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UPDATE:

I needed to account for my target batch size and boil off. Boil volume 1.5 gallons to yield .85 gallons (we will see).

1 lb 4 oz Brown Rice Syrup (30 min)
.1 oz Centennial 8.3% (60 min)
.1 oz Centennial 8.3% (2 min)
.5 packed S-05

OG 1.047
IBU 23.5

I'm going to do single stage for 2 weeks. I might use carb tabs on this one, I haven't decided yet.
 
I ended up hitting 1.048 after diluting it just a bit. I think I should have started with a little more than 1.5 gallons although my boil wasn't as vigorous as I am used to. Oh- and the BRS I got comes in 1 lb 5 oz jars so I just used that much. Here's the pic

01525.jpg


And now that fermentation has taken off, it looks like I left just enough room

01617.jpg
 
@Lcasanova
It looks like horchata right now. Hope it turns out well, or at least gives a little more insight into what the BRS does all by itself.
 
My prediction from the 84% batch is 'Bisquick flavor that quickly fades to near no flavor at all. Color resembles milk until it clears and then resembles a witbier.'
 
I am pitching it as a great light lager...and I will probably make one early next summer.
 
How are you planning on bottling these? I always have a hell of a time getting <1 gallon batch bottled. I usually just rack to another 1 gallon carboy with the priming sugar then use the auto siphon attached to a racking cane...but it isn't easy...
 
Lcasanova said:
How are you planning on bottling these? I always have a hell of a time getting <1 gallon batch bottled. I usually just rack to another 1 gallon carboy with the priming sugar then use the auto siphon attached to a racking cane...but it isn't easy...
Click to expand...

Rack to a keg, carbonate, and bottle using my Blichmann beer gun. Oh wait, you mean not everyone has these things?

If I were you, I would invest in a bottle filler to hook to the end of your autosiphon, with a tube in between.. Or maybe you already have one. It shouldn't break the siphon, but it will break the flow of beer.
 
Oops, I meant to say mini autosiphon attached to a bottle filler- yes with a tube in between :cross:

But I guess if I had all that other fancy equipment I could do it that way too
 
Lcasanova said:
Oops, I meant to say mini autosiphon attached to a bottle filler- yes with a tube in between :cross:

But I guess if I had all that other fancy equipment I could do it that way too
Click to expand...

I just didn't know if folks knew they exist. They are the greatest thing since the 1 gallon wine jug for the small batch homebrewer.
 
Revvy said:
I just didn't know if folks knew they exist. They are the greatest thing since the 1 gallon wine jug for the small batch homebrewer.
Click to expand...

Is the point of it just to not knock over the jug with the weight...or is it just to have less lost in the siphon itself? Does it have a smaller bottom cap?

I am trying to determine why it is necessary, I did know they existed but couldn't find an advantage.
 
DKershner said:
Is the point of it just to not knock over the jug with the weight...or is it just to have less lost in the siphon itself? Does it have a smaller bottom cap?

I am trying to determine why it is necessary, I did know they existed but couldn't find an advantage.
Click to expand...

I had trouble using my big autosiphon on the gallon I couldn't get it to start to save my life, so I ran down the street to my LHBS that is three blocks away and got it.
 
Revvy said:
I had trouble using my big autosiphon on the gallon I couldn't get it to start to save my life, so I ran down the street to my LHBS that is three blocks away and got it.
Click to expand...

I just do multiple pumps...does that not work with a gallon?
 
Revvy said:
Honestly I can't remember what the situation was, it was a couple years ago that I bought mine. It may even have simply been that my autosiphin couldn't fit comfortably in the small neck of the jug.
Click to expand...

I'll make sure to do a water run before I do anything in them. I am pretty sure my LHBS doesn't have mini's on hand.
 
Finally got around to bottling the blonde. I ended up getting 9 bottles, booyah! Finished at 1010. I'm going to let this sit for 3 weeks before I test the first one. DKershner- one of these will make its way to you eventually.
 
