Caramel cream ale?

Redweasel said:

Ok, don't want to be a bummer on this thread but.... I really don't like this brew at all! It has been bottle conditioning for well over a month and the vanilla is way too pronounced. I mean, I would give this all away to my friends if I was not too ashamed to admit brewing it. I'll try one again in about another month, maybe it will be better. Sorry for the downer post.

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Feel free to send them my way... I love this stuff!

Once more resurected.

I ordered up my ingredients last night, but in the hours of reading through this thread till my eyes were bleeding, I could not find a Version1 and Version2 recipe.

Is the recipe in post 4 or 5 now updated to as V2?
I think I'll only use 4oz vanilla first go round.

I did see somewhere it was stated the IBU's came in at 15 according to some software. Beersmith shows it at 35 with 1oz/.5oz/.5oz hop schedule. Bumping it to 1oz of all puts it up to 45 or so. Is this right?? Doesn't sound sweet to me that high.

1 oz 5.5% cascade, 60 min - 13 IBU
.5 oz 4% saaz, 20 min - 2.9 IBU
.5 oz 4.5% tettnang, 0 min - 0 IBU

Total - 15.9 IBU

I came up with this using Beersmith, so I have no idea how you could come up with that number.

I've got 1oz Cascade @ 5.5% giving me 19 IBU
.5oz Saaz @ 5.8% (from package) giving me 6.1 IBU
.5oz Tettnang @ 4.5% giving me 0 IBU

And Beersmith says 35 IBU's Total..

That's where I get it...

That's 25 dude. What's your OG?

Yea I know it's 25, and beersmith shows 35.. Something's not right obviously..

Estimated OG is 1055

Just checked my other recipes and they all add up correctly... Just this one is about 7-8 IBU's off for some reason.

ilikestuff said:

That's 25 dude. What's your OG?

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Ok.. I take out all the hops and get 0 IBU

Add only .5oz Saaz, shows 6.1 IBU in the list, but shows 8.5 below for total IBU.
Add only 1oz Cascade, shows 19 IBU in the list, but 26.5 below for total IBU.

WTF is up with that??

Wierd, can't help you there. BeerSmith (Brad) could probably help you out, he's an HBT member.

Well even BeerTools Pro comes up with a 26.4 bitterness. I don't know how you guys are ending up with 15 or 16.

I'm gonna hope it comes out right this weekend..

I just made this an bottled on 5/4/08. I used the recipe on the 5th post of this thread. The warning is clear, but let me reiterate - if you put 4oz of vanilla in just before bottling; it is VERY STRONG. I just had one again tonight, about 7 weeks after bottling, and it is still overpowering. Anything else I eat or drink tonight is going to taste like vanilla. If I make this again, it'll be with 2oz of vanilla before bottling, not 4. Just my 2 cents; if the vanilla ever mellows, I think it'll be a great beer - especially with dessert.

Sweet!!! I am in the middle of the boil right now!

I will be adding 2 oz of v.extract instead of 4. I'm so stoked for this beer. I hope I can wait the 1-2-3 method.

Sweet! Thanks for the recipe!

Hi I am relatively new at home brewing, and I've decided to make this one based on the replies! I have a couple of questions that I can't find in the threads - Do I use 2 or 2.5 gallons of water for the boil? Also - Am I correct in adding the 1.5 cups light DME when transferring to the primary? (won't that clump and sink to the bottom?) Thank you!

chesterchan said:

Hi I am relatively new at home brewing, and I've decided to make this one based on the replies! I have a couple of questions that I can't find in the threads - Do I use 2 or 2.5 gallons of water for the boil? Also - Am I correct in adding the 1.5 cups light DME when transferring to the primary? (won't that clump and sink to the bottom?) Thank you!

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Always boil your DME.

Always use as much water in your boil as you can fit without boiling over.

Always plan on a boil over.

Thanks Bier! In that case where it says "Priming: 1.5 cups of light DME" should I just add that to the rest of malts or simply nix it?

chesterchan said:

Thanks Bier! In that case where it says "Priming: 1.5 cups of light DME" should I just add that to the rest of malts or simply nix it?

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Priming refers to adding a fermentable sugar to the solution right before bottling.

This means do not add 1.5 cups of DME to the boil, primary or secondary. Only add it to the solution when getting ready to bottle- This means boil about 1-2 cups of water, and dissolve the DME in the water. Let it cool a bit, and rack the finished beer on top. Then siphon into bottles and cap.

