Winter Warmer and "Witbier" recipe critique

One more exam to go and then I'm off for a single day. Wich will be used to brew delicious beer. But that will beer will not be delicious if I made stupid mistakes while creating my recipes. So I need your help.

First recipe:
St Nick Winter Warmer (Old Ale)
Type: Partial Mash
Batch Size: 4,00 gal
Boil Size: 4,50 gal
Boil Time: 60 min

Est Original Gravity: 1,074 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1,019 SG (73% apparent attenuation)
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 7,18 %
Bitterness: 51 IBU
Est Color: 17,1 SRM

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU
3,00 lb Pale Liquid Extract [Boil for 15 min] Extract 17,94 %
6,50 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2,0 SRM) Grain 62,79 %
0,80 lb Barley, Flaked (1,7 SRM) Grain 7,18 %
0,60 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt -135 (135,0 SRM) Grain 5,38 %
0,25 lb Special Roast (50,0 SRM) Grain 2,22 %
2,50 oz Goldings, East Kent [5,00 %] (60 min) Hops 46,8 IBU
1 Pkgs SafBrew Ale (DCL Yeast #S-33) Yeast-Ale

Mash at 152F for 60 minutes.

This I intend to bulk condition/age for a month after primary fermentation is complete and then bottle carb. I will probably drink a few this season if it is ready, but I intend to age at least 50% of the batch for a while. I want something big and warming with noticeable caramel, sweetness and dark fruits to sip by the fireplace and share with friends.

Now for the "Witbier" wich isn't one because it's a bastardization of the style.

Type: All Grain
Batch Size: 5,00 gal
Boil Size: 5,00 gal
Boil Time: 60 min

Est Original Gravity: 1,044 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1,012
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4,27 %
Bitterness: 13,8 IBU
Est Color: 3,4 SRM

Ingredients

4,70 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2,0 SRM) Grain 49,47 %
4,40 lb Wheat, Flaked (1,6 SRM) Grain 46,32 %
0,40 lb Oats, Flaked (1,0 SRM) Grain 4,21 %
1,00 oz Hallertauer [3,90 %] (60 min) Hops 13,8 IBU
0,25 oz Coriander Seed (Boil 5,0 min)
Zest from two sweet oranges (Boil 5,0 min)
1 Pkgs SafBrew Specialty Ale (DCL Yeast #T-58) Yeast-Ale

Mash at 152F for 60 minutes

Girlfriend wanted something to drink during Christmas: easy, smooth, inobstrusive. She likes white beers and wanted citrus accents: I didn't add much coriander because I wanted to have some in there but I don't want to overspice.

I didn't want to buy pils just for a single recipe and be stuck with it afterward, so I decided to go for your basic Gambrinus 2-row pale malt. I'm also using dry yeast because I don't want to mess with liquid: she won't taste the difference (probably) and I'm brewing this solely for her and maybe her dad. This is an experiment to have something cheap on hand for guests, not an attempt at authenticity.

Flame away !

The winter warmer seems alright to me, but with the Wit, I'd probably double the orange zest. I just brewed Jamils Wit 2 weeks ago, and I used 1.5 oz fresh tangerine zest, .4 oz crushed coriander seed, and 5 teaspoons of whole chamomile tea. My og was 1.050 and I used t-58 yeast. I took a hydrometer reading yesterday and it was AMAZING. The spices were perfectly balanced.

Also, I didn't strain em out/put em in a hop bag.

I had all of my tests a couple of weeks ago, so I planned a double batch brew day one Saturday (when I brewed my Wit and Yuri's Thunderstruck). Unfortunately, I'm about to hit another round of tests next week. Good luck on yours man.

Tangerine, interesting... I might go with that instead if I can find fresh ones that do not look like they went to hell and back twice.

Also, when I say that I have only a single day off, I'm half kidding. I will probably still be studying during wait times.

jfr1111 said:

Tangerine, interesting... I might go with that instead if I can find fresh ones that do not look like they went to hell and back twice.

Also, when I say that I have only a single day off, I'm half kidding. I will probably still be studying during wait times.

Click to expand...

I hear you on that. What's your major?

Law School.

Since I'm not getting any comments, I'm assuming my recipes are good (or at least look good). I'm thinking about bumping down the Winter Warmer OG down by a few points though so I can have some that will be drinkable by Christmas. I can always brew big beers in small 2 gallon batches on the stove this winter by collecting more wort and boiling down longer. Tying down bottles this early in the game might mess with the pipeline.

Yeah, I think the recipes look fine. If you want to bump the warmer down, I'd just drop your extract a little bit.

That's awesome you're in Law School man. My girlfriend is actually planning on taking her LSAT in the next year or so. We're both about to start our senior year for our undergrad.

In my own thread, but law school is a commitment. She must be certain that is what she wants to do before enrolling, especially in the US since she will be saddled with debts upon graduation. Jobs are scarce too and a JD can actually be worse than just an undergrad degree.

I'll be brewing these beers Saturday, notes will follow.

I brewed both of these, but changed the Winter Warmer recipe a bit, dropping the flaked barley and upping the Special Roast a smidge. I also split my crystal malts between 40L and 135L.

Tasting notes when I took my gravity readings at one week:

Winter Warmer
SG: 1.072
Now: 1.018

Boozy nose with abricot and vanilla. Taste is more of the same, along with the Special Roast twang. This will take a long time to age I'm afraid. I'm not in any hurry though. Right now it's like drinking cheapish whiskey: it's harsh and nothing has melded. A week in, I'm not surprised.

Witbier
SG: 1.044
Now: 1.010 (3 days in a row)

This will be bottled next week. Citrus nose with some malt. Taste is dry and crisp with some final tartness and mineral. You can't taste the grapfruit, it's more like tangerine and lemon now. I should have spiced this with some corriander, but I banked on the yeast to give me spicyness. There is none to be had, but I fermented pretty low. If it stays this way, I can see it being very drinkable. It also came out very pale, wich was one of my goals.