Lcasanova said:
Finally got around to bottling the blonde. I ended up getting 9 bottles, booyah! Finished at 1010. I'm going to let this sit for 3 weeks before I test the first one. DKershner- one of these will make its way to you eventually.
Click to expand...

Heh, I will bottle up an 84% one when I get a chance, but I bombed it with Apricot over the weekend. =P It should be along with the coffee stout and Holiday spice beer in a couple weeks when they are ready.
 
I know it's jumping around a bit BUT, I saw a post earlier this morning that got my attention for some reason. A guy is brewing a watermelon beer using flavorings and they seem to work pretty good. They are all gluten free and water soluble so....

Im going to do a 1 gallon pumpkin with this. I'll probably do this twice. One with just the flavoring and another with the flavoring and spices. That said, I think I'll do 100% BRS with these so I don't have to order any sorghum syrup.

Im also going to do another double chocolate oatmeal stout but I'm going to tweak my original recipe and substitute this in place of the wonder cocoa.

Any thoughts?
 
Lcasanova said:
I know it's jumping around a bit BUT, I saw a post earlier this morning that got my attention for some reason. A guy is brewing a watermelon beer using flavorings and they seem to work pretty good. They are all gluten free and water soluble so....

Im going to do a 1 gallon pumpkin with this. I'll probably do this twice. One with just the flavoring and another with the flavoring and spices. That said, I think I'll do 100% BRS with these so I don't have to order any sorghum syrup.

Im also going to do another double chocolate oatmeal stout but I'm going to tweak my original recipe and substitute this in place of the wonder cocoa.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

Those scare me for some reason, they look medicinal. I see those for sale at places that sell the fake sugar, like stevia and splenda and the like. I avoid those like the plague, and feel like we have no reason to avoid sugar, or water, or alcohol in our beverages, which seems to be their primary purpose.

Much rather use these or the like, but I am probably just biased because of the sites those ones you posted show up on.
 
I agree, there's too much artificial in there for my comfort. How about some other natural chocolate extracts, do you think those would work compared to those shown? I don't think they have a pumpkin extract however.

Nothing wrong with stevia, it's just a natural plain leaf. Splenda scares me however.
 
So here's my tentative SMaSH plan for tonight through the weekend depending on how much time I have. I'm going to try three back to back batches using essentially the same procedure for all.

#1
1 lb BRS in 1.5+ gallon boil for 60min
.1oz Saaz@60
.1oz Saaz@30
.1oz Saaz@flameout
1tsp yeast nutrient to primary
yeast starter made from my currently bubbling GF batch Nottingham

#2
Same as above except using 1lb Molasses

#3
Same as above except using 1lb Maple syrup.

I'd like to do the same with Agave nectar and Blackstrap molasses as well, but I don't have enough Saaz for that, so those will have to wait until my next order.

Stage 2 repeat the most successful of the previous tests, with steeping a "specialty" grain prior to boil. I'm planning on doing unmalted since I'm only steeping them. I haven't decided whether I should do stage 2 as side by side batches of different roast levels of the same grain, or using the same roast level but of different GF grains.

Thoughts?Suggestions? etc................
 
The molasses ones will probably be rough at best.

The maple syrup one will ferment out almost completely and will probably just taste like alcohol or hooch without flavoring. Make sure to use Grade D to get any flavor at all.

Agave would be interesting.

I would throw tapioca into the mix if you can find some.
 
fermentedhiker said:
So here's my tentative SMaSH plan for tonight through the weekend depending on how much time I have. I'm going to try three back to back batches using essentially the same procedure for all.

#1
1 lb BRS in 1.5+ gallon boil for 60min
.1oz Saaz@60
.1oz Saaz@30
.1oz Saaz@flameout
1tsp yeast nutrient to primary
yeast starter made from my currently bubbling GF batch Nottingham

#2
Same as above except using 1lb Molasses

#3
Same as above except using 1lb Maple syrup.

I'd like to do the same with Agave nectar and Blackstrap molasses as well, but I don't have enough Saaz for that, so those will have to wait until my next order.