So in short, you don't need to worry about priming sugar until 3 weeks after you make the beer.

BUT if you are force-carbonating your beer in a keg, then you don't need any priming agent at all.

Hope that helps, and good luck, I just bottled my VCCA yesterday.

So essentially, I'll be replacing the sugar that is normally boiled for bottling with the 1.5 cup of DME?

Yes. Although I kinda ran out of DME at the last minute and used sugar instead. Both will work. It will supposedly taste better with DME.

Good luck!

I want to do this again for the fall/winter and I was wondering where I could find these hops (or some good substitutes)

1oz Cascade
.5oz Saaz
.5 oz Tettnang

Thanks toaster! Last one - is the DME boiled as long as corn sugar would or longer? I recently ordered hops from AHS and Northern Brewer. Cheers!

chesterchan said:

Thanks toaster! Last one - is the DME boiled as long as corn sugar would or longer? I recently ordered hops from AHS and Northern Brewer. Cheers!

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I just boil it until it dissolves. Hope that helps.

So... I was at a restaurant in downtown Omaha (visiting) and they had a "Guinness Float" on the menu. I couldn't resist. It's basically a mug of Guinness with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. YUMM. So I got to thinking...

Wouldn't THIS beer, this sweet sweet vanilla caramel cream ale, go fantastic with a scoop of ice cream?

...

It. was. phenomenal!!!!! I highly recommend this concoction. Let the vanilla ice cream melt a bit and have at it.

Simply Awesome.

Those that have brewed this beer, does it taste anything like this:
Anderson Valley Summer Solstice Cerveza Crema from Anderson Valley Brewing Company, a Cream Ale style beer: An unofficial page for Anderson Valley Summer Solstice Cerveza Crema from Anderson Valley Brewing Company in Boonville, California , United St

I really enjoyed that beer and thought it was a great interpretation of a cream ale. Kinda resembles cream soda in a way, without being too sweet or cloying.

Anbrew said:

Those that have brewed this beer, does it taste anything like this:
Anderson Valley Summer Solstice Cerveza Crema from Anderson Valley Brewing Company, a Cream Ale style beer: An unofficial page for Anderson Valley Summer Solstice Cerveza Crema from Anderson Valley Brewing Company in Boonville, California , United St

I really enjoyed that beer and thought it was a great interpretation of a cream ale. Kinda resembles cream soda in a way, without being to sweet or cloying.

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I never had that beer, I'm sure it's not distributed here.

This beer tastes alot like cream soda. Except with beer in it.

This recipe is not a true cream ale.
Cream ale uses corn as an adjunct and as a result there can sometimes be a faint sweetness. Low to moderate levels of DMS are also acceptable in a cream ale...another dimension of sweetness that has a corn like flavor. Many cream ales are brewed extremely dry and these flavors are not present.

For me (having brewed this recipe), a more appropriate name would be "Caramal Vanilla Ale) because of the strong, almost tart vanilla flavor.

Correct me if I'm wrong

Is the boil time is 60 mins? So the Cascade hops would be added with all the DME. Also, is the boil a rolling boil? Do I stir constantly during the boil? Sorry, 1st time not doing a kit.

BigscreenBeerBonger said:

Correct me if I'm wrong

Is the boil time is 60 mins? So the Cascade hops would be added with all the DME. Also, is the boil a rolling boil? Do I stir constantly during the boil? Sorry, 1st time not doing a kit.

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Yes, most beer recipes are set for 60 minutes, unless specified otherwise. You start with a rolling boil, and then begin the timing and hops additions.

You don't stir constantly. You stir to keep it from burning on the bottom, and adjust the burner so it boils without scorching. I never stir, but I know some people do when they use extract.

I'm thinking about tweaking this recipe by toning down the vanilla and adding some gingerbread spices for a christmas beer. Any tips on when to add the spices or whether anyone else has tried something like this?

Okay I goofed up somewhere. Brewed following 1-2-3 (maybe why). Cracked one tonight. Quick dissolving head, very smooth and drinkable. Problem: carbonating with DME... smells and tastes slightly like rotten fruit... kinda like the smell of a wheat after a week in the primary. No vanilla flavor at all (3 1/2 oz). What am I doing wrong? I'm going to try this again with corn sugar to carbonate and much more vanilla!

