could probably squeeze you in for a 6 pack of each if you sent em my way...

I'm curious about this kit as well. This is the last kit we're doing before going all-grain, and we're adding a bit of Honey Malt and Orange Peel as well. Hoping to have a huge citrusy beer with a nice honey finish (think Hopslam).

Good luck!

Ok, a couple of things have changed... but the challenge is only getting better!

PRIZE:

Loser buys winner 2 extract/full grain (bills) kits of his or her choice...

CHALLENGE:

WHEN: Starting Dec. 1st until Feb. 3rd (total brew time)

WHAT: 2 BREWS--

1. Hop Head Double IPA
2. Beer of Competitor's choice

ROE's: You can start whenever you want, but you have to bring a 6 pack of Hop Head double IPA from the midwest brewing extract kit (each man to brew his process completely seperately with accompanying notes/videos). PLUS, a brew of the competitor's choice (mostly likely a belgian wheat for me).

HOW: We are putting together a panel of judges who will do a blind taste test... more to come, but we will diversify this as much as possible.

ANY SUGGESTIONS ARE HIGHLY WELCOME!!!

That's all I have for now... but the idea is to test the extract brewing process to see what really makes a good beer (based on PERSONAL experiences). Plus, it's just fun to compete...haha

Later,

J

Sounds like fun. Subscribed!

Sweet! Subscribed too!

sounds like a fun challenge!

I volunteer to be a judge!

Two Beer or not Two Beer

Kits are in! We brew Friday... black Friday! Lol

Videos will be posted afterwards... let the competition begin!

This is a must have thread for photos! Subscribed

Well, brew day is done...

Pictures, explanations and videos will follow shortly.

NOTE: We were pretty blitzed in some of these videos.... and our hop editions may have gotten a bit mixed up.

Hope you enjoy!

Below is the primer....

This is awesome. JZ mentioned in the brew strong show "Kit Beers" that every brewer purchase one of the pre hopped wort can kits and make it the best beer possible (fermentation temp control, aeration etc) and pitch a quality yeast.

He and many others on this board and elsewhere feel that fermentation make the beer, not wort production. I really feel like trying it with my new ferm fridge and o2 setup to see how good or bad one of those canned kits could be. Great experiment.

Have you got your tasters lined up yet? I'm in Florence and would enjoy participating if I can get the beers in my hands.

Anything is possible... official tasting will be on the 3rd of February...

*subscribed*

I can't wait to see the outcome.

-=Jason=-

Brew day video:
[ame=http://youtu.be/RDQrdpV__b0]Hop Head Double IPA - Heck vs White.mov - YouTube[/ame]
(NSFW language)

Hey all, I'm the other brewing who may or may not have worn pants during the brew.

Quick link to the recipe I followed:
Hopville . "Hop Head Double IPA" American IPA Recipe

Here's a video we put together of the process:
Hop Head Double IPA - Heck vs White.mov - YouTube

Ok, so basically... check out this video to get a feel for our brew day. I'll be loading my video here shortly--but don't expect any edited footage... I LIKE IT RAW. :rockin:

[ame=http://youtu.be/RDQrdpV__b0]Hop Head Double IPA - Heck vs White.mov - YouTube[/ame]
(Thanks to Heck for the video editing)

Heck brewed by feel (wildman), and I brewed by the brewer's friend checklists and recipe sheets.

Heck measured his additions by eye-- I measured my additions with a digital scale.

Heck only utilized his temp probe randomly (never checked his wort prior to pouring in fermenter). I used mine continuously through the steep and prior to pouring in fermenter. Heck did not measure prior to pitching... of course... I did.

We both ensured a good fermentation start by keeping our yeast hydration and total yeast cell count equal. We both utilized the exact same process to hydrate our yeast--and exactly 23 grams of dry yeast for 5 gallon batches...

Although we both over-pitched... we had to ensure the fermentation was controlled to evaluate whether the wort boil matters, or is it the yeast that change the flavor profiles more. STAY TUNED FOR MORE EXPERIMENTS!

BOTTOM LINE: Heck went off the cuff, I was very detail oriented and followed multiple checklists. We both utilized hop addition timers, so we kept that controlled...

Hope you all enjoy! BTW, Heck is also JOnheck in the forums

J

Raw Footage:

PRIMER:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlLW43pT1w8]White vs. Heck Brewing Challenge Part I - YouTube[/ame]

HECK'S Technique:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1SpuiSbpmA]White Vs. Heck Brew Challenge PART 2 - YouTube[/ame]

Day 1 Fermentation:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmk6uiGDljk]White Vs. Heck Brew Challenge PART 3 (Fermentation) - YouTube[/ame]

Enjoy...

J

Nice vids! interested to see how this turns out

nice series... keep it coming.

Funny videos guys!

Two Beer or not Two Beer

Subscribed, this is going to be great to follow over the holidays. Good work guys.

I just posted in the equipment forum... we need help picking the prize...

Shoot us some feedback!

Thanks

J

Great job on the vids so far.

Update 6 days into Primary fermentation; looks a different than normal... but I'm satisfied.

[ame=http://youtu.be/FTb7B6p5VFk]Heck's Home Brew Update - YouTube[/ame]

The final "handshake" has been made--

PRIZE: The winner of this challenge will be allowed to fill any online shopping cart with $400.00 of brewing equipment of their choice ( including shipping).