Stage 2 repeat the most successful of the previous tests, with steeping a "specialty" grain prior to boil. I'm planning on doing unmalted since I'm only steeping them. I haven't decided whether I should do stage 2 as side by side batches of different roast levels of the same grain, or using the same roast level but of different GF grains.

Thoughts?Suggestions? etc................
Click to expand...

Just a thought.

Using only 1# of BRS is a 1.5+ boil will give you a gravity probably around 1040 (Im guessing). I boiled 1lb 5 oz in exactly 1.5 gallons to get .85 gallons going into the fermenter. My OG was 1048 and it fermented down to 1010.

Just food for thought.

I agree with Dkershner on the molasses and maple syrup but I am very interested in the molasses one- specifically the blackstrap. If it weren't for the extracts I ordered I just might do that one myself. Then again, if you don't get to it, I will try to.
 
So maybe I should do a 1.25 gallon boil to end up with .75 gallons in the primary?

I don't expect them to be keepers, just palette education so I can have a better understanding of what each ingredient brings to the table under brewing conditions.

tonight is the BRS batch.

So tapioca is another one, any others you can think of?
 
fermentedhiker said:
So maybe I should do a 1.25 gallon boil to end up with .75 gallons in the primary?

I don't expect them to be keepers, just palette education so I can have a better understanding of what each ingredient brings to the table under brewing conditions.

tonight is the BRS batch.

So tapioca is another one, any others you can think of?
Click to expand...

Honey? Dark Brown Sugar? High Maltose Corn Syrup?
 
just an fyi, I found another source for BRS that has a cheaper price if purchased by the gallon(not sure what the shipping cost is) suzannes specialties which sells 1lb jars for 5$ but 1 Gallon for 30$ which drops the price almost in half before shipping.
 
How about Coconut syrup, or how about Yacon? Palm syrup? That might be the same as coconut syrup. Not sure what nutrients are in them, and I don't recall what other liquid sweeteners I saw at wholefoods.
 
fermentedhiker said:
So here's my tentative SMaSH plan for tonight through the weekend depending on how much time I have. I'm going to try three back to back batches using essentially the same procedure for all.

#1
1 lb BRS in 1.5+ gallon boil for 60min
.1oz Saaz@60
.1oz Saaz@30
.1oz Saaz@flameout
1tsp yeast nutrient to primary
yeast starter made from my currently bubbling GF batch Nottingham

#2
Same as above except using 1lb Molasses
...

Thoughts?Suggestions? etc................
Click to expand...

I did a 5 gallon batch pretty similar to #2. It was all molasses, but used Cascade hops. I did not use any yeast nutrient.

It fermented quite vigorously. It finished at 6.5% abv. The taste was too sweet, and not what you are looking for in beer.
That said, I'm drinking it :mug:
 
I just did a quick search on google, blackstrap molasses is about 50% unfermentable while light molasses is only 10% unfermentable. If you used blackstrap molasses that would explain why there was so much residual sweetness. The same could be said for light molasses but obviously a lot less sweeter than the blackstrap.

That is good to know
 
It was Roddenberry brand. Blackstrap I believe.
I wondered if the sweetness was due to unfermentables or because the abv got too high for ale yeast. Your comment answers that. Thanks.
 
KevinM said:
How about Coconut syrup, or how about Yacon? Palm syrup? That might be the same as coconut syrup. Not sure what nutrients are in them, and I don't recall what other liquid sweeteners I saw at wholefoods.
Click to expand...

I guess I'm going to have to go back to the store and poke around some more :), and I really need to order some more hops.
 
There's lots of things that seem interesting to try, different sweetners, different flavoring items. I'd consider some of the fruit sugars, like dates, but it may turn into more of a wine than a beer. I'm still working on the basic hop differences at the moment, doing 4 SMaSH's to compare hop flavors and will likely do more before I experiment. I overdid the sorghum to water ratio though and may have to water it down and let it referment.
 

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