I plain to force carb this beer. Anyone have any recommendations on the pressure or the volumes of CO2?

This was my first homebrew ever, I plan on doing it right after Christmas again.

I also submitted a personally tweaked recipe for this to the Sam Adams Longshot contest and got pretty decent marks for only having brewed 3 batches in my entire life.

chesterchan said:

Okay I goofed up somewhere. Brewed following 1-2-3 (maybe why). Cracked one tonight. Quick dissolving head, very smooth and drinkable. Problem: carbonating with DME... smells and tastes slightly like rotten fruit... kinda like the smell of a wheat after a week in the primary. No vanilla flavor at all (3 1/2 oz). What am I doing wrong? I'm going to try this again with corn sugar to carbonate and much more vanilla!

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Sounds to me like a bit of infection. Vanilla is a flavor that will dissipate with time. The more time in contact with the vanilla bean, the more intense flavor, but once that contact is no longer there, the flavor will immediately begin to dissipate.

Well I used 3.5 oz of McCormick pure vanilla extract. Ultimately I feel that I did not age this beer as long as I should have (which is of course all part of the learning process.) I also feel that I could have used vanilla bean(s) in secondary instead of extract. I am STILL having yeast off flavor issues. I recently made AHS apricot wheat and tried it 2 weeks in the bottle, and it had a sourness that faintly resembled the cream ale trial. I can only describe it as sour taste and funky smell like a wheat in the primary that is overpowering the apricot. It conditioned in temp between 65 and 78 which is a possible reason. My apartment gets cold but I put it in a little room with the furnace which is several degrees warmer. I don't mean to get off topic, but will it be a problem if I move the bottled apricot wheat into a warmer temperature?

Just bottled mine this evening and even the samples I tasted were wonderful! So smooth and yummy! I think the fact that I did this as a full boil might have played a part in this, but DAYMN!!!! I cant wait to taste this one when its ready!
-Me

Im bottling mine this weekend. I am using the 1-2-3 method, but my schedule has turned it into 1-4-3. That extra couple weeks in secondary shouldnt hurt anything, right?

thunderbyte said:

Im bottling mine this weekend. I am using the 1-2-3 method, but my schedule has turned it into 1-4-3. That extra couple weeks in secondary shouldnt hurt anything, right?

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Id say just give it that extra time in the PRIMARY. You wont need more than a couple of weeks in the secondary if your goal is to clear it. IMO 2ndary isnt necessary for this beer unless you are racking it onto vanilla beans.
-Me

JoeMama said:

Id say just give it that extra time in the PRIMARY. You wont need more than a couple of weeks in the secondary if your goal is to clear it. IMO 2ndary isnt necessary for this beer unless you are racking it onto vanilla beans.
-Me

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I'm pretty sure Cheese does a secondary with this beer. I would recommend a secondary with any beer like this. In fact, I would, and always to lager my cream ales for a bit (2-3 weeks atleast).

Just to clarify my post, Im not considering leaving it 4 weeks in secondary. This Sunday when I will bottle it will be a total of 4 weeks in secondary so its not an option. I was just wondering if will hurt it at all. regardless I am going to bottle and see what happens. I have been watching this thread for a while so Im pretty excited about trying it.

what would be a good dry yeast to use with this recipe, or is the Wyeast a deal breaker?

pww1 said:

what would be a good dry yeast to use with this recipe, or is the Wyeast a deal breaker?

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nottingham, or a chico strain. Its so sweet it's not going to make much difference

Well I could not help myself so I brewed up a batch of this today but I made some changes and my OG is way up so I would like some advise. Here is what I brewed:

I first started with 6 gal water............
Steeped 1 lb Caramel 60L
2oz belgian special B
2oz Belgian Biscuit
2oz Honey gold

All for 45-50 minutes at 155-160

Malts
3.5 lb extra light DME
3 lb wheat DME
.5 lb sparkling amber DME


everything else was the same per the 2nd recipe. I ended up with 5 gal but my OG is 1.072. I know that I used 1lb more DME but should my OG be this high? And if its ok should I pitch another yeast pack? I did use Wyeast and put it in a starter yesterday before using. I know others modified this but my OG just seems a little high to me.

But I must say it smells and taste's great! So far the best tasting wort ever!