We are still working out the blind taste test Rules of Engagement, but so far:

1. 5 Judges (3 beer advocates/ 2 novices)
2. Ratings of 1 and 2 will be given for each category (Clarity, Aroma, Mouthfeel, etc.), lowest OVERALL score wins the bet
3. All testers will clear the nose/pallet w/ coffee beans and water (any feedback here would be great) EVERY TIME, prior to drinking.
4. Both styles will be marked with stickers on bottom of glasses.
5. All brews will be blind (even to us).
6. IPA's will be tested head to head, Brewer's choice will be tested head to head in 2nd wave.


That's all we have for now... the main facilitator will ensure the test is as objective as possible...

The dry hopping videos will be coming shortly!

Later,

J

year2beer said:

The final "handshake" has been made--

PRIZE: The winner of this challenge will be allowed to fill any online shopping cart with $400.00 of brewing equipment of their choice ( including shipping).


J

Click to expand...

Hot Dang

I dry hopped about a week ago--just been kind of lazy getting the videos up. Everything seems to be going just fine (way better than HECK's hahahahahahha).

After watching this video, I'm starting to believe that I am obsessed with brewing beer! haha

As always "raw" footage...

Enjoy!

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fVuFqEhZ-0&feature=plcp&context=C2c749UDOEgsToPDskKWduUmnfqM8ddrQjDKyU9g]White vs. Check-in Brew Challenge dry hop - YouTube[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgjWJm4LOdI&feature=plcp&context=C2660bUDOEgsToPDskJ9nf9k9CuSvWirS8Cz8rzE]White vs. Check-in Brew Challenge dry hop part 2 - YouTube[/ame]

We are starting to narrow down the score sheets for the competition, but right now the homebrewer's association is winning the race...:fro:

Later,

J

You guys should bring some down to a B'Ham brew meeting. You'll have plenty of tasters

Spintab said:

You guys should bring some down to a B'Ham brew meeting. You'll have plenty of tasters

Click to expand...

We actually live in Italy right now. My profile keeps reverting to where I purchased my phone... no marbles.

year2beer said:

We actually live in Italy right now. My profile keeps reverting to where I purchased my phone... no marbles.

Click to expand...

Bummer

Well the double hop head Ipa is bottled! 3 weeks and 1 day in primary. Dry hopped with whole leaf... no bags (which I regret now) . The beer was cold crashed for 3 days. It will sit in a 68-72F room for 3 weeks. I will do everything in my power not to drink any. LMAO!

OG: 1.068
FG: 1.014

ABV: ~7%

Tastes amazing... just needs some good old bottle conditioning time.

The Belgian honey is coming along... but is missing some character? Hoping my pumpkin ale will come out better, as I need a good second beer to SMOKE Hecks ass! Haha NO MERCY.

Later,

J

Update from my side of the fence:

In keeping with my love of details and organization--(sarcasm noted)
Brew: Hop Head Double IPA
OG: Forget, maybe 1.067
FG: Higher than expected, 1.018 i think
ABV: I think it was around 6.5%
Primed: 1.25 cup sugar

Did a quick taste compare with Jeremy (year2beer); he definitely takes the cake when it comes to "smack you in your F#*^ing face with hops". They may by due largely to my later hop additions, but I also suspect it has something to do with my dry hop... I kept things in a bag and DID NOT weigh the bag down into the carboy.

Thankfully, I was going for crowd appeal so the less hoppy character is a plus for the purpose of the contes (IMHO).

Also worth noting is that my beer has a significantly higher clarity that Jeremy's due to my use of a secondary and keeping the dry hop in a nylon bag.

Brews on deck for possible competition:
ESB Clone
Belgian Tripel
Irish Red
Espresso Porter (probably going to move off this list really quick)

2 months until competition day.

J0nheck said:

Update from my side of the fence:

In keeping with my love of details and organization--(sarcasm noted)
Brew: Hop Head Double IPA
OG: Forget, maybe 1.067
FG: Higher than expected, 1.018 i think
ABV: I think it was around 6.5%
Primed: 1.25 cup sugar

Did a quick taste compare with Jeremy (year2beer); he definitely takes the cake when it comes to "smack you in your F#*^ing face with hops". They may by due largely to my later hop additions, but I also suspect it has something to do with my dry hop... I kept things in a bag and DID NOT weigh the bag down into the carboy.

Thankfully, I was going for crowd appeal so the less hoppy character is a plus for the purpose of the contes (IMHO).

Also worth noting is that my beer has a significantly higher clarity that Jeremy's due to my use of a secondary and keeping the dry hop in a nylon bag.

Brews on deck for possible competition:
ESB Clone
Belgian Tripel
Irish Red
Espresso Porter (probably going to move off this list really quick)

2 months until competition day.

Click to expand...

1 month until competition day...

He's doomed, I have a delicous pumpkin ale (punky monkey) sitting in secondary "clearing" very nicely. Smells and tastes incredible after 2 weeks...

Alchoholic pumpkin pie anyone?

Pumpkin ale just bottled...

Nose smells like pumpkin pie, starts sweet and finishes smooth with a bit of spicy bitter notes. Which of course makes you want to take another sip... GOTTA LOVE THAT CYCLE... haha

Can't wait for bottle conditioning to finish...

J0nheck said:

Brew: Hop Head Double IPA
OG: Forget, maybe 1.067
FG: Higher than expected, 1.018 i think
ABV: I think it was around 6.5%

Click to expand...

Haha! not saying anything to your brew style because I am pretty similar but your recaps are